‘It’s the only answer,’ Seebold said resolutely. He reached for the petty cash box then picked up the telephone. ‘Don’t go away,’ he said as he dialled a number. ‘I might need you both.’

Milly hadn’t counted on being asked to get up at the crack of dawn. She set her alarm for four-thirty and was dressed and ready half an hour later. Having crept out of the house, she waited on Marine Parade for Seebold’s lorry.

It was a wonderful, bright morning. Across the road on the beach, the gulls were gathering, waiting for the first fishing boats to land their catch. Milly leaned against the walled enclosure of a house and yawned. This was a crazy scheme, but if it worked Seebold would be in the clear. If it didn’t . . . She shuddered. That scenario didn’t bear thinking about. She paced up and down, but it wasn’t long before she heard the rumble of Seebold’s lorry.

‘Good, you made it,’ he cried as Lena opened the passenger door and gave her half-sister a hand to get in.

‘I must be mad to do this,’ Milly grumbled half-heartedly.

‘You and me both,’ said Lena, but they exchanged an excited grin.

They drove to the north of Shoreham and entered Mill Lane. It was beautiful up there. They drove past miles of chalk grassland, famed as a habitat for the Adonis Blue butterfly, and for the yellow horseshoe vetch plant. Years before, it had been the place of windmills, hence the name, but they were long gone. The views near the top were fabulous, with Lancing College in the distance, the River Adur just below them, and Shoreham Airport in between. A low plane flew overhead ready to land.

Just off the Steyning Road, close by Eringham Farm, they spotted another lorry waiting by the side of the road. The two girls stayed in the cab while Seebold got out to talk with his friend. Milly saw a brown envelope exchange hands, and then the other man opened the cab door and a mangy-looking dog jumped down. The two men shook hands and parted then Seebold brought the dog, which was on a leash, over to his lorry. Lena climbed out to help him lift it onto the back and into the cage. The dog seemed unperturbed by all the fuss and lay down for a sleep.

Milly got out of the cab to have a look at it. ‘He’s massive.’

‘Danny says his mother was an Alsatian and his father an Irish wolfhound,’ said Seebold.

‘That’ll account for his shaggy coat,’ said Lena, ‘but he doesn’t look much like a wolf.’

‘Beggars can’t be choosers,’ Seebold said crisply. He rubbed his chin. ‘It’s too clean. If it’s supposedly been on the loose for two days, it’s too clean.’

‘You’ve got enough on your plate trying to convince people that poor old dog is a wolf,’ Milly said bleakly.

‘Thanks for that vote of confidence,’ Seebold said sarcastically, and Milly felt awful until Lena said, ‘You’re right. It is too clean.’

They stood looking at the dog, each lost in his or her own thoughts, then they all climbed back into the cab. Seebold drove the lorry towards the river. The girls were wondering what he was up to but neither of them spoke. Seebold stopped the lorry and got out again. Putting the dog back on the leash, he took it from the cage, and walked towards the river bank. ‘There’s an old tin can in the back of the lorry,’ he called out. ‘Can one of you bring it down here? If someone keeps holds of his lead, I can slosh some of that muddy water over it.’

Seebold walked off to the river, looking for an accessible slope, and Milly and Lena were heading over to him when they heard some ducks quacking. The dog let out a deep throaty bark and all at once took off, dragging the reluctant Seebold with him.

Milly and Lena watched helplessly as the pair of them hurtled down a gentle slope towards the water, Seebold shouting, ‘Whoa, stop. Come back you, stupid mutt.’

Then Seebold slipped on the mud. His legs seemed to go every which way, and a second or two later he was on his bottom, with the dog still dragging him towards the water’s edge.

‘Aaaaggh.’

Seebold tried to find his feet, but the dog was on a mission. Three ducks took to the air and flew away from them, and by now the dog was in the water, still barking. As Seebold slid on the mud for a second time, he landed with his rear end in the water. Milly and Lena burst out laughing.

The dog calmly lapped at the water as Seebold staggered to his feet once again. ‘It’s not bloody funny,’ he snapped. ‘I’m soaked to the skin.’ Milly and Lena struggled to control themselves but it was hopeless.

Lena waved something in the air. ‘Do you still want this can?’ she called, and that started them off again.

As Seebold squelched slowly up the slippery slope, Milly saw something that made her blood run cold. About a hundred yards up the river, a swan, its neck outstretched, was advancing on the muddy pair. ‘Seebold,’ she cried, ‘get out of there as quick as you can. There’s a cob following you. There must be a nest nearby.’

Seebold looked behind him and did his best to hurry. ‘You two get into the cab,’ he shouted. Milly and Lena didn’t need telling twice.

‘How’s he going to get the dog in the back?’ Lena asked anxiously.

‘I don’t know,’ said Milly. Her heart was already thumping and her mouth had gone dry.

They kept the cab door open and watched anxiously in the rear-view mirror and the wing mirrors. ‘Come on, come on,’ Milly whispered.

At last Seebold burst from the undergrowth, dragging the dog with him. He raced to the lorry and the three of them hauled the animal into the cab. Seebold climbed in after him and closed the door, seconds before the angry swan hurled itself towards him. Seebold, out of breath and panting hard, put his head onto the steering wheel. ‘That was close. That thing weighs a ton.’

The dog had scrambled up from the footwell and began jumping up at the window, its barking reverberating noisily around the cab. The swan was still outside on the road, hissing angrily and with its wings outstretched. Eventually it folded its wings and waggled its tail indignantly as it turned around. It was with a sense of relief that Milly watched it waddle back to the river bank, but when it reached the grass verge, it began to hiss again,

‘Now what?’ Milly said quietly, peering out at the scene, but the other two were preoccupied. Seebold still had his head on the steering wheel and Lena was doing her best to push the dog’s wet paws from her lap.

Milly watched in the reflection of the wing mirror next to her as the swan headed towards another part of the verge. All at once, a man emerged from the tall grasses. He had fair hair and wore an expensive-looking country suit and a deerstalker hat. There was something familiar about him but, as he kept looking back, she couldn’t see his face clearly.

The swan had sensed a new threat. It raced towards the man, its head outstretched and its wings extended. The man didn’t waste time. He charged up the road and a second or two later, Milly saw him pull a bicycle from the hedgerow. He fumbled a little as he threw something which looked like a camera into the bag behind the saddle. What on earth was he photographing? As he swung his leg over the crossbar, he almost lost his footing, probably through panic, and then he took off at top speed. Just before he turned the corner, he glanced back to see if the swan was still coming. It wasn’t. The bird was now fluffing out its feathers and waggling its tail as it waddled back towards the river.

As soon as she saw the man’s face, Milly took in a sharp breath, but just at that moment, the dog shook himself and everybody’s attention was elsewhere. Cold muddy water rained down inside the cab. She and Lena squealed as their clothes were splattered. Seebold cursed. The dog stopped shaking and everybody looked at each other. Their faces were covered in large brown blobs; together with the splashes on their clothes, it looked as if they’d been painting.

Lena wiped her cheek with her sleeve and, looking down at the bedraggled dog, she said, ‘Is he dirty enough for you, Seebold?’

They couldn’t help laughing at themselves and, as soon as Lena had pushed the dog back down into the footwell, Seebold started the engine.

As they drove off, Milly looked out of the window. She was thinking about that man in the undergrowth. What on earth had he been doing, lying in the grass beside a muddy river? He preferred being smartly dressed and a cut above the rest. It was so out of character and so odd, but as soon as he’d turned around, she’d recognised him.

It had been none other than Freddie Herren, Pearl’s husband.

Chapter 25

An hour later, Seebold was on the telephone. The press were on their way but Milly had to go back to her digs just behind Hubbard’s and get ready for work. Even though the town was still officially a no-go area, she reckoned she might as well get the big window revamped for the new season, ready for when the public hysteria had died down. She had arranged to borrow a fishing boat for her ‘Worthing by the Sea’ display, and it was being delivered this morning.

She said her goodbyes to Lena and Seebold and took a bus back into town. The journey helped her to put a few things into perspective. She absolutely dreaded that this madcap scheme of Seebold’s would backfire. It wasn’t so much that she was scared that she would be in trouble, although that did come into it; it was more a fear that Seebold might end up in prison for lying to the authorities. Milly had made up her mind that – should she be arrested – she would ask Uncle Neville for help, but what hope did Seebold have, especially when there was so much prejudice against him?

Also, she had developed a keen determination to get to the bottom of why her mother was still so hostile towards her, and to visit her soon. Although Milly had glimpsed her, albeit surreptitiously, on Pearl’s wedding day, she hadn’t properly spoken to Agatha for a long time. As for her sister, Milly had guessed that when Pearl came to Hubbard’s to have her wedding dress altered, that must have been because she had lost her baby. How sad for her, but she could well be pregnant again by now. Of course nobody would bother to keep Milly informed. She sighed. She and Pearl never had got on very well. Her sister was too bossy. Looking back, Milly realised she had been a bit of a doormat. She should have stood up to her years ago. And what had Milly done to her mother that had made her so angry with her all the time? She’d spent her whole childhood trying to please her, but it seemed nothing she did was good enough. Agatha always gave Milly the impression that she was a nuisance, and yet she doted on her sister. Why? Lena once asked her whether there had been an identifiable moment when it all started, but there hadn’t. They had never had a close relationship but, even after all this time, there was something in Milly that still wanted to make it right.

Milly looked out of the window as the bus stopped by New Parade which was opposite Farncombe Road. A young mother was holding her daughter’s hand as she climbed aboard. The conductress was upstairs taking fares.

As the bus reached Steyne Gardens and turned towards the sea front, Milly could see the council workmen building underground shelters. Nothing out of the ordinary there. They had been digging a deep trench for several days now, but what made her do a double take was a man lurking behind a tree taking photographs. She recognised him straight away. It was her new brother-in-law, Freddie Herren. There was nothing wrong with taking photographs. This was a seaside town, but he was doing his best not to be seen by the workmen. Why?

As the bus trundled on, Freddie turned and their eyes met as he dashed away. She frowned to herself. How odd.

The conductress came towards the mother and her child who were sitting nearby and Milly heard her say, ‘Give the conductress the money, Hazel.’

The child handed over some coins and the conductress issued a ticket. ‘There you are, lovey.’

‘Say thank you, darling,’ the child’s mother instructed, and the little girl did just that. ‘Well done,’ the mother whispered as the smiling conductress moved further up the bus. ‘You are a clever girl. Now you can tell Daddy you paid the fare all by yourself.’

Such a simple yet intimate moment, and one which brought tears to Milly’s eyes. She couldn’t remember one time when she and her mother had shared such an occasion. Now she was struggling to keep her tears silent. She pulled out her handkerchief and dabbed her eyes.

The woman behind her tapped her on the shoulder. ‘You all right, love?’

‘Yes, yes,’ said Milly, turning slightly towards her. ‘I’m fine. Just being silly.’