Beth takes another sip of the sparkling wine. It’s true that she behaved differently on Thursday night, more impulsively. She didn’t spend time weighing up the pros and cons of action or considering how it would look to her peers. But how can she explain that to Simon? How can she tell him that, in the moment when she saw the man lying there, she became someone else? Not a stranger, but the person she used to be before she met him and built a different kind of life. ‘He just caught my eye, I suppose. His face was this deathly blue colour, so I knew he was in trouble. I couldn’t leave him once I’d seen that, otherwise I’d have that image of him in my head forever.’

Simon reaches across the island unit and takes Beth’s hand. ‘I didn’t think I could love you more,’ he says, stroking her fingers and circling the large solitaire diamond of her engagement ring. ‘But you’ve proved me wrong.’

His eyes look suggestive, Beth realises with a start. The girls are fast asleep now, they say, we could take the rest of the bottle upstairs. To buy time, Beth opens her hand and allows his fingers to slip between hers. Then she looks up at his face and tries a platonic smile. They have a good marriage. They’ve been together for sixteen years, married for ten, and she still loves him very deeply. She loves his loyalty, his strength of character. His ability to provide so handsomely for his family.

But she doesn’t always love him touching her. She knows that’s her problem, not his. And sometimes, like when he’s fresh from the shower, damp hair glistening and white towel wrapped around his waist, his arms are welcome. But not tonight. She can’t be that person tonight when there are so many thoughts swirling around her head. Did she really do enough on Thursday night? Will the other squatter follow through with his threat?

And why the hell hasn’t Saskia taken down that post yet?

Her phone buzzes on the hard stone and they both jump. It’s on silent, but the grind of the vibration is louder than any sound in her options menu. Beth expects it to stop after two buzzes, signifying a text or hopefully a WhatsApp message from Saskia confirming she’s deleted the post. But it keeps buzzing and Beth belatedly realises it’s actually a phone call. She stares at it another moment, wondering who it could be. No one phones her anymore.

No one except …