“Next time we do this,” he said, “I’ll give you the torch. Sorry about that.” He shone the light around. They were in a tiny chamber, sealed at one end by a tumble of rock that blocked the way to the rest of the old workings. The walls were streaked with iron and rainwater and gave off a deep merciless cold. In the addit below them, the water raged and boiled, but could not reach them. Alicia’s relief expressed itself in a sadness that crumpled up her face into an ugly howl.

“Sorry,” she managed between sobs. “Sorry, sorry.”

Finn put his arms around her and held her tightly. “This must be the real smuggler’s cave,” he said. “I don’t suppose anyone’s left us a brick of coke.” He shone the torch around. “Oh, well, you can’t have everything.”

“I’ve never taken drugs,” said Alicia, hiccupping.

“Wise woman. Don’t bother.”

“Why? Have you?”

“Yes. Far too many, because I’m an idiot. They’re not as much fun as you’d think. And people on drugs are just about the most boring human beings in the world.” He rummaged in his rucksack. “Want some chocolate?”

They sat and ate Cadbury’s Dairy Milk and listened to the water creeping higher.

“Why are you here?” Alicia asked.

Finn peered into the addit, and winced. “It’s a lot nicer up here than it is down there.”

“That’s not what I mean.”

“Them as gets into the cave first makes the first confession.”

“I don’t want to – oh, well, I suppose it doesn’t matter now.” She shut her eyes. “My dad read my diary. He found out I’d been seeing… someone.”

“Is that so awful?”

“Yes. If you knew – but anyway, I thought I’d do the same to him in return. Go through his stuff, I mean. So I went into his filing cabinet and I found – oh, God you wouldn’t believe what he’d done.”

“Um, this isn’t to do with your dad and Ava, is it? Because Ava, I mean, we won’t be here much longer. She’s not trying to move in and be your wicked stepmother. Sometimes people just want a bit of warmth and company and – and that wasn’t what you meant at all. Excellent.” Alicia’s eyes were wide. “Ignore every word I just said. I’m an idiot, I don’t know about anything except drugs and toadstools. I probably imagined it.”

“You mean they’re… ” she didn’t know what to call it.

“I don’t know. What would I know? Ignore me.”

“It doesn’t matter anyway. Except yes it does, because he’s not bloody good enough for her. Ava’s lovely, she deserves someone nicer. I hate him.”

“Don’t say that. He’s a bit of a madman sometimes but that’s okay, most parents are.”

“He’s horrible. I wish I was an orphan.”

“No you don’t,” said Finn.

“Yes I do. I hate him, I hate everything about him. That’s why I’m here, because he wanted and wanted to know who I was seeing and he’ll get it out of me in the end and then he’ll – he lied and lied and lied, about who he is, what he did for a living, he let me tell everyone for years and bloody years that he was a policeman. I was proud of that, you know? I wish he was dead as well.”