“It’s no problem,” Finn said. “Highworth is on our way. Does half past ten suit you?”

“That will be great, thanks,” Lucy said.

“Okay, we’ll see you up at the cottage.” Finn tilted his head toward Geoffrey in a wordless command and the dog, sensitive to his master’s every move, raced off to join him.

“Succinct as ever.” Johnny was grinning as he stood up and stretched. “I sometimes wonder how Finn has so much dating success. It can’t be for his conversation.”

“I suppose the gruff, outdoorsy type does appeal to some women—and men too,” Lucy said, trying not to feel too put out at the thought of Finn’s romantic conquests.

Johnny laughed and wandered off in the direction of the cottage whilst Lucy got up, picked up her empty coffee mug and went inside. Two doses of caffeine had left her feeling wide awake and a bit strung up, which wasn’t ideal. She made some sourdough toast and ate it with a lavish helping of butter and strawberry jam, checking her tablet at the same time for train times from Swindon to London. She felt conflicted. She didn’t really want to go back to London yet, particularly as it was high summer and the city would be full of noise and heat and tourists, but if she needed to see her GP urgently she’d have to head back. It really depended on how she felt after she’d talked to Cleo, and whether her sister thought she was suffering medically induced delusions or if she agreed with Lucy’s own assessment that she was haunted in some way. Either way it felt more than a little weird.

As she ate her breakfast she thought about the previous night. First there had been the vision of the woods on fire, so sudden, vivid and terrifying. That Finn had had a similar vision in his dream was even more strange. Then there had been her latest dream about Catherine. It had left her feeling slightly like a voyeur in Catherine and Robert’s relationship. There had been so much heat and passion between them but also such a strong sense of love, the type of love that hinted at pure delight in each other’s company and the idea that together they were stronger than apart. Though perhaps she was just imagining that. This whole thing about being in someone else’s head was new to her. Lucy shifted a little uncomfortably. What she did know was that their closeness had made her think about Finn and in her mind she and Catherine and Robert and Finn were getting confused. She was almost certain she had fallen asleep imagining that she was wrapped in Finn’s arms as she had been earlier in the evening.

She finished the toast and licked the butter from her fingers. It felt as though there was some sort of emotional bond between herself and Catherine. When she was lonely or unhappy she had connected to Catherine’s anguish and dreamed that Catherine was lost and lonely too. Last night she had felt happy and the barn had felt warm and welcoming. It was the same now—it was full of light and looked ravishingly beautiful with its sleek wooden floors and white walls. It also looked far too modern to harbor some sort of centuries-old ghost so perhaps she was the one who harbored the ghost and Catherine would follow her back to London or wherever she went...