‘It sounded a very bizarre request,’ he said, ‘but my cousin always led her life by her own rules. It was part of her charm and also the thing that made her so impossible to deal with.’ He smiled at Marnie. ‘You either did what Lucy wanted you to do or you fell out with her,’ he said. ‘There had been too much falling out already, and it didn’t matter to me. I didn’t want to live there myself and I have no children . . . and besides,’ he added with a gleam, ‘I’m an old romantic at heart and I rather liked this idea of a treasure hunt. I met your father and we agreed to follow Lucy’s wishes – but I never really thought I’d meet you.’

‘You mean you two have met before?’ she asked, looking from him to her father in astonishment. They nodded. She thought they were both enjoying themselves.

Her father had gone off to his business meeting then, and left her to talk to Ian Drummond. They had sat companionably in the comfort of the hotel and drunk iced tea. He was a charming, gentle old man and she found it easy to tell him something of her dreams and ideals for Eileen Dobhran, then listened entranced as he shared his childhood reminiscences of the castle and its pre-war lifestyle and painted a picture of Marnie’s old lady as a vivid, unforgettable girl – the glamorous older cousin whom he’d always admired and been half in love with. He told her that he had no wish to profit from the house – she could have it for a nominal sum to cover any legal costs that might ensue. ‘Use all the money that Lucy left you for a good purpose,’ he said. She asked him if he would come on the board of the foundation she hoped to start, and he replied that so long as he still had his health and his wits he would be delighted. They agreed that the legal details could be left to him to sort out later with her father and their lawyers – and she hoped with Christopher too. She kissed him goodbye and promised to come out and see him again soon. She felt that through him she still had a living link with the person who’d made such an impact on her life.