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appetite of a horse.
    Kath slid out the wooden stool next to Ruby and sat down. There was no room to spare at the folding picnic table, even though Ruby had tried to make the eating space look bigger by partitioning
it off from the rest of the room with a curtain.
    ‘Sorry it’s fried again.’ Kath pushed back her long black straight hair. ‘At least it’s hot.’
    ‘Does it have a name?’ Ruby enquired.
    ‘Three guesses,’ Kath offered. ‘But you’ll probably get it in one.’
    ‘Spam à la carte ?’ Ruby suggested. ‘Makes a change from sardines on toast.’
    Kath prodded the greasy lumps with a fork. ‘I can’t bear the sight of me own cooking.’
    ‘It’s better than what we was given in Devon,’ Ruby said as she began to force the fritter down her throat. ‘Remember the whale meat? I was put off fish for life. The
vicar’s wife soaked the meat overnight and steamed it the next day. The stink was in my hair and clothes and even followed me to school.’
    ‘We didn’t have whale meat on the farm,’ Kath remembered. ‘But the veg and spuds drove us bonkers. We was out in the fields from dawn till dusk. My back ached and my
hands were always bleeding. It was the final straw when we were made to peel and eat the bloody things.’ She sighed, staring into the distance. ‘Not that food was any better when we
came back to the Smoke. Mum and Dad lived up the pub, so me and Bernie got a job at the pie and mash shop, remember? The gaffer let us have the leftovers before the pig-bins arrived.’
    Ruby nodded sadly. Poor Kath was still thin as a rake. Food didn’t know how to operate in her body. Her stomach had shrunk to such a degree she couldn’t eat a decent meal if she saw
one. She also hated her height as it made her feel conspicuous.
    ‘What have we got for afters?’ Ruby asked.
    ‘Same as always. Tinned fruit and evaporated milk. Or there’s some bread and cheese I bought on Saturday. Though the cheese is a bit ripe. Even Bernie didn’t fancy
it.’
    Ruby glanced at her friend. ‘I thought you were going to eat at the pub in Hoxton.’
    ‘I didn’t want to go without you. So Bernie went without me. He called in on the way back, though, so I wasn’t alone. Talking of Saturday, how was your mum?’
    ‘Same as always.’
    ‘Is she still a bit doolally?’
    Ruby nodded. ‘Some things never change.’ She couldn’t meet Kath’s enquiring gaze. It was too late to confess the truth, that she’d lied to Kath about going home in
order to go to the Manor. Her guilt was mounting up.
    ‘It’s really good of you to stick by her, considering,’ Kath said softly.
    ‘Oh, I don’t go round very often.’
    ‘Well, some girls just wouldn’t bother at all with her being the way she is.’
    Ruby hung her head, idly drawing a pattern with her finger on the sticky plastic tablecloth. ‘Kath, would you like to go to a party? I want to make up for missing your birthday.’
    ‘You don’t have to do that. And anyway, you know I don’t like parties.’
    ‘My bosses are having a house-warming,’ Ruby explained. She had decided she wasn’t going to ask Kath but now she felt it would help to ease her conscience. Although she’d
have to warn Debbie not to say anything about the Manor.
    ‘Where is it?’ Kath asked suspiciously.
    ‘Larry and Stuart have moved to Soho.’
    ‘But why would they invite me?’ Kath queried. ‘I don’t know them.’
    ‘They know you’re my best mate,’ Ruby urged. ‘I’m always on about you at work.’
    ‘Really?’
    ‘Really.’ Considering that only a minute ago she had shelved the idea of mentioning a party at all, this was a complete turnaround. Ruby was beginning to wonder if lies were
addictive if you told enough of them.
    Kath shrank back. ‘But I won’t know anyone.’
    Ruby shrugged. ‘Nor will I. It’s a chance for us to make new friends.’
    ‘I’m not very good at mixing. You know that.’
    ‘I’ll be with you. We’ll have a good