‘Come here, my son.’
The small mouth pursed, ‘No, Daddy.’ But there was a look of alarm.
Again. ‘John, come over here to me, please.’
Clinging to a chair, then a table leg, the small figure moved round towards him, then stopped. He began to play with a set of tassels, before glancing quickly back up at the familiar face, exploring. Nurse had taken Elsie away, ostensibly to bathe her head but evidently not eager for either of them to witness the scene which was in the making.
Rud wavered: the kid was pretty small. But he couldn’t have Carrie upset every day like that. It was hard enough for her to keep in spirits without that.
‘You’ve made Mummy very sad by behaving so badly,’ he spoke, reaching out to take the unresisting hand where it dangled. ‘It’s no good you know, Johnny, I can’t
