‘I don’t want to hurt you, Rosie,’ Faith says. ‘But I have to do this. I hope you understand. I promise to sew you up neatly, like I did to Paulo and Ralfie when I removed their feet. You’ll be sore for a while, I expect. But I’ll take good care of you. I promise.’

Alice’s mind is fading. She’s losing her grip on the moment. Keep alert.

‘And in case you’re wondering, the drugs I put in your fairy cake were Mummy’s pills. They will wear off in a few hours. They always do.’

Alice feels Faith’s clammy hands on her ankles once more. ‘You’re shaking. Relax, Rosie. Relax.’

The chill of the metal against Alice’s skin sends a shriek of terror through her body. She has to move. She has to take control. She attempts to move, but the drugs impair her movement. The pain as the blade tears through her flesh is unbearable. She lets out a scream. Feels the cold trickle of blood on her ankle.

A sudden hammering on the door startles both women. ‘Faith? Alice?’ The voice is familiar. ‘Alice?’

Faith rises, places her finger against her lips. ‘Shh!’

Loud thuds follow. Someone is ramming the door over and over. ‘Faith?’ they call. And then there is silence.

Faith crouches down once more. ‘Now, where were we?’ she says, pushing a tear-damp, straying hair from Alice’s cheek.

Within moments, something hard is being bashed against the lock.

‘Go away,’ Faith yells, rising up once more, leaving the saw on the floor. ‘Leave us alone. We’re happy here.’

The lock smashes. The door swings open.

‘Gabriela!’ Faith reaches for the knife, but the young woman lunges at her, pushes her. Faith stumbles, falls to the floor, cracking her head against the wall.

‘You poisoned my father,’ Gabriela yells. ‘You left him to die. You pay for this.’ Her accent is strong, her face pale. She looks at Alice through fired blue eyes, then back at Faith who is lying on the floor, holding her head, crying out in pain. ‘You tell me why. You tell me why you do this.’ She picks up the knife, points it at Faith. ‘Or I kill you.’

‘You’re Mikolaj’s daughter?’ Faith whimpers from where she cowers, eyes widening in shock.

A beat. ‘Tell me. Tell me why you do this – why you do something so horrific to my father.’ Tears fill Gabriela’s eyes.

Faith takes a long deep breath. ‘My mother loved him. She said in her diary that her time with him was the happiest she’d ever been.’ Her eyes are shimmering with tears. ‘And then he walked out.’

‘So you find him?’ The young woman’s voice trembles. ‘You poison him for this?’ Her knuckles turn white as she grips the knife, points it towards Faith, her arm shaking.