Molly led the way into the living room. ‘Would you like some coffee while I read it?’ Never again was she going to sign something without examining every single word. Randall seemed to think it was normal. He declined the coffee, said nothing and stood with his hands in his jacket pockets watching as she read.

Finally, Molly took a pen and signed. ‘There you go,’ she said, handing it back. ‘And thank you again, you’ve got me out of a bit of a hole.’

Randall shrugged. ‘It happens,’ he said dismissively, as if it was an everyday occurrence. Maybe it was, Molly thought as she shut the front door. She never thought her life would go into such a spiral.

Easing herself back onto the sofa, she picked up her mobile. Still no word from Jack. She tried ringing him again, but once more it went to voicemail. There didn’t seem any point in leaving another message.

There were several messages. One was from her line manager in Dawson Marketing hoping she was recovering. He didn’t say outright but she knew he was wondering when she was returning to work. She sent a brief reply thanking him for his good wishes and saying she’d be off at least another week. They had a good working relationship; she’d make an appointment to see him when she went back and explain everything.

More heartening, there were messages from Freya and Remi. She read them, could almost hear the sound of their cheerful enthusiastic voices and yearned to have them nearby, at the same time relieved they were spared the trauma of the current situation. They would be horrified, appalled. They’d want to leave and come home to help. But they were entitled to a life full of hope and promise; she’d do anything… anything… to make sure they got it.

She sent them short cheery messages about how busy she was, how much she missed them, how happy she was that they were doing so well, and she threw the phone on the sofa beside her. Resting her head back, she shut her eyes. Where was Jack? He wouldn’t be able to use the credit cards to check into a hotel. Should she start ringing around their friends to ask if he was staying with them? Tears gathered and she rubbed them away roughly. It was not the time to cry, it was a time to plan her next step.