I’m ready for this question. ‘I know what you’re going to say – that she was much younger, that she would have changed over the years. But people don’t change that much. You can still see them in their baby pictures, you can still tell it’s that person.’ I’m sounding too desperate, manic. I need to calm down. ‘Wait here.’ I stand and leave the room, jog up the stairs and into our bedroom. I yank open my T-shirt drawer and pull out the slim album that rests underneath my clothing. Squaring my shoulders, I head back downstairs, nipping into the kitchen to get my phone. It smells of burned cherries and I remember the cherry tart we were supposed to have for pudding. I turn off the oven and head back into the lounge.

Matt is sitting where I left him, staring at the wall. Eventually he looks my way and glances at the album in my hand. I sit next to him and open it up. There are only a few pages of photos. Most pictures of Holly are on my old phone that needs to be charged, but I have a few special ones that I printed and put in this album.

‘This is my daughter.’ I show Matt the precious photographs of my Holly berry before she was taken. Her dark hair and those vivid green eyes.

‘Wow, she’s beautiful, Rach.’ Matt takes my hand and squeezes.

I try not to let his emotion affect me. If I cry, I won’t be able to explain myself properly. While he looks through the album, I open Facebook to Kate’s page and find the earliest photo of Bella, when she was around six years old. ‘This is Kate’s daughter, Bella.’ I hand Matt my phone.

He stares at the image of Bella and holds it next to various photos of Holly.

I let him have a few moments to compare. ‘Well?’ I finally ask.

‘They look similar,’ he admits.

‘More than similar!’

‘I don’t know. It’s hard to tell.’

‘But that’s because you’re just looking at photographs. Holly was my daughter. I knew her better than anyone. Are you telling me that you wouldn’t recognise Charlie nine years from now?’

‘I’d like to think I would, but honestly, I don’t know. Look, I know it’s not what you want to hear, and I hate saying this, but the chances of Bella being your missing daughter are tiny. Just because they look like one another, it doesn’t mean they’re the same person. I know you want to believe it—’