She stared into his eyes, pale blue pools now, weaker than they had been yesterday, when he had made her wear the dress and parade in front of him. More faded than they had been last night, when he’d clutched at her, leaving the imprints of his fingers in a blue-grey stain on her skin, and made her lie with him.

‘I know,’ she agreed, even though it wasn’t true.

He kept his eyes on her, and they were leaking now. Why was he crying? she wondered. Was it because he was losing his faithful servant who cooked and cleaned and fussed over him? He wouldn’t be able to have someone like her in Spain, under the watchful eye of his son. He wouldn’t be able to leer at Jason’s wife, or make her model new form-fitting clothes for him, or get her to lie next to him on his bed. Or was he weeping because he knew he had been wrong to ask her to do those things?

‘I’ll miss you,’ he said.

‘I know,’ she said again, and she raised her hands, planting the palms flat against his chest.

She leaned into him at the same time as she wedged her hip against the wall at the top of the stairs. Then, using every ounce of her strength, she pushed him as hard as she could.

There was no need to rush. Jason wasn’t coming until tomorrow. She had a full day, and potentially a night too, to ensure every last trace of her was removed from this house. She didn’t want to stay the night, though, not with William crumpled at the bottom of the stairs.

But she had time, and she reminded herself of this as she hurried back into the bedroom. Don’t rush, take care, don’t leave anything that could tell anyone who you are.

First things first. She fell to her knees beside the black bag, pulling open the zip and breathing in the scent of the money. It smelled like success and escape. It eclipsed the awful smell of William’s home, and his old-man odour. It was the aroma of a brand-new life.

She lifted the bag, testing the weight. It was heavy, but she’d been half carrying William around for months. She was used to a dead weight.

She zipped up the bag, stood and moved into her own bedroom. Carefully she pulled all her clothes out of the wardrobe and laid them on the bed. She thought back to when she had arrived here; the weekender bag was all she had. She would need more suitcases for sure. But she had to be careful. She couldn’t call a taxi from this address; when Jason came tomorrow and found his father’s body, he would no doubt inform the neighbours. They in turn would tell him about her.