Allison stared at her, surprised. She was sure she’d said, Many years ago, I did something bad, not that she’d been a child… or had she? She’d blacked out earlier; had she done so again, perhaps a side effect of whatever drugs Portia had given her? Perhaps in one of those weak moments, she’d revealed a secret she’d kept for so many years.

Did it matter? Did anything matter any more?

‘I’m going to have a shower and get dressed,’ she said, getting to her feet so abruptly she surprised Jo, who seemed to be lost in thoughts of her own. Maybe she had her own problems and that’s why she was acting strangely… or should that be more strangely. Allison had to keep reminding herself how little she knew about Jo, and what she thought she did know probably wasn’t true.

A long shower didn’t make her feel any brighter. She needed sleep: hours, or even better, days of it. Days without stress.

She pulled on jeans and a blue cotton shirt, pushed her damp hair behind her ears and opened her bedroom door. The sound of the electric shower in the main bathroom told her she had a few minutes peace without Jo’s eyes following her.

Jo. She was a mystery. How did she know so much about Allison? Some, she’d already guessed, was from foolish Facebook posts, but not her address, not her secret. Did Jo really know this? It wasn’t something Allison could ask, was it? Do you know my dirty little secret?

She was being foolish. Again. She needed to survive the day. Get the money. Get rid of Jo. Then… what?

In her exhausted state, she couldn’t think. Downstairs again, she sat in the living room, rested her head on the back of the sofa and shut her eyes. She was so tired. Of everything. Of a lifetime spent paying for a mistake. Of never ever getting what she wanted.

She kept her eyes shut when she heard footsteps on the stairway. Wished she could keep them shut till it was all over.

‘It’s almost time.’

Reluctantly, Allison opened her eyes.

‘Two minutes to one,’ Jo said, as if Allison hadn’t understood.

‘Yes.’ She shuffled to the edge of the sofa and got to her feet. ‘I’ll get my mobile.’

They sat in the dining room, on the same seats, staring at Allison’s mobile as the last two minutes ticked slowly away.

Jo tapped the table with the flat of her hand. ‘It’s time.’

Allison nodded. Would the money be there? For the first time, were things going to go her way? Not the future she’d wanted but perhaps a contented alternative. Perhaps. She sighed loudly, drawing Jo’s eyes from the phone to her. ‘We’ll wait till a minute past.’