Noel sighed. “Then I suppose the generous uncle act is up to me.” And to my delight he handed me a couple of five-pound notes.

“Golly. Thank you very much,” was all I could stammer.

“And I’ve got a little something for you too, my love,” Granddad said. “It’s nothing grand like that, but I wanted you to have a little gift on Christmas Day.”

I opened the wrapping and inside was a snow globe with a charming little village inside and A present from Devon inscribed around the base.

I laughed. “It’s perfect,” I said. “A lovely souvenir of my visit here.”

“So you’ve got the hordes arriving for the Christmas banquet, have you?” Granddad asked.

“Yes, I believe Lady Hawse-Gorzley invites half the village. Oh, by the way, I just saw Wild Sal. She really exists.”

“Does she?” Noel Coward looked interested. “I’ve been dying to meet her.”

“She’s very strange indeed. Walks around barefoot and just stares with these piercing green eyes.”

“Well, she is supposed to be the descendant of the witch who was burned here,” Mummy said. “Isn’t this place fun? I keep telling Noel he should scrap what we’re doing and set his play in a crazy village like this one.”

“Not much of a comedy at the moment with all these deaths,” I said.

“Let’s hope there isn’t another one,” Granddad said. “Did you hear the ambulance go past about an hour ago? It hasn’t come back yet.”

“Oh, no. I suppose driving conditions are terrible today. It’s so slippery out there.” I glanced at my watch. “I should be getting back, I suppose. I’m expected to help entertain and church will soon be over.”

“Have a sherry before you go back,” Mummy said.

“I shouldn’t, thanks. I rather fear that the wine will flow copiously for the rest of the day, and I’m still recovering from the carol singing the other night. I believe it must have been the old ladies’ elderberry wine.”

They all began to chuckle.

“We have a confession to make about that carol singing,” Noel said at last. “Your mother made the punch and put a generous amount of rum in it. I tasted it and thought it needed something and added a bottle of vodka. The result, I’m afraid, was rather lethal.”

“It was the final blow for me, I’m afraid. I was blotto for the rest of the evening.”

I went around and hugged them, one by one, then stepped out into a stiff cold breeze. The clouds above Lovey Tor were heavy and looked as if they might produce more snow any minute. My grandfather walked with me down the path.