Sara shook her head in disbelief. Was that it? Had her debt really been to Fiona?

‘It’s a pity Matt couldn’t see he was on to a good thing with me. The stupid man’s besotted with you; he just brushed me away.’

She tried to seduce him, and he resisted? Sara didn’t feel any less betrayed by the people she’d trusted. Her body was rigid with fury.

Fiona moaned as she moved in an effort to make herself more comfortable. ‘I think we’re quits now.’ She attempted a smile, which turned into a grimace. ‘So let’s not say anything about it. And I won’t tell anyone you stole from the community centre.’

Sara’s breath hitched in her throat and her heart gave a weird little skip. ‘You know?’

‘Of course I know.’ Fiona grunted, adjusting the position of her arm so the weight of it was supported on her chest. ‘Julia did a thorough audit of the accounts when she started, something our previous treasurer never bothered to do. She spotted it straight away. I told her I’d investigate, spoke to James, and we came to… an understanding. It has been documented as an admin error, but of course I can do further investigations and discover that James wasn’t being truthful with me, can’t I?’ She raised an eyebrow. ‘Then we’ll have to get the police involved and, well, we don’t want to go there, do we? So if you say nothing about the website, I’ll say nothing about the theft.’

Sara shuffled her feet, nudging Fiona’s leg. She squealed in pain.

‘Oh God, I’m so sorry,’ Sara said, as if she meant it, while anger flared in her chest. Does she really think I’m going to let this go? She sat in silence, seething as she considered Fiona’s ultimatum.

‘Do we have a deal?’ Fiona asked, a tear trickling down her face. ‘Look, I need an ambulance. Please, Sara, Let’s just agree on this.’

Sara glared at her, too angry to speak. When she did, there was a steely edge to her voice.

‘Think of all those women who were exploited. It’s not just me, is it? I know you tried to tell Matt that it was all consensual, and you might have convinced him, but I know it isn’t. You’re facilitating paid abuse.’ Sara’s feet itched to kick her again, harder this time, but she resisted. It was more important to understand why she’d been the target of Fiona’s scheme.

Fiona closed her eyes. ‘Okay, some of it was wrong. I’ll admit that. I saw a business opportunity, didn’t think it through in terms of consequences.’ She grimaced, another tear rolling down her cheek. ‘It’s all over, anyway. Matt’s put an end to it. He said he’s destroyed everything.’