Lottie was safe. She’d be sitting on the sofa watching one cartoon or another, eating a favourite sugary cereal without a care in the world. Lottie was safe and sound. Megan told herself she’d soon have her back. They’d be off to the pool together, making the most of the day ahead.

4

Megan started her small but sporty Arctic-white Italian hatchback on the second turn of the key. She headed towards Dale’s rented flat on the outskirts of the pleasant west Wales market town, driving a lot faster than was sensible as the rain began to fall.

Within ten minutes Megan was turning into Dale’s modest terraced street, searching for a suitable parking space to the right and left as she slowed, the windscreen wipers battling valiantly with the increasing volume of water, seemingly coming from every direction at once. Megan parked half on and half off a low kerb about one hundred yards from her ex-husband’s first-floor, two-bedroom abode.

When she reached Dale’s shared front door Megan was panting hard, her chest rising and falling with a steady pulse as she pressed the top bell of two, holding down the white button, hearing the shrill tone ring out. She allowed the bell to ring for a full thirty seconds before banging on the door with the side of a clenched fist, increasing the force and regularity of the blows with every few seconds that passed. The last thing she wanted to do was to upset Lottie. The events of the early hours had done more than enough of that already. But she had to get an answer. Why no reply?

Why on earth wasn’t Dale answering the damned door? They’d both be awake by now. No-one could sleep through that noise. Was Dale hiding? Was he choosing to ignore her, embarrassed by his drunken behaviour, and keen to avoid confrontation, an argument he couldn’t win? And what about Lottie? Surely, she’d open the curtains. She’d peer out. Guess it was her mum. Why were the curtains still closed after all this time? Megan shuddered, her entire body trembling from growing apprehension as opposed to cold. She looked up at each first-floor window in turn. Oh, God, what on earth was going on? Maybe they weren’t in there at all.

Megan looked up and down the street, suddenly acutely aware that she hadn’t seen Dale’s aged, rust rotted estate car at any point since her arrival. She looked again, hoping she’d missed it, eyes darting from one vehicle to the next, but it was nowhere to be found. Megan wanted to scream, she wanted to stomp and shout, but instead, she reached into her bag, searching for her mobile with frantic fingers, as large raindrops continued to fall, water running down her face and soaking into her clothes.

She bounced a foot on the pavement as she dialled and began striding back to her car as the rain eased slightly. She picked up her pace, avoiding the many puddles with quick dancing feet, speaking as she walked, phone in one hand and car keys in the other as the sky darkened. ‘Mum, Dale took Lottie last night after I rang you.’