No question, they had both seen the ghost of Caroline Harcourt. But what about everything else Emily said she had no recollection of?

Had she been messing about with the fuse box switch in the darkness? Had she plugged the command box back in?

Instantly, he dismissed that as clutching at straws. And yet, could he dismiss the idea, totally, that Emily was, somehow, very disturbed? Disturbed enough not to have noticed she was filling the freezers with cockroaches?

He really did not want to go there, but what other explanation could he come up with?

Other than the one he did not want to face.

‘Jason,’ she said quietly, calmly. ‘We can’t stay tonight.’

‘Em, look, there’s something wonky with the electrics – a power surge or something – I don’t understand electricity that well. I’ve got to get on with my painting, and you’ve tomorrow to prepare for.’

‘You really think you’re going to concentrate on painting tonight? And that I’m quietly going to beaver away in the kitchen with a harridan standing behind me? There’s nothing wonky with the electrics. It’s not the electrics. The electrics are fine. It’s this house, that’s what’s wonky. We have to get out. You know we do, you’re just in denial.’

‘Fine, and go where?’

‘Anywhere but here. My parents?’

‘I’m not going to your parents.’

‘Why on earth not?’

Because I’d rather deal with a lady in a blue dress with a shrivelled face than have to endure your father’s scorn, he wanted to say.

‘We can come back in the morning, first thing, and get on,’ she said, pleading. ‘I’m scared. I’m really scared. We’ve made a terrible mistake moving here, you know it, too.’

‘Babes, listen. I’m with the Bishop on this one. All the stress we are going through is bringing up echoes from the past – that seems to make sense to me.’ He didn’t dare tell her that, according to the Bishop’s secretary, their meeting never happened.

She stared at him. ‘You are determined to find rational explanations at any cost, aren’t you?’

‘What do you mean by that?’

‘You are, accept it. We’ve moved into a seriously haunted and dangerous house. One that does not want us here. You’re in denial.’

‘I’m not in denial. I’ve always had an open mind. We know there’s a dark history to this whole site. I accept that ghosts exist – we’ve both bloody seen at least one. But what I don’t accept is that they can do any harm.’

‘You didn’t see that old woman standing behind me.’

‘You didn’t see the vicar.’

She looked at him and shook her head. ‘Are we going to play some game of tit-for-tat? Come on, we’re grown-ups, this isn’t about who saw what.’

‘I’m not playing games, that’s the last thing I want to do, OK?’

‘Fine. The last thing I want to do is spend tonight here. You can if you want. I’m going, I’m out of here. I’m going to my parents.’