She was off to Bonn the following day, for a ten day visit to her family, which he recognised she needed and which, for reasons all too plain – and about which she had been stoically sympathetic – she would now undertake alone. They would holiday together, they had agreed, just as soon as Dylan had seen sense, and the Moira situation was resolved. A week on from the horror of being grilled by the Master and then returning to a Dylan-less flat, Lucas was aware of something like shame pushing through his outrage and upset. For two key elements of his life to swerve so violently off course smacked of failure. A failure that did not sit well with how he loved Heidi, which was as much about proving himself a worthy and strong protector as all the other obvious ingredients of mutual intellectual respect and physical attraction. It did not help that, although he hated discussing Moira with her, she brought the subject up all the time – to understand properly, she said, and because she was surely more of an expert on women’s feelings than he was. She had even wanted to help edit his statement about the alleged incident, backing down with reluctance when he’d insisted that he had it in hand. In truth, it was further humiliation – in Heidi’s eyes – that Lucas sought to avoid. This was his own, demeaning, battle, and he would fight it alone. Lucas had summoned the courage to confess as much that morning, while lying on her bed and watching her start to pack, admiring the orderly way in which she steadily filled the suitcase, everything fitting just so.

‘You are not to waste a moment of worry on me, is what I am trying to say. Just concentrate on having a wonderful holiday. Everything will get sorted, I promise.’

She had stopped at once, and looked at him, her eyes soft and solemn. ‘I know that is what you want, Lucas. But it is hard, no, just to forget what is going on? Though of course I shall do my best.’ She smiled properly, and he was so glad to have dared to speak out. But then, as if the moment had released some much-needed pressure inside her too, she suddenly launched into a diatribe about Dylan, how she hoped Lucas didn’t mind her saying so, but his son was selfish as well as crazy. ‘You were trying so hard, Lucas, like you always do with him, and this is how he repays you. I would never do that to my own parents, and neither would Stefan… but we know it is because Esther has spoiled him,’ she had ended quickly, perhaps reading the tension in his expression and reaching for a conclusion they could both agree on.