Mum and dad wake up with a jolt as I barge into their room and switch the light on.
“Show me Ru’s birth certificate,” I demand.
“I--what? Em, it’s two in the morning, what on earth’s going on?” mum says, throwing back the thick quilt cover and getting up. She’s wearing a silk nightdress that shimmers in the light, and goose pimples appear on her arms as she picks up her dressing gown. She takes a better look at me and frowns. “Why are you wearing jeans? And shoes, too. You’ve put mud all over the carpet!”
“It doesn’t matter. Please, please just show me Ru’s birth certificate,” I say, my voice dropping low. “Please, tell me he’s really my brother.”
“Em, what are you talking about?” dad says, putting on his own dressing gown. “Of course he’s your brother, I don’t know why--”
Ru bursts i
