‘But he would have been guilty, Anna,’ Fran snaps, ‘he would have been guilty of ruining Laurel’s life when he swanned off with his fancy piece, and left her to a lifetime of scraping by, always making do. And then what if he’d come back for her? Lured her away from me with all his false promises, to go and live with him and Pamela, leaving me all alone? I had to punish him, to make sure he was off the scene for good. I took the yellow sock that day, while you were out at the supermarket. Laurel did have a nosebleed that morning, but you weren’t here to see it. I just held the sock against her nose for a moment, sufficient to give a big enough stain. I knew the fresh flowers in the hallway would get her hayfever going, and even though I hated myself for effectively giving her a nosebleed, I had to do it. All I had to do then was hide it in his car.’ She raises her eyebrows. ‘I thought you’d caught me that day, coming out of the garage. I grabbed the wine in a panic. I was the one who put those hideous pictures of those poor children on his computer – that was Polly’s idea. She said it would make sure they really were suspicious of his motives.’ She gives a sad smile, and for a brief second, I almost feel sorry for her, until I think about how cruel, how calculating she has been.

‘Can I see her? Can I see Laurel?’ I say, nausea making my stomach roil and saliva spurt into my mouth. I had no idea how wicked Fran could be, and all the time I was living under the same roof as her. ‘Just one last time. Please.’

‘Absolutely not. No, Anna, I can’t let you do that.’ She shakes her head, her perfect bob bouncing above her shoulders.

‘Really?’ I slide my mobile from my pocket and wave it in her direction. ‘I want to see her, Fran. I want to see for myself that she’s OK. Otherwise I think I should probably call the police now and have them come and see what really happened to Laurel.’ My pulse thunders in my ears as I hope that she doesn’t call my bluff.