Lilith hobbled over to the door, and, after several attempts, opened it wide. ‘Off you go, then, don’t let us keep you.’

Roz was about to walk out the door when she realised that she had no idea where she was in relation to the railway station, and not only that, but she had no money to pay for a ticket. This much she said to Lilith.

‘Not my problem,’ said Lilith, ‘you’re the one who reckons she’s too good to live here.’

A thought struck Roz: she may not know where she was, but a policeman might, and once he heard her story, he’d be sure to help. ‘I’ll go to the police, they’ll …’ She got no further. Callum strode past Roz to the door and slammed it shut, then leaned his back against it, giving her a menacing look.

‘They’ll what?’

Roz folded her arms across her chest. ‘They’ll take me back to Dovercourt and arrest you, that’s what.’

He stepped forward so that he was just inches from her face and stared down at her tauntingly. ‘And just why would they do that?’

‘Because you lied, because …’

Callum raised a finger to his lips, indicating Roz should fall silent. ‘Only we didn’t lie. We never said that we owned our own company – that was the assumption the old feller came to – and we never said we’d look after you for nothing.’ He made a sweeping motion with his arm, indicating his mother and daughter, ‘No one lives here for nothing. We all pull our weight in one way or another, so why should you be any different?’

Roz furrowed her brow as she thought back furiously over the conversation the Haggartys had had with Mr Jones. As she remembered their words her face dropped. He was right, they hadn’t said they owned a company, but they hadn’t put Mr Jones right on the matter either, which was, as far as Roz was concerned, a form of lying, not to mention the outright lie concerning their address.

She eyed him in a confrontational manner. ‘Ranelagh Street? You can’t stand there and tell me that wasn’t a lie.’

He looked at his mother. ‘You can’t expect an old lady to give her address out to just anybody – we didn’t know that man from Adam.’

Roz balked at the idea of anyone referring to Lilith as a lady. ‘Rubbish!’ she snapped. ‘And you know it.’

Sighing wearily, he stepped aside from the door. ‘Do you know what? I’ve had enough. Get out.’

‘Thank God for that!’ muttered Suzie. ‘I never wanted her in the first place. I still don’t see why we couldn’t have had a boy, like that one who come to see Miss High and Mighty here off.’