In any case, there was no time to waste. What had to be done couldn’t be done here, and what if the worst had happened in the period she had been away? What if the hotel had already been sold? The image occurred to her for a second, as strong as if she had been standing in front of it: her family home, its grand windows shuttered and blinded, a padlock on the front door, weeds growing up the walls. But no, if it had been sold, Penny would surely have told her that much at least.

Back at her flat, Elle packed a bag, once again not paying close attention to the contents, put her picture into a poster tube, and for the second time in as many weeks, prepared to return home to Mulberry Bay.

Chapter 21

The following day, scrolling through her email on her phone, Penny came upon a message that both excited her and filled her stomach with anxiety.

‘OK. Cross another one off the list, I just won the auction,’ she said to herself, as she extracted the list of albums she had been keeping in her handbag, while trying to keep pace with Colin, who walked beside her on the street with purpose in his step.

‘Which one?’ he enquired without slowing down.

‘Sergeant Pepper’s,’ Penny answered, trying to make a note on her list while walking. ‘Can we just stop for a minute?’

Colin immediately halted and turned around, noticing that Penny had stopped a few paces back, using a nearby letterbox as a makeshift desk. He strolled over to her and peered over her shoulder as she made notes.

Whistling, he raised his eyebrows. ‘Goodness. Five hundred for that one?’

Penny finished logging the price she had paid on eBay for the popular first edition album, trying to quell the anxiety in her stomach. ‘Yes. I’ve decided I don’t like auctions. At least when they have other bidders. I would have been able to save a fortune if that someone else hadn’t stepped in during the last hour and jacked up the price.’ The fact that a new bidder had snuck in unexpectedly just before bidding closed had totally discombobulated her. It wasn’t good for the heart.

‘Well that’s the internet for you,’ Colin replied. ‘Trolls everywhere.’

‘Well, I wish they would stay under their respective bridges then. OK, so take a look,’ She offered the list to Colin. ‘I think we’re making real progress.’

He took the paper from Penny and looked down at her handwriting.

Please Please Me

With the Beatles

Beatlemania! With the Beatles

Introducing . . . the Beatles

Meet the Beatles!

Twist and Shout

The Beatles’ Second Album

The Beatles’ Long Tall Sally

A Hard Day’s Night

Something New

Beatles for Sale

Beatles ’65

Beatles VI

Help!

Anna (Go to Him) Single

Rubber Soul

Yesterday and Today

Revolver

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

Magical Mystery Tour

The Beatles

Yellow Submarine