It was so cold she knew the bottom of the bath would feel like ice when she sat down, even though the water was hot enough to be sending up steam. No good hoping it’d warm up either. It was like the heat could only seep a little way into the metal before being chilled back out. Quickly she began to undo her buttons. Once this was done she could nip her undies down and then climb into the warm water and then, when she was warming around her legs, she could fling her shirt and singlet off and slide right down. At least the bits not actually resting on the bottom were going to be warm. She’d just stepped into the bath when she heard her mother calling for her to come down. It didn’t make sense. Her mother had sent her to have a bath and now she was yelling at her to come back down? Missie had no sooner finished yelling back that she was in the bath already than the door opened. Her mother stepped in, bringing the cold outside air with her. ‘Missie, were you with Deirdre this afternoon?’ Missie sat up.
