The car skidded to a halt and Jai and I jumped out. The fire had spread from the woods across the scorched grasses to Kirsty’s barn. The one we’d been in a few nights previously, watching pigs devour flesh. It looked like some straw had been dumped outside the barn, which must have helped the fire spread.

A vast, searing heat came from the barn. And a sickening squealing.

Kirsty was standing staring at it.

Jai took Frankie’s hand and led her away from the barn towards the house. Tears were streaming down her face.

‘What’s happening?’ I shouted at Kirsty.

‘The fire brigade are on their way,’ Kirsty said. ‘It’s because of the straw. I shouldn’t have listened to those silly animal people. There’s nothing we can do. I have a pond they can take water from. We can’t do anything until they get here.’

‘But the pigs …’ I pictured them all in their cramped cages.

Screaming in pain. Burning.

‘The advice is not to try and get them out,’ Kirsty said.

I moved towards the barn, but Kirsty reached out and grabbed my arm. Her tight fingers pressed into my muscle. ‘We can’t open that door,’ she said. ‘The fire’s in the straw at the end of the barn by the door. If we open the door, it will give it oxygen and make it far worse. You need to stay away!’

I turned and caught her eye. She looked as confused by my reaction as I was by hers. She pushed her phone at me. A screen showed a page from a website – The National Animal Disease Information Service. I scanned the words. Kirsty was right. The advice was to leave the pigs to burn. The fire brigade’s primary responsibilities in dealing with a fire are the preservation of human life and protection of property by limiting spread of the fire. Animals are not a priority in such situations.

‘Well, that’s pretty chilling,’ I said.

‘The fire brigade are on their way,’ Kirsty said. ‘You want to endanger their lives trying to save pigs which are only going to be slaughtered for food anyway?’

‘But they’re suffering,’ I said.

A look of concern formed on her face, almost as if she’d willed it there. ‘They’ll pass out because of the smoke,’ she said. ‘They won’t be in pain.’

I wanted to say, They’re screaming. But she had a point. Why save them? It would only prolong their miserable lives and do nothing about the inevitability of their deaths.

‘Honestly,’ Kirsty said. ‘If we could get them out, I would. But it will make it much worse if we open the barn doors. I’m not letting you do that.’

We stood staring at each other for a moment and I realised I wasn’t going to win this one. ‘Kirsty, do you know where Daniel is?’ I said.

‘No.’