He opens the cabin door. She smells the urgency of spring in the air, the snow nearly thawed, the earth bursting with life. She hears the roar of the snowmelt as it cascades into the mountain streams.

‘I’ve left it as late as I could,’ he says.

She turns from him and in that instant knows him to be gone.

The cabin was as derelict as it was when she first found it. She walked towards the skirted fir trees and pushed her way into the sunlight. She half expected to find she was wearing her wedding dress and was pleased that she was still in the clothes she’d made.

‘This will forever be my secret,’ she said aloud.

The air smelled sweet and was filled with the song of birds. Down she went to where the oak and beech grew. Far below her she saw her village, heard the church bells ringing. For a whole winter not once had she given any thought to the days of the week or the hours of the clock.

The village was pretty in the sunlight with its quaint, painted houses, the cherry trees in bloom. She walked up the cobbled street to the square and found no one about apart from the odd stray dog, a cat sleeping on a windowsill. Singing was coming from inside the church. It’s Easter, she thought, and waited for the congregation to emerge.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Wild Woman

The butcher came out of the church into the blazing spring sunshine. The moment he saw her, he stopped. He felt his heart lurch and put his hand to his chest. To everyone’s surprise, he stumbled. A small thing but one that was noticed by the congregation. Una rushed to his side and he swatted her away and pointed to where Edith stood. With the sun in their eyes, it took the villagers time to make sense of what they were seeing. A wild figure in a headdress of fur, antlers and feathers stood before them, a mountain goddess descended from the summit.

‘A gypsy,’ pronounced the priest. He sighed. ‘I thought I’d made it quite clear that the circus isn’t welcome here.’

Shielding his eyes, he looked again, and it slowly dawned on him that he was staring at a dead woman. He went pale.

The doctor too squinted, then gasped in horror. ‘It’s not possible,’ he said. ‘Nobody could survive the winter on the mountain.’

The mayor said, ‘My God.’ And added, though no one knew what he meant by it, ‘Will it ever end?’

Six elders pushed forward.

‘Surely she can’t be alive?’ said one of them. It was a question that didn’t have an answer.