I squeeze her as best I can, and slowly the shaking stops. She takes a deep, shuddering breath, and scrubs at her eyes with the back of a hand. Impulsively I plant a kiss on her forehead; something she's always done to me but that I've never reciprocated, till now. I feel an upwelling of fierce love for my sister, this strong but fragile woman who weathered everything life threw at us while still managing to raise me on the straight and narrow path. I snort at the inadvertent pun, then shake my head at Lexi's puzzled frown.

'Come up here' I say. 'There's room for both of us.' I...