There was a broad smile on Emma’s face. ‘It was beyond belief, Jane. It’s hard to explain the mixed emotions when you find someone you thought you’d never see again. We both cried floods of tears as we hugged each other and vowed we’d never be parted again.’

‘If you were both living in Hackney, how did you end up on the Broadwater?’

‘When Rachel started working at the Tottenham sorting office it made sense to apply to Haringey Council for accommodation. We’d been orphans at St Cuthbert’s and I’d spent my teenage life living with different foster parents in Haringey. I applied to the council and they immediately offered us a flat on the Broadwater Farm – we didn’t know what the estate was like.’

‘The nun at St Cuthbert’s also told us your father, Mehmet, was being chased by police when he crashed the car with you and your sister.’

Emma’s eyes narrowed at the mention of her father, but there was also a sadness in her face.

‘Did the nun tell you he killed our mother and a police officer?’

Jane nodded. ‘I can understand why you and Rachel didn’t want to tell me the truth about everything that happened . . . It’s OK.’

‘Rachel lost her memory as a result of the car crash. The nuns said it was best I never told her how Mama died, and they led her to believe she was killed in the car crash. My father beat her to death in front of us. I’m glad Rachel doesn’t know the truth, and as long as I live I’ll never tell her.’

Jane was shocked. ‘You witnessed the assault on your mother?’

Emma nodded. ‘We cowered in a corner, holding each other tight, as Mama screamed in pain and begged him to stop. The last thing I remember was the way she tried to reach out to us as she lay on the living room floor in a pool of blood. I put my hand out towards her, but he stepped between us and shouted at us to go to our room.’

‘Did you see him shoot the policeman as well?’

Emma looked close to tears as she recalled the painful events of her past.

‘The bastard didn’t care about anyone but himself – our lives were ruined because of him. He’d take a belt to us if we misbehaved, Mama would cry and he’d blame it on us, then when he hit Mama with a belt, we just accepted his behaviour as normal . . .’

She paused and took a deep breath before continuing. Jane could see the hatred for her father in her eyes.

‘But when I saw what he did to Mama that day with his fists, I realised he was evil – just like those men in the cafe.’