Rich called a meeting, during which in no uncertain terms he accused Wilf of theft and suggested he should be sent home. For once, Harold stood up and disagreed; but it pained him to be put in a place of confrontation and he saw he could not do it again. Rich listened with his eyes narrowed into slits so that Harold lost words mid-sentence. Rich finally conceded that Wilf should be given another chance, but he avoided Harold for the rest of the afternoon. Then half the group went down with stomach cramps and temperatures, when the boy mistook some mildly poisonous mushrooms for the friendly ones that looked disarmingly similar. Just as they were recovering, the abundance of redcurrants, cherries and raw gooseberries in their diet brought on a compromising spate of diarrhoea. The gorilla man was badly stung while taking notes for Rich when it transpired there was a wasp in his glove. For two days they did not walk at all.

The horizon was a series of blue peaks that Harold longed to climb. The sun hung high in the eastern sky, leaving the moon so pale it looked made of cloud. If only these people would go. Would find something else to believe in. He shook his head, berating himself for his disloyalty.

Rich informed the group that something was needed to distinguish the real pilgrims from their followers. He had the solution. He had been in touch with an old friend in PR, who owed him a favour. The friend in turn had contacted the distributors of a health drink and they would be delighted to provide all official walkers with T-shirts with the word PILGRIM on the front and back. The T-shirts would be available in white and come in three sizes.

“White?” Kate scoffed. “Where are we going to wash these things?”

“White stands out,” said Rich. “And its image is pure.”

“There speaks a man; and bollocks,” said Kate.

The company would also provide a limitless supply of healthy fruit drinks. All they wanted in return was for Harold to be seen holding one as often as possible. As soon as the T-shirts arrived, a press call was organized. Harold was to be joined on the A617 by Miss South Devon for the photoshoot.

Harold said, “I think the others should be in it too. They have made a commitment to the walk as well as me.”

Rich said that clouded the message about faith for the twenty-first century, and also weakened the Queenie love story.

“But I was never trying to make a point about those things,” said Harold. “And I love my wife.”

Rich handed him a fruit drink and reminded him to hold the bottle with the label facing towards the camera. “I’m not asking you to finish it. I just want you to hold the thing. And did I say you’ve been invited to dinner with the mayor?”

“I’m honestly not very hungry.”