He made a hmm noise on the line as if he was considering my answer, and for a moment I didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t believe he wasn’t instantly on my side.

‘Adam, you do believe me, right?’

‘Kate heard you got suspended from school as well.’

‘That’s bullshit too. A smear campaign. Listen, mate, I really need your help. William won’t be any trouble.’

He hesitated.

‘Sorry Joe, I just can’t. Give me a bell at the weekend, we’ll go for a pint or something, yeah? Gotta go.’

He hung up.

The other phone beeped in my left hand as Ben texted a reply to Mel’s invitation.

Knew you’d change your mind beautiful girl 8 p.m.? xxx

6.29 p.m. Ben mob

I checked my watch. Eight o’clock was feasible.

‘Mel,’ I said. ‘He said yes.’

She stood up and dried her hands as I showed her the message.

‘Tell him yes,’ I said. ‘Say it in the way you would have done while you were . . . together. You know what I mean.’

She nodded, blushing, and typed a reply.

Will b there. Can’t wait 2 see you again Mr D xxx

6.30 p.m. Me

Staring at the string of messages, it felt like I had stumbled into a private conversation between two strangers and was intruding on their intimacy. It made me feel hollowed out all over again. Focus. One decent picture of Ben was all I needed to clear my name and keep my family intact. For the first time in days I felt like I was in control for once, guiding events rather than being bounced from one situation into the next.

Ben had taken the bait.

I’ve got you now, finally. This ends tonight.

‘Get changed, put some make-up on. Get ready like you’re going out on a date.’

Mel’s cheeks were red with embarrassment.

‘A date?’

‘As if you were meeting him again.’ Even saying the words, my throat was tight.

‘What about William? It’s his bedtime.’

‘We can drop him at Beth’s for half an hour, it’s on the way.’

Mel looked aghast, as if I’d suggested leaving our son with the Child Catcher.

‘You’re not serious?’ The colour was draining from her face. She looked as if she might be sick.

‘Alice won’t mind looking after him. Do you have a better idea?’

My parents lived near Bath, and Mel’s mother lived in Tamworth, so both of them were out of the question for short-notice babysitting. The truth was, there were very few people we could drop William with, out of the blue, on a week night, without arranging it well in advance.

‘Joe, I can’t, she won’t . . . I can’t go there. She’ll go ballistic. I can’t do that again.’

‘There’s no one else that we can leave William with.’