I can’t believe it’s Friday and I don’t feel I’ve done anything worthwhile or constructive with my time off work. Three days before I’m back at the optician’s and I’m no closer to making decisions. I pile the breakfast dishes into the dishwasher and shout up to the boys. Once I’ve dropped them at school, I’ll call Jo for a catch-up. Maybe she and Keeley have made progress with their fact-finding mission and will have something solid for me to work on.

The walk to school is slow and laboured – each of us appear subdued; lost in our own thoughts.

‘When is Miss Emery coming back? I miss her,’ Leo pipes up as we reach the gate.

‘I don’t know, Leo. There’s been no mention of it in the newsletters.’ With everything else going on, I’d pushed the question of why Miss Emery left so suddenly aside. ‘Has Mr Welland talked about it to the class?’

‘Nope.’ He scuffs his shoes along the tarmacked path. ‘It’s been ages since she was here. I liked her.’

‘Hmmm … yes.’ It was a week ago when she took me to one side to discuss Leo’s nightmares and when she asked about Carl. It might be she’ll be back on Monday – following a week’s holiday or sick leave. If not, then it’s time further questions were asked.

I don’t go back home; I walk to Jo and Keeley’s instead. Jo often takes Friday off, so I might be in luck.

‘Hey, you. Come on in,’ Jo says as she swings the door open for me to enter. ‘Bit early for wine, mind …’

‘Hah! Is it?’

‘Oh. That bad?’ She closes the door and follows me into her kitchen.

‘I don’t know, Jo. Yes. No. Not sure.’

‘Great. Glad we’ve cleared that up.’

Jo pops the kettle on, and I position myself on my usual stool at the breakfast bar. ‘I was hoping for an update,’ I say.

‘Well, that’s perfect timing, then.’

‘Really?’ I perk up; finally, some good news? ‘I’m all ears.’

‘Perhaps don’t get too excited. But we’ve made some headway.’ She finishes making the coffee and sits down in front of me, a serious expression now on her face. I brace myself.

‘Right, well I’ll start with the developers, Whitmore & Co, as that was my task,’ she says. ‘It wasn’t easy to trace the origins, strangely – or, perhaps I should say worryingly. It’s as though they’re trying to stay below the radar themselves – I believe the main guys are hiding behind a front.’

‘As in, the ones with the money and clout aren’t the ones whose names appear in the applications? How can that be?’