And then Clara was at the bar. To her relief there was no sign of Hannah yet, and she took a seat at the same table as before. There was the same quiet, early evening buzz in the air and the same barman smiling at her from behind the bar. She both longed for and dreaded Hannah’s arrival. Would she be able to tell, just by looking at her, what was going on? Fear and adrenalin surged through her. Right at that moment a shadow fell across the table.

‘Clara?’ Hannah was dressed as usual in dark jeans and a hoodie. She tucked her hair behind her ear in a familiar nervous gesture that had once seemed endearing, but now seemed entirely staged, her smile oozing warmth and gentleness. It was utterly chilling how convincing she was.

Clara forced herself to return her smile, digging her fingernails into the palm of her hand, endeavouring to keep her voice steady as she said, ‘Hi, Emily, it’s good to see you, how are you?’

‘I’m OK.’ Hannah sat down and they stared at each other for a beat or two before she said, concern furrowing her brow, ‘God, you look awful, are you all right?’

‘No, I’m not,’ Clara said quietly. ‘Emily, after we last met my flat was set on fire. Luke’s friend Mac was attacked, and his camera stolen. I wanted to talk it over with you, I know how concerned you are about how the search is going. I thought I should let you know. To be honest, I’m still really shaken.’

Hannah leant forward, her eyes wide with shock. ‘Oh my goodness, Clara, that’s terrible. You poor, poor thing, I’m so sorry. Were you hurt? Are you OK?’

Clara nodded. ‘I’m fine, and so is Mac, but yes, it was awful.’ She took a sip of her drink, an excuse to look away from Hannah’s intense gaze. This was the single most difficult thing she had ever had to do.

Hannah shook her head. ‘I don’t know what to say. How are my mum and dad? This must have really rattled them.’

‘About as well as you’d expect,’ Clara replied. She hesitated, ‘Oliver, especially, is in a bad way. I’m worried about him, I mean, he’s not a young man …’

It was almost imperceptible, the flicker of pleasure in Hannah’s eyes, but it was definitely there. ‘And the police?’ she asked. ‘They have no new leads?’

‘No, nothing. It’s incredibly frustrating,’ Clara sighed. ‘Sometimes I think they’ll never catch this person, whoever they are.’

Hannah nodded sadly. ‘We mustn’t give up hope,’ she said. ‘They’ll find Luke, I’m sure they will.’