‘I’m just popping to the Ladies,’ she said, pausing long enough for Tara to realise she was expected to follow.

They hurried out of the dining room and followed the signs. Tara was about to turn left when April grabbed her arm.

‘She’s gone that way,’ she said, pointing in the opposite direction. There was a glimpse of Olivia striding towards the main entrance. ‘Probably a cigarette break. Shall we join her?’

Tara didn’t relish the idea of going out into the cold again, but April wasn’t about to be persuaded back to her seat. ‘Could I stop you?’ she asked as April stalked after Olivia.

28

As they left the warmth of the hotel, the air was cold enough to make April gasp, but there was no time to go back for her pashmina. She gritted her teeth and walked down a short set of steps as if it were a balmy summer’s evening. Tara was less nimble, but that had as much to do with her dress as it did the drop in temperature.

There was a small group of smokers lighting up and Olivia was amongst them. If she was Nick’s sister, there was no knowing where her loyalties might lie, but April had loyalties of her own. She hadn’t been as surprised as Tara to discover a new layer of deceit tonight. As much as she had wanted to meet Josh, it was Nick’s life she continued to hold under the microscope. This was for Faith.

April and Tara exchanged glances with Olivia as they approached and when they smiled at her, she smiled back. Her curiosity must have been piqued when neither of them lit up a cigarette.

‘Want one?’ she asked, offering the new arrivals an open packet.

‘That’s kind of you,’ Tara said, taking a cigarette and at the same time, positioning herself so that the three women split off from the main group. ‘I packed in smoking years ago, but old habits die hard.’

April couldn’t hide her shock. ‘Are you sure you want to?’ she asked. ‘We only came out for a bit of fresh air.’

‘Sorry, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have offered,’ Olivia said.

Tara took a long drag of the unlit cigarette and exhaled no more than vapour. ‘Don’t worry. I won’t light up.’

‘Do you mind if I do?’ asked Olivia.

She flicked her lighter and her hand swayed in front of her face until the flame found the cigarette. As she took her first draw, its tip glowed orange and dimples appeared in her cheeks. She turned and made to blow the smoke over her shoulder, but the wind carried it straight back towards April and Tara.

‘It’s not ideal, is it? Sneaking out for a ciggie when we’re here to remember someone who died from cancer,’ Olivia said, her words ever so slightly slurred.