16
It’s the first time I’ve ever been woken up by a crowing cockerel, and as I open my eyes I feel the laser-thin shaft of sunlight searing my face as it sneaks through the gap between the two large doors at the entrance to the barn. It takes me a few moments to realise where I am, even though I’ve been awake in fits and spurts for most of the night. The events of yesterday weren’t exactly conducive to a good night’s sleep.
I look beside me and can’t see Jessica. There’s a surge of adrenaline as I worry about where she’s gone. Has she run off? Has she gone to the police? A moment or two later, she appears from the other side of the Citroën, clambering to her feet from her hands and knees.
‘Morning, sleepyhead,’ she says. ‘I thought I might as well get this dust and crap off the car. If
