It was quite peaceful sitting in a dark room with a table lamp and a good book. She took Fred to the bathroom once, which took a long time, and before she knew it, it was nearly time to wake Jago. She decided she needed a cup of tea and made one for Jago, too.

Jago was facing the wall and stirred when she put the mug down on the bedside table. ‘Jago? Are you awake? It’s time for a shift change. I’ve brought you tea.’

Jago turned over and before she knew what he was about to do he had reached up and pulled her down for a kiss. She found herself in his arms, half lying on the single bed. For a second or two she allowed herself to stay there, wrapped in his arms, in the dark, just the two of them. And then thoughts of Fred, possibly needing the bathroom again, made her pull away.

‘We haven’t time for this,’ she said. ‘Drink your tea and then get up.’

She heard the shower going – an attachment on the taps in the narrow bath – and shortly afterwards he appeared in the living room.

‘OK, I’ll take over now,’ he said. ‘Thanks for the tea.’

She thought she’d never sleep but the bed was warm and cocoon-like and the room very dark. While she did spend quite a bit of time thinking about Jago and how she felt about him now, she did drift off and soon Jago was shaking her arm.

‘Hey! Wake up! You must have been very deeply asleep. I’ve been knocking and calling for ages.’

She sat up in bed. ‘Oh, gosh, sorry! What time is it?’

‘Just after four. Dawn is breaking and the birds are singing loud enough to deafen you.’

‘Have you made me tea?’

‘I have. It’s getting cold so hurry up!’

The dawn was so lovely it made Helena (who was a bit sleep-deprived) feel almost weepy. The sun was coming up, sending shafts of sunlight through woodlands, across fields and into the valleys. In the background the birds were so loud they could have been a music track.

She sat in the chair that Jago had moved so she could see the view and sipped her tea. As she watched the mist, which again reminded her so much of carded wool, drift across the landscape she saw a little group of deer emerge from the trees and start grazing in a field.

‘Look,’ she whispered. ‘The deer!’

‘You don’t have to whisper,’ said Jago, who’d reappeared behind her. ‘They won’t hear you from here.’

She dug him in the arm with her elbow. ‘Not them – Fred! How is he? Anything you need to tell me?’

‘Not really. He gets up early though so there’s no point in my going back to bed really.’