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André nudged me and grinned. ‘Here she comes.’

The woman looked around her as if she had just stepped ashore on an island inhabited by savages. I saw that the tug was called Little Red Rooster, while the big box had no name. Meanwhile, some more people had gathered on the quay.

No one said anything. We were all waiting for an explanation from one of the three people on the boat. Captain Willem Seegers reappeared. He had changed his clothes, and now looked like a waiter in a chic restaurant. He had exactly the same kind of bow tie as Karel Giesma. He fixed a sign next to the door. SWEET LADY JANE, it said, and underneath: FLOATING SAUNA, with the opening hours.

‘R-r-right,’ said captain Willem. ‘Th-th-that’s up.’ Peter disappeared inside through the hatch.

A little later we found ourselves in the bar of the Sweet Lady Jane. There were windows on the side of the boat facing the water. There were red curtains in front of them, through which you could see the vague contours of the other side of the river. There was soft pink carpeting on the floor, and a couple of comfortable sofas were placed around gold-coloured side tables. Captain Willem pointed to the woman behind the bar. ‘Madame Olga,’ he said. The woman had kept on her sunglasses and greeted us with a barely perceptible nod. ‘My mother,’ said Peter.