I felt like an idiot but didn’t care. We were both here.

‘Then I caught a taxi, also easily enough.’

‘Why didn’t you call me?’

‘My phone’s dead. Or was. I put it on charge before jumping in the pool. The maps app is a nightmare battery-wise. GPS software always –’

‘Shut up about software!’ I said and – I couldn’t stop myself – I grabbed her wet shoulders with both hands and pulled her to me.

She was stiff in my arms for a second, but she didn’t pull away. She let me hold her. If anything, she relaxed. She smelled of sunscreen and chlorine. Quietly, into my ear, she said, ‘Pretty sketchy afternoon. But hey, we’re OK.’

Over her shoulder Xander hobbled out to the poolside. He didn’t smirk or wink or say anything, but the fact of him brought me to my senses.

‘I’ll fetch Marcel’s number,’ I said, stepping back from Amelia.

‘Possibly have a shower while you’re at it, or a swim?’ she said.

Reaching us, Xander said, ‘Before you head off, you might want to hear my news.’

‘What news?’ I asked him.

‘Don’t look so worried,’ he said. ‘It’s good, possibly, no … probably, I’d say.’

‘Has your dad come up with a way –’

‘Nothing to do with him, no,’ he said.

He appeared quietly pleased with himself, much like I’ve seen him look at school when he’s effortlessly persuaded a teacher to extend a homework deadline, or smooth-talked his way out of a detention.

‘Who then?’ I asked, trying to keep a lid on the hope bubbling within me.

‘I’ve just got back from paying your uncle a little visit, and I think I may have persuaded him to change his mind,’ he said.

‘How?!’

‘After you two went off I had a bit of time to think, and I realised we’d missed a trick. No disrespect to Langdon, but the most important thing in his world is his precious mining business, yes?’

I nodded.

‘And he’s not keen on the environmental protections your parents are lobbying for, is he?’

‘Not particularly.’

‘Red tape – that’s what he called it.’

‘The phrase rings a bell.’

‘Well, I pointed out that the only way to stop your parents becoming martyrs to the environmental cause – and drawing massive attention to it – is to secure their release. If we don’t pay and the kidnappers do what they’ve said they will, which I’m sure is an empty threat but still, the eco-warriors will say Nicholas and Janine were silenced because of what they were trying to achieve. The publicity for their cause would blow up globally, making it far more likely to succeed. But if they’re released, the story goes away.’

‘You told him that?’