“Sixty years. And I would have chosen him again at any point during that time. Not that I didn’t want to occasionally kill him, but that’s normal of course.”

Martha hugged the empty basket. “You were lucky.”

“You’ve had a rough time, but everything will work itself out.” Mrs. Hartley patted her arm. “You’re a good listener and very cheerful.”

Not around her family. The cheer was sucked out of her.

“I’d better go. My dream job isn’t going to present itself unless I look for it.”

Martha walked back into the kitchen of her parents’ house and found her mother scowling into the fridge.

“There’s nothing much to eat. I’ll go to the shops, but you need to clean the kitchen floor.”

“Later. I’m busy.”

“Doing what?”

“Job hunting. Trying to find a boat I haven’t missed.” Hatching an escape plan. She’d reached the point where she’d do anything.

“I forgot—” Her mother pulled an envelope out of her pocket. “This came for you. I hid it from your father because I knew how upset he’d be if he saw it on the mat.”

Martha took the letter, hoping her mother didn’t notice her shaking hand. “Thanks.”

That was it then. All done. Finished.

No turning back now.

Sliding the letter into her pocket, Martha washed her hands, made herself a mug of tea and disappeared up to her bedroom.

She had the smallest room in the house, which meant she had room for a bed and not much else. There was a small recess where she hung her clothes, and a desk that folded away when she wasn’t using it.

The wall opposite her bed was covered in a map of the world. Sometimes she lay in bed at night, dreaming about all the places she was never going to visit.

She pulled the letter out of her pocket and stared at it for a moment. Then she ripped it open, feeling sick even though she already knew what it would say.

She read it and felt her eyes fill with tears.

Her mother was right. She made bad decisions. What had she achieved in her life?

She folded the letter carefully and stuffed it into her bag.

She was keeping it as a reminder to make better decisions in the future.

Next to her on the bed her phone buzzed. Steven.

She rejected the call.