He throws an arm around my shoulders, easing the brush out of my hand. Then he pulls me into him, holding me tightly until my anger subsides, only to be replaced by tears.

‘I feel that nothing will ever be the same for me again and I don’t know if I can stand that thought. The weeks are flying by now. When it’s time to leave, I’ll be different, too. In the last eight months, I’ve never felt more alive in some ways, although in others I feel incomplete, because I know something is missing. My family. But here it’s easy to just take each day as it comes. People come to the château to relax and have fun learning new skills, so they’re happy and they’re healing themselves. But this isn’t real life for me, Nico.’

The truth is that tonight I’m utterly exhausted. I haven’t had more than a couple of hours sleep each night for the last two weeks now, and it’s taking a toll. Feeling a little feverish, my mind is conjuring up all sorts of imaginary worries.

‘What else is going on in that head of yours? You’ve coped perfectly well until recently. What has tipped you over the edge all of a sudden?’ He leans forward. Our foreheads are almost touching as he stares deeply into my eyes, a worried frown wrinkling his brow.

‘It’s obvious Hannah’s having problems at uni and losing heart. Something has gone wrong and she doesn’t want to worry me, so her texts and calls have dropped off. Which is worse, as I keep going over what it might be. Maybe she’s quit, who knows?’ I sniff, pulling a tissue from my sleeve. ‘Owen is flying out to take part in a NATO exercise in Norway and that’s scary. His texts will be few and far between; the reality of his world is beginning to fill me with dread.

‘And it was Aiden’s thirtieth birthday on Thursday. I couldn’t get hold of him, so I texted and then emailed him. I know it’s silly as we’ll have a party later in the year, but I wasn’t with him on a landmark day in his life. I hope he was on a high, exploring Thailand, but he’s about to move on again. Last time we spoke his plans were vague and he wasn’t his usual self. He’s becoming more and more withdrawn with each week that passes. He’s been travelling almost continually for over a month now and a break that was supposed to re-energise him is leaving him feeling exhausted.

‘Even Mum and Dad don’t seem to be around much, and I have no idea what’s going on with them. I feel cut off from everyone; I’m not used to that – we usually discuss everything.’