‘Yet that pain would be all in your head, yes? Without you experiencing it, it wouldn’t exist.’

‘I guess so.’

‘Does that mean it’s not real?’

‘No.’

‘Quite. So we can agree that things which exist only in our minds can also be very much real.’

‘Not sure that explains how you’d know about stuff before it happens.’

Having been enthralled for a few minutes, Will is struck again by the stupidity of what he’s dared to discuss with her.

‘What time is it?’ she asks.

‘Just gone half five,’ he says, grabbing his phone to check the clock.

‘Well, so the machines tell us. You and I are sitting in this room, and we can both agree that we think it’s five thirty. Or, to put it another way, we are both in the present moment, we are in the now, and we are sharing the experience of seeing a clock that reads half past five. Yes?’

‘If you like.’

‘Now imagine there’s someone across town, say. Let’s call her Jan. And Jan is also in the present moment; Jan is also experiencing the now.’

‘OK.’

‘Then tell me this: what time is it round at Jan’s?’

‘Five thirty. Five thirty-three, actually.’

‘Prove it.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘How do you know that Jan’s now is the same as your now? How do you know that, in Jan’s mind, she is experiencing the same present at the same moment you are?’

Will digests the concept for a few seconds before a thought pops into his mind with which to shoot it down. ‘Very good, Miss.’

‘You’re looking smug. What you got for me?’

‘What if I phone this Jan up? What if I just send her a text? What … she’s going to tell me it’s a week next Tuesday? Shall I ask for next week’s lottery numbers? I’ll split the winnings with you, Miss.’

‘Ah, but if you speak to her, you and she become just like you and I are now. Connected, joined by a common experience. Your nows, your present moments, become intertwined. Your consciousness and hers are connected.’

‘Right.’

‘You understand?’

‘Not really. Enjoying the conversation, though.’ They grin at each other. ‘I’ll maybe accept that people could exist in different nows from each other. So what you’re saying is that if we aren’t in contact with someone, how can we know they aren’t experiencing an entirely different present moment?’

‘I’m saying exactly that.’

‘But if you communicate with another human, that moment unites you, and your nows must be the same.’

‘That too.’ She wears the sort of smile that suggests she knows where this is heading.