She didn’t want to lock the door with Babs and Diego still inside, but she needed to get to her sister. Her mind whirred as she tried to think where Jess might go. Maybe back to her apartment?

She left her keys inside the door, grabbed a coat from a hook in the hallway and booked an Uber to take her to Jess’s place.

Carla circled around outside her sister’s ground-floor apartment and knocked on the front door several times. All the rooms were dark except for a small light switched on in the kitchen. She cupped her hands to the window and peered inside.

Tarot cards were spread out on the kitchen table and there was a pile of runes, things Jess turned to when she needed guidance. There was a ripped photo of a man Carla assumed was Mr. Forty-Nine Percent, and her heart tugged for her sister.

The rain fell harder and a drop snaked down Carla’s back. She doubted Jess would return to their gran’s place, to be among all the family mourners. Narrowing her eyes, Carla spotted another photo pinned to Jess’s kitchen wall. Carla, Jess, Lucinda and Ted posed beside Vadim, waving their fortune tickets in the air. It was a happier time with their family, at the place Jess loved the most.

“Silverpool,” Carla said out loud. “It has to be.”

It was too far for her sister to walk there, so she’d probably taken a taxi.

Carla booked another Uber, smarting at the cost of using so many cabs. When the car arrived, she ran toward it to escape the rain and spent the next half hour watching droplets shimmer on the car’s windows as it headed toward the seaside town.

She knew they had arrived when she smelled the familiar aroma of doughnuts. Carla zipped her coat farther up to her chin when she got out of the car. The rain fired down even more heavily, and her hair stuck to her forehead as she stared at the amusement arcade on the opposite side of the road.

Children squealing, electronic music and flashing lights lured her toward them. The arcade was closing down, and she watched as vendors collected the day’s takings, switched off the machines and wheeled them back inside.

Vadim’s chamber still took pride of place on the pavement. The genie appeared to be staring at her, his hand hovering above his illuminated crystal ball. A green light shone upward, making his features even more eerie than she remembered.

Carla watched as Jess emerged from inside the arcade. Her dress was wet, and a coin shone in her hand. Carla breathed a sigh of relief and started to cross the road.

Jess fed her coin into the machine’s slot, and the mannequin came to life. “This is Vadim speaking. I can read your future...” he boomed, casting his hand from side to side.

Jess stooped down to pick up her fortune ticket.

Carla shouted her sister’s name but a truck rumbled past, drowning out her voice. When she eventually reached Jess, she placed a hand on her shoulder.

Her sister jumped around. “What the hell are you doing here?” she gasped.

“I’m worried about you.”

“Well, don’t be. I left you alone to play happy families with Diego.”

Carla shook her head. “I only found out he was my father minutes before you arrived.”

“Well, go home to Tom, then. Leave me alone. I don’t need your sympathy.”

Carla blew into her cheeks in exasperation. “He’s not back from America yet and it’s unlikely we’ll get married.” She absentmindedly took a coin from her pocket and fed it into the slot. Vadim did his thing and she plucked out a ticket, clutching it in her hand.

“Because of the funeral date?” Jess said. “I suppose you think that’s my fault?”

“I’m not blaming you for anything, Jess.” A drop of rain trickled down Carla’s forehead. “We won’t be getting married because I don’t think Tom will still love me after he discovers the full story behind my travels. I’m not the perfect person you seem to think I am. I’ve made a mess of everything.” She shrugged and looked down at her soggy ticket.

A man appeared wearing a yellow high-visibility jacket. “Come on, ladies, we’re closing now.” He pulled the plug on Vadim, tipped the box and wheeled it inside. Vadim’s head wobbled, as if mocking them.

“Please, let’s get out of the rain.” Carla looked down at her stomach. “I’m getting cold.”

Jess looked at it, too, and her harsh expression slipped a little. “Yes, let’s go somewhere else,” she agreed.

Carla took off her coat and held it over their heads as the two sisters scurried along the street looking for shelter. Shops and cafés were closed for the day and a group of men stood outside a pub, smoking and laughing. Carla shook her head, not wanting to push her way inside. “The pier,” she suggested. “There’s seats and shelter there.”

She and Jess headed toward the Victorian wooden structure that stretched out to sea. The waves churned hypnotically, and their red hair weaved and tangled as they walked toward a café with its shutters down. Some of the tables and chairs were under cover, and the wind dropped as they turned a corner. Carla sat down while Jess remained standing.

“So, you have a father?” Jess asked, looking at Carla then quickly away. “I’m guessing he’s not mine, too?”

“Sorry, I don’t think so.” Carla shook her head. “Diego and Mum met while she was traveling. She kept me a secret from him for a long time.”

“So, we are only half sisters,” Jess confirmed, staring ahead at the waves.

“We’re full sisters,” Carla countered firmly. “We share the same mum and we grew up together. It’s been me and you together for our entire lives. We even picked yellow wallpaper with peach birds when Gran wanted us to have something pink and floral. Do you remember we used to talk about them before we went to sleep?”

Jess swallowed, remembering. “I used to say there was a king and a queen bird...”

“And princes and princesses. And lots of aunts and cousins.”

“Just like our own family.”

“I used to plait your hair and tell you bedtime stories.” Carla gave a small smile.

“You said that Cinderella couldn’t possibly wear glass slippers, because they’d break.”

“Maybe I was wrong. I was certainly wrong about other stories, like our family curse.”

Jess sat down beside her, hugging her own arms to keep warm. “Why did mum keep you a secret from Diego?”

Carla wrapped her coat around her sister’s shoulders. “She told him about our family curse and that she didn’t want a relationship. Diego didn’t know Mum was pregnant and she only told him about me when she found out she was dying. By then I was nine years old,” she explained. “Babs can’t have children, so Diego didn’t disclose that he’d had a child with Mum.”

Jess twisted her mouth. “So many secrets and lies.”

“Secrets, yes. Though I think they’re stories rather than lies.” Carla reached out to touch her sister’s arm and was relieved when Jess didn’t pull away. They sat together for a while, listening to the sound of the sea swirling. “What happened with Mr. Forty-Nine Percent?” she asked softly. “I went to your apartment and saw you’d ripped up his photograph.”

“You mean Mr. Zero Percent? He dumped me last night.”

“Oh, Jess. I’m sorry.”

“What chance does love have in our family?” Jess tutted and looked down. “Sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean everything I said to you.”

“It’s okay,” Carla soothed, feeling apologetic, too.

“I’ve been thinking about everything Myrtle told me,” Jess said. “She said I’d meet someone and I did, but we split up, so I won’t be getting engaged. She said she could see me holding a baby, but it’s probably yours. I’ve been offered a new job, but I’m not going to take it, so I won’t be working near water anytime soon. I’ve interpreted all the things she said in the wrong way. So maybe you have, too...”

“It’s possible.” Carla stared along the pier to where Myrtle’s hut sat in the distance. “Why don’t you want the new job?”

Jess shrugged a shoulder. “I love working at Logical Love, but I also want to do my own thing. I’ve lived in your shadow since the day I was born.”

“That’s not true,” Carla said. “You got all the love and attention, while I was the big, brave sister having to fend for myself.”