‘Oh, thank heavens! That’s a huge relief. We were worried about that.’ Matt took a deep breath. ‘Which brings us to the next thing we were going to say. You can always say no if you think it would be inappropriate but considering the circumstances, I would be very happy to go with you for moral support, and Liz will keep an eye on Kate.’

Overcome with emotion, Will couldn’t speak for a few moments. He had been dreading having to make the trip alone. ‘You would?’

‘Of course! Sometimes you need a mate close at hand,’ Matt smiled, ‘even if it’s just to pour you another drink and listen to yet another story about when you were a kid.’

‘I’ve subjected Kate to enough of those recently,’ said Will, laughing. The laugh faded. ‘But as to looking out for Kate, I’m really not sure if she’d agree.’ He stared into his tea. ‘She almost seems to relish having Holland House to herself for a while.’

‘Well, at least she’ll know I’m just a phone call away and could be with her in minutes if need be. And whether she likes it or not, I will keep an eye on her, one way or another.’ Liz looked at him seriously. ‘But I’ll be clever about it, don’t worry. I won’t intrude.’

‘Liz can use some of these snippets of Holland House memorabilia as bait to draw her in,’ Matt added. ‘The closer we can get to her, the more help we’ll be.’ He paused. ‘This couldn’t have come at a worse time for you, Will, could it?’

‘No,’ Will said. ‘Although, strangely, I’ve seen more of my old Kate in the last week than all the time we’ve been here. There’ve even been a few times when I began to wonder if I’d been getting it all out of proportion and worrying over nothing, and then I remembered those awful pictures.’

‘I’m sure you’re right. Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security, my friend.’ Matt sounded grave. ‘Have you had a date for the funeral yet?’

‘Not yet, although the circumstances surrounding the accident were quite straightforward, so it should be fairly soon.’

‘Well, I can be ready at short notice. Liz and Emilia are in touch a couple of times a day, although once again it’s gone very quiet at Little Anchor.’

‘I’ve seen a police car drive past several times, and Emilia is already beginning to get her garden back to what it was.’ Will drank his tea. ‘I must say, I do admire that lady.’

‘She’s such a nice person,’ added Liz, ‘and very interesting to talk to.’

‘But still no clue as to who could have done all that damage?’ Will asked.

‘Not a thing,’ she murmured. ‘It’s really frustrating.’