After marrying and having children, she and Cyrus had found out that they shared the same father, when it came to light that Flors’s father bore Cyrus with his long-term mistress, whom Flors never knew existed. But despite the sin of their love, that love was too strong for them ever to make the break, so they had carried on together as a loving husband and wife, only they had to do so far from the shores of England – their home.

It was this connection between her and Cyrus that made Flors worry about Monty; well, about all of her children really, but so far none of them but Monty had turned out to be a Roford in character.

Cyrus had told her over and over again not to worry about Monty, that it was a passing phase, but Flors couldn’t help herself. She’d witnessed at first hand the horrors that her brother was capable of. She’d spoken to Mags about it when she had visited, and Mags had told her that the child that Betsy – Mags’s oldest friend – had birthed to Harold was just the same. Billy, his name was. Mags had said that over the years the attention Billy had received from his stepfather, Angus, had helped to temper the trait a bit, but Billy also held a cruel streak from which his half-sister, Sibbie, often suffered. Flors had never met this nephew of hers, as Billy hadn’t wanted to come to France to meet them all, but she didn’t like the sound of him. Her niece, Sibbie, was different, taking more after her mother, Susan, who had worked in Flors’s family home as a maid and whom Flors had always liked. Sibbie had Susan’s gentle nature. Thinking this, she hoped that Sibbie would never be used by a domineering man in the way that Harold had used Susan.

‘Monty, you’ve done it again! I’ve only just fixed it.’

‘Monty, leave her alone. It’s too hot to be teasing her.’

Monty obeyed Paulo and sauntered away. He always hung on Paulo’s every word. This wasn’t the case with his older brothers, or even with Cyrus. Just as often he gave back-chat to them, which resulted in arguments breaking out.

Although cross with her son, Flors hated to see him left out. ‘Monty, come back and finish your juice, darling.’

‘Leave him, Aunt Flors, he’s feeling down, with his brothers having left. I had to stay in the field with him, as he wouldn’t come down to see them off. We said our goodbyes earlier this morning.’