I log out of the university system and flick off my screen. I call a taxi and when I arrive home my next-door neighbour is waiting. She’s got a lot of make-up on and she’s had her hair done.

‘Police have been. Been asking questions. That woman. Saw her when … you know. Told ’em. Told ’em she was here with Jack.’

She’s got a memory like an elephant. I wonder what else she’s told them.

‘Thanks. That’s brilliant. Did they ask you anything else?’

‘Only the usual. Who’s been here lately? Told them that his mum was round a couple of times. Were you here last night? Which you obviously were coz Brian saw you open the door to that woman. She was shouting for a bit before that.’

Your mother. She told them that your mother had been here. Brilliant.

‘Yeah. I was upstairs. To be honest, I was a little bit scared.’

‘Well, you had good reason. She’s a nutter.’

I take the opportunity to exploit her nosiness.

‘So have you seen anyone hanging around here? You know. Anyone?’

She shakes her head and her hair extensions swish.

‘No. Never seen anyone round here. All this is proper exciting for us. Brian’s got it all noted down.’

I nod. Of course he has. I expect he’s been showing his notes to the police, which bodes well for me because I know for a fact that you can’t see my back garden from their kitchen window. The only time I’ve been in there, when my water was off and I needed to fill the kettle, I looked across. To see if they had a view of the hole. But the fence is just that little bit too high. So fucking Rover can’t escape. Good boy, Rover.

‘Well, I’d better get in there and tidy up.’

She stifles a laugh as she turns away. I know they’re all laughing at me. That mad woman whose house is full of Amazon boxes. She doesn’t throw anything away, you know. She’s an eccentric academic type. Her husband divorced her. She lost her kids.

But I haven’t lost them, I remind myself as I grip the side of the skip and smile at her. If I can just get through this, get to next Tuesday, I’ve got a shot at getting Charlie and Laura back. Your mother’s learning her lesson right now and, by the time I’ve finished with you, you’ll wish you’d never been born. The rest of your harem are going to help me in my mission, even if they don’t know it. I know I can’t do anything that will compromise Charlie and Laura, but I need to get the message through that I’m no pushover.