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She looks confused and shoots a worried glance at Helena

‘Oh! Don’t worry about Helena She won’t mind,’ I dis too’

Somchai comes forward timidly ‘I don’t need to taste I can tell you what all the different dishes are’

‘Oh, that will be nice Do, please’

‘What you have just eaten is a coconut hotcake It is like a s’ She points to the dish not with her forefinger but with her handout to forlutinous rice This one is taro root mixed with flour and turned into balls That over there is called golden threads They are strings of egg yolk quickly, quickly boiled in sugar syrup Next to it is grass jelly That one there is s: crispy, deep fried pastry purses filled with minced pork, dried shrimp and corn wrapped in cha phlu leaves’

I nod as if I am fascinated by her descriptions while she works her way down the table and starts on the covered dishes warreen papaya salad, salt beef duer, tiny banana leaf cups filled with ant and chicken eggs, grilled cuttlefish stuffed inside jackfruit, and yuck… Fried silk worm pupae

‘Wow! What a feast,’ I cry, ht ‘There is too much here for two Would you like to join us, Soenially ‘Coladdens my heart no end, but poor So crushed in the htly ‘Thank you very much It is too kind of you, but I have already eaten’

I take pity on her ‘Oh, that’s a shame Never mind then Maybe next tilance at Helena

And Helena takes that opportunity to take control of the situation ‘That will be all You can go now,’ she dismisses coldly

I turn to look at her Herline

Somchai bows from the neck first in Helena’s direction and then in mine Then she scuttles away as quickly as she can, never to be seen again As soon as the door closes, Helena looks at me

‘Are you quite finished?’ she seethes quietly

‘As a ally

‘Sit down, Lana,’ Helena grates ‘You’veon with this childishness’

It occurs to ht Some kind of truce needs to be declared

‘How do you have your tea?’

Now that So to have to serve ourselves if we are going to eat and drink I stand, and picking up the teapot, take it over to her Carefully, I fill her tea cup while she steadfastly keeps her eyes on the tea pouring into her cup I can smell her hairspray