‘Yes, but apparently, there was also a tea towel. It turned up inside when it should have been out.’ His lips twitched. ‘You wouldn’t believe how much he ranted about that.’

Connie grinned, pleased to see her father smiling. It must have been the tea towel she’d dropped outside Dorothy’s door ages ago. ‘What else?’

‘Someone stole a rose.’ He looked at her suspiciously. ‘I don’t suppose you know anything about that?’

She widened her eyes. ‘Me? No. I’m innocent.’

‘Innocent of what?’ Victor appeared in the doorway.

Connie ignored him. Brushing away another speck from her father’s coat, she leaned in for a hug, breathed in the familiar scent of his cologne.

‘Things will change – when I’m back,’ he said in her ear. She didn’t reply, not trusting her voice. ‘And if you decide to come after all, I’ve left some money in the tea caddy. You can use it for a train ticket.’

She kissed him on the cheek. ‘Enjoy yourself, Dad, don’t worry about me.’

He smiled sadly and then he was gone.

The next morning, Connie stumbled out of bed. The baby had kept her awake for much of the night, moving and kicking. She got ready slowly and left the house, walking heavily, conscious of a dragging sensation, a pain around her pelvis.

Outside, she spotted a woman in an emerald coat heading rapidly towards the High Road. Connie shaded her eyes. The coat was familiar. And then it clicked. There’d been a woman wearing one just like it, heading towards that dreadful house. And then again outside her own house. Connie had seen her through the basement window. Maybe it was a coincidence. From this distance, Connie couldn’t tell if she was pregnant or not.

Mind you, the way Connie was dressed, in her shift dress and a coat, despite the heat, and with her belly bandaged, she didn’t think people would guess that she was pregnant. Either way, the woman was certainly moving at a faster pace than Connie, who dawdled along, reluctant to get to the shop, where she knew she would just spend another day brooding.

Beside her, a bus pulled up. Impulsively, Connie clambered on. She could afford a morning off. She asked for a single to Tooting Bec, and the conductor took her fare. When they got there, she followed the crowd into the Underground, and felt glad to be hidden amongst so many people, despite the jostle and the lack of seats.