‘I don’t know. Maybe we need some space from each other. Just until the dust settles, until I’m better at grieving. We clearly have differing opinions on what that looks like.’

‘You’re kicking me out? Jesus fucking Christ, Ness.’

‘No, you can sleep on the couch.’

‘Fine, I’ll sleep on the couch as long as you deem fit.’ He went and grabbed his pillow and a blanket from the linen press. He pushed past her shoulder as he came down the hallway, and she felt like utter shit, but it was the only way she could do what she needed to do and not lose her marriage in the process.

She moved down the hallway to Ty’s room, pushing open the door and heading inside. He lay, one leg out of the covers, an arm flung across his forehead. She smiled gently, then kissed his cheek good night.

When she came out, Billy was watching her.

She spent the rest of the night lying awake in her bed, alone. So many times she wanted to go to Billy, but she didn’t. She had to stand her ground.

By the time the sun came up, she was exhausted, weary and feeling sorry for herself. She shuffled into the shower and put her face under the spray, waking herself up. Billy was already gone – probably deliberately so he didn’t have to see his wife.

Another week passed without her getting any closer to an answer. She hadn’t tried again to see the boys; she needed to formulate a plan first. Vanessa figured she’d have more of a chance of talking to Justin when he was recovering at home. Joan wouldn’t be with him; she wasn’t that kind of mother. Justin would be on his own soon enough. Just to be sure, she rang the hospital and was told that Justin had been discharged. He was at home, alone – ripe for the picking.

She dressed quickly and slipped out the front door while Maggie was showering. She couldn’t just stroll up to the house to see Justin, and she couldn’t just wander into the bar to see if Joan was there. They lived in a house out the back of the bar at the end of the block. She called Mark. ‘Hey Vanessa, what’s up?’ She could hear him shelling then eating peanuts.

‘Is Joan there?’

‘Yeah, she is in the corner doing payroll, why?’

‘This is going to sound crazy, but I’m going to break into Justin’s house and confront him, but I need your help.’ She held her breath. Would he help her? ‘Mark? Will you help me?’

‘Will this help give you closure?’

‘Yes.’

‘Fine, I’ll help.’

And it was that easy. ‘OK, just text me if Joan gets up and leaves. Then I’ll quickly leave their house, she’ll never catch me there.’

‘Yeah, sure.’