She pulled her cuffs over her hands. ‘I found out about Hill House when I was in foster care. A kid who was with the same family said if I ever needed anywhere to squat, then it was a good place. It’s always quiet, and once a week, a charity hands out food parcels from that church hall up the road. I came here about a month ago. There was no electricity or running water, and the house was trashed, but at least there was nobody to hassle me or scream at my door in the middle of the night. It was just me and my sleeping bag and a camping stove. I only go into town when I have to … You were right when you recognised me the day you arrived. I go into Iceworld sometimes. But only when I’m really hungry. I only take stuff when I’m desperate.’

‘You don’t need to explain anything to me.’ Lou said. ‘We all do what we have to to get by.’

A smile briefly flickered across Alice’s lips again. ‘I’d been squatting a few weeks when I went looking around the house to see if anyone had left anything useful lying around. That’s when everything changed.’ Alice started playing with the loose cotton again. ‘I went down into the kitchens, and it was all normal. Not like upstairs, where it’s all ruined. There was glass in the windows, food on the shelves in the pantry, gleaming copper pots hanging on the walls. I thought I was dreaming. And then, Mrs Moriarty found me. She knew my name and everything, and said she’d been expecting me. I played along, waiting to wake up. Only, I never did.’

Alice opened her hands, revealing the scabs of healing blisters on her palms. ‘Being a maid was hard work. Some nights, I was so tired, I fell asleep in my clothes. But I didn’t care. I was glad to work hard because for the first time in my life, I felt like I belonged somewhere. The other staff were so nice. They treated me like I was one of them. I had enough to eat every day and a proper bed to sleep in every night.’ She paused and chewed her lip. ‘I never had a proper family. I was taken off my mum when I was a kid because of her drinking. I never knew who my dad was; I’m not even sure she did. When a social worker told me a few years ago that my mum had died, I didn’t feel anything. Growing up in care, you learn quickly not to feel anything. If you do, you hide it.’

‘I’m sorry,’ Lou said.

Alice shrugged. ‘Why? It’s not your fault. Anyway, what you’ve never had, you can’t miss, right?’ She wiped her cuff across her face. ‘I only came out of Hill House last week to see if I could. After I saw you, I had to know what I was dealing with. When I tried to go back in, everything was gone; the furniture, the ornaments, the people … It was just me and my sleeping bag again. I just figured it was another place that had given up on me. Another group of people that didn’t want me. You’d think I’d be used to that by now.’