‘Shit,’ he whispered. He released Corinne’s arm quickly as if it burned, and turning to his wife, he said: ‘It’s nothing, Abi. Just a stupid misunderstanding.’

‘What is she even doing in here?’

‘Nothing! Just working on the model—’

‘In the middle of the night?’

‘I couldn’t sleep,’ Corinne interjected, her voice quavering with nerves. She was looking from one to the other, twitchy with uncertainty. ‘I just wanted some company.’

‘Do you think I’m really that stupid, Corinne? That I would fall for that? And as for you,’ she said, rounding on Mark. ‘I would have thought you could exercise a bit more judgement.’

‘She hugged me. She kissed me,’ he told her, emphasizing the order of the pronouns. ‘I pushed her away. It was nothing, just a split second. An impulse that I rejected.’

But Abi was unmoved.

‘You should have known better. Letting yourself get into this situation. My God, use some common sense! And so should you, Corinne. Think how inappropriate this is! He’s old enough to be your father, for Christ’s sake!’

The words were out of Abi’s mouth before she realized what she had said.

Corinne grew very still, her gaze cold. ‘My father is dead,’ she told Abi. ‘And I won’t be lectured by you. You don’t even know what is going on in your own house, with your own children, and you talk to me about being inappropriate?’

The words spoken, the tone she used – a challenge there. Abi’s gaze narrowed.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Nothing.’

‘Is there something going on that we don’t know about?’

The girl was fiddling with the hem of her T-shirt again, putting a finger to her mouth and biting away a hangnail, her eyes darting towards the door. Mark understood that what she’d said was just a ruse. A ruse he could see that she regretted and he felt moved to pity her.

‘Go to bed, Corinne,’ he said gently but firmly.

‘Corinne?’ Abi’s voice tilted towards sharpness. She was not prepared to let it go.

‘It’s nothing—’

‘No, don’t do that. Don’t hint at something then back away. If you’ve got something to say, then say it.’

Abi’s tone had grown strident.

‘Come on, Abi. Let the girl go to bed. This is all nonsense.’

Ignoring him, Abi ploughed on: ‘Is something going on? Is it Eva? Does she—’

‘Not Eva. Beth,’ she came back quickly.

‘Beth?’ Abi’s voice dropped a little.

Corinne paused, as if briefly considering the effect her words were about to have. Then she raised her eyes to look at Abi and in a cool, clear voice, she told them: ‘Beth was abused by her aunt.’

‘What?’

The word shot out of Mark’s mouth like a bullet.

‘Your sister, Melissa, abused her,’ she said, unfazed by his sharpness.

‘That’s ridiculous,’ Mark scoffed.

‘Touching her. Making her do things.’