'Yes! And he said you're very mean to me and he's going to come and get you, see!' Kenny shrieked. 'And anyway, I'm not Kenny any more. I'm Kendall.'

'For God's sake!' Mum called from the bathroom. 'Stop yelling, both of you. They'll be banging on the walls here.'

'But he was trying to phone Dad!'

'Don't be so daft. He doesn't know how to. He doesn't even know the number properly.'

'I do, I do! I know our number. It's one two three four sixteen ten twenty, see!' said Kenny.

I did see. I picked him up and gave him a hug, saying I was really sorry I'd hurt his poor hand. Mum got out of her bath, all pink and pretty in spite of the new bruises and her sore nose. I dunked Kendall in the water and blew bubbles with him until he'd cheered up.

'Now let's go out on the razzle,' said Mum.

We started off with a second breakfast pancakes and maple syrup and ice cream. I ate all mine and half of Kendall's, and then ran my fingers round and round the plate to get every scrap of maple syrup.

'Tut tut, your manners, Lola Rose,' said Mum. Then she stuck out her finger and did exactly the same.

I picked my plate up to lick it.

'Uh-uh! You're going a bit too far now,' said Mum. 'Come on then. Big treat time. We're going on the London Eye.'

'Big treat, big treat, big treat!' Kendall sang over and over again, until it became meaningless gabble.

He whooped with excitement when we pointed out the huge wheel with its glass pods. We watched it revolving very very slowly.

'Big treat, big treat, big treat,' Kendall gabbled all the time we queued. Everyone smiled at first and said, 'Bless him,' but eventually you could see it was getting on their nerves. It was getting on our nerves too, but there's no way you can shut him up when he starts. He 'big treated' right until the moment we went to step into the glass pod. Then he screamed.

'Kenny? What's up?' said Mum.

'Kendall!' I hissed. 'Come on, it's OK. Step on quick.'

'Noooo!' Kenny roared. 'It's too scary!'

I had to pick him up and lug him on, carrying him over my shoulder. He kicked and screamed, his square-toed shoes kicking me in the tummy.

'Cut it out, Kendall. It's lovely. Not a bit scary.'

'We'll fall!'

'No we won't. We're in our glass pod. We're going right up high, just like we're flying. Look!'

Kendall wouldn't look. He stopped screaming but he stuck his head right inside my jacket and clung tightly. I wanted to get up off my seat and have a proper look, but he moaned whenever I moved.

'You are a wimp, Kendall,' said Mum. 'Here, Lola Rose, I'll take him for a bit.'

'Thanks, Victoria,' I said.

It felt as if we were actors because we hadn't quite got used to using our new names. I loved being called Lola Rose. I unhooked Kendall, parking him with Mum. I stood with my face pressed against the glass. It wasn't quite scary enough for me. I wanted to whizz round and round with all of London blurring. I wished our glass pod would fly off by itself, whirling us further and further away from Dad. It felt so much safer up here in the bright blue sky.

I didn't like it when we were back on the ground again. I kept thinking about Dad, looking over my shoulder.

'Don't act so twitchy, Lola Rose, it's getting on my nerves,' said Mum.

'Where are we going now?' said Kendall.

Mum didn't reply. I looked at her. She didn't know.

'Let's go shopping,' I said.

We couldn't see any shops, just river and walkways and big buildings. 'Where are the shops, Mum?'

'Well, kind of over there,' said Mum, gesturing vaguely across the river. 'I suppose we'd better get up on the bridge. So what are you after, Lola Rose? That denim jacket with fur? And shall we get you your little leather jacket, Kendall?'

Kendall didn't react. He was breathing deeply, still a bit snuffly after all that screaming. He was staring up at the building beside us.

'Kendall? Have you forgotten that's your name?' I hissed.

'I know,' he said, not looking at me. He was staring at the sign on the building. 'That's the fish word.'

'Aquarium! Yeah, you're right, my lovely,' said Mum. 'Clever little lad! Imagine a little boy like you knowing a big word like aquarium!'

'Can we buy some fish to be Bubble's friends?'

'Yes, we could maybe buy a new goldfish, and some food and a proper bowl,' I said.

Bubble hadn't looked too clever this morning. We'd cleared the bath of bubbles and left him swimming in this big big pool but Bubble seemed very tired. I had a feeling he wasn't going to last much longer. It would be great if Kendall could be distracted with a whole new fishy family.

But when we went in we saw it wasn't the kind of aquarium where you buy fish. It was like a big fish zoo.

'You just look at these fish, Kendall, you can't buy them. Come on, let's go.'

'I want to look,' said Kendall.

'At a load of old fish?' said Mum. 'Give us a break, Kenny. Kendall. It'll be boring. No, we're going to the shops and we'll get you a little leather jacket.'

'Please let me see the fish. Will they have sharks?' said Kendall.

'Sharks!' I said, laughing.

But they did have sharks.

I was dawdling along in the dark, peering in at the tanks without much interest, thinking about denim jackets lined with fur. I wished there were some seats somewhere as I was feeling really tired now. Mum was holding Kendall up so he could see some slithery creature at the top of the tank.

I felt that if you'd seen one fish you'd seen them all. These ones weren't much more interesting than Bubble. I wandered round a corner and came to a huge tank that took up the whole wall. I leant against the glass, imagining what it would be like to be a mermaid. I remembered a mermaid cartoon video I watched with Dad ages ago and then a huge shark swam right past me, jaw open, showing three rows of terrifying teeth an inch away from my nose.

I screamed.

Mum and Kendall came running.

I couldn't stop screaming, though I covered my mouth with both hands.

'What is it, Jayni? Is it Dad? Did you see him?' said Mum, grabbing me.

'There's a shark!' I gasped.

'Oh for God's sake,' said Mum, giving me a little shake. 'You gave me such a scare!'

All these Japanese tourists were pointing at me and laughing.

'You're not scared of fish, are you?' said Mum, laughing too.

'It's a shark,' I said. 'It was so big and so close. It was like it was touching me.'

'I'm not scared,' said Kendall. 'I want to see the shark! Where is it?'

'It looks like Lola Rose has frightened it away with all that screaming. Honestly, you're worse than Kendall!'

Then another huge shark and another and another came swimming past, with baleful eyes and huge sneery mouths. Mum stepped back smartly.

'Bloody hell!' she said, holding my hand. 'I take it all back. They're whoppers!'

'I like them. Sharkie, sharkie, sharkie! Good boys! Come and see me. Open your big mouths. I want to see your teeth,' Kendall begged, standing so close his nose was squashed sideways by the glass.

'Watch out!' I called, clinging to Mum.

'I am watching,' said Kendall. 'They're so lovely! Can I have one, Mum, please please please?'

All the tourists collapsed with laughter. I laughed too, but I was still shaking. I hated those sharks. I couldn't go near the glass even though I knew they couldn't swim through it. I wanted to rush past to the next room but Kenny stuck to the glass like he had little suckers on his hands and nose. When Mum tried to pull him away he started yelling.

'You kids are driving me nuts!' said Mum. 'Look, you go to the next bit, Lola Rose. We'll catch up when His Lordship has had his fill of the sharks.'

So I hurried on, round the corner and up the ramp. Then I stopped. I was up at the top of the shark tank now. There was no escape. There they were, swimming straight towards me.

I was scared I was going to start screaming again. I ran and ran, blundering down dark tunnels and through twilight rooms, fish flickering all around me. I shot straight through the aquarium to the gift shop at the end. Even the turquoise toy sharks seemed sinister.

I lurked in a far corner for ages and ages. I thought Mum and Kendall would never come. When they eventually came through they were hand in hand, and Kendall was bright pink in the face and beaming.

'Lola Rose, where did you get to?' Mum said.

'You were so silly, Jayni sorry, Lola Rose. This man came and told me all about the sharks. There's this big big big one called George. He's the best. George can see ten times better than me and he smells heaps better too.'

'Yeah, they can smell one drop of blood miles away when they're in the ocean,' said Mum, snapping her teeth in a shark imitation.

'Shut up, Mum.'

'You're not really scared, are you, you big softie? The sharks in these tanks don't eat people. They get fed like fish paella, octopus and squid and stuff. We'll have to come back and see them fed, won't we, Kendall?'

'Yeah! I want to feed George.'

'I don't think you can feed them, sweetheart. We'll have to watch the man. You should have stayed, Lola Rose, it was fascinating.' Mum stared at me and then came up close. 'Jayni. What's all this twitching? What's up with you, you're always so sensible?'

'I am sensible. Sensible people hate sharks because they look so ugly and they can rip you apart. You can take Kendall back if you like but I'm never setting foot in this place ever again,' I said. 'Not for anything.'

I walked out of the shop and stood by myself on the embankment. I stared at the river. I knew perfectly well there were no sharks in the Thames but I kept expecting a deadly dorsal fin to streak through the water.

When Mum and Kendall came out at last Kendall was clutching a big fluffy turquoise toy shark. 'Look, look, I've got my very own George!' he cried, racing up to me. 'Attack!' he yelled, whirling George by the tail and then bashing me in the face with him.

It didn't hurt. I knew George was a fluffy toy and his teeth were made of felt but I still screamed.

'Oh, do stop it, Jayni, you're just acting soft to get attention,' Mum snapped.

I was so hurt I went into a sulk. I wouldn't talk to either of them as we crossed the bridge over the river and walked round Covent Garden. Then Mum stopped outside this immensely posh French cake and coffee shop. 'Let's live dangerously,' she said, and went inside.

I had to talk to say which cake I wanted. It took me ages to choose because they were all so ultra-yummy and special. I eventually decided on a cream mousse gateau with strawberries and a swirl of chocolate icing on top. Mum had an elegant almond croissant. Kendall chose a chestnut cream meringue, but he licked it half-heartedly and didn't finish it. So I did. And I had a hot chocolate to die for, all whippy with a big peak of cream.

Mum laughed at me. 'You've cheered up now, haven't you, Lola Rose!'

'You bet,' I said.

Then we got started on some serious shopping. We found this posh kids' shop and there was this perfect little black leather jacket that fitted Kendall perfectly. He looked so cute in it. Even the shop assistant clapped her hands and called him a pet. It cost a fortune. 'But I've got a fortune,' said Mum, and she handed over a fistful of notes as if they were pennies.

We looked at the girls' jackets too. They had a denim jacket with fur and my heart started beating fast but when I tried it on it was much too small. I could hardly get my arms in and it wouldn't meet across my front.

'I'm too fat,' I said, feeling awful.

'Don't be so daft. You're just getting a big girl, too big for little kids' clothes. We'll find you a proper furry denim jacket, just you wait and see,'

We went into shop after shop after shop. Kendall stopped playing swim-through-the-air games with George and started whining. But then, in the thirteenth shop, my lucky number, we found a whole row of ladies' denim jackets lined with fake fur. Cream fur, blue fur, pink fur. I tried the pink furry one on, trembling. It fitted perfectly. Well, it was a little too long in the arms, but Mum rolled the sleeves up for me, saying it was the only cool way to wear such jackets anyway.

Mum bought it for me and I went out of the shop wearing it. It felt as if I was being cuddled by the softest teddy bear. I looked great in it, I really did. I kept peering at myself in shop windows. A new cool blue denim pink furry-collared Lola Rose stared back, smiling all over her face.

Mum was quite tempted by the denim jackets too, but then she spotted a white leather jacket, short and sexy. When she tried it on she looked so glamorous, just like a rock star, especially with her dark glasses.

We sashayed out the shop, Lola Rose in her furry blue denim, Victoria in her rock-star white leather, two absolute babes with a baby, our Kendall, whining for England, dragging George shark by the tail.

We decided to buy him one of his favourite red lollies to shut him up. They'd proved very good dummies in the past. We could see any number of posh places selling Haagen Dazs and Ben & Jerry's but there weren't any ordinary little corner shops with cheapo ice lollies.

'Perhaps there's one down a side street,' said Mum.

We found a little newsagent eventually. He didn't stock Kendall's strawberry shockers but Mum bought him a fistful of other flavours orange, mango, blackcurrant, milk.

'There, kiddo, suck on that little lot and shut up,' said Mum.

She bought me a white Magnum. I was extra careful eating ice cream in my new denim jacket. I was concentrating so hard on licking cautiously that I almost walked straight past the special shop. It was a bookshop, but these were wonderful books colouring books, cut-out books, sticker books, hundreds of them.

'Boring!' said Kendall, ice lolly all round his mouth like lipstick. Then he saw a colouring book of fishes of the world. He started clamouring for it, even though he goes horribly over the lines when he uses his own wax crayons and he presses too hard and makes the points furry if I let him near my felt-tip pens.

'OK OK, spoilt brat number two,' said Mum, opening up her magic handbag again. 'What about you, spoilt brat number one? Would you like a fancy colouring book too?'