Upset.

‘You’re not making sense.’ I gazed at Nella. ‘Upset about what?’

‘Can you just get her down here? I haven’t got all day. I’m just calling in on the way’ – and now her smile was glacial – ‘to the police station.’

‘The police?’ Some of my least favourite people. ‘Why?’

‘I only came as a courtesy really. We’ve already phoned them.’

‘Nella!’ God, I felt queasy again. ‘I don’t know what you’re on about—’

‘It’s serious, I’m afraid.’ Nella held my eye, and my heart skittered around my chest. ‘Can you please just get Cecilia?’

My choices were narrowing. I walked to the stairs.

‘Ces!’ Clutching the bottom of the bannister, I called up. ‘Come down, please.’

‘How did she seem this morning?’ Head on one side, beatific. Her lips were dry, chalky-looking. ‘We assume you’re planning to make a complaint?’

I froze. ‘A complaint?’

‘Yes. Willow has told us what happened. I am sorry,’ she repeated.

‘Told you?’ I sounded like a stupid bloody parrot.

‘Yes.’ The woman met my eye coolly. ‘We know what he did.’

‘Sorry – I’m lost.’ I felt a scratch of irritation. ‘What who did?’

Nella walked across the room, to the sliding doors.

It was one of those horrible grey days I’d loathed when I was young, a day that promised nothing at all, and it looked like rain was coming.

‘What a neat little garden,’ she said.

The awful statue was hidden from here at least.

‘Nella.’ I followed her. ‘I don’t know what Willow’s talking about?’

In the middle of Rex’s cropped little lawn, a solitary blackbird bounced; drumming up the worms, I guessed.

‘I can see it’s hard, and that she might want to stick up for her friend.’

‘Hang on a sec.’ My head was suddenly clearer than it had been all morning. ‘What exactly are you saying?’

‘Cecilia knows,’ Nella sighed. ‘She’ll tell you.’

‘Nella, you’re talking in riddles.’ I couldn’t hide my irritation anymore. ‘Just spit it out, will you, for God’s sake?’

‘It’s difficult.’ Nella tried not to look affronted. ‘Especially because of you and Ruby, and how close you are. But I just wanted you to know, we’re going in to make a statement now.’

‘A statement? About Zach?’

‘Yes, about him.’ Nella looked defiant. ‘To the police.’

I thought of Zach. The loveliest boy. Bit moody sometimes, bit of a wally sometimes, but no different to any other teenager. ‘What exactly are you saying he’s done?’

‘I’m sure your stepdaughter will tell you.’

Why did that word feel so loaded? Stepdaughter.

‘She’ll have to be brave.’ Nella had become crisp; business-like. ‘We can’t go on letting things like this happen to us. To girls, to women.’

God, how desperately I wanted her to leave my house.

‘I’ll speak to her, but I don’t think she’s ready to talk yet,’ I said, ‘or she’d have come down.’ I moved towards the front door now, hoping that she’d follow.

‘I know it’s traumatic, but Willow saw him.’ Nella’s pretty chin jutted into the air, as defiant as her own daughter might be.