Resisting the urge to roll my eyes and tut, I smile graciously at her. I should have known whatever I did it wouldn’t be right in Avó’s eyes. ‘How about you keep an eye on the baby and I go out to pick some rosemary for the lamb?’ Without waiting for her to answer, I walk out to the unruly border, weeds already beginning to grow back in the area that I cleared. I avert my eyes from the cluster of trees at the edge of the wood, sure that if I look directly into the forest I’ll see that flash of white, feel the prickle of someone else’s eyes on me, and suddenly, irrationally, I wish Rav were here to do his mother’s bidding. I snap off the rosemary stalks, releasing their pungent scent into the air and raise a stalk to my nose, breathing it in. Rosemary gets rid of negative energy. The words rise unbidden into my mind alongside an image of a bundle of rosemary twigs tied together hanging upside down in the kitchen doorway. I don’t know how I know this. Did I learn it at college when I was training? Or did I read it last night, when I stumbled down the internet rabbit hole trying to find more information on legends and tales about Gowdie Cottage? I blink and the image vanishes as the sun disappears behind a cloud, leaving me feeling chilled and, once again, a little spooked. That creeping sensation that we are not safe, that the children need to be protected from something washes over me. Maybe I should try and contact Ray Watts, the estate agent, myself – he might know more about the history of the cottage, he might be able to put my mind at rest, seeing as I’ve agreed not to talk about it with Rav. Some of the stories on the internet might be exaggerated, if Miranda’s reaction is anything to go by. I jump as the gate to the garden crashes open and Rav wheels his bike in, his face hot and sweaty under his helmet.

‘Allie, you all right?’ He frowns as he tugs his helmet off, and I swallow before pasting on a smile.

‘Yes, fine.’ I hold up the sprigs of rosemary. ‘Just getting some herbs for your mum.’ I look towards the kitchen window – she’s taken over and started preparing us dinner. I roll my eyes good-naturedly and without looking back at the woods, follow Rav into the house.