‘Doesn’t she look lovely?’ He circled her waist with bony white hands. On Amber, the fine skin was like porcelain but on Ted, the fingers looked weak and feminine. He still wore a wedding band.

‘Yes, for a twenty-something,’ I sniped.

Mum cupped my head between her hands and kissed me on the crown. ‘As I’m the only lady tonight and have two men to keep happy, I thought I’d please you both.’ As she pirouetted on her heels, she grabbed my arm to steady herself.

‘Oops,’ she giggled. ‘Too much sherry.’

Amber’s ghost was in the room throughout the pantomime. Ted served up the turkey. I could feel the insincere pity directed my way. He thought it was cleverly masked.

I spent the evening wondering when Amber would have told them she wasn’t coming. I was tempted to go round there later, ring the doorbell, and ask her. Look in the whites of her eyes.

My resolve hardened when Mum insinuated, after one too many sherries, that perhaps Amber had found somebody else. Mum toyed with me, flirting like a sluttish harlot over her two men.

I tried to shut out the memories. Perhaps it had been childish innocence and mother-worship that had made me solely blame the men. Tonight it seemed more likely that my mother had played a willing part.

Ted assured me his daughter had flu. She wouldn’t lie to him. Amber was his only child after all, he reminded us in measured tones. I watched him with suspicion as he poured wine with his skeletal fingers. I was looking out for the faintest glimmer of a lie. I hoped he was telling the truth. Perhaps Amber really was bedridden. She might even start missing me if her condition worsened.

But I wasn’t that stupid. I didn’t suffer from delusions.

10

Rebecca

I took up Oliver’s invitation to meet up at lunchtime as we were both worried about our future. We met at the gallery. Crystal was inside with the door’s Closed sign facing the street. Oliver and I peered through the bevelled glass.

‘Shit. What should we do?’ Oliver stepped back from the door, looking to me for an answer.

‘Let’s knock, she’ll not mind,’ I said, assuming to know my dead boss’s spouse. ‘Anyway, we ought to offer our condolences.’

Crystal came over to let us in. She was dressed immaculately in a short navy skirt and figure-hugging pink jumper. A chunky set of pearls hung round her neck. She was indeed beautiful and quite literally ‘to die for’ was how Oliver later put it over lunch.