‘I wondered if you were going to ask me about that. Yes, I knew,’ said Imogen, visibly abashed. ‘I didn’t realize at first he was actually getting into the grounds, and when I did I told him he mustn’t, because it was trespassing and he could get into trouble. But at the same time I wanted him to go off exploring. I know this is going to sound terrible, but sometimes I hated that he was so bloody sensitive and could be a bit of a wimp. I’d watch other kids racing around all over the place and it would drive me mad that Benji was always on the sidelines, sitting things out. I thought that if he went out on his bike in the evenings he’d become a bit braver and learn to take risks.’ Tears slid down her face. ‘Now I wish I’d kept him wrapped up in cotton wool all the time so he’d be here with me, safe.’

‘Was Poppy one of the kids you saw racing around?’

‘Yes. That’s why I was happy for them to be friends. I thought she might be a positive influence on him, get him to come out of his shell a bit.’

‘Your mum told me that Benji thought Poppy could be bossy and overbearing.’

‘I guess she could be at times, but I thought it was good for Benji to have someone be a bit bolshie with him, to push him into trying new things. I saw the kind of parent Ewan was with Poppy and how it toughened her up and I was trying to do the same.’

‘What does Ewan do?’

‘He’s very no-nonsense, so if Poppy ever got upset and said she didn’t want to do something because she was scared or was being lazy, Ewan wouldn’t let her duck out. He’d make her join in. And, of course, once she did she was fine.’

Maggie wasn’t sure she agreed. Forcing kids against their will to participate when they were upset seemed cruel.

‘I thought I should do the same with Benji,’ Imogen continued. ‘I was never scared of my own shadow as a child and I hated that he was like that.’

‘Did it help his confidence, being tougher on him?’

Imogen wiped her cheeks dry with her fingertips. ‘It did. He started going out on his bike after school and he seemed much happier.’ Her face suddenly clouded for a moment. ‘There was one day he came back upset though. He was crying.’

Maggie flipped on to a clean page in her notebook.

‘Did he tell you why?’

‘I didn’t ask. I was really cross because he came home with his school trousers covered in chalky mud and I had to get them washed for the morning. I made him get in the shower and then go straight to bed.’

‘Can you remember what day it was?’