‘He’s been away. Back tonight or tomorrow,’ Camilla replied. ‘But Mother has been here. Sensible and calm, and no recriminations for once. Not yet, anyway.’

‘I’m so glad I’ve talked to you. Hannah tried earlier, but I suppose you were with the doctor. Lars is doing well and should be home in two weeks.’ Sarah hesitated, wondering whether Marina might be within earshot. ‘Would you like to come over here for a while? Mum and Dad would love to lavish care on you. Smother you, in fact.’

‘I have to get my stitches out next week. Don’t worry about me. Daddy should be here for the weekend, and I’ll be fine.’ Camilla hesitated. ‘Is it hard to get the whole thing out of your head?’

‘I’ll never get it out of my head. I thought they’d killed Piet. Then I was so frightened for you and for Lars. And I keep thinking of Hannah, still on the farm, with these maniacs roaming around loose, her cattle dead, and the dogs poisoned, and Lars so badly hurt. They’re under siege at Langani, and it’s hard to think of anything else.’

‘But you’re still going back.’

‘I’m going, yes. Would you?’

‘If he asked me, I’d leave first thing in the morning. But he hasn’t. Probably he’s still out in the bundu. Maybe he hasn’t even heard yet.’

‘Hannah says he’s in camp somewhere, as far as possible from human contact. He probably hasn’t checked in anywhere yet, because the clients only arrived a couple of days ago. He likes to keep them in his private wilderness for as long as possible.’

‘I’d be on the next plane if he wanted me,’ Camilla’s voice was breaking. She did not see Marina, frozen with horror, standing in the small entrance hall. ‘And maybe that would be the best way of banishing the horror of it, and going on. Like getting up on a horse or a bicycle the minute you fall off. I have another idea, too. It’s something I could do with Hannah. I’ll tell you about it when I’ve thought it through properly. What’s your news. How is Raphael? How did they take your decision to go back?’

‘They hit the roof. But they had some dramatic news of their own. And so did Tim,’ Sarah said.

‘What’s happened?’ As she asked the question, Camilla heard a noise in the hall. ‘Hold on. It sounds like there’s someone at the door.’

‘Look, I’ll write tomorrow and tell you everything,’ Sarah said. ‘And I’ll phone again next week. Are you sure you’re – well, you know – that you can manage all this?’

‘I’m fine. Talk to you soon.’