She sounded so kindly, and there was such sad wisdom in her eyes, that Will’s mistrust deepened. He felt that every word she said was a lie, every action concealed a threat, and every smile was a mask of deceit. Well, he would have to deceive her in turn: he’d have to make her think he was harmless. But he had successfully deceived every teacher and every police officer and every social worker and every neighbour who had ever taken an interest in him and his home; he’d been preparing for this all his life. Right, he thought. I can deal with you.
