It was the hottest day of the year. Hotter than any day before it.

January 1st and 2nd had been bloody freezing. Arctic. Made sense, this was, after all, the Arctic circle. Cold and round by nature, like a party ring that had been wrongly left in the freezer.

January 3rd was bloody hot in comparison. You could stand outside for a whole six seconds before your nose would start to show the first signs of falling off.

Luckily Grace had been through that rite of passage years ago. Round here noses were seen as an extravagance, something for the rich to show off how good their insulation was. None of that. Her mother had marched her outside at the age of six in just a vest and shorts to make sure any unnecessary protuberances were cryogenically excised. Goodbye nose. Goodbye fingers. Goodbye toes. Much better.