Anyway, we fixed that I would do a working visit to him the day after next, the Wednesday.

I’d been in the bungalow for less than half an hour, so there was nothing to stop me from returning to face the reproachful invoices in Chichester. I had only just got in the Yeti and turned on the ignition when my mobile rang.

‘Hello?’

‘Is that SpaceWoman?’

‘Yes. You’re talking to Ellen Curtis.’ I always answered like that. Not to give the impression that I managed a huge staff, just to open up the possibility of a first-name conversation.

‘You don’t know me. My name’s Cara Reece. And I believe you’ve just been visiting Edward Finch.’

I looked along the row of near-identical bungalows. Behind which untwitching curtains did the spy lurk?

‘Yes. Yes, I have,’ I confirmed.

‘He told me you were coming. I was so glad.’

‘Sorry, I’m not quite sure who you are.’

‘I’m a friend of Eddie’s. We used to teach at the same school.’

‘Ah. Thank you.’

‘And I was the one who persuaded him to contact you. You know, I looked online for a suitable person to help him and you seemed to fit the bill … sorry, is it Mrs Curtis or Miss Curtis?’

‘Mrs.’

‘So, you’re married?’

This was an odd thing to say and the way she said it was odd too. Almost with relief. I found myself saying, ‘I’m a widow.’ Which is unlike me. Normally, I keep my personal information to a minimum at work. I moved on quickly. ‘Anyway, call me Ellen.’

‘Oh. Thank you. Then please call me Cara.’

‘Fine. Cara it is.’

‘What I really wanted to ask, Ellen, is: Do you think you can help him?’

‘Yes, I think I can.’

‘I’m so pleased. He was so totally devastated when Pauline died.’

Good to have a name. It struck me that Edward hadn’t mentioned that detail.

‘I mean,’ Cara went on, ‘I’ve done what I could to help … you know, run a Hoover over things, cooked him the odd meal …’ That explained the relative tidiness of the bungalow. ‘But increasingly I’ve been coming round to the idea that Eddie needs professional help … which is why I got him to contact you.’

‘I’m glad you did, Cara.’

‘I wasn’t sure whether it was practical help he needed or, you know, psychological …?’

I didn’t tell her how close the two were. I just said, ‘I’ll start with getting the practical stuff sorted. Then we’ll see what kind of a state he’s in, whether he needs more specialized help.’

‘Thank you. I’m so relieved that he let you in.’

‘Sorry?’

‘Eddie’s very volatile. Sometimes he won’t let me in the house, even if I’ve made an arrangement to see him. Sometimes he doesn’t even answer his phone. He knows how worried I get about that.’

What she said made me wonder if there was another side to Edward Finch, capable of using his mental state to exercise power over Cara. Her tone of voice suggested she was almost frightened of him. Subservient, certainly. He wouldn’t be the first time I’d encountered the phenomenon of an ineffectual control freak.