Karen nods curtly and her cheeks redden. ‘Well, if there’s anything you need, please let me know. She touches my arm gently. ‘We’re so glad to have you back. I know it will take a while, but I want you to feel at home here.’

I nod, tears filling my eyes as I wish she’d leave me alone now. Thankfully, she does.

I sit down on the bed and press my hands down on the duvet. It feels luxurious after the institutional blankets in the hospital. I brush away my tears. I can’t spend my whole life crying. I’ve got to get on with things. Make a new life. Dad’s gone, I can’t go back.

I take the tape from my pocket and put it on the bedside table. It’s the only thing I have from the past. I wonder if I can ask Karen if she’s got something I can play it on? Or would that make me seem grasping? Out for what I can get, now that I’ve landed on my feet with a new family?

Not new, I remind myself. According to what everyone says, and the science, these people are my family. It’s so hard to believe though. I feel a pang. I miss Dad so much.

I sigh. I need to tread carefully. Make an effort to fit in. This family is all I have now. They’ve managed without me for more than a decade. For all I know, they might decide that having me home isn’t all they were expecting it to be. That they’d be better off if I hadn’t come back. That me being here is too disruptive, brings back too many bad memories. They might decide to send me away and then … and then … Tears spring to my eyes and I brush them away.

I open the drawer of the bedside table. Inside there are a couple of plastic ponies with gaudy manes and a colouring book. I look at the pile of teddies in a huge basket. Anna obviously liked her stuffed toys.

I wonder if she had a favourite teddy. If I had a favourite. Was this really ever my room? I feel like an intruder. I feel like I shouldn’t be here, intruding on a little girl’s space.

I get up and open the wardrobe.

It’s totally empty, apart from the towels and toiletries Karen mentioned. At least she didn’t keep Anna’s clothes for all these years, that would be weird. I realize with a stab of panic that all I have to wear is what I am standing in. I don’t even have a spare pair of knickers. Why didn’t I bring my horrible hospital stuff with me? How stupid was that?