‘I won’t keep him, Nell.’ Anna forced a smile.

Nell disappeared into the storeroom, leaving Anna standing alone in the aisle. She’d been gone a few minutes and there was still no sign of Rob. Anna crept towards the closed door, straining to hear voices. It sounded as though Nell was having a go at Rob, her voice harsh, demanding. She couldn’t hear what she was saying, though. Footsteps came closer; Anna scuttled back from the door.

‘Hey, Anna,’ Rob said as he burst through the door, his face blotchy-red.

‘Rob, hi. Can I tear you away from your work for a bit?’

He looked furtively around at Nell, who was directly behind him. ‘Er … yeah, I can spare a few minutes.’

Anna knew she wanted him for longer than that, but went along with it. ‘Good. Lizzie’s here too,’ she said, motioning outside.

‘Oh.’ His face fell. Anna wondered what had gone on between the two of them, remembering Lizzie’s reluctance to leave the car.

‘Can we go inside? Into your house?’

‘Sure.’ He shrugged. He walked out the shop door, greeting Lizzie without making eye contact, and strode around the side of the shop. Anna and Lizzie followed.

The musty smell assaulted her nostrils as Rob showed them into the first room on the right as they walked in. Anna couldn’t remember having been inside when she was younger – she and Rob hadn’t been particularly friendly; they hadn’t hung around with the same crowd. She was immediately drawn to the framed photographs covering two of the walls, going up close to study them. Lizzie came up behind her.

‘What do you notice in this one?’ she asked, pointing to one depicting Mapledon’s May Day celebrations. Anna let her eyes travel over the picture. Her heart gave a jolt.

‘Billy Cawley is there, watching the girls dancing.’

‘Yes, but look who he’s with.’

‘That’s Auntie Tina,’ she said, straightening, unable to keep the surprise from her voice. ‘But that doesn’t really mean anything – most of the village, if not all of it, would’ve been there.’

‘But that close? They’re touching, see? They don’t need to be. There’s plenty of room around them – it’s not like they’re being squashed together in a crowd.’ Lizzie sounded excited now, like she’d been drinking energy drinks and they were just beginning to kick in.

But she was right – Tina and Billy looked very comfortable standing shoulder-to-shoulder. Anna searched the image for Mark, but couldn’t see him – only her mum and dad, Reverend Farnley and Nell.

‘But to be honest, Lizzie, the fact he’s with Tina Hayes only points to a connection between your dad and Jonie. If, as I assume you’re suggesting, he and Tina were close – having an affair even – all that proves is he had access to Jonie. It increases the likelihood your dad abducted her, as far as I can tell.’

‘No. You’re missing the point, Anna.’

Anna gave an exasperated sigh. ‘What point are you trying to make, then?’