“Piers, I am sorry, but I must disappoint you. You’ll be a brave lad, I know.”
“Yes, I’ll be brave, but what do you want to disappoint me about?”
“I have some sad news for you.”
“Sad?”
“You cannot go back to your mother, Piers.”
“Why?”
“And you must not go into the street where she used to live; you must not stand any more outside the house.”
“But why?”
“Because your mother is not there.”
“What do you mean?”