The hall had been filling up with people while they’d been talking and there was now a queue by Diane’s desk.

‘I’ll give you a ring.’ Diane popped the bag of clothes behind a table. ‘Is that old dear waiting for you? She keeps looking over here.’

Mrs Williams, now accompanied by another old lady, was perched on Tara’s counselling chairs and staring in her direction. She seemed crumpled with grief, clutching her handbag like a comfort blanket. From the way she kept glancing in their direction, Mrs Williams seemed confident that Tara could sort out the missing Bobby issue.

‘How are you with cats?’ Tara asked Diane. ‘I need an expert.’

Diane peered over her glasses and sighed. ‘When you’re a single woman in your fifties, you tend to avoid them,’ she said. ‘They’re quite … ageing.’

Wednesday was Lunch and Learn Day at the Wellness Centre, the monthly chance for the team to gather over a selection of sandwiches, and for one therapist to hold forth about a topic of their choice – almost without exception, their own brand of therapy and the benefits thereof. There were a few notable exceptions: Harry the sports masseur liked to practise his stand-up routine on a captive audience, and Darren the acupuncturist was passionate about hedgehog conservation.

The format was familiar: Jacqueline ran through the agenda as everyone grazed the buffet, starting with major upcoming events, followed by reminders about the state of the staff kitchen and pleas for website content, and, as a grand finale, any thank-you notes sent to the Centre from clients. Most of the therapists visibly snapped back to life when the thank-you cards emerged from Jacqueline’s manila file: under the smiles and applause there was a certain amount of professional rivalry about who got the most.

‘Now, this is a lovely message I wanted to share with you.’ Jacqueline waved a postcard; Tara couldn’t make out more than a sunny beach from her position at the back of the room, nearest the door. ‘It’s from a couple who, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind me saying, came in last week in a bit of a state for some make-or-break counselling. Anyway, they write: Dear Jacqueline – just wanted to drop you a line to let you know that the wedding is back on! And it’s all thanks to …’ She allowed a minute X Factor suspense-pause, then said, ‘David. He was amazing. We’re back on track and we’re eloping next month! With best wishes, Jodie and Jack. Kiss kiss. And a paw from Monkey. A happy ever after! Well done, David.’