She looked up and saw the shabby old book of spells on her shelf. It was the only book there, sitting beside her little basket of knitting, but small enough to be discreet; no one coming in would even notice it. It was comforting to know it was there whenever she might need it.

Ellen and Sally, on their way back from visiting Mr Shepherd in Great Grindle, parted as usual outside the Masons’ cottage, Sally joking about the chaos and the noise that awaited her inside.

‘By heck, those twins can make a mess for one-year-olds,’ she laughed. ‘Mum says she’s thinking of keeping a pig; it can follow them around, eating up all the dropped food.’

‘You know you wouldn’t be without any of them,’ Ellen replied.

‘Aye, I remember what it was like before our dad came on the scene and it’s better now,’ said Sally, making a rare understatement. Some memories were too raw to be allowed into the light. ‘Family’s everything.’

Ellen thought of her own family: Dora bullied by Philip’s temper; Gina, never coming home these days and, for all the Stellions were a different sort of folk, more a part of life at the Hall than the farm cottage. And herself – how did she fit in? Highview Cottage was a place where she went to eat her tea but tried to avoid her father; her real life was in the garden, knowing Gina and their mother were working close by, and she herself learning her trade with Tom.

Maybe the Arnolds were just at a different stage of family life than the Masons, with the little ones. As quickly as she had the thought, she dismissed it. The Masons were happy at home, the Arnolds were not.

‘Thanks for going with me, Sal.’

‘Wouldn’t miss it, Nell, though I’m finding it hard to keep up with all these reading suggestions of Mr Shepherd’s.’

Ellen nodded in agreement. ‘Aye, it’s difficult when Lucas Hillier will allow “no borrowing on another reader’s ticket”.’ She did a very good impression of the unpopular librarian and they both burst out laughing.

Sally turned to open the cottage garden gate and saw Edward Beveridge coming along the road behind them.

‘Ah, you have company, Nell.’

‘Mebbe he wants to speak to you, Sal.’

‘No chance. He has eyes for only one of us and it certainly isn’t me. Hello, Ed. All right?’ she greeted him with a wave and a smile, then went up the path, opened the front door and was gone.

‘Hello, Nell,’ said Edward, hurrying up to her. ‘I’ve been taking some eggs down to Mrs Slater. Are you going straight home? I’ll walk with you if you are …’