The quiet of the place bordered on desolation, and Thea experienced a flash of panic at the prospect of several more days like this. At least there would be builders to talk to, she reminded herself. By the end of the week, she would probably be craving some peace and solitude after their depredations. Would they have Radio One blaring, shout to each other through the house and demand regular mugs of tea? ‘Having the builders in’ was not something she had ever really experienced. Her Witney house had been in good order, with no need for alterations, and the one Drew had been left in Broad Campden was equally satisfactory as it was. Any decorating was done by themselves, and the occasional minor job needing a professional could be accomplished in a day.28

Meanwhile there was still half of Saturday and all of Sunday to get through. Thank goodness Tabitha’s living room did at least provide the television and dusty-looking DVD player. That was a major brownie point for Tabitha, given that most people ‘streamed’ their films nowadays, if their broadband was equal to it. But Thea, always a technophobe, had no idea how such a process was to be implemented.

The sudden absence of people (and dog) was uncomfortably difficult to adjust to. Although Broad Campden was no more vibrant or populous than Barnsley appeared to be, she did at least have Drew and one or two neighbours to chat to while the children were at school. And she had the use of the family car more or less any time she wanted.

All she could think of now was to explore the top floor of the house, and then sit out in the garden with a book and some tea. And a slice of cake. But none of that held much appeal. Make something happen, a voice insisted at the back of her head. She could send emails, make phone calls, even invite somebody to come and join her. She could stand in the little village street and try to thumb a lift to Cirencester from a passing stranger. She could hang around the church and accost people who turned up for a look at it.

She did at least carry her bag of clothes up to the bedroom she was to use, and then went further up to look at the attic. Thea liked attics for their potential to expose secrets. There had been one in Cold Aston, especially, which had been quite a revelation, and another in Chedworth. 29This one, she now discovered, was surprisingly clean, had a good-quality rug laid over most of the floor, and was entirely devoid of furniture. It had a dormer window overlooking the back garden and beyond. ‘No secrets, then,’ she murmured to herself. Except for its strangely pristine condition, perhaps. The whole inspection lasted barely two minutes, before she went down the little staircase again and out into the furthest end of the garden, beyond the piles of building materials.