Nathan had stayed with the family for two weeks, during which he had succeeded in establishing a close rapport with Bessie, asking her to be kind enough to show an old gentleman the local sights, and in her parents’ presence exchanging winks with her, as if the two of them shared in-jokes.

On the day Nathan left, Laura was the recipient of a lecture, if not of the ticking-off she had anticipated.

‘There is more than one kind of insecurity,’ he had informed her. ‘Some folk, kids included, have a greater need than others to feel loved. Unlike Janis and Jeremy, Bessie is unable to take for granted that being one of a family guarantees affection from one to another.

‘Let me give you an example, Laura. There were ways in which I felt myself put through the mill by your grandfather, my brother, David. But I never doubted that he loved me—’

‘Nobody in this house has ever put Bessie through the mill,’ Laura had interrupted.

‘But all families indulge in everyday squabbles, afterwards forgotten. Not by Bessie, though. Instead she questions if whoever said the sharp word really loves her. I’m not suggesting that you all begin handling Bessie with kid gloves. There’s been too much of that already since she did what she did to capture the special attention she craves.

‘There are other ways of giving that to her, and she needs it from you especially. When did you last spend time alone with her? Take her out for an evening, or an afternoon, just the two of you? Let her know that she’s still your little girl, like always, despite your now having two other children? The way a sensible mother would with her elder child after giving birth to a second? I don’t doubt you’d have done that, Laura, if your family had been increased in the usual way.’

‘It wasn’t though, was it? If I’d done what you think I should have—’

‘I understand – don’t think I’ve failed to. It might have occurred to you nevertheless, had you thought about it, that Janis and Jeremy had each other. What you couldn’t have known, but events have proved it, is that Bessie is less resilient than they are. She has felt it necessary to live up to them in her mother’s estimation, to Janis in particular.’

‘Did she say so?’

‘Not in so many words, but those are my findings, for what they’re worth. I’ve made a bargain with her, and there’s nothing left for me to do. The rest is up to you.’

‘What was the bargain?’

‘If you follow the advice implicit in what I’ve said to you, and your having a word about it with Jake and his kids wouldn’t come amiss, you’ll find out.’