“Bernard—”
“Ah, come on. Our Lou doesn’t think I mean her—”
“Oh, my sweet Lord.” Mum’s hand flew to her face.
My sister had started to push Thomas out of the room. “Oh, boy,” she hissed. “Thomas, you better get out of here right now. Because I swear when your granddaddy gets hold of you—”
“What?” Dad frowned. “What’s the matter?”
Granddad barked a laugh. He held up a shaking finger.
It was almost magnificent. Thomas had colored in the whole of Dad’s face with blue marker pen. His eyes emerged like two gooseberries from a sea of cobalt blue. “What?”
Thomas’s voice, as he disappeared down the corridor, was a wail of protest. “We were watching Avatar! He said he wouldn’t mind being an Avatar!”
Dad’s eyes widened. He strode to the mirror over the mantelpiece.
There was a brief silence
