Tom sat by the window, Joanna asleep in his arms. It had been a rough night; Jo was awake for most of it, which meant either he or Alice was too. He had finally gone to bed around two in the morning, handing his daughter off to his wife, only to be woken before seven by Alice, holding a still crying baby.

That was their life now. Work, baby, sleep. They’d got married four years ago – although they’d met a few years before, after Alice moved to Stockton Heath. He’d admired her from a distance – she was tough and independent and seemed very self-contained. He hadn’t thought she’d be interested in him, but over time they’d met at various parties and pubs, and one day she’d asked him out on a date.

Thankfully, Jo was finally sleeping. He took a series of deep breaths. Recently he’d started feeling as though his chest was constricted, his stomach tight. It was constant, and he’d mentioned it to Dr Quinn.

That’s anxiety, she said. It’s when your body’s stress response is constantly being triggered. It can go haywire, and so you’re flooded with adrenaline. Adrenaline’s great – it helps you focus and primes your muscles to deal with whatever threat has caused the body to produce it, but when you don’t need it, it just makes you feel on edge and hyper-alert.

She had suggested deep breathing exercises – there were medications available, but she preferred to use those as a last resort. The exercises worked, to an extent, and he had started to do them whenever he felt the anxiety rising.

He did them now.

After a few minutes, he felt better. He stood up. He needed a cup of tea. Dr Quinn had also mentioned that caffeine could make things worse, but he was not ready to give up tea. Things weren’t quite that bad, yet.

He set Joanna down in her basket and walked into the kitchen. Sunlight streamed in through the skylight, and he felt it lift his spirits. He filled the kettle and switched it on, then turned to the cupboard where they kept the teabags.

He froze.

There was a letter on the counter top.

It was like the others. There was no stamp. Just a name printed on a home printer.

Alice Sark

His chest tightened and he felt dizzy. He tried taking deep breaths again, but this time they had no effect.

This panic was not his body overreacting and running wild. This panic was fully justified.

Alice

Alice lay in bed upstairs and typed a message on her phone.

Are you awake?

Kay replied immediately.

Yes. Getting ready for work.

Can you talk?

Her phone rang seconds after she sent the question.

‘Hi,’ she said, keeping her voice to a whisper. ‘Sorry to bother you so early.’

‘What’s the matter?’ Kay said. ‘Why are you being so quiet.’