After a pause, Clara said, ‘It’s so good to talk to you, I feel like I’m losing my mind with worry. Having you to talk things over with … I don’t know, it makes it easier somehow.’

Hannah smiled her sympathy. ‘I’ll do whatever I can to help.’

They lapsed into silence, watching the bar slowly fill up. Clara made herself smile shyly. ‘It was so lovely hearing you talk about your childhood with Luke the other day,’ she said. ‘I don’t know why, but I found it comforting, somehow, hearing about what he was like as a little boy.’

At this Hannah smiled warmly and with such apparent sincerity that Clara could only stare at her in horrified fascination. ‘Oh, he was such a great kid!’ she said. ‘So funny, you know? Such a big personality. We used to have such good times together, all of us.’ Her eyes grew wistful. ‘My parents were the best. We kids always felt so loved and wanted, it was wonderful.’

As she listened, Clara felt icy fingers walk up and down her spine. It was almost as though Hannah had persuaded herself she really was Emily, adored child of Oliver and Rose. She remembered how Rose had said that Hannah would skip school to spy on them all, watching their every move, like a kid with its nose pressed up against a sweetshop window. A chilling thought struck her: if Hannah’s vendetta was partly fuelled by jealousy, or a sense of injustice that Emily was treated like a beloved daughter while she herself had been cast out, if it was Emily’s place in the family that she coveted, would it have been necessary for her to get rid of Luke’s sister entirely? Nobody had seen Emily for twenty years. As she listened to Hannah talk, unease moved inside her like cold water.

They discussed the police search next, Hannah asking question after question for all the world as though she didn’t already know the answers. Just when Clara thought she would crumble under the strain of it all, Hannah glanced at her watch. ‘I must go,’ she said. ‘But I’m so glad I’ve been able to talk to you.’ Her eyes met Clara’s. ‘I hope you know that you’re not alone in this. If ever I can help, in any small way, I want you to know I’m here for you.’

‘Thank you,’ Clara said gravely, relief overwhelming her as they both got to their feet. On the street, Hannah took Clara’s hands in hers, exactly as she had the time before. It was all she could do not to snatch them away.