"Do you want the bad news or the bad news?" asked Josh gently.

d.i.c.k sighed.

"The bad news," said Josh, "is that to my estimation, you're about six months from bankruptcy."

"Jesus." d.i.c.k took a swig of whiskey. "And the bad news?"

"And the bad news is that I'd like to buy it off you."

d.i.c.k stared at his son.

"Come again?"

Josh took a deep breath, "The thought of being an accountant for the rest of my life depresses me more than you can imagine. I spoke to my bank today, and they'd give me a loan. I want to take over the shop, Dad."

d.i.c.k shook his head. "Son, son, son."

"Listen to me! No one else will buy it. This is your only chance. As well as mine."

"Please don't make the same mistakes I did."

"I haven't. I've got a profession, I could keep the books far more effectively than you ever could."

"Owch!" grimaced d.i.c.k.

"All thanks to you. Thanks to your sound advice when I was a kid, I have a structure with which to support my dreams. I can learn how to run my own business because I've seen how businesses succeed and fail. I won't be doing it blind like you had to. And if it fails, at least I'll have tried, and I'll just go back to being an accountant. I'll never be unemployable, Dad. You made sure of that."

"I got something right then." d.i.c.k smiled.

"Yes. And now I'm going to do what you told me not to do and follow your example. I want to sell music."

"Music? Not records?"

Josh shrugged. "Some records, but CDs, too, and DVDs."

"So you're going to buy my shop and then sell out?"

"No, I'm going to make it work. And I won't sell out, because it won't be a pop music shop. It will be eclectic. Unique. Very Highgate. I also thought I might do a coffee bar, you know at the back there, where you've got the old jukebox."

"You've really thought this through."

"Dad," said Josh, "I haven't felt this excited for...I've never felt this excited before."

d.i.c.k shrugged. "Well," he said eventually, "who am I to stop you?"

"But do I have your...blessing?"

"Do you need it?"

"You know I do."

"You have my blessing whatever you do, Josh."

Josh smiled.

Just then, Tallulah padded into the kitchen in her pajamas.

"h.e.l.lo, sweetie," said d.i.c.k. "How's my sunbeam?"

"Tired," said Tallulah.

"Do you want me to come up and tuck you in?"

Tallulah shook her head and pointed to Josh.

"I want Josh to."

d.i.c.k and Josh grinned at each other, and Josh tried not to feel smug.

As Josh took the stairs two at a time, feeling smug, d.i.c.k poured Vanessa a Baileys and took the stairs one at a time. Both men wavered for a moment before entering the rooms.

d.i.c.k wavered slightly more than Josh. As he closed the bedroom door behind him, he could hear Vanessa still in the shower. He undressed and put his clothes in the empty laundry basket. He noticed Vanessa's blouse on the bed. The shower stopped. He picked up the Baileys and wandered in.

"Thought you might like this," he said, as Vanessa wrapped a towel round her.

"Oh wow!" she smiled. "Perfect."

"Do you want that blouse cleaned?"

"Oh, it's dry-clean, I'll do it over the weekend."

"I'll do it tomorrow."

She looked at him.

"You sure?"

"Yep. I'm going into the village anyway to get in some shopping."

"Great."

"Coming to bed?"

"Yes. I'll just comb my hair out."

Vanessa gave her husband a smile, then watched him leave the room, slowly turned, and stared at herself in the mirror.

Josh pushed open Tallulah's door and was surprised to see the light off and Tallulah curled up in bed, with Ca.s.sie beside her.

"Hey," he whispered. "What's this? A powwow?"

"Lula's been having bad dreams," whispered Ca.s.sie. "Haven't you, Tal?"

Tallulah nodded.

"Come on then, move over," said Josh, sitting on the bed. "I can't have my two favorite girls having problems sleeping. What's up?"

Tallulah sucked her thumb, and Ca.s.sandra sighed.

"Come on," soothed Josh. "You can tell me."

Tallulah shook her head.

"Sweetheart!" said Josh, dismayed. "What can't you tell me?"

Tallulah sighed.

"Can you tell Mummy or Daddy?" tried Josh.

"No!" said Ca.s.sie quickly.

"Why?" he asked, starting to worry. "What's going on, Ca.s.s?"

Ca.s.sie turned to Tallulah.

"Can I tell him, Tally?"

Tallulah barely nodded.

"She's been having nightmares," whispered Ca.s.sie.

"What sort of nightmares?" whispered Josh.

Ca.s.sie opened her eyes wide in the dark. "Nasty ones," she said in hushed tones.

"How nasty?"

"They're about...they're about..."

"Go on..."

"They're all about..."

"Ca.s.sie, you have to tell me."

"They're about Jo."

Josh sat up straight. That he had not expected. And then to his horror, Tallulah curled up even tighter and started weeping. He put his arm round her and made soothing noises.

"Jo keeps dying in her dreams," explained Ca.s.s.

"You're kidding!" said Josh. "That's terrible."

"And Lula's trying to catch her-"

"Catch her? Is she falling?"

"Yes. She's always falling. Off a cliff."

Josh gasped.

"We're scared something terrible's happening to her." Tallulah's elbow jerked out and nudged her sister. "And we miss her," added Ca.s.sie, her head down.

"Yes," said Josh. "I know. We all do."

"Mummy and Daddy didn't row as much when Jo was here," whispered Tallulah through her thumb. "Now they row all the time." She started crying into her hands again.

They had a point, thought Josh. There was that hideous row the other night that was so loud it woke him up, then he'd heard d.i.c.k crying. And G.o.d only knew what it was doing to d.i.c.k's self-esteem shutting up the shop for most of the day and being at home with the children. He was putting a brave face on it, but it couldn't be good for him. But what to do?

"What can we do?" asked Ca.s.sie.

"I don't know, darling," said Josh. "Hope and pray to G.o.d that she comes home soon."

"Mummy said G.o.d is a man-made construct to stop people being ambitious," said Ca.s.sie.

"Oh."

"Shall I phone Jo?" she asked.

"I don't think that will be a good idea."

"Oh," said Ca.s.sie, and then started whispering again. "We thought we might go and get her."

Josh looked at his half sibling with wonder. "Did you?" he asked.

"Yes. But then Zak said he'd have to use the girls' toilets with us, so we couldn't."

The three of them sat on the bed for a while.

"G'night, Josh," came Tallulah's voice in the dark.

"Oh, good night pumpkin," said Josh, and gave her a kiss on her soft, dry cheek. He and Ca.s.sie left Tallulah's room, closing it softly behind them. In the hall, Ca.s.sie looked up at Josh.

"Thanks for helping," she said.

"I didn't do anything."

"No, well," said Ca.s.sie, disappointment in her voice, "thanks for trying anyway." With a heavy sigh, she went to her bedroom.