She sat for a while, considering what to do next. If she didn’t uncover any evidence of Jonny among these papers, she was going to have to look at other options. She could try to call the library tomorrow, but suspected it would be closed for the Christmas holiday.

Deep in thought, she went down the stairs and discovered Millie holding a biscuit in each hand, a half-empty packet on the table. ‘She won’t eat her dinner now!’ Grace said jokingly as she stroked Millie’s hair.

‘Oh, sorry, I didn’t think of that.’ Annabel put the packet on one side. ‘Listen, I was wondering about going to see Meredith while we’re snowed in. If I give her a call, maybe James can dig me up as far as the schoolhouse so I can interview her. What do you reckon?’

‘Er, excuse me – I don’t know about that,’ James interrupted. ‘Have you seen how high the snow is?’

‘It’ll be better in the morning,’ Annabel replied confidently.

‘Fine by me,’ Grace said. ‘In fact, I might come with you.’ A new awareness reinvigorated her. There was another way to find out more about Jonny, after all. It was Meredith who had been able to tell her the most about him so far. Perhaps if Grace pressed her further she might remember more. Grace couldn’t help but feel that locating Jonny was pivotal – that if she found him, she would find answers.

As her mind slowed, she became aware of the room again, and noticed that they were accompanied by a steady ticking.

‘Did you fix the clock?’ She looked at James.

He appeared confused. ‘No, I forgot all about it.’

Grace turned to Annabel, who shook her head. She stiffened, then walked out into the hallway.

The pendulum was swinging steadily back and forth. Grace’s head began to throb. ‘When did it start again?’ she asked as she came back into the lounge.

Annabel shrugged and James said, ‘I didn’t notice, sorry.’

Grace glanced at her watch, and frowned. ‘It’s telling the right time.’

‘Perhaps it hadn’t stopped after all,’ James suggested.

‘You do remember it stopping, don’t you?’ Grace pressed him.

‘Yeah, I think so.’ But he didn’t look sure.

‘Think, James – do you or don’t you?’

She saw James exchange a look with Annabel, before he answered, ‘Don’t worry, Grace, I remember.’

Grace held the phone to her ear, irritated that she’d been placed on hold for over five minutes now. She was about to give up when a voice said, ‘I’m sorry, Constable Barton is on holiday until New Year. Unless it’s an emergency …?’

‘No,’ Grace said miserably. ‘It can probably wait.’

She felt incredibly frustrated as she hung up. However, she had one more option. She searched around for the scrap of paper Niall had given her, and dialled the number.

‘Hello?’

‘Niall, it’s Grace – Grace Lockwood.’

‘Grace! How are you?’ He sounded surprised to hear from her.

‘Fine. I’m sorry to ring you over the holidays, but I need your advice.’ Her foot began tapping out a nervous tic as she talked. ‘I just tried to ring Constable Barton but he’s away till after New Year, and I don’t want to sit on my hands till then. A few things have happened over the last few days, concerning Adam’s disappearance …’

‘Go on.’ Niall sounded intrigued.

‘Well, first of all, I went to the Christmas Eve ball at Freeborough Hall – and an old friend of Adam’s came up to me and said she had seen him in the library at Ockton, the day before he disappeared. Apparently he told her he was looking for his dad. Adam’s father was a man called Jonny Templeton – he abandoned Adam’s mother when she got pregnant and moved overseas with his family. So I thought that might be significant …’ She took a deep breath. ‘And then I found his passport. Down in the cellar. Adam had put some boxes there when we moved in, and one of them had his passport in it …’

‘Didn’t the police search there last year?’ Niall asked.

‘It was locked, and I thought it was only a cupboard back then. I think one of the men that conducted the search asked me for the key, but I didn’t know where to find it.’

‘Well, I’m amazed. They shouldn’t have overlooked that.’

Grace furrowed her brow – surely that was beside the point. ‘It doesn’t matter now. I just want to know if this changes anything, with the investigation.’

She was acutely aware of the silence on the other end of the line. ‘Doesn’t this give us some new leads …?’ she begged. There was a tiny note of hysteria in her voice; she could hear it.

‘I’m not sure. Look, you need to talk to Barton. And if the woman you spoke to can come down to the station too, and tell them the same thing she told you, that’d be the best way of getting their attention.’

Grace’s optimism disappeared. ‘I’m not sure she will. She said she hadn’t come forward earlier because she doesn’t want to be involved …’

‘Is that right? And did she say why?’ The suspicion was clear in his voice.

‘No.’

‘Grace, perhaps you should have a think about your loyalty to this woman. She can talk to the police in confidence. No one else needs to know.’

‘In that case I’ll speak to her again, see what she says.’

‘Right then.’ Niall sounded as though he were about to hang up.

‘Isn’t there anything else we can do?’ Grace was aware of how desperate she sounded, and she hated it. Against her will, she was getting sucked back into the emotional turmoil of the last year.

She heard him sigh. ‘Remind me of Adam’s father’s name again?’

‘Jonny Templeton – I think he grew up on a farm around here.’

‘Well, I’ll see what I can find out – might not be for a few days, mind.’

‘Fine,’ Grace said dejectedly. ‘Thank you.’

When she came off the phone she headed downstairs to rejoin the others. Millie was playing with her favourite stacking blocks, while James and Annabel were bickering about what to watch on television. Being cooped up wasn’t suiting them very well.

‘I just asked Niall’s advice about the passport,’ she said. ‘He didn’t sound that interested … which was pretty much what I expected.’ She sat down, trying hard to suppress her exasperation. ‘Adam didn’t simply disappear, I’m sure of that. But I have no idea what happened … How am I ever going to get to the bottom of it?’ With fumbling fingers, she angrily wiped away the tears before they had a chance to fall.

‘Now listen to me, Grace,’ Annabel said, coming across and putting an arm around her sister. ‘This place is no good for you. It’s going to drive you insane. You can’t spend your time obsessing about Adam – because, for whatever reason, he’s gone, and there’s no sign at all that he’s about to come back. James and I will have to head off soon …’

Annabel hesitated and looked at James, who nodded.

Grace sat waiting for the inevitable.

‘We think you should come with us,’ James said. ‘We can’t leave you up here all alone, Gracie. It’s not right at all. It would feel like abandoning you, and this place is far too … well … remote,’ he finished.

‘Mum and Dad are really worried about you,’ Annabel added.

Grace ran a hand through her hair. ‘Look, I know you’re saying this because you love me, but I need to finish what I’ve started. It won’t take long.’

Annabel leaned back and blew out a long, frustrated breath. ‘Grace, this village is sucking the life out of you – you’re so serious all the time.’

Grace had had enough. She stood up. ‘I don’t think it’s this place, actually. I think I sobered up a bit when my husband disappeared on me and my child.’ She went across to Millie and picked her up to cuddle her, upset when Millie screamed and struggled until she was put back down.