‘Because I’m pregnant, Mum.’

Mum was silent. There was a flash of something behind her eyes, like I’d played a trump card. Like she had to take her walls down now and she wasn’t happy about it.

‘And because I’ve still got stuff here, some still inside the house and some over in Bromley, and also, I . . .’

‘But Anna,’ I could hear a tentative note in Basil’s voice – something new, some new distance from me. ‘Hessel chucked you out, remember? I don’t know if you should go in there.’

Mum wheeled around to look at Basil as if noticing him finally. She looked properly at him. A really steady look.

Basil stepped forward towards Mum and held out his hand.

‘Hey. I’m Basil, it’s really nice to meet you. I’ve heard –’

Mum blinked at him, like she’d just woken up. She didn’t take his hand but again looked around her at my stuff on the driveway.

Leonie said, softly, ‘Hey, Anna, what if Basil and I put all of this stuff in our car and go and get your things from Bromley and you can come and stay with us. Maybe your mum can even stay somewhere nearby and later, over the next few days or something, we can all talk if you want, or not –’ Leonie held her arm out to me and put her hand on my shoulder. ‘What do you think about that?’

Leonie’s voice was soothing. The chaos of stuff on the gravel brought it home again to me – I couldn’t stay here.

Mum was standing, paused, looking at the little house, like suddenly she was a process frozen, like all her decision-making faculties had stalled.

‘Cathy?’ said Leonie. But Mum was still staring dumbfoundedly at the little house. ‘Okay, Anna,’ Leonie said instead, gesturing to the house. ‘You go and get your things from in there, but don’t be too long, okay? I’m going to take you to the doctor’s, like, now.’ She transferred her hand to Basil’s shoulder. ‘And you, my boy, you and I need to talk.’ She sounded stern as she spoke to Basil and gestured pointedly at Bromley Cairn, at the top window. But her sternness belied her hands, which were gently manoeuvring her son away from the situation between me and Mum as though pulling him away from a dangerous animal. ‘And Cathy,’ she said as a final thought, as she turned Basil away from us. ‘Go carefully.’

Mum looked at Leonie then, coming out of her daze, and some understanding passed between them, and she nodded. Leonie and Basil climbed away through the fence and walked towards the old house, Basil with a sheepish step and Leonie with a secret little reassuring finger wave to me that Mum didn’t see.

I didn’t even look at Mum. I went through the fence and straight to the little house, not even caring if she was following me.

As I entered, Bette looked up from the table, her face still wet with tears. She stood immediately and embraced me. ‘Oh Anna, I’m so sorry. He’s gone somewhere now, but I’ll talk to him, I’ll make it alright, you can stay, of course you can –’