What she did remember was the wrench in her shoulder as she shoved Rosalind out of the way, sending her stumbling into Caro and the desk.

She remembered closing her eyes, tight, as the contents of the poison bottle hit her in the face. Remembered bracing herself for pain, stinging acid pain.

And she remembered opening her eyes to find silver glitter falling to the ground around her, as Juliette let out a howl of fury.

Glitter. It was only glitter.

There was no poison, just a bottle with a label that lied. Another fiction, dreamed up by the author who made murder feel safe.

Posy’s body hadn’t yet realised the danger had passed, though, as her heartbeat thumped against her ribcage so hard she though the bone might crack. Her breath came harsh and fast as, around her, the assembled crowd took in the full meaning of what had happened.

‘This is all your fault!’ Juliette leapt for Rosalind again, but DCI Larch wrapped his arms around her waist and held her back.

‘Juliette.’ Hugh’s voice broke on his step-granddaughter’s name. ‘What have you done?’

She turned her pretty, snarling face towards him. ‘What have I done? What about what you’ve done, Granddad?’

Behind her, Isobel stood frozen, watching the tableau unfolding before her.

‘I saw you kissing her.’ Juliette ripped her arm from Larch’s grasp to point an accusing finger at Rosalind. ‘I saw you two together. And I tried to tell Grandma, but she wouldn’t listen, so I searched your study – and that’s when I found the blackmail letter. The one from Marcus. It told me everything I needed to know, along with that voicemail from Clementine on your phone. And still Grandma wouldn’t listen, so when I saw you talking to Clementine, I had to do something. Don’t you see?’

Posy saw, all too well. ‘They were taking your life away from you,’ Posy said, softly. ‘Everything you thought you had, that you’d earned. Your place in the world.’

Posy knew how that felt. When it happened to her, she’d turned to bad choices, the wrong people, and self-destructive coping mechanisms. She’d almost destroyed her own life.

Juliette had destroyed two others, instead, to try and keep what she thought was hers.

‘Yes.’ Juliette gave her a sharp smile. ‘You understand.’

Posy shook her head. ‘No. Not really.’