‘Best thing for him,’ he said. ‘Probably got a bit of a hangover from the reception, and he’s still sore from the car crash. You can tell, despite the brave face.’

Beck nodded. The phone rang. Daniel strode back to his desk and wrenched the receiver up, but it was just someone calling in a car accident.

‘Let the tow-truck boys deal with it,’ he mumbled, then slammed the receiver down, making Beck jump. ‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘Just a collision on the other side of Wishaw. No one hurt. Just wanted to clear the line fast.’

She nodded.

‘We’re supposed to report the exact nature of each conversation, especially if there’s a family member present,’ he said, flicking his pen in and out. ‘It’s supposed to stop silly ideas getting into their heads.’

His ex-wife looked at him this time and nodded a bit more enthusiastically.

‘Where are you going to stay tonight?’ he asked.

She shrugged.

‘Want me to try Doris and Bill again? Never know, he might have legged it over there, or turned up at home.’

She turned away.

‘I’ll try Bill and Doris again. We’re not supposed to ask too many questions, but take direct action. It’s less upsetting to the family.’

Beck started the uncontrollable swallowing as soon as she drove back over the cattle grid into Deloraine’s driveway and saw the dense avenue of dark trees, low sun throwing afternoon light between them.

Bill appeared from one of the sheds. Doris came running out. Yvonne stood in the doorway.

‘Hello again, young fella,’ Bill said, shaking Alan’s hand as her son got out. ‘It’s tea time, and I reckon Mother might have put together a cake or two.’

Beck had no barriers when her sister-in-law opened the car door. The terrible first night would begin soon enough, and she’d only just managed to hold things together to drive back to this place.

‘I don’t think I can get up,’ she managed to tell Doris, knowing it was too thin to hear.

‘What was that?’ Doris said.

‘I can’t get out!’ Beck shouted, forcing it to come.

Doris turned away and shouted for Bill.

Beck let her brother-in-law carry her back into the spare room, but she wished Doris hadn’t shut the door. The air felt too still. No breeze was blowing up from the creek where shadows were already spreading up the hill. The room felt like it was too small to hold her.

She turned away from the view towards the inside wall of the room where the oversized wardrobe stood silently in the near-dark. The murky flame pattern of the dark wood seemed about to swamp her.