‘Well, I appreciate that, I do,’ said Lana. ‘But I think it’s time to accept defeat, don’t you? We’re both too old now, too long in the tooth. And we have zilch in common, let’s be honest.’

Judith nodded, out of shock more than anything.

‘Done and dusted, kippers and custard. No shame in that, yeah?’ And she got up, patted Judith on the arm and headed back inside.

Judith remained in the garden for a good half-hour afterwards, taking in what had just happened. But try as she might to dismiss it, her mind kept returning to the fact that Lana had rejected her. She felt hurt and foolish, but, worst of all, she knew it was only what she deserved.

Reaching forward she let out the water and climbed out of the bath. Her whole body felt heavy – she needed an early night. The ever-growing to-do list would have to wait, despite how much had gone by the wayside during her time in Wales. She made herself a camomile tea, said goodnight to Gareth and headed off to bed.

By the following Thursday she’d started to get her mojo back and had begun to feel more like herself again. But on her way home from work, she received a call from Jack.

‘Mum, there’s been a bit of an update with Nana.’

The whole matter of Patricia and Adrian had been put on hold when Sol died. Judith had had no room in her head, because it was already filled with Catrin and what was to become of her, as well as her own painful sense of loss.

‘Is it good news or bad?’

‘I’m not really sure.’

Jack went on to say he’d been looking into the background of Steven Dean, the financial adviser ‘friend’ of Adrian Oliver, who was arranging to put Patricia’s house in trust as well as organizing the power of attorney.

‘According to Companies House, he’s held quite a few directorships over the years, of businesses purporting to offer various financial services …’

‘Right,’ said Judith.

‘Three of them were dissolved,’ he added.

‘That’s not illegal.’

‘And he’s been made bankrupt twice.’

‘Also not illegal.’

‘No, but then I found a report by the FSA online.’

‘Financial Services …?’

‘… Authority, yeah. Well, it turns out this Steven Dean – he’s only done time!’

‘What?’

‘Yes! Six months for fraud. And not just any old fraud – he actually defrauded several beneficiaries out of their inheritance!’

‘Fuck! Oh, sorry.’

‘Love it when you swear, Mum. It’s so, so wrong.’

‘What are we going to do?’

‘Well, surely Nana can’t ignore this, can she? Let’s be honest, she’s a canny old bird at the end of the day, and she won’t be wanting to throw her money away. Can you go down there tomorrow? The sooner you let her know, the better. I’ve got meetings all day, but you can FaceTime me at lunchtime when you’re with her. In the meantime I’ll send a letter to the solicitors dealing with the POA. They’re in Preston, of all places.’