Tara’s heart sank. ‘And what did he say?’

‘Not much. He wants to meet,’ Justine explained. When Tara’s mouth gaped open, she added, ‘You’re invited too.’

‘OK. Right. Good. That’s good,’ Tara stuttered.

‘Who knows? We might be able to convince him to join the group.’

Tara went to take a sip of coffee but the cup knocked against her teeth. ‘He called us toxic, Justine,’ she reminded her friend. ‘He won’t be interested in joining, but I’d love to know what he’s after.’

‘I imagine he wants to know what lies Nick spread about his wife. It can’t have been easy seeing Erin’s name dragged into the headlines for all the wrong reasons.’

‘When are you meeting him?’

‘Six thirty.’

‘Today?’

‘I said we could meet in the Childe of Hale, but it’s a bit too public, don’t you think?’

‘He can come here. I’ll make sure we’ve finished closing up so the place is empty,’ Tara said without enthusiasm. Her pulse was racing and her heart skipped a beat when her phone rang. She held her mobile at arm’s length, as if she had spotted a spider crawling across the screen. She didn’t recognise the number, but she suspected she would know the caller.

‘Are you going to answer it?’

Tara connected the call and placed the phone tentatively to her ear. ‘Hello?’

‘I bet you didn’t expect to hear from me again,’ replied Faith.

Tara could hear the smile in her friend’s voice but she couldn’t return it. A man’s death was no smiling matter. ‘What’s happened?’

‘The buggers have let me out is what’s happened. I can’t believe it’s taken this long and I hope to God I never have to go back there,’ she said above the hollow rumble of what sounded like a diesel engine.

‘Have the police dropped the charges?’

‘No such luck. They’ve given me conditional bail and I have to jump through all kinds of hoops until they come to their senses, but they will. Have you seen all the messages of support? God, it’s so moving, Tara,’ Faith said, her voice trembling as if she had just remembered she was the victim.

Justine stared at Tara, desperate to know what was happening, but Tara’s gaze was drawn to the shop window and the car park beyond. She expected to see a black cab pull up at any moment. ‘Where are you going now?’

‘I’m on my way home,’ Faith said with real emotion.

‘To the house?’

Justine mouthed the word, ‘What???’