Dennis came to her rescue. “ He was always hard to keep at home,” he said. “ Even as a lad.”

“Has he ever been in trouble with the police?” Molly asked.

“He was charged once,” Franks said. “It was soon after he’d left school. We didn’t find out until later. We thought he’d disappeared on one of his birdwatching trips. He was in a bail hostel in the city. But he was found not guilty in the Crown Court. He hasn’t got a criminal record.”

“What was he charged with?”

“Burglary,” Franks said. “He was supposed to have broken into a house.”

“It was all lies,” Muriel Franks interrupted. “The case was thrown out. He should have come to us and told us all about it. We would have understood. We always did. We only found out he’d been in court because there was a fire in the hostel, and Greg’s picture was in the paper. He was a hero. He saved someone.”

She seemed about to launch into the details of Greg’s heroism, but, with one of her sudden swings of mood, changed her mind.

“All this isn’t important!” she said impatiently. “I can tell you exactly where Greg will be this weekend. You should be getting ready to meet him, not talking about the past.” She sprang once again to her feet. “A letter came here a while ago by mistake,” she said. “ It wasn’t personal—I wouldn’t ever open his personal mail—but I thought it might give me some idea where he was. I knew it would be useful. I’ll get it for you!” She hurried from the room.

Dennis Franks moved uneasily in his chair. On the road outside there was the squeal of brakes and the sound of a horn.

“I don’t know what to do for the best,” he said. “She’s set her heart on seeing him. I know he’ll not stay, but when he comes, he always puts on a big show—brings her flowers and that—so he makes her happy for a while. I’m afraid she’s made herself ill. She’s always been wrapped up in him. Perhaps when I retire, I’ll be able to help her more.… It’s a difficult age for a woman.…”

He coughed a small, embarrassed cough, and they waited for Muriel Franks to return.