Beth gives her a grateful smile and walks towards the stairs. As she reaches for the banister, her hand brushes against Kat’s arm. Usually she despises touching people, but there’s something reassuring about the solidity of Kat’s frame today, and the deep greens of her cactus tattoo. Beth pauses for a moment, draws as much strength as she can and then pulls away.

She almost cries with relief when she reaches her bedroom. The bed is perfectly made, and the line of cushions at the top is uniformly plumped. Every surface is sparkling and as Beth breathes in, the faint scent of cedarwood adds to her growing sense of calm. She picks her rings off her bedside table, then walks into her bathroom and turns on the tap, the hot water providing a more powerful tonic. She edges the temperature up higher as her skin craves more, and scrubs her hands with Aesop exfoliating wash. As its tiny pieces of pumice scratch away her skin, the memory of her decrepit father and decaying childhood home fades a little too. Finally she feels strong enough to reach for a towel and place her rings where they belong.

That’s when she notices that her wardrobe door in the adjacent dressing room is open a fraction. Fear tingles on the back of her neck as her eyes dart around the room.

Has he been here? In her most private of spaces? Can she sense his presence now?

Don’t be stupid! the rational part of her brain screams. She saw him outside, only a few minutes ago. He can’t be in her bedroom. But could he have been here earlier? She takes a few jagged steps towards her wardrobe. But the irrational side is fighting for dominance again. Was it definitely him that she saw outside? Could he have come in via the garden? What if he is behind those doors? Ready to attack her as soon as she opens them? But she needs to know what’s he done. She takes a deep breath.

The knocker on the front door rattles below her. She gasps; her head spins. Of course he’s outside! Has he got the audacity to try to muscle his way in through her front door? She twists on her heels and races out of her room, and down both flights of stairs. ‘Don’t answer it!’ she screams, but it’s too late. Kat is opening the door. Beth sucks in a scream.

‘Sorry! Can’t believe I forgot my key.’

Beth almost cries with relief. She’s never felt so happy to see her husband. ‘Simon,’ she whispers.

Simon scans the hallway, three scared faces. ‘What’s happened?’