The light had moved on, and when she risked peeping – still petrified that the torch would pick out the whites of her eyes – she saw the beam retreating back along the path towards the car.

Thank God. He’s leaving.

But Sharon was wrong. The man got back into the car, but instead of driving towards the exit he pulled onto one of the footpaths that led to the smaller lakes and ponds. All she wanted to do was leave as quickly as she could, but getting to her own car could be dangerous. He might see her and come after her.

Sharon pushed herself up from where she was crouching, feeling nauseous as the tequila shots she had knocked back sloshed around in her gut, not helped by the hard knot of fear gripping her throat. Despite the freezing air, her clothes were clinging damply to her back. She made her way on bare feet to where the car had disappeared and peered around a tree trunk. It was parked no more than ten metres away. The door on the driver’s side was open, and the man was walking towards the boot. He pulled out a long thin bag, which looked heavy. What was he doing?

Then the rear door behind the front passenger seat opened and another figure got out. Against the black sky it was hard to see much, but this person was a lot shorter, and Sharon felt sure it was either a woman or a child. Neither person spoke, and the shorter of the two waited patiently at the side of the car. Then the boot lid was slammed shut, and they started to walk down the lane together, turning off down a narrow path without a word spoken.

For a moment Sharon thought this was her chance to escape. But what if they were just going down there to dump the bag? They could be back before she was halfway across the car park. Whatever they were up to, it didn’t look good. Why else would the man have checked her car so thoroughly and come looking for her? Why else drive without lights?

There was nothing for it. She had to hide, and wait.

It was hard to find the perfect spot. A lot of the shrubs had lost their leaves, and yet she wanted to keep the car in sight – to know when it left. The bloke from the club was obviously not coming, and although she was relieved, part of her would have been pleased to see him – or anyone else. Safety in numbers. For now though, she needed to find a place where the cover was good enough. Huddled into her black coat, she reasoned that if she kept her head down she wouldn’t be seen.