‘These new alliances you’ve made, do they include Phillipa?’

Claudia took a sip of coffee, creating a pause before she answered. ‘No, not at all. From what Bryony’s told me, Phillipa has shut herself off from everyone. She’s still in the South of France, and I can’t imagine her coming back.’

Leanne couldn’t decide if she should feel angry or relieved. It was right that Phillipa kept away, but it made it far more difficult for Leanne to take aim. With every fibre of her being, she needed to hurt Phillipa for Lois’s sake, and for all the others who had suffered at her hands. Did that make Claudia fair game in her absence? When had Leanne become so cruel? She was beginning to see herself through Mal’s eyes.

As Claudia waited for the cross-examination to continue, she placed her cup on its saucer. The nervous rattle of china was the only sound to break the lengthening silence.

‘I’m sorry,’ Claudia said at last, ‘but is there anything else you need from me, Leanne?’

‘Actually, there is something. Do you mind if I record this?’

Claudia’s eyes darted to the phone Leanne had picked up from her lap. ‘Fine,’ she said.

‘Can you tell me where you were sitting in the stalls?’

Claudia pulled a face, unsettled by the unexpected line of questioning. ‘I couldn’t say exactly and I’m afraid I’ve thrown away my ticket stub. As you can imagine, it wasn’t a memento I wanted to keep.’

‘A general sense of where you were would do. Was it the middle section? To the left? The right? Near the front? At the back?’

‘I was somewhere in the middle,’ she said vaguely.

‘I don’t suppose you remember seeing a young girl, do you? Her mum got up in the middle of the performance to go to the Ladies. It would have been only minutes before the alarm went off.’

‘Are you talking about Amelia Parker?’ Claudia’s fingers twitched and china rattled again. ‘I read her story.’

‘Did you see her?’

There was a quick shake of the head. ‘Why are you asking?’

‘We’re extremely disappointed that the woman who rescued Amelia hasn’t come forward. It would have been nice to hold a reunion to lift the town’s spirits as we prepare to relive our darkest hour. Don’t you think?’

‘I can’t imagine the town is short of heroes. What about the firefighters?’ asked Claudia. She was back to her previously modest self, eager to turn the spotlight elsewhere. ‘As everyone was scrambling over each other to get out, they were going in. They knew part of the roof had collapsed and were experienced enough to know there could be another cave-in, and yet they put their lives on the line and brought out people who weren’t able to walk out themselves.’