The wallpaper was peeling in several places and the paint was flaking off the skirting boards. This used to bother Noah, but he no longer even noticed. He was sitting at his desk staring at a blank computer screen. If anyone had asked him how long he’d been sitting there, he wouldn’t have been able to answer. It was as if he’d fallen into a trance.

Noah was many things, but he wasn’t stupid. He’d heard the dubious tone in Alex Recht’s voice. Noah’s story hadn’t been enough; he was going to have to come up with another way of motivating Alex to take up the search for Dan and his family. And that was where he’d got stuck. Because what else was there to do?

Only one thing.

Send Dan another email.

So far Noah had been careful not to mention the police in his messages to his brother. He was convinced that someone else was running Dan’s account, and guessed that that person didn’t have Dan’s best interests at heart, so he hadn’t wanted to give away what he was up to. Hadn’t wanted whoever had taken Dan to know that the search was under way. Which it wasn’t, to be fair, because the police were doing nothing, but Noah preferred to keep that to himself as well.

Until now.

He’d written that he’d been forced to contact the police, report Dan missing, and that an investigation was ongoing. Noah hoped that this bombshell would bring the status quo to an end. Whoever was checking Dan’s mail would surely react when he or she realised that the police were involved. Noah had given a lengthy description of all the measures that were being undertaken in order to clarify exactly where Dan and his family had gone. To be on the safe side he also mentioned the Swedish embassy in Canberra, in spite of the fact that he’d heard nothing from them.

So now both the police and our diplomats are searching for you and your family. Hang on in there – help is on the way!

Noah was very pleased with how he’d expressed himself, simply and clearly. He’d called Tina and read the message to her over the phone. She’d listened and given her approval. She was a gift from the gods, Tina. She made him feel strong, because she too was beside herself with worry, convinced that something terrible had happened. However, she still had moments of doubt.

‘What if we’ve imagined the whole thing?’ she’d said. ‘What if they’re not missing at all? There’s a microscopic chance that that’s the case, in which case Dan will be furious when he gets your email.’

Noah had thought the same.