Brushing his hands together he came towards them grinning. ‘Looks good eh? Good size bonfire this year.’ Jean noticed he barely acknowledged Mary. When he came to stand next to her she moved to the other side of the family group. ‘Smashing, Dad.’ Jacqueline leaned against him. Jean blinked hard. She knew her daughter loved it when they were all together like this. But she felt distanced from all the cheerful babble and laughter. Last year Patrick had bought a huge box of fireworks and set them off in the back garden. She’d made treacle toffee, using up a whole week’s worth of sugar ration, Linda had stayed over and the girls had a wonderful time. An unwelcome thought came into her mind. Patrick had woken her up in the middle of that night and made love to her. She glanced up and saw him watching her with a strange expression. She felt her face grow hot and looked away, wishing she’d stayed in at Moss Terrace. ‘There isn’t one star out tonight,’ Ellen said, shivering.
