It was bedlam. People pushing from the back to see what was happening, shoved those on the edge into the water. Fists started to fly. The TV cameras were immediately brought out again. Suddenly everyone was hitting and grabbing, kicking and shoving.

Diana, drenched and muddy, clambered to the edge of the stream, grabbed Gareth’s proffered hand and immediately pulled him in on top of her. The media were going mad. Maddy bit her knuckles in horror and tried to get to where Suzy had been standing.

‘I shouldn’t, Maddy,’ Barty Small panted, trying to fight against the crush. ‘You’ll only end up in there, too.’

‘Suzy!’ Maddy shrieked. ‘Suzy!’

‘She’s OK,’ Kimberley, her hair awry, gasped. ‘It wasn’t her fault.’

‘I know,’ Maddy, absolutely terrified, ducked a fist. ‘I just hope she’s – ouch!’ She turned and glared at Stacey. ‘You hit me!’

‘Accident.’ Stacey looked like a petrified rabbit. ‘Really … Oooh!’

Slithering, trying to grab hold of anything solid, Stacey splashed satisfyingly into the stream. Kimberley looked at Maddy with admiration.

‘It wasn’t me! I didn’t –’

‘No, I did.’ Bronwyn Pugh smirked. ‘Little madam. She won’t call me a daft old bat again in a hurry.’

Maddy tried to fight her way out of the mayhem. The noise was unbearable. She had dreaded this happening. Somewhere, sirens echoed eerily above the shouts and screams. It didn’t deter the battlers. They hadn’t had anything like this since the last inter-village cup final when Milton St John were robbed by an iffy penalty in the last minute. The police cars screeched to a halt, and blue uniforms swarmed amongst the mob. Maddy felt a hand on her arm and failing to shake it free, bit it.

‘Shit!’ Drew swore at her. ‘Thanks a lot! Come on, unless you want to get arrested! Maddy – now!’

He hauled her out of the throng and glared at her. People were pushing and shoving all around them.

She glared back. ‘I didn’t need rescuing.’

‘Yes you did.’ Drew examined his hand. ‘You were right in the thick of it. I think I’ll need a tetanus jab.’

Maddy was shaking. ‘I was trying to get to Suzy.’

‘Suzy is well able to look after herself. I’m not so sure about you.’

‘I’ve always managed before,’ she spat. ‘I don’t need anyone to fight my battles. Especially not you.’

‘And I thought you’d be grateful –’

‘Why the hell should I be grateful?’ She sidestepped the Maynard brothers who were fighting with each other. ‘I didn’t ask you to play Sir Lancelot!’

‘Galahad,’ Drew corrected. ‘He was the shining armour one who rescued damsels in distress. Lancelot was the lover.’

She looked at him mutinously and then laughed. He didn’t. Drew Fitzgerald was still very angry.

‘Have you been here all the time?’