‘Ah. Yes. I noted Nell was “under the weather” too,’ Tina said, repeating Muriel’s words while making air quotes with her fingers. ‘Must be catching.’

Anna wasn’t sure of the relevance of Tina’s observation, but something was passing between the two of them that Anna wasn’t privy to.

‘Here we go,’ Anna said as she placed a mug in front of Tina. ‘Biscuits?’

‘No, thanks. I might choke.’

Anna bit her lip. She may not know exactly what had gone down, what had caused this frostiness, this animosity, but she was close to telling them both to grow the fuck up.

‘Why are you here, Tina?’ Finally, her mother had voiced the question burning in Anna’s throat.

‘Obvious, isn’t it?’

‘I do remember the anniversary. I do every year.’

‘This one is particularly significant though, wouldn’t you agree?’

‘Because of him?’

Tina sipped her coffee, then banged the mug down. ‘He’s out. He’s free. He’s back.’

A shiver travelled the length of Anna’s spine and the way Muriel’s face had lost all its colour indicated she’d had a similar reaction.

‘What makes you think he’s back?’

‘No need to be coy, Muriel. I know you’ve had one too.’

So, Tina had received a similar macabre message hammered to her door. Were they the only ones?

Anna stared at Muriel, watching as she struggled to look Tina in the eye.

‘Yes, Auntie Tina. She had one. Two now, in fact.’

Tina’s mouth gaped. ‘When?’

Muriel lifted her head. ‘First one was Friday. Second was this morning. You?’

‘Just the one. Friday. But I imagine there’ll be more to come.’

‘I think you might be jumping to conclusions, Auntie Tina. Mum thinks it’s probably teenagers with nothing better to do. I mean, why would Billy be doing this? It doesn’t make sense – surely he’ll just land himself back in prison.’ Anna joined them at the table, her questioning gaze darting from her mother to Auntie Tina.

‘After all that time locked up, perhaps he can’t handle being out – back in the real world. He might want to be put back inside,’ Tina said. ‘Or …’ Auntie Tina ran her fingers through her thinning hair. ‘His desire for revenge outweighs the risks.’

‘Revenge? For what? He’s the one who committed murder!’ Anna shouted. ‘And it’s deplorable that he never disclosed where he hid poor—’ Anna stopped, aware her angry outburst might not be appropriate for the mother of the victim to hear.

‘Oh, Bella. Your naivety is less endearing now you’re an adult.’

‘I told you, it’s Anna now.’ The huffy tone made her sound childish, which angered her even more than Tina’s snide comment. She’d not been that innocent. And besides, she’d only been ten years’ old when all of this happened – how was she supposed to remember everything, understand all the details and subtleties surrounding the events?

‘Sorry, Anna. All I’m saying is Billy Cawley felt wronged by the people in Mapledon. For numerous reasons.’

Anna was going to ask what the specific reasons were, but got the feeling she might not be told the truth. Or even whether she really wanted to know.