‘There was no need,’ David interrupted. ‘We have always been able to provide for her and she’s never wanted for anything. There was no call for her to work. We help them out.’ He muttered something about his son-in-law being nothing more than an estate agent. ‘And now she has Daisy…’

Hearing her granddaughter’s name, Anne broke down in tears.

‘Where is she?’ she cried out. ‘Find her for us. Oh please, just find her.’

‘For goodness sake, stop snivelling. How is that helping?’ her husband snapped. ‘Pull yourself together. And as for Jessica, her talk about going back to work was all nonsense. She never managed to hold down a job for longer than a few weeks, even after I’d pulled strings to get her a really nice position. She said she couldn’t cope with the pressure. It was better for all of us when she stopped that charade and admitted that working wasn’t for her. Stop blubbering, Anne. You’re not making this any easier for the rest of us.’

The rest of us being himself, Geraldine thought. Aloud she asked, ‘When did you last see Daisy?’

Anne blew her nose and raised her head, making a visible effort to control her sobbing.

‘Jessica brought her here on Thursday, around teatime.’

‘With Jason?’

‘No, he was working.’

‘And when did you last go round to Jessica’s house?’

‘Oh, I can’t remember. A few weeks ago, maybe more. She brings the baby to see us every week. Daisy knows us,’ she added with a tearful smile. ‘She –’

Geraldine interrupted her. ‘You have a key to Jessica’s house?’

‘Yes. And she has our key as well, in case we lock ourselves out. She drives by occasionally when we’re away, just to keep an eye on the place, and we do the same for her. We’ve always done that, ever since she married that man and moved out.’