Before heading outside, she took a picture of the dining room table from where she could see Daddy’s name on the place card. His seat looked right down the table out to the garden. Mummy had made the table look beautiful with all the flowers. The smell of the roses and the honeysuckle was wonderful. Tucking the picture into her pocket, she stood at the French windows, watching. Mummy was chatting to Mr Carew. Uncle Tom was speaking again to the man who arrived this afternoon. Diana had heard he was American. They turned to look out at the bay and Uncle Tom pointed at Gribben Head. The light was changing. The headland was bright one minute but then dull when a cloud covered the sun.

Daddy stood next to Lady Fox and Mrs Venn. They were talking about the weather. Diana smiled. Everyone talked about the weather, even in Moscow – except there it was normally about the snow and here about the rain. Mr Venn stood with his back to Daddy, taking a drink from Mr Hoskine’s tray. She crept out onto the lawn and stood by a planter. From this angle she saw the side of Daddy as he smiled. She took that picture. He was enjoying his party.

As carefully as she could she slipped around to take a picture of Mummy. It was just as Uncle Tom and the American man joined her and Mr Carew. Diana pointed the camera and captured Mummy laughing with Uncle Tom on one side and the American on the other. Mr Carew had turned so Diana only had the back of his head.

Someone was playing the piano in the drawing room. Inside she found the vicar looking at the painting of a boat. She didn’t want to take his picture, so she slipped back outside. From this angle at the curve of the house, she tried to include everyone in the photo with the bay in the background but it didn’t work. She would need to try that from the windows in Mummy’s room.

Daddy saw her and winked. Mr Venn frowned at her. Diana wondered if he was cross she was using the camera. She didn’t know why she thought that, but she did. Before going upstairs, she went into the study and took two quick photos. One of Mummy looking across at Daddy and the other one of Daddy looking all serious and handsome while he spoke to Uncle Tom. From this vantage point no one realized she was here.