“Yes and no. When he woke up, he attacked a porter, and now he’s on the run.”

“Ah.”

“Then there’s this missing woman and child, who may or may not be involved.” Jo tried to deliver this information without emotion. She couldn’t let on that Ruby was involved—not yet. Her dad wouldn’t be able to sleep for worrying.

“Oh, I think I heard about it on the news. Terrible business.”

“We put something out today too, on the radio channels and the TV. Did you see it?”

“No one listens to the news on Christmas Day. Too busy cooking.”

As if to demonstrate, he got up and tipped a sack of potatoes into the sink, turned on the tap.

“Still,” said Jo, “someone has to be at the office just in case. It’s the baby we’re most concerned about. Can’t really stop until we know she’s safe.”

Her father opened the oven and, with a great deal of clanging and swearing, jammed the turkey inside. Then he turned and looked at her. “Sometimes I don’t know how you carry on, the things you have to deal with. How are you so strong?” He pulled her into a hug, still wearing the oven mitts. “I’m so proud of you, Jo-Jo. Always.”

You wouldn’t be so proud if you knew the truth, she thought. If she dared to go into the office today, she’d probably be given a formal warning for disobeying orders. Her actual plan was to drive straight to her flat and spend the day listening in to the response team on her radio, in case they found “Gregor.” And she might go for a run in the woods down by the hospital—no harm in that, was there? If she happened to find the fugitive herself, well, so be it.

Marianne called through from the living room. “Are you coming in here, darling?”

“In a minute, Mum.”

“Bring a fresh bottle of pop, would you? Get yourself a glass.”

Of course, Marianne had forgotten what Jo had said about not wanting any. Standard. “I’ll be right through.”

She met her father’s eyes.

“Don’t be angry, sweetie. She can’t help it.”

“How can you say that? There’s help available. Why doesn’t she—”

“She knows she’s got a problem. She’s promised to deal with it after today. I thought I’d let her, you know, do whatever she needs to do to get through Christmas. Especially since what happened last year. Bad memories, you know.”

She looked at him properly then. He’d lost a little weight. The strain was showing in the deep lines around his eyes, in the slight tremor in his voice. But he was strong; he always had been. Reliable. A rock for Marianne, for all of them. None of this was fair to him.

“You haven’t heard from Ruby?” she asked.