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The green glare from the digital clock was imprinted in Diana’s eyes. 02:00. Where was Laura? She was really pushing it now. She tried her daughter’s phone again. The little witch had it switched off. At least her grandson was asleep. Not a peep out of him. She flung back the bedclothes and made her way down to the kitchen in darkness.

She opened the refrigerator and the light swept an arc over the floor. Grabbing a carton of milk, she let the door swing shut and was once again enveloped in the night.

By feel she got a glass and poured the milk. Thirty seconds in the microwave. Then she went back to bed. Warm milk should help her sleep. Laura was in big trouble this time. Diana sipped her milk propped up by pillows and tried to figure out exactly what she would say to her daughter when she walked through the door.

George Kenny pulled back the curtain and looked out at the rainy night. His sister, Shannon, was really getting on his nerves. He couldn’t rely on her. He glanced at the time on his phone. 02:15. And she was still out.

He let the curtain fall back in place, reprimanding himself for thinking like his mother used to sound. Three years they’d lived without her presence, and in those years he’d assumed the mantle of mother and father. Because of Shannon’s problems last year, he felt there was little he could do now. They were both adults, though she acted like a spoiled child. No point in staying awake worrying about her. She could look after herself, couldn’t she?

Tucking the phone under his pillow, he turned over and went back to sleep.

The clock ticked over to 2.30. Lottie had heard Chloe come in from work a half-hour earlier. Had she slept through Katie coming home? She’d dozed but hadn’t properly slept. The job of minding Louis meant she was on edge. He could choke on a cough in the night. His asthma was getting worse and she knew the damp house was partly to blame.

She wondered if Grace had arrived at Boyd’s. She was looking forward to having him back on the team. He’d been around at hers a good few evenings. Sergio loved Sean. Or maybe he loved the PlayStation games more. Sean loved Sergio too, so that was a positive in a world of negatives. Boyd was pushing for them all to live together and Lottie felt it wasn’t practical. She humoured him while being non-committal.

Up on her elbow, listening, she thought it would be comforting to have Boyd lying beside her. Life continuously conspired against them. Surely they were due something good soon? But her life rarely delivered what she wished for.

Another glance at the clock. ‘Where the hell are you, Katie Parker?’