Chapter Seven

May 2006

‘SO THAT’S WHO all those phone calls were to!’ I was prowling up and down the living room like a tiger in a cage. ‘Her mum! I knew Lalita was up to something, I just knew it!’

‘Dani, please sit down,’ Mum said quietly.

I ignored her. ‘She’s done this just to make trouble, hasn’t she?’ I demanded. ‘She wants to split you and Ravi up!’

‘Dani—’

‘I never thought she’d go this far though! I mean, I suppose she thinks it’s a great laugh meeting her mum secretly and not telling anybody!’

‘Dani!’ Mum grabbed my wrist and pulled me down onto the sofa beside her. ‘Stop shouting. You’re frightening Tabitha.’

Tabs was crouching underneath the sofa, staring up at me grumpily with her topaz eyes.

‘We have to talk,’ Mum said. She held up a warning finger as I opened my mouth. ‘Talk, not shout.’

I’ve got so much to write about and I don’t know where to begin. When Lalita introduced me to her mum yesterday, I was in a state of shock. Belinda offered to drive us home and Lalita accepted eagerly. I was still too stunned to say anything until it slowly dawned on me that I didn’t want Mum and Ravi to arrive back from work and find Belinda there.

Luckily, after we got home, Belinda insisted on phoning Ravi and speaking to him. (I would have liked to hear that conversation, but she went out into the garden with her mobile, leaving me alone with Lalita.)

‘What’s going on?’ I demanded.

Lalita was glowing with happiness, absolutely glowing. She looked like a kid with a shiny new toy.

‘She’s lovely, my mum, isn’t she?’ she asked. ‘And pretty too. Do you like her?’

I couldn’t speak. This wasn’t about how lovely her mum was, for heaven’s sake! Belinda couldn’t just appear after nearly ten years and turn us all upside down. And what about my mum? Where did she fit into all this?

‘Lalita?’ Belinda appeared at the open french windows. She looked quite pale and strained, different from the chatty, cheerful woman who’d driven us home and acted as if it was perfectly normal to turn up again after so long. She held out her mobile. ‘Your dad wants to speak to you.’

Belinda waited there with us until Mum and Ravi came home. I bet you can guess what happened then. I got one glimpse of Mum and Ravi looking completely shattered and grim-faced, before they all went into the living room and I was sent upstairs.

Great. I’m part of this family too, aren’t I? But you wouldn’t think it!

And they didn’t even shout that much so I couldn’t hear anything they were saying. Not even when I tiptoed out onto the landing. I couldn’t concentrate on anything, not even Nan’s diary. Mum came upstairs later and told me to order a pizza for dinner, but she wouldn’t tell me a single thing about what was going on downstairs. I was still awake when they all came out of the living room at ten-thirty and Belinda left.

I waited for a while, thinking Mum might come in, but she didn’t. I didn’t sleep very well that night. I wasn’t the only one, I thought, noting the pale faces, baggy eyes and tired yawns round the breakfast table the next morning. Lalita looked exhausted but happy, humming along to the radio as she buttered her toast.

I kept my eyes on my plate. I was afraid that, if I didn’t, the words would just come bursting out of me in one big huge swoosh – Will somebody please tell me what the hell is going on?! I feel like I’m living in a soap opera!

‘Ravi is taking Lalita over to her mother’s now, Dani,’ Mum said, a bit too casually, as we finished breakfast. ‘So we can spend the morning together if you like.’

Maybe now I’d get some answers. If I could stop yelling for long enough.

Mum kept hold of my hand as we sat there on the sofa.

‘The first thing you have to understand, Dani,’ she began, ‘is that Lalita has been looking for Belinda for a long time, before Ravi and I even met—’

‘Well, she would say that, wouldn’t she?’ I interrupted sulkily, but I shut up when Mum gave me a look.

‘The reason why Lalita kept it a secret was that she and Ravi were living with her gran at the time,’ Mum went on. ‘Lalita’s gran has strong feelings about Belinda—’

‘You mean she hates her,’ I snapped.

‘If you want to put it that way, yes.’ I could see that Mum wasn’t in the mood to put up with me being a smartypants, so I decided to cool it, just a bit. ‘Lalita didn’t want to upset her gran so she decided not to tell anybody.’

‘OK, fair enough,’ I muttered, remembering the quite scary woman from the wedding reception. ‘Is that why Belinda left in the first place? Because she didn’t get on with Lalita’s gran?’

‘I don’t want to go into all the details, but, yes, that was part of it. Lalita actually found out that her mum was living nearby the week before our wedding.’ Mum stroked my hand. ‘She didn’t know what to do then. She’d always planned to tell her dad when she found Belinda, but the timing was all wrong. So she decided to keep it secret for a while.’

I frowned. Although I wanted to blame Lalita for everything, I grudgingly realized that in fact she hadn’t really done anything wrong. She’d just wanted to find her mum. Now that I’d calmed down a bit, I suppose I could understand that.

‘But what about you?’ I asked anxiously.

‘Me?’ Mum looked a bit surprised. ‘It was a bit of a shock meeting Belinda, but I’ll get used to it.’

‘No,’ I mumbled, feeling hot all over with embarrassment. ‘You and Ravi …’

‘Oh, Dani.’ Mum hugged me. ‘There’s no problem there, honestly. Belinda has a boyfriend of her own called Daniel. She and Ravi get on OK now, and they just want to sort out what’s best for Lalita.’

I looked closely at Mum. I know her so well. ‘There’s something you’re not telling me,’ I said.

Mum sighed. ‘Well, everything between me and Ravi is fine, love. It’s just – well, he’s a bit worried. Very worried, in fact.’ She cleared her throat. ‘He thinks that Lalita might decide she wants to go and live with Belinda …’

Oh, happy day!!!

I wanted to grin from ear to ear. I tried my best not to.

‘Has Lalita said that’s what she wants?’ I asked carefully, trying to keep the smile out of my voice.

But Mum knew. How could she not, after everything that had happened?

‘No,’ she replied. ‘She hasn’t said anything.’

My mind raced, working overtime, thoughts crowding in. If Lalita moved out to live with her mum, I knew that I would finally be able to settle down here. I liked Coppergate and I’d made friends. Ever since Ravi had come to find me when I was lost, we’d been getting along a little better, and things would be even easier if Lalita moved out. She’d probably take Charlie with her, and Tabitha would be pleased. I couldn’t see anything but positives whichever way I looked at it. I imagined me, Mum, Ravi and Tabitha as a family. I was surprised by how warm and cosy the thought made me feel.

But of course I had no idea what Lalita would decide to do …

It was quite late when Lalita came home from her mum’s. I was in my bedroom, and I heard her singing her way up the stairs. I went over to the door, which stood open. I’d been waiting for her.

‘Had a good time?’ I asked.

Lalita stopped and smiled at me a bit uncertainly. I didn’t blame her. We’d usually be arguing by now.

‘Great, thanks.’

I cast desperately around for something else to say. Are you going to move in with your mum? Please, please, ple-e-e-ease say yes!!!

‘You must have a lot to catch up on.’

Lalita nodded. ‘Nearly ten years!’ She hesitated, then spoke in a rush. ‘That bag you saw me take, the night you thought I’d run away – there were lots of photos and other stuff I wanted to give to my mum. You know, things about my childhood I thought she might like to see.’

Mystery solved!

‘Sorry about that, only I couldn’t tell anyone then,’ she muttered.

Lalita apologizing?

I shrugged, swallowing down the sharp retort I longed to make. ‘Forget it.’

Lalita was being nicer to me than she’d ever been, but I don’t think she particularly liked me any better than she had before. I think it was because she was just too excited to be horrible to me. She was living right in the middle of her own happy little bubble, and I didn’t matter much any more. She couldn’t be bothered with me. Maybe it was also because what Nan had said about her being jealous of me having two parents was true. Now she no longer had to be jealous of me.

‘Are you going to be seeing a lot of your mum?’ I blurted out as Lalita turned away. Me and my big fat mouth. I hadn’t meant to sound quite so eager.

She raised her eyebrows. ‘Oh, I think so.’ She flashed me a cool smile, which was a lot more like the old Lalita. ‘So don’t worry, Dani. I’ll be keeping out of your way even more in future.’

Smartypants.

I gritted my teeth as Lalita strolled off towards her own bedroom. I hadn’t found out a single thing! But wouldn’t it be just fab if Lalita did decide to move out to live with her mum?

All I could do was hope!

* * *

Nan, please come back from India! I’ve got loads to tell you!

Nan rings us every week but I can’t really talk to her on the phone. Our calls are too quick. Mum and I just say how are you, and she asks us the same, and then she tells us how our relatives in the village are doing. Mum hasn’t even told her about Belinda turning up a week ago.

Lalita’s hardly ever at home now. Which is great. Ravi and Belinda have arranged that in future Lalita will visit her on Saturdays and stay over in her flat. As well as that, Belinda picks Lalita up twice a week after school and they go off somewhere, shopping or whatever. I’m never invited. Not that I want to be. It’s great to go home on my own, when I’m not seeing my friends, and read my book on the bus, then lie around on the huge leather sofa watching the TV. Tabitha curls up on my lap and Charlie comes and flops down next to me. I think he misses Lalita, so sometimes I take him for a walk or play with him in the garden. He gets almost as excited now when he sees me as he does when he sees Lalita. Silly dog! But he’s quite sweet, in a way. And then Mum and Ravi come home from work and we have dinner and Ravi helps me with my maths homework, which I am totally useless at, and everything’s so peaceful. I say to myself that this is how it will be when Lalita moves out. I can’t wait to tell Nan all this. I miss her.

And I want to ask her about Milly. I’d thought that, like a real story, I was going to find out what happened to everyone, and if they all lived happily ever after. But I’ve read on a little way and there doesn’t seem to be anything. Nan asks her form teacher, Miss Bell, if she knows where Milly has gone, and Miss Bell says that she’s moved to a school in Birmingham. But that’s all I can find. I’ve flicked through the rest of the diary, and after Milly leaves, the entries gradually get much shorter and further apart. They stop completely just after Nan’s fourteenth birthday.

But I can’t just leave it like this! I’m hoping and hoping that Nan’s found out some information about Milly during the years in between. Maybe she’s met her again somewhere and found out what happened to her. I want to know! This isn’t how a story should end.

Oh – the doorbell! I bet that’s Belinda, coming to pick up Lalita. With any luck, she’ll be gone for almost the whole weekend.

Ouch! My bottom really hurts!

That was so embarrassing …

I tiptoed over to the window and looked down onto the drive so that I could see Belinda. She was just getting out of her sports car. Honestly, she didn’t look old enough to be Lalita’s mum. Her long blonde hair was straightened and flicked, and she wore a denim mini-skirt and a white vest top. I watched her walk over to the front door, her stiletto heels clicking.

‘Hi, Meeta!’ I heard her say cheerfully to my mum. ‘Nice to see you again. Is Lalita ready?’

‘I think so,’ Mum replied. I was glad that she sounded just as cheerful. ‘Lalita! Your mum’s here.’

‘OK, thanks,’ Lalita called back and next moment I heard her come out of her bedroom.

I didn’t want her to catch me snooping on her mum, so I dived across the room and plonked myself down on the rickety old chair by my desk. Unfortunately I sat down way too hard and one of the back legs, which had been getting wobblier by the day, suddenly gave way. The chair collapsed and I gave a shriek as I plummeted to the floor. Red-faced, I clambered to my feet, only to find Lalita watching me from the doorway, a smirk on her face.

‘Oh dear, Dani,’ she remarked. ‘You really ought to be more careful!’

I stuck my tongue out at her as she sauntered off. I was kneeling on the floor, examining the broken chair leg, when Ravi came out of the bathroom.

‘What was all that noise?’ he asked. Then realization dawned as he saw the broken bits and me holding a chair leg in one hand and rubbing my backside with the other. ‘Oh.’

‘Stupid thing,’ I muttered.

Ravi’s eyebrows shot up.

‘I meant the chair, not you!’ I said quickly.

‘That’s what I was hoping,’ Ravi replied solemnly. I tried not to giggle. ‘Let me see.’

He held out his hand and I gave him the chair leg. He squatted down and examined what was left of the chair, then shook his head.

‘Can’t be repaired, I’m afraid. The wood’s broken.’ Ravi cleared his throat, looking very slightly uncomfortable. ‘Maybe it’s time we got you some new furniture.’ He glanced round at the desk, which had one of its legs wedged with paper, the wonky bookcase covered with Barbie stickers (look, I was only six at the time) and the bed with the saggy mattress I’d slept in for the last nine years. ‘We could go shopping today, if you like, you, me and your mum.’

‘Really?’ I asked cautiously, trying not to look too eager.

Ravi nodded. ‘Why not?’ he said. ‘We’ll have lunch somewhere as well. You can choose.’

‘OK. Thanks.’

Ravi looked pleased, as if I’d just offered him a present rather than the other way round. With a shock, I suddenly realized that I was actually starting to like him a lot. Why hadn’t I understood before that Mum wouldn’t have married him if she hadn’t thought we’d get on? I just had to let myself believe that things could get better. And Lalita moving out would help a whole lot more.

My weekend was great. It wasn’t just because we bought a whole new cream-coloured bedroom suite, new curtains and rugs and even a computer for my schoolwork (I did have one but I swear it took about half an hour to boot up because it was so old; and even then it would suddenly turn itself off without warning). It was because there was just me, Ravi and Mum. I got to choose where we had lunch without arguing with Lalita, so everything was cool.

On Saturday evening we had ice cream and popcorn and watched a DVD. On Sunday we got up late and took Charlie for a walk. Then Ravi showed me how to use my new computer, and we all helped to make lunch.

This is how it could be all the time.

Only one small thing kind of spoiled it slightly. The phone rang just after lunch as I was helping Mum and Ravi load the dishwasher. I was closest so I picked it up.

‘Hello?’

‘Lalita?’ asked the voice at the other end. I didn’t recognize it although it sounded vaguely familiar.

‘No, this is Dani,’ I said politely. ‘Lalita’s out with her mum. Can I take a message?’

There was a sharp intake of breath at the other end of the line. ‘Lalita’s with her mother?’

‘Er – yes,’ I said, puzzled.

‘Put me on to my son immediately!’

Oh no! It was Lalita’s gran!

And by the sound of it she didn’t know that Belinda was back on the scene. I had no idea that Ravi and Lalita hadn’t told her.

I laid the phone carefully on the kitchen work-top and turned to face Ravi and Mum. They had stopped in the act of loading the dishwasher, plates and cutlery in each hand.

‘It’s Lalita’s gran!’ I hissed. ‘I’m sorry, Ravi. I didn’t know she didn’t know – if you know what I mean!’

‘It’s OK, Dani,’ Ravi said quietly, handing the plates to Mum. ‘It’s not your fault. We should have told her by now. I just didn’t know how.’

As he picked up the phone, Mum immediately escorted me out of the kitchen (surprise – I always get to miss the interesting bits).

‘Sorry,’ I muttered guiltily.

‘Don’t be silly, Dani,’ said Mum gently. ‘She had to find out sooner or later.’

Ravi was on the phone for a long time. He looked quite pale and tired when he finally hung up, and, from the little he said, I think he’d told his mum, in the nicest possible way, that she had to like it or lump it.

Lalita didn’t come back until late that afternoon, although Belinda had promised to bring her back in the morning. I thought she might make some sarcastic comments about my new bedroom, but she didn’t. She was far more interested in the clothes her mum had bought her when they went shopping the day before. She didn’t even seem to care much when Ravi mentioned that her gran now knew everything (he didn’t say how her gran had found out, which was pretty good of him).

I noticed that Lalita talked about her mum all the time and that Ravi’s face grew more and more anxious as she prattled on. But I guessed that, being the nice guy he was, he’d give in reluctantly if Lalita decided she wanted to live with Belinda.

I dared to hope that she would.

Today, at school, I said as much to Sunita, Henry and Zara. I wanted to know what they thought, although in a funny kind of way I didn’t really want to talk about it all, in case I jinxed things.

‘Do you think I’m really awful?’ I asked them anxiously as we ate lunch.

‘No,’ said Sunita and Henry.

‘Yes,’ Zara said with a shrug.

‘Do you mean that?’ I stared at her uncertainly.

Zara threw her eyes up to heaven. ‘No, of course not, Dani!’ she said. ‘You’re just hoping Lalita will move out. You’re not actually doing anything to get rid of her, are you? And it’s not up to you anyway.’ She squinted at me. ‘Unless you have magical, mind-bending powers or something?’

‘I don’t,’ I assured her with a grin.

‘Zara’s right,’ said Sunita. ‘It’s down to Lalita and her mum and dad to sort this out.’

‘Just don’t get your hopes up too high, Dani,’ Henry warned me gently. ‘Lalita may not want to move in with her mum. She’d have to change schools, wouldn’t she?’

I nodded.

‘And anyway, Lalita’s mum may not be up for it either,’ added Zara.

That startled me. It hadn’t occurred to me that Belinda might not want what Lalita wanted. I frowned, trying to remember any clues, any hints, that Belinda was planning to get her daughter back. But I couldn’t think of anything. I didn’t really know Belinda very well at all though. I’d hardly spoken to her. She never stayed long at our house when she came to pick up Lalita, and the most time I’d ever spent with her was that first day when she drove us home from school.

There was nothing for it but to wait and see what happened …

Something has happened. But it was no way what I was expecting …

When I followed Lalita out of school today, I was surprised to see Belinda’s red sports car at the gates. It was Thursday, and Belinda had already seen Lalita on Monday and Wednesday. I’d also heard Lalita mention to her dad that she wouldn’t be late home tonight as she wasn’t seeing her mum again till Saturday.

Of course, Lalita dashed over there immediately and – well, I went straight after her. I was going home, wasn’t I, and I had to go out through the gates.

Oh, OK, I admit it! I was wondering if there was a special reason why Belinda had turned up … Maybe it could be something to do with Lalita moving in? (I haven’t given up hope!)

Lalita was quicker than me and I arrived, panting, at the gates, just in time to hear the end of Belinda’s explanation.

‘… and Daniel got this great last-minute deal and we fly out tomorrow night. So I can’t see you this weekend, sweetheart. Maybe we could pop out for a pizza now.’

Lalita pouted. ‘I wish I was coming to Turkey too,’ she muttered.

‘Now you know you can’t miss school,’ Belinda said briskly. ‘You and I will have a holiday together later in the year, if your dad says that’s OK.’ She smiled at Lalita, Lalita smiled back and I felt my heart lift. They seemed very close. Hurrah!

Lalita took her mum’s arm, snuggling closer to her. ‘Can we still have that chat we were going to have this weekend?’

Belinda spotted me just then and waved. ‘Hi, Dani,’ she called. ‘We’re just off for a pizza. Would you like to join us?’

I almost fainted with shock. ‘Oh – well …’ I stuttered.

I glanced at Lalita. She looked surprised too. And annoyed.

‘Go on, be a devil!’ said Belinda with a wink. ‘I’m sure you and Lalita won’t argue too much!’

‘Oh, Mum!’ Lalita giggled, smacking her on the arm.

I wondered what she’d been saying. Of course, she’d have told her mum all about me and made out that I was the bad guy. Well, OK. I suppose I’d have done exactly the same if I was in her position!

‘Are you coming, Dani?’ Lalita went on. There was a hint of a challenge in her stare. She probably thought I’d say no. That alone made up my mind for me.

‘OK,’ I agreed, grinning inwardly as Lalita looked completely deflated. ‘Why not?’

We all climbed into Belinda’s car. I texted Mum to tell her why we were going to be a bit late home and why, and got a text straight back saying Have fun! I wasn’t quite sure it was going to be fun. I don’t really know why I said yes, to be honest. I guess I was curious to find out a bit more about Lalita’s mum and see if she had any plans for the future.

Belinda drove quite fast, her blonde hair streaming in the breeze. I quickly discovered that she had a bad habit of braking really hard at the last minute. Or not braking at all.

‘That was a red light,’ I pointed out as we headed towards the town centre.

‘Oh, was it?’ Belinda said airily. ‘I didn’t notice.’

We raced into the car park and swung into an empty space just in front of a man in a big Volvo. He looked rather annoyed as we all got out, but Belinda waved cheerfully at him and he gave us a reluctant grin.

‘Mum, you’re awful!’ Lalita said adoringly.

‘I know,’ Belinda agreed.

I didn’t say anything. Belinda reminded me of someone and I couldn’t think who. I racked my brains, trying to work it out.

‘Have anything you like, girls,’ Belinda said as we sat down in Pizza Express. ‘Starters, desserts, whatever.’

‘I thought you said you were skint after paying for that trip to Turkey,’ remarked Lalita.

Belinda laughed. ‘Why do you think credit cards were invented?’

And suddenly I got it.

Belinda reminded me of my dad!

I wasn’t quite sure how or why because, believe me, they didn’t look anything alike – but she did. There was just something about her that brought my dad to mind.

As Belinda flirted with the waiter who brought us the menus, I thought about my dad. I do love him, and I know that Dad loves me, but there are some things that I just have to accept about him. Dad is great at the fun things – the presents, the day trips out, the holidays, the jokes and laughter – but he’s no good at the everyday stuff. He’s hopeless when I’m ill or tired or miserable or bored. He can’t cope. But as long as I have my mum for that, it doesn’t matter. I can live with it.

Now, staring at Lalita and her mum giggling together, I couldn’t help wondering if Belinda was any good at the ‘everyday stuff’. After all, she’d been gone for years and had left all that to Ravi. Like my mum, he was good at it.

‘You’re looking very serious, Dani,’ Belinda remarked, handing me a menu.

‘Sorry,’ I said quickly.

‘How do you like Coppergate?’ Belinda looked enquiringly at me. ‘It must be difficult starting a new school at Easter.’

‘She didn’t mind, did you, Dani?’ Lalita cut in before I had a chance to answer. ‘She likes Coppergate, don’t you?’

I was so surprised, I just nodded.

‘But it’d be easier to start in September, at the beginning of a new school year,’ Lalita added, staring intently at her mum. ‘Wouldn’t it?’

My heart juddered. I thought I could guess what this was about. I glanced at Belinda. She was starting to look ever so slightly uncomfortable.

‘Not now, Lalita,’ she said, flicking back her hair. ‘What would you like to order, Dani?’

‘Well, starting in September’s got to be better than any other time,’ Lalita argued, that familiar, obstinate look I knew so well coming over her face. ‘September’s three or four months away. That’s plenty of time to get everything sorted out with Dad.’

‘Get what sorted out?’ I asked. I didn’t mean to – the words just dropped straight out of my mouth. But I had to know if my guess was right.

‘I’m thinking of moving in with my mum,’ Lalita retorted. There was a huge amount of pride in her voice; pride and pleasure. ‘You’ll like that, won’t you?’

‘Well, yes.’ I wasn’t going to lie about it. ‘Wouldn’t you, if you were me?’

‘Lalita, we’ll discuss this later,’ Belinda muttered.

‘When?’ Lalita demanded. ‘I won’t see you for two weeks now while you’re on holiday. You said we could talk about it this weekend!’

‘I’m sure Dani doesn’t want to hear all this.’ Belinda glanced at me and I began to wonder if that’s why she’d invited me, so that hopefully Lalita wouldn’t bring up the subject of her moving in. You know, it was exactly the kind of thing my dad would do.

Lalita shot me a poisonous glare. ‘I didn’t ask her to come,’ she said tightly. I guessed that she’d wound herself up so tightly for this discussion that she couldn’t hold back, even in front of me.

‘Look, sweetheart, I’ve told you, we can’t make any decisions for a while,’ her mum said with a touch of desperation. ‘The flat isn’t just mine, it’s Daniel’s too. I have to discuss it properly with him.’

‘You keep saying that.’ Lalita stared desperately at her mother, her lips trembling. Now it was my turn to start feeling uncomfortable. I was wishing I was anywhere but here, in the middle of all this emotional intensity.

‘I don’t want to annoy your dad either.’ Belinda fiddled unhappily with her menu, turning it this way and that. ‘He’s been very good about letting me see you. He wouldn’t be happy about you moving out. And you know you couldn’t bring Charlie. We’re not allowed to have pets in the flat.’ She took a visibly deep breath. ‘We mustn’t rush things. I think we should leave it for a while.’

‘You don’t want me to move in with you.’ Lalita spoke flatly and without emotion, as if she’d suddenly been wrung dry of any feelings whatsoever. I felt horribly embarrassed, and actually a bit sorry for her. And very sorry for myself too, I must admit.

Belinda cleared her throat nervously. ‘Not at the moment, sweetheart. Maybe later.’ But she didn’t sound very convincing.

We all sat there staring at our menus so that we didn’t have to look at each other. Eventually I risked a glance at Lalita. She was as frozen and still as a statue of ice. As I watched, two tears rolled down her cheeks.

Lalita saw me staring. With a muffled exclamation, she flung down her menu and rushed out of the restaurant, leaving her bag behind.

I saw the accident coming a split-second before it actually happened.

I called out Lalita’s name, trying to warn her.

But it was already too late.