I opened my eyes as we turned into a drive. Holding my lantern higher, I saw it was bordered by flowers. Up ahead, the drive opened out into a sloping lawn, at the top of which sat a solid-looking house, its windows flung open and golden light streaming forth from them. The sound of glasses clinking and people laughing carried out to us.

Nicolas braked gently and we eased to a halt.

‘What ho,’ came Freddie’s voice, and I saw his figure standing in the open doorway, waving a bottle of champagne.

Kirlton was large and homely, set against a backdrop of forested ridges and soaring peaks, and already full of guests by the time we crossed the threshold.

‘I’m glad you came,’ Freddie said to me. ‘Would you like a tour?’

‘Yes please.’

He handed the champagne to a tall, slim native wearing a pristine white kanzu with bare feet. He didn’t look much older than Freddie.

‘Waweru – you’re in charge of drinks until I’m back.’

‘Yes, Bwana.’

‘Theo, Waweru. Waweru’s my personal servant – couldn’t live without him.’

Waweru inclined his head.

Freddie guided me around a drawing room hung with oil portraits of his and Edie’s mothers. Like ours, the furniture was English antique. Wooden beams traversed the ceiling, but none of the walls quite reached that height, so anyone sitting on the beams would be able to look into all of the rooms below.

There was an office leading off the drawing room, and a huge library stacked from floor to ceiling with enormous, leather-bound books. The kitchen was separate to the main house, but several tables had been laid in the dining room, and were gleaming with polished silver, champagne flutes and covered soup tureens.

‘We’ll eat at eleven,’ Freddie said. ‘To give everyone time to get nice and drunk first.’

There were four bedrooms, with pyjamas laid out on the pillows and silver trays on the bedside tables holding a bottle of whisky and two tumblers each. The largest bedroom had a walk-in wardrobe, and all of them had their own bathrooms. At the last bathroom door, Freddie paused. There were no other guests around, although I felt infected by the party atmosphere, the noise and number of them. Freddie smiled at me and I was glad we were by ourselves. I leaned against the door.

‘What now?’ I asked.

‘Let me go and fetch some of the others,’ he said. ‘Edie will want them.’

I started to move away with him, but he stopped me.

‘Go on in,’ he said, motioning me towards the door.