“In a cottage on the outskirts of Drummond.” I thought again about what Mum had said about Lily’s husband. “What happened to him? Bernard?”

“I have no idea. Lily’s Loaves started to fail and she couldn’t bear to see the business struggling, so the story was that they sold up and moved on. No one knew where or heard from her again after that.”

I tried to gather together everything Mum was telling me, mentally sorting it all out and pushing pieces together in the hope they might fit.

Mum sounded pensive down the line. “Nonna commented she always thought that sounded a bit odd though, about the shop failing, as it was always busy whenever she passed by and the girl seemed to love it here. She settled in so quickly and seemed to want to become part of the community.” Mum made a grunting noise. “So many folks around here used to say she was far more likeable than that husband of hers.” Mum paused. “So, you say you have seen Lily Cruickshank? Here in Silver Ness?”

When I confirmed to Mum again that I had, she relayed what I’d just told her to my dad, who was hovering in the background. “Ross! Wait till you hear this! Do you remember the stories about that red-headed girl who owned the bakery back in the day?”

There was a series of exchanges, Mum sighing at Dad for not recalling fast enough events from years ago when he was small and then Dad confirming that yes, he did recall tales about Lily, her bread was said to be amazing but that my grandparents never had any time for “that vile husband of hers”.

“And no one knew what happened to them after they left Silver Ness?”

“Nobody had a clue,” Mum sniffed. “When he moved away, there were no tears shed.”

My mum let out a little disbelieving chuckle. “She was said to be a damn good bread maker. You know, Silver Ness could be doing with another wee bakery like that. It would go down a storm, not only with the locals but with the tourists too.”

I agreed with Mum, still turning over in my head so many questions. “Have you or Dad ever heard of a house called Merry Wood, Mum?”

“Should we have?”

I shrugged, even though Mum couldn’t see me. “No. Well, maybe. It’s an impressive house, but appears to have been abandoned years ago.”

“Where is it?”

“Very close to where Lily Cruickshank is living now.”

Mum let out a snort of derision. “Well, that might explain a lot if Bernard Cruickshank was their neighbour. I don’t know anyone who would have wanted to live next door to him, if all the awful stories about him are true.”