Claude often thought of himself as responsible. A man of twenty-four who still lived at home and helped kept the household together for his younger siblings. Yet with parents such as his, responsibilities didn’t always mean legal ways of obtaining money to live off. He shivered just thinking about what his father would do if he found out, and yet there was no other way.

He was looking through a small pouch counting the money within when Rose rounded the corner on him and a younger man of eighteen from the other side of the town. With a light curse Claude shoved a sack containing a couple of almost empty bottles of alcohol and a pouch of tobacco leafs into the young man’s arms, indicating his head for the boy to go as he pocketed the money and turned to leave.

But it couldn’t be that simple.

“Morning Miss Ward” He replied turning to look at her, unable to produce a smile. He could see too much of Simon in her.