“That’s me.” Julia spoke with a long-forgotten pride. “I hardly recognize her now. Horses are such trusting beasts—they teach children respect and kindness.”

Jack used this casual memory to segue into the reason for his visit.

“The Grange would have been a wonderful place for a kids’ home, then.”

Julia looked directly at Jack. “Is that why you’re here . . . ? Good God! That was a lifetime ago.” She didn’t seem unsettled by the change of topic. “The problem you’ve got, DC Warr, is that I was using back then. I may not be able to help you, not because I don’t want to but because it’s all a bit of a blur.”

As Julia began talking, she repeated much of what Jack had already heard. That they were a group of women brought together by Ester Freeman to welcome Dolly Rawlins back into the real world. Then the children’s home idea raised its head and they all decided to stay on and help Dolly with that. They were ex-cons with nowhere else to be, so they jumped on the back of her ambition and went along for the ride.

“It doesn’t take long at all to get into your blood. Dolly disappeared from my life in the blink of an eye, but the kids’ home idea . . . that refused to leave. I would like to have seen The Grange come to fruition, horses and all.” Jack asked whether Julia had known their nearest neighbor, Norma Walker. “Vaguely. She kept retired police mounts. Now, they’re amazing animals. Country horses can get skittish at a leaf falling, but police horses . . . nerves of steel. I’m sure you know.”

“I’ve seen them work. They’re trained to remain calm around loud noises and crowds, all that sort of thing. I’ve never even been on one, if I’m honest. They scare the life out of me.”

Julia smiled a sweet, understanding smile. “Once you make friends with a horse, you’ll never be scared of them again.” She glanced into the chaotic garden. “Friendship’s so important. I think Dolly would have liked this place. She was the strongest person I’ve ever met. I asked her once if anything ever scared her and she told me about the night she shot Harry, her husband. She said that after doing that, nothing scared her. She said, ‘I’m not like my husband. I’m better. I always was. I was just clever at making sure he never knew it.’ How ballsy is that?”

“Can you tell me about the night Dolly was shot?”

“It was ridiculous! Craigh was standing right next to her! Ester rushes in and, no hesitation, she pulls the trigger. What the fuck she thought she was doing, I will never know. We were all arrested, kept overnight, then Craigh let us go the next morning. Ester’s got a screw loose. Have you met her? I assume you’re speaking to all of us?”

“I have met Ester, yes. And Connie.”