It was the girls. The way the girls lived, the way they spoke and laughed and worked, was a source of endless fascination for Thomas. They were like a rich tapestry, he thought, beautiful to look at but more interesting, more rewarding, on closer observation. He saw how the threads interwove, how one complemented the rest. He saw alliances form and then draw apart. He saw how they braided together, how they were at their strongest when all five threads pulled around each other.
