I try not to sound relieved. ‘I’ll be back in a few days. Sorry I left at such a bad time.’

‘It’s fine, Mum,’ Daisy says in an effort to get me off the phone. I don’t have the energy for a conversation like this right now. I wonder if I wouldn’t have preferred it if the phone had stayed unanswered. I feel like a terrible wife and mother, but at least I called.

‘OK, I’ll speak to you soon. Love you all.’

‘Bye.’

The phone goes dead and I am glad. I shouldn’t be, but I am.

I pull out my laptop and start looking at names, names that pop into my head, people I might remember, names from the news reports that seem familiar, anything I can find. There are a handful of names I don’t enter, knowing full well that I will find nothing, including my own. Chris, who is all about the wonders of technology, is surprised by my lack of interest in any kind of social media. He doesn’t realise the thought of getting a message from someone I used to know, anyone I used to know, literally gives me chills.

I have more questions than answers now, even though the answers linger somewhere in my mind, trapped in my memory. I have most of the information now but I am still missing something, I know I am. There is something staring me straight in the face and I can’t see it. I’ve been chasing a ghost; now that I know he isn’t in play I can move past him. Someone is out there trying to make me think I am going mad. I instantly feel more focused. I will find out the truth.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Then

Something had disturbed Jasmine in her sleep. When she woke up it was dark and there was a welcome chill in the air, the smell of a coming rain. She still had her window open and was lying on top of the covers. She looked to the right-hand side of the bed; it was empty – it hadn’t been when she’d fallen asleep. The faintest smell of Tim lingered on her pillow but he wasn’t there. A part of her wanted to message Felicity and tell her what had happened, but she knew it wasn’t the right time, and that Felicity wasn’t the right person. She had thought she would feel completely different but the only thing she felt was guilt. She looked outside to see if he had gone back to the guest house. The front door was slightly open but the lights were off.