I stop, scrubbing my hands over my face. Did Tara lie to me? The positioning of the circle of women, the sage, all say yes, but I don’t know why she would. Her friends list is long when I click back on to it, over 1,200 people have access to her account. How does she even know 1,200 people? Scrolling through the names, I’m hoping that I will recognize the women from the photo – I can’t remember any of their names apart from Miranda – and maybe if I click on their profiles something will become clear. I scroll, clicking on some, scrolling fruitlessly through other people’s life events, all to no avail, until I reach a name that I do recognize. A name that I wasn’t expecting to see, alongside a familiar profile picture. Naomi Byrne. Naomi and Tara know each other.

Chapter Twenty-Two

My phone buzzes again and tearing my eyes from the screen I see I have four missed calls. The screen lights up again, Rav’s name appearing overlaid on his photo. Frowning, I press the green icon to accept the call. Rav never calls during the day.

‘Hello?’ My eyes wander to the screen again as I click on Naomi’s name to go through onto her profile picture. The blurred face of the woman in Tara’s picture, I think it could be Naomi.

‘Allie? Where the hell are you?’ Rav’s voice is loud in my ear. ‘Have you only just woken up?’

‘No, I’ve been awake for a while. I called Avó.’ I pull my phone away from my ear to glance at the time on the screen. 1.45 p.m. Shit. ‘God, Rav, I have to go, I’m late for Mina.’

‘I know, that’s why I’m calling you. Why didn’t you answer your phone? The preschool has been trying to get hold of you for over half an hour.’

‘I’m sorry. I’m sorry I just …’ I slam the lid of the laptop down and run into the hallway, grabbing my keys and shoving my feet into my trainers. ‘I’m going there now, can you call and tell them I’m on my way?’

Rav agrees and cuts the call before I have time to apologize again. I slam the front door closed behind me and start walking as briskly as I can on my aching ankle towards the edge of the village, towards the school. As I half march, half limp along, my breath coming hard in my chest and making my lungs burn, I toss over everything I have learned this morning in my mind, which doesn’t seem to amount to much.

Something terrible happened in my house – has been happening for years if the stories are true. There is something in my house, something that is always just out of my eyeline. Something or someone that is dangerous to me and my children.