Dominic eyed her appraisingly. ‘Yes, I know what mums are like,’ he said after a moment. ‘They like to chat, eh? Must be something about older women. A bit like Eileen and Hazel. They like to chat, or should I say gossip? Most of the time about stuff they don’t know about. I shouldn’t pay them any attention.’

‘No. I won’t,’ said Steph. ‘Sorry, I really must go.’ She gulped as she went past him.

As she got to her room, her phone pinged and she read the text message from Harry.

That’s a shame. Tomorrow will be good. Speak soon.

She felt slightly relieved that he seemed to have taken her standing him up relatively well and was happy to meet tomorrow.

Within half an hour, Steph had freshened up, changed and was driving away out of Conmere Resort Centre, and she had to admit the feeling of relief was discernible. She hadn’t noticed it while she was there, but a sense of disquiet had grown daily.

Kendalton, Tuesday, 14 May, 7.50 p.m.

Steph took a steady drive over to Kendalton. She parked in the car park alongside the river that ran through the town and, crossing the pedestrian bridge, found herself coming out on the main drag. Kendalton Green Hotel was just down the road on the right.

She could see the flags fluttering in the evening breeze, local county flags and a Union Jack. The hotel stood proudly in the centre of the street, staking its position as the elder statesman of the town. Inside the hotel was very modern-looking, with polished marble flooring and lots of glass and mirrors, giving the illusion of a much bigger building. The bar wasn’t too busy and Steph easily spotted Camilla sitting at the table as promised.

Camilla gave a nod and indicated to Steph to join her where two glasses of pink gin were sitting on the table.

‘Thank you for meeting me,’ said Steph, once they had formally identified each other. ‘I do appreciate it.’

‘I wasn’t initially sure if it was a good idea, but I have been expecting this day to come,’ replied Camilla.

‘Why’s that?’

‘After meeting with Elizabeth, I did a bit of digging and found out that she hadn’t been entirely truthful with me. However, we had a business agreement and, whatever her reasons for lying, I assumed they were valid enough.’

‘Can you tell me from the start what happened, please? How did you come to know Elizabeth?’ Steph took a large sip of the gin, which wouldn’t have been her normal choice of drink, but she had to admit, tasted rather pleasant.

Steph listened while Camilla explained the circumstances surrounding her meeting with Elizabeth Sinclair. She wasn’t entirely surprised, given what she had learned earlier that day from Eileen and Hazel, but all the same, she hadn’t quite been expecting what she was hearing.