‘Give me your socks so I can wash them,’ Joanne fussed, eyeing the crumbles of fresh snow deposited on her kitchen floor. A set of curlers sat aloft her head like a crown, and her candlewick dressing gown was tied around her generous waist.

He clamped a hand on her shoulder, and she started at the sudden contact. ‘Go back to bed. Don’t worry about my socks.’

‘And you’ll come up soon?’ Her face held a question.

He knew what she was thinking. This is how it started before. The edge to his words. His plummeting moods. Then the drinking after she’d gone to bed.

‘I just need some time to settle my thoughts,’ he said quietly. ‘I’ll be up in a minute.’

Joanne paused for just a second before leaving, her footsteps light.

The kitchen was spotless as always, the scent of lemon cleaner floating in the air. He pulled out a chair at the kitchen table. The living room was a no-no. The drinks cabinet was calling to him, and he’d be wise to ignore its whispers. It had been a hell of a day. He’d spent hours scouring the woodlands for a missing kid who’d turned up safe and well. Barely a teenager, Bailey Lockwood had been found hiding away at her boyfriend’s house. She would be in the doghouse as soon as her parents got over their initial joy at finding her safe and well. In this neck of the woods, when someone went missing, it was a serious affair.

Lloyd had branched off from his team as he searched the lowlands. All the while, his thoughts had been with his moonlight girl and the day that it all began. He would never forget that night: watching her wander beneath the stars, barefoot in her cotton nightdress. It was easier to live in the past. With his craving for booze growing stronger, his grip on the present was loosening every day.

Ten years ago, Lloyd did not care who moved into the village. If they kept out of his way, then he kept out of theirs. But back then, he was drawn to the occupants of Ivy Cottage, as nobody in the village had seen them. It was his duty as a police officer to check they were OK. But deep down, he’d been kidding himself. He hadn’t been able to get the moonlight girl out of his mind. He’d made his enquiries. No new children had registered at the local primary school.

What if she was neglected? Living on her own? He had to see for himself.