“What’s this?” Ava took it from him and unfolded the letter. Then she caught her breath. “Oh, Finn.”

“It’s not a big publishing house,” Finn said hastily. “The advance won’t be much, just a few hundred, and it might not even earn that, it might not sell anything.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, of course it’ll sell. It’s brilliant.”

“I don’t know about that, but it’s going to exist. It’ll be a real thing. I promised you I’d do it, and now I have.”

“Oh, Finn.”

“So what I wanted to say was, if you need someone to rescue you… if you need to run away from Paul and the Quality Street and the dinner plates… well, I’m sure it’s my turn to stage a big dramatic rescue. What do you think?”

“Finn.” Ava’s eyes were very bright.

“Is it just the dinner plates and the Quality Street? He’s not hitting you? You can tell me, I promise I won’t go out and murder him. Unless you want me to, in which case I’ll stage the world’s best crime scene and make sure the blame falls on the Secret Service. Ava, what’s wrong? You can tell me.”

“I don’t know how to say it.”

“Whisper. Or mime. Or write it in Spanish. I’ll work it out. What is it? Please tell me. It can’t be that bad, can it? Ava, please, what’s happening?”

“Oh, Finn.” Slowly, reluctantly, she reached for the drawer of her bedside table. “Finn… I’ve got some news too.”

Chapter Twenty: Now

Donald pounded across the sand, breath ragged, heart bursting, racing the furious tide. He charged through the waves as they poured over the sand and slapped frantically at the door of the beach hut. When Ava opened the door, he had to stop himself from falling into her arms.

“Is she here?”

“Shit. I thought you were Finn.”

“Alicia? Is she here? She has to be, she came this way.”

“I promise she’s not – are you sure it wasn’t Finn? I thought I heard him.” She looked at his face, his hands. “What have you done? Tell me you haven’t seen Finn.”

He wanted to be angry, but there was no more fight left in him for now. In another minute he might tumble to his knees. “Please, please, please. I’m begging you. If you feel anything for me at all. I’m not going to hurt her, I just need to speak to her. Just for a minute, I just need to see her face so I know she’s all right.”

“Donald.” Ava shook him gently by the shoulders. “Please listen. Alicia is not here. You can come in and look if you like. It’s not as if there’s anywhere she can hide.”

He stumbled over the doorframe and into the beach hut. It took half a second to see that Ava was telling the truth.

“Where is she? Oh God, Ava, where’s my daughter?”

“Why isn’t she with you? What happened?”

His knees betrayed him then, and he was glad for her arm under his, clumsily guiding him towards a chair.