She walked slowly along the bank, enjoying the warm spring sunshine and the peace and tranquillity of the scenery. Maybe she had made a mistake by going away too soon? Perhaps she should have faced the squire again, making it clear that she could never marry a man she did not love. She was not a coward, but running away never solved any problem, and she had left her aunt and uncle to face the consequences of her refusal to consider the squire’s proposal. Jay had come home and was prepared to risk everything in order to save his family, although why the squire should have singled him out for particularly harsh treatment was a mystery. Daisy was beginning to think that there was more to the story than Jay had been prepared to disclose. She came to a sudden halt. There was someone she needed to speak to, and she headed back to the village.

Mary Fox was on her hands and knees scrubbing the front step. She sat back on her heels and smiled up at Daisy.

‘This is a surprise, miss. I thought you was in London.’

‘I’m here on a short visit, Mrs Fox.’ Daisy glanced into the dark interior of the cottage. ‘Is your husband at home?’

‘He went fishing with your uncle. My Lemuel misses his work as gamekeeper, and going out with Mr Marshall makes him feel useful again. We get fish for supper nearly every day, which is a great help in these hard times.’

‘Might I have a word with you?’ Daisy asked tentatively. ‘In private.’

Mary dropped the scrubbing brush into the bucket and scrambled to her feet. ‘Of course. Is anything wrong? It’s not Jack again, is it?’

‘No, it’s nothing to do with Jack.’ Daisy stepped over the threshold and, once again, was almost overpowered by the smell of mould and damp.

‘I’d offer you a cup of tea, but I haven’t had time to go to the shop.’

Daisy knew this was a lie, but she smiled and shook her head. ‘I had tea with my aunt, thank you, anyway.’

Mary wiped her hands on her apron, gazing anxiously around the room. ‘Won’t you take a seat, miss?’

Daisy pulled up a chair and sat down at the scrubbed pine table. She was struck once again by Mary’s desperate attempts to make her home as neat and clean as possible, and she cleared her throat, searching for the right words. ‘I hope you don’t think I’m being impertinent, Mrs Fox, but I know that the squire has threatened you with eviction.’

‘Has my Linnet been gossiping? I’ll have something to say to her if she has.’

‘No, it wasn’t Linnet. I’m only asking you because the squire is also making life difficult for my aunt and uncle. They didn’t realise that the squire owns the freehold to Creek Cottage, and there’s some doubt as to whether he will allow them to renew the lease.’

‘I heard something of the sort.’ Mary subsided onto a chair opposite Daisy. ‘You know what a place this is for gossip, but it wasn’t Linnet who told me.’