Kitty had felt a wave of panic when she’d heard. How dared Alfie take Tommy out and get him drunk? Anything might have happened to him. What if Sarah hadn’t chanced to be there when he’d made it home? What if he hadn’t made it home at all? Just walking along the street was dangerous, with all the potholes and debris, especially in the dark. Trying to do so when affected by drink would have been far worse. Kitty had never been drunk herself, but she’d seen her father staggering around often enough to know what it did to your sense of balance and direction. She was filled with a confusing mixture of emotions: disgust at Alfie taking blatant advantage of someone too young to know better; frustration that Tommy hadn’t simply said no; and almost overwhelming anxiety that she hadn’t been able to keep him safe. Now that Danny was away it fell to her alone, and sometimes she felt that she wasn’t up to the task. She was also alarmed when she took a moment to imagine what Alfie’s deeper motives might be. She didn’t want him anywhere near her house or family. He made her flesh creep. There was something not right about him – more than his reputation as a spivvy black marketeer warranted. If only Danny could come back soon.

Now here she was, late back once more, and wondering what awaited her as she opened the front door. She didn’t really think that Tommy would be down the pub with Alfie again; she’d sat him down and had a long talk with him, about how she had to rely on him to act like an adult now, and he had to live up to her expectations. He had agreed, desperately sorry that he’d disgraced himself. They had hugged and made up and she hoped that he would abide by his promise. Yet, now that it had happened once, she dreaded him doing something similar again.

She broke into a smile as she saw that for tonight at least there was no cause for anxiety. Tommy had got the fire going and the kitchen was toasty warm, and he was sitting at the table with what Kitty recognised as one of Dolly’s casseroles in front of him. She’d have to make sure to return the favour as soon as she could. Dolly was so generous but Kitty knew stretching the ration for this wouldn’t have been easy.

‘I haven’t eaten it all!’ was how he greeted her. ‘Aunty Dolly made sure there was enough for you as well. You just need to warm it up.’