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I turn slightly, glancing at Maddie, who gives me a surprised look as she sees I’m not alone. She’s used to letting herself in and finding me with Felix. She’s not used to opening the door and finding me with a stranger. Or a man who would be a stranger if he weren’t on television and in movies. I’m suddenly grateful for her young age, that she wouldn’t be interested in anything he’s ever been in.

“Oh,” she exclaims.

“Joseph came to pay me for the shirt. You remember me saying he needed a shirt,” I blurt out.

Maddie rolls her eyes at me. “You don’t have to lie to me, Delilah. I’ll leave you alone. I just want to get the bag. I can see you’re busy.”

“You must be Madeline,” Joseph says. He has a smile on his face, and he takes a couple of steps towards her. I’m half expecting him to offer her his hand to shake.

“Maddie,” she corrects.

Despite the stress and anxiety I’m feeling about the situation, I’m thoroughly impressed that she’s not all starry-eyed at finding a movie star in the flat.

“Do you want to get the bag? It’s in my wardrobe. You can tell me all about the party on Sunday,” I say. She might not be begging him for his autograph, but I want to clear this situation as quickly as I can.

“It’s going to be such a cool party, to celebrate the end of the school year.” Maddie practically dances on the spot.

“Are you going into year six?” Joseph asks. He has a curious expression, like he’s trying to figure her out.

“No, I’m going to be in secondary school. I’m just small for my age.” Maddie rolls her eyes at him.

“How old are you?” he asks, though he’ll know exactly how old she is if she’s going to secondary school.

He looks at me. I wonder if he’s now questioning whether he ever asked me any questions about Maddie. The expression on his face changes as he seems to do the math, counting back the years to get to a four-digit number that means something. I watch the bewilderment on his face as he realises that Maddie looks familiar. As he acknowledges how similar she is to me and notices that she has the same high cheekbones. Realises the shape of her mouth is a mirror of mine—even if she’s smiling more than I am.

He turns to me, mouth slightly ajar, and I feel the icy tingle of fear go straight down my spine.

He knows. He knows she’s not my sister.

He knows she’s mine.

I watch as he glances back at Maddie. Takes in more of her image.

Sees she has the exact same nose as him. That the shade of her eyes is the exact replica of his.

He knows she’s his.

“I’m eleven. Mum promises I’m going to get taller soon,” Maddie says, carrying on the conversation like the universe isn’t shifting. “So, Delilah, Mum says I—”

“Is Verity waiting for you outside?” I cut in. My voice sounds really far away to me. Maddie doesn’t seem to notice anything.

“Yeah, so I can’t stop long. She told me to pop up for the bag and hurry back,” she says impatiently. She puts her hands on her hips, and if the world weren’t spinning a thousand miles too fast, I would laugh at the little scowl on her face.

“Like I said, it’s in the wardrobe, at the bottom,” I tell her.

“Thank you!” Maddie gives a little squeal of excitement, her face immediately losing the scowl and lighting up in delight. She practically dances off towards my bedroom.

Beside me, I can feel the tension in Joseph. It radiates off him like a tangible heatwave. When I dare a quick glance at him, I’m surprised by his rigidness. His teeth appear clamped shut, causing his jaw to look like an unyielding trap. His lips are pressed in a flat line, the pigment almost a stark white under the pressure. His fists are clenched into balls, the tendons in his forearms raised and bulging.

“Don’t,” I whisper.

He seems to uncurl slightly.

“Don’t what?” he spits.

“Don’t say anything until she’s gone. Please.”

I have no right to beg him for anything. I know there’s a storm about to descend on my house. He’s going to bring it in full force, the bolts of lightning and the deep rumbles of thunder. I’m prepared for it. I knew it was coming at some point, because there was no way this information didn’t come with a storm. I just don’t want Maddie to witness it.