A hand brushed hers: Tommy. She let him take her fingers in his own, and tuned out everyone else on the deck. As they stood together, the freezing cold was no longer a factor. She was warm, she realised, inside and out, and everything else slipped away: the officer who was suspicious of her; Mark, for whom his colleagues were still searching; her photo in the paper, wanted in connection with William’s death. And Paula. For however long this went on, none of it mattered.

She smiled.

As though the lights were a message just for her, she suddenly knew exactly how she was going to handle Paula.

Paula’s plan had been to sit up and wait for Tommy to return. Regardless of what he had or hadn’t done with Anna, she always felt safe with him. And knowing, or suspecting, that there was a killer next door was something that filled her with fear and dread.

She needed him here, in the suite, even if he wasn’t speaking to her. Just the bulk of him would do. And she didn’t want to go looking for him. He would return to the room when he was done drinking with his buddies.

Still in her coat and boots, she sat primly on the chair by the window. To pass the time, she pulled back the curtain and looked at the stars. It was a clear night, and maybe the Northern Lights would put in an appearance.

Letting the curtain fall, she rested her head against the back of the chair, allowed herself to close her eyes. Just for a minute, because she needed to stay alert, on guard…

The click of the door awoke her, sounding like a gunshot in the silence of the cruise ship. Gasping, she sat up straight, spinning around in her chair, her eyes seeking something, anything to use against the intruder. She snatched up the fruit bowl and raised it above her head as she pushed herself to a standing position to see…

Tommy.

He had his back to her as he held onto the door and removed his boots one by one. She put the fruit bowl back on the table before he could see it.

‘You’re awake,’ he said as he turned around and took off his coat. ‘Did you see them?’

She glanced at her watch and saw that it was almost five a.m. ‘Did I see who?’ she asked.

He grinned, and it took her aback. The years seemed to have fallen away from him; she hadn’t seen him looking this way for a long time.

‘The Northern Lights!’ he exclaimed. He moved fast, covering the suite in a few strides, and threw back the curtains.

She stepped up beside him and peered out. The sky was dark, but the stars were bright. No lights.

‘I didn’t see them,’ she said. She felt oddly disappointed.