Finishing his drink, he checked his phone for messages as he headed to his van. None, good. He climbed into the back and covered himself with his jacket. How long could he keep doing this? It was time to choose between Maddy and Ali. But he loved them both and neither of them deserved to be cheated on. He didn’t know what to do. He shut his eyes. A quick nap, then he had to get home. Home. The word expanded in his mind. His eyes opened again, and he stared into the near darkness. Two squares of streetlight glowed through the windows. The musty smell of dogs and paint filled the air in the hollow space. He wasn’t even sure where home was anymore.

Chapter Fifty-One

Maddy: December 2019

From the adjacent road, Maddy watches Alison load a cool bag in the back of the car. It is 8.20 a.m. She goes back in the house and comes out with an open map which she places on the passenger seat. Maddy thinks of Emily getting ready to go to the Science Museum for the day. Sophie and Emily have been pestering for ages. It’s Sarah’s turn to take them out. Tomorrow she’ll take them to the cinema and for pizza. It’s going to be so strange without Chloe and Max. She’ll try to be upbeat for Emily’s sake, but it’s such a struggle when her body feels so weighed down with grief.

Alison straps Jamie in the back seat with a bottle of juice and an overstuffed bag of what she guesses are colouring books and toys. Legoland is at least two hours away. They’ll be gone all day for sure because Legoland at Christmas is a special day-long event. Plenty of time. According to Alison’s kitchen calendar, Sandra is in the Costa del Sol until Sunday evening.

As soon as they drive off, Maddy sets a timer on her watch for ten minutes. If people forget something, they usually return within the first few minutes after they’ve left. While she’s waiting, she feels a kick. Smiling to herself, she lifts her jumper and presses her hands to her skin. Not long now, little one.

The car doesn’t return, so Maddy puts on a baseball cap she’s taken to wearing and adjusts it low on her forehead. She snaps on a pair of black latex gloves and picks up her carry tray full of bottles of cleaner and all sorts of tools. The neighbour across the driveway opens her front door as Maddy is about to let herself in to Alison’s house.

‘Hello there,’ the woman shouts, ‘you’re the cleaner, are you?’

Maddy freezes. The sold sign is lying on the ground in front of their garage door.

‘I’m Natty. We moved in yesterday. I wonder if you could give me a quote for a weekly clean?’

Maddy nods.