Izzy came down the steps to the pool in a silk sarong, sitting down on the sunbed next to Lucy and greeting her with a smile.

Izzy was another interesting character. Very honest, no artifice to her at all. No pretence. Well travelled. No kids, none of the baggage, none of the stretch marks and excess weight that women took on board when they joined the motherhood mafia. She was petite, only just coming up to Lucy’s shoulder. Izzy dropped her sarong onto a sunbed and began oiling herself with suntan lotion. After a minute, she handed Lucy the bottle and turned her back. Lucy squirted her shoulders and began rubbing the liquid in.

Alistair spotted the ginger-and-white kitten again, and went back to his phone.

Chapter 30

30

I’d thought I could do this. Ride it out for a week until I found the truth, until I had proof Sean wouldn’t be able to deny.

But I couldn’t.

I wasn’t strong enough. I couldn’t play happy families with him when it was going on right under my nose. It was time to force the truth out of him, one way or another: I had to know. Not here, not where everyone could hear us, where one of the kids might walk in on us at any moment. And not where she might interrupt. She knew the estate and all of its secret places.

Not here, in the villa. But I knew the perfect place.

I found Sean in our en suite, fresh from the shower. He was shirtless, his broad chest and back already darkening from three days of sun.

‘Hey,’ I said, leaning against the door frame.

‘Hey yourself,’ he said, spraying aftershave.

‘Do you want to go for a walk before dinner?’

He looked at me a little uncertainly. ‘A walk?’

‘Down through the vineyard. It’s a lovely spot at this time of day – you get a wonderful view of the sun going down.’

‘What about the kids?’

‘Daniel’s going out in a minute to play with the bigger boys and I’ve asked Izzy to keep an eye on Lucy.’

‘OK. Sure.’ He gave me a wary look. ‘I’ll be right with you.’

I sat down on the end of the bed and watched him buttoning a pale-blue shirt, thinking back to my talk with our daughter last night.

‘Has Lucy talked to you about her friend Alex?’

‘The crazy one?’

‘Tall, skinny girl, plays the clarinet. In Lucy’s friendship group.’

‘No. Have they had another ding-dong?’

‘Lucy mentioned her the other night; she was upset about something but wouldn’t say what.’

Sean shrugged, turning away to close the wardrobe.

‘She’s not talked to me about it.’

Across the corridor I heard Daniel’s door shut with a click. Our son hurried past as if he was late for something.

‘Daniel?’ I called to him.

His face appeared in the doorway.