Vanessa left the pieces lying on the floor and grabbed her bag and keys. She looked back, something telling her to turn around. She saw Ty hiding in the doorway of the lounge room. He must have heard her scream. She wanted to go and comfort him, but she couldn’t go back into the house, she couldn’t even think, she just knew if she didn’t leave, she was going to say or do something that she couldn’t take back. Better for her to go.

Vanessa drove around for a while, trying to work up the courage to go to Ryan’s place and own up to what Billy had done. Every time she thought about it, she burst into tears. He had no right to do that, no right at all. Who was he to tell her what was best for her?

Eventually, she pulled up out the front and rang the doorbell. Ryan answered after a long time. Maybe he was in Olivia’s room, touching her things like she’d been doing in Wren’s room.

‘Vanessa. Nice to see you. Come in.’ He stepped back to let her pass but noticed the look on her face. ‘Are you all right? Did something happen?’ God knows if anything worse than the death of your child could happen – could anything even come close to that?

She nodded, wanting to fling her arms around him, but knowing that it wasn’t a good idea. ‘I came here to confess and to say how sorry I am.’ Her eyes were downcast, tears slipping from beneath her lids. She couldn’t even meet his gaze.

‘Jesus, Vanessa, what the hell happened?’ He touched her arm and she looked up at him through a haze of tears, her face drained of all color. She felt faint, dizzy, like she was either going to puke or pass out.

‘Billy saw me with one of Olivia’s diaries and he snatched it from my hands and ripped it to shreds. I’m so sorry.’ She completely lost it, bawling, covering her face, muffled cries coming out from under her hands.

Ryan gently took her hands and held them in his. ‘It’s all right.’

‘No, it’s not. I’m furious that he’d do that. There could have been a clue in there! He doesn’t know that there’s one left, I’ll hide it so he can’t find them. I promise.’ She was supposed to be bringing him answers, not bad news about something that could have been avoided. Billy thought he was protecting her, but did that give him the right to destroy someone else’s property?

He hugged her to him, but there was distance to it; just a friendly hug to let her know that everything was fine between them.