‘Yeah, but he didn’t put up a fight. I guess he took the punches because he knew he deserved the punishment,’ Josh said. ‘I’m not proud of what I did.’

‘Does Olivia know?’

Josh shook his head.

It was going to be a long night, Tara realised. She couldn’t be in two places at once, but the choice was an easy one. She would phone April and ask her to abandon their evening with Faith. They would rearrange, but that prospect held fresh horrors. How was Faith going to react when she discovered the accusations they had made against Nick were false? He hadn’t been in debt. He hadn’t committed fraud.

‘If I’m honest,’ Josh continued. ‘I’ve been trying to blame the group because I don’t want to consider that it was my actions that led Nick down this dark path. He’d been labelled a fraud so maybe that’s why he decided to act like one. Does that sound like the person you knew?’

‘If you’re asking if Nick was angry and embittered, no, he wasn’t. If anything, he was as laid back as Olivia describes.’

With a sinking feeling, Tara realised that Olivia’s view of her brother, however biased, couldn’t be ignored. Nick wasn’t the type to threaten a woman. This idea that he had a fantasy about knives had come from Faith, and Tara was learning not to take her word for anything.

Except there was the cut on Faith’s neck, and proof that Nick had forced her to transfer money. The evidence was there, and yet Tara could feel the story Faith had woven coming undone. With a sudden jolt, Tara found the loose thread. ‘Nick admitted to the fraud.’

‘To you?’

‘No, to Faith. He laughed at her and said he liked taking money from dead people.’

Josh kicked his shoe against the pavement. ‘I’m not his greatest fan, but I don’t see why he’d admit to something he didn’t do.’

‘I agree,’ Tara said. ‘I think you need to tell the police what you’ve just told me, and soon.’

Josh rubbed a hand across his face. ‘I was hoping to keep the charity out of any scandal, but you’re right. It was my mistake and I have to own up to it,’ he said. ‘But what about your friend? This isn’t going to look good on her. Do you think she was confused?’

‘I don’t know. What other explanation is there?’ Tara asked, but it wasn’t a question for Josh. ‘First things first. You need to go back in there and explain everything to Olivia. She deserves to hear it from you.’

With his head hung low, Josh made a move towards the door, but Tara didn’t follow. He looked back. ‘Are you coming?’