But why should Little Miss Perfect have any say when it came to her mother? Her parents had met when they were just teenagers, when Harmony was living rough after being kicked out of the family home. Morgan thought of Ed’s mother, Nellie, with her fleshy pink cheeks and a hug so warm you’d never want to leave her arms. She had been a huge influence on Harmony’s life, providing her with the love and stability she had grown up without. Nellie had been taken all too soon, and Morgan missed her grandmother every day.

‘Shit,’ she uttered, as she noticed the fire petering out. Grabbing a firelighter from the packet, she quickly threw one in with some kindling and a couple of logs for good measure. Within seconds, it was blazing again. When you were left alone in the harsh Scottish winters, knowing how to light a fire was a matter of survival. If only Nellie had lived nearby, instead of an hour’s drive away. She would have been horrified had she known about Morgan’s upbringing. Morgan sniffed her hands, the signature smell of firelighter invoking painful memories of the past. And now her life was crumbling around her. Naomi was young. Soon she would want a baby, and Morgan would be shoved out in the cold. The lilt of voices rose from the hall. She settled down in front of the fire as if she had been there all along.

A wry smile crossed her lips as she recalled Naomi’s face when she learned how Morgan had shared her Pinterest board. She’d done it to mess with her head. If Morgan was an out-and-out bitch, then she wouldn’t have her father’s loyalty. She knew about Naomi’s obsession with Ivy Cottage. Her stepmother had accumulated enough clippings to testify to that. She must have been so excited to return to the potential scene of the crime – which was now unrecognisable from original news reports. The stick figures she’d drawn in the dust had been genius. She sniggered to herself as she laid her sleeping bag on the ground. You should be careful when I’m around, she had warned, after seeing Naomi’s obvious remorse. But the mood her dad was in, he was likely to forgive her if she blurted out the truth tonight. She couldn’t have that.

The living room door creaked open. Naomi looked slightly peeved as she entered the room with Ed.

‘It’s Mum, isn’t it?’ Morgan said, looking suitably worried.

Her father rubbed his hands in front of the fire before crouching down to her level. ‘She left the private clinic without telling anyone. If I don’t hear from her by tomorrow, I’ll go up there to see if she’s OK.’

‘Oh.’ Morgan did her best to sound surprised. ‘She’s not answering her phone?’