Once the kettle went on, Sabrina relaxed. The good old ceremony of British solidarity, fellowship and comfort. Cat run over by a lorry? Make a cup of tea. Boyfriend dissert you for another? Make a cup of tea. Permanent loss of voice? Definitely make a cup of tea. You knew where you were with a cuppa.

She didn’t miss the emotions flashing across Caitlin’s face, but, being English didn’t comment on them. Not yet. That would come later. (Probabaly over the third biscuit and second cup.) Clearly, however, the fact that Sabrina was here was welcomed, and the fact that she didn’t need an explanation a comfort. Good old Sioni, thought Sabrina. He might be a fool in his love life, but he was a good friend.

In the familiar comfort of the kitchen, the tea ritual underway, Sabrina chattered, leading, she hoped to finding out what had been the cause of Caitlin’s disability. Not so much how had she lost her voice, but why had she been attacked, if that was in fact the story. Sioni had been unclear, mostly because he didn’t have first-hand information and was unwilling to speculate.

In the meantime, however, Caitlin was smiling and pointing to her.

“Me? What have I been up to? Oh, Caitlin, you wouldn’t believe it! Milan is so wonderful! You remember I’m doing Fashion at Norwich? Well, one of my Italian cousins knows somebody who has this design house….”

Two cups and four biscuits later, Sabrina smiled and dabbed her mouth with her napkin.

“Right. This is where I say, ‘Enough about me, what have you been up to?’ Only that’s going to be a bit difficult, isn’t it?” She held up her hand. “I asked before, what were we going to do about your problem. I think we need a little positive, Sorelli style thinking. Yes, no and maybe are easy, of course. Head shakes, shrugs, you do all that already. Now, until I can find time to learn the deaf-and-dumb hand language thing, we’ll have to make do with what we can make up ourselves.”

She wasn’t sure how much thought Caitlin had put to communicating without speech. Very likely the poor girl was just worn out having to come to terms with the whole problem Chances were Sabrina’s interference would not be welcomed, but by golly, she wasn’t going to let her friend go down without a fight! This called for the old Hogwarts’ try!

Or something like that.

“So, do you have any special hand-signs you use with your family? Thumbs up? Bunny-hover? That kind of thing? ‘Cause if not, you and I are going to invent some.”

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