‘No, thank you. I’m just tired, but I’ll be fine in the morning.’ Judy gave her mother a hug. ‘I love you, Ma. Good night.’

For the next few days Judy was kept busy. Ida Ralston was still in charge of the household, but she had allowed Judy to take over some of her duties, which included organising the linen cupboard and making sure that the servants’ uniforms were laundered and kept in pristine order. It was a peaceful task and Judy was painstaking in her attempts to list each and every item, and to ensure that mending was sent to the sewing room, where sheets were turned sides to middle if they had worn thin, and any garment that was torn was either darned or patched, as necessary. Mrs Ralston clearly intended that Judy would take over from her when she retired, but Judy was having ever more serious doubts as to her position in the house. Her relationship with Jack had been doomed from the start, even though it had begun innocently a year ago, but they were adults now and Jack seemed to think that they could simply carry on as before. Judy had managed to avoid him so far, and he had been kept busy with the constant flow of family visitors. His sister Dove, who was married to Dr Neville, brought her three children, two rowdy boys and her much quieter four-year-old daughter, to see their uncle. His other sister, Linnet, and her husband, Elliot Massey, the village schoolmaster, arrived with their eight-year-old son and their newborn baby girl, but Judy kept herself to herself and avoided close contact with the family.

It was late afternoon, a week after Jack’s return home, and Judy was on her way to the sewing room with a pile of mending. Having climbed the stairs from the basement, she decided to take a shortcut through the great hall in order to use the servants’ staircase on the far side of the house. It had been a particularly quiet day and there was no one about, not even James. Mrs Tattersall and Jack had left soon after breakfast when Fuller brought the carriage to the front entrance, and they set off for Colneyhurst to celebrate Daisy’s eldest son’s eighth birthday. They were not expected back until late evening, and with no family meals to prepare there had been a holiday atmosphere in the kitchen and servants’ hall. Judy suspected that James had taken the opportunity to visit his current ladylove, who worked in the laundry room, and she smiled to herself. Tall and good-looking, and well aware of his physical attributes, James was a heartbreaker. Mrs Ralston warned each new female servant from the outset, but few of them took notice, and it never ended happily. Judy was of the opinion that it was James who ought to be sacked, but he was very clever at talking himself out of a difficult situation, and Mrs Tattersall was not immune to his charm.