A tear rolls down Tom’s cheek, curving its way over his cheekbone then disappearing into the stubble on his jawline. Another joins it, then another, and all Fran can do is watch as Renata’s words slice through her, tearing through her heart, hollowing it out.

Fran shuffles on her knees across the carpeted living room and out onto the wooden floor of the hallway. She moves slowly and carefully, having already overbalanced and hit her chin once, only to be yanked up by the arms.

A couple of minutes earlier, Renata decided that she was tired of talking and wanted to go to sleep.

‘You need to think about what I’ve said and how you’re going to apologise to Kate,’ she told Tom before she looked at Fran. ‘As for you. I’ll decide that tomorrow. Now, off to the basement you go.’

She instructed them to get up onto their knees and move into the hallway. When Tom shook his head and grunted in objection, Renata picked up the knife and held it to Fran’s throat. Tom made his way, shuffling on his knees, to the door.

‘There we are!’ Renata says now, pointing at a small door under the stairs. She ducks around Fran to pluck the key from the lock. She tucks it into her pocket then opens the door, revealing a steep, dark staircase.

‘Down you go,’ she tells Tom. ‘On your bum if you don’t want to get hurt.’

‘Nggh nggh.’ He moves his mouth from side to side under the tape.

‘No,’ Renata snaps. ‘I’m not taking it off. We’re not going to be asleep for very long. Kate should be here in four or five hours. You’ll survive without food and water until then.’

‘Nggh.’ Tom tilts his head towards Fran then stares in the direction of the front door.

‘No! I’m not letting her go and if you keep this up I’ll just push her down the stairs.’

Fran gives Tom a stoic nod. There’s something dangerously erratic about Renata’s moods, and she’s still got the knife. Rather than continue to bargain with her, they need to get into the basement, out of sight. Then they can formulate an escape plan.

Tom tips himself to one side so he lands on his buttocks then carefully sweeps his legs in front of him. He digs his heels into the ground then ‘walks’ towards the open basement door on his tail bones. Carefully he drops down onto the top step, then the next, and the next. When he disappears, Fran feels Renata’s shoe nudging her side.

‘Now you.’

Copying Tom, Fran shifts onto her bum and shuffles towards the door. She’s barely made it down the first step when Renata slams the door shut behind her and the basement is plunged into darkness.