Ginny cradled her coffee mug while she thought. ‘Answer me this,’ she said eventually. ‘Why do you think Hannah’s come forward now? She could have broken her silence at any time, but she didn’t.’

‘The self-serving answer is that she seems to trust me. The more honest one is … she mentioned something about her health not being great, and I guess she’s thinking of her mortality. She doesn’t want to go to the grave with this on her conscience.’

Ginny grimaced, and Conor wanted to hide under the table. ‘Forgive my lack of tact. I know you’re upset about Mercedes.’

‘When one of your friends dies, it’s a fairly brutal reminder that life doesn’t go on for ever. Up until recently, I’d never given much thought to death – just getting by took up most of my time.’ She put down her mug. ‘Your father’s different. Well, of course, he would be, given how young your mother was when she died. That must have changed your outlook too.’

‘I suppose. Mind you, I was probably too small to feel the full tragedy of it all. Paula had the more difficult time.’

This was only partly true. Although he’d been young, Conor hadn’t forgotten the void left by his mother’s death. She had died in the wrong way at the wrong time, and that was something you never got over. ‘Anyway,’ he said, ‘Hannah’s almost twenty years older than you. And Mercedes, she was a lot older too, wasn’t she?’

‘Ten years.’

‘I guess what I’m trying to say is, I don’t think of you as old.’

Ginny smiled. ‘You’re starting to redeem yourself.’

‘Do you mind if I ask you something?’

‘Go on.’

‘Do you ever think about what you might have done with your life if it hadn’t been for Noel O’Grady? I’ve seen the photos. You could have been every bit as famous as Tess.’

She looked down and made a small sound, softer than a full sigh. ‘That’s such a hard question to answer. When I was younger, I did think about what I could have been or where I might have travelled. Not that I’d have wanted Tess’s life. Well, the money would have been nice. But not the fuss – I wouldn’t have liked that. But, yes, there’s every chance my life would have been different. I wouldn’t have stayed in Kilmitten, for starters.’

When she looked up, Conor was taken aback to see that her eyes were wet. He thought again about how a life can twist on one night. One act of violence.

‘Don’t mind me,’ she said. ‘So many good things have happened too. Daft and all as she is, I wouldn’t trade Tess for the world. Or your father. Or Lauren.’ She brushed away a tear. ‘Or even you.’