Page 91 of The Sugar and Spice Bookshop Bakery

Everyone nods except Richard who looks at Elizabeth and shrugs. For his benefit, Louise says, ‘Sheila is – well, was – a hugely successful crime writer. Her latest and most popular series was about a police dog handler called James, and his dog Thor. James solves crimes when the detectives on the case fail, and Thor always plays a vital role. Readers loved those books – loved James, loved Thor. So much so that there was talk of a TV series.’

‘A TV series? You didn’t tell me that, darling,’ Elizabeth chips in.

‘It probably won’t happen now,’ Louise says. ‘The latest James and Thor novel was the last one I edited before I left my job. Sheila had this plot where Thor was stabbed to death by a violent criminal, leaving James heartbroken and without his partner and best friend.’

‘His partner was killed too?’ Elizabeth says. ‘And his best friend?’

Maddie shakes her head. ‘She means Thor. Thor was James’s partner and his best friend.’

‘The final chapters focused not only on James solving the crime single-handedly, but on his private grief, behind closed doors, for his beloved Thor,’ Louise says. ‘At the end of the book, with the perpetrator behind bars, there was a glimmer of hope as James met his new canine partner, but of course, no one could ever replace Thor in his heart.’

‘So sad.’

Louise wishes her mother would stop interjecting. ‘Anyway, I had qualms about this plotline from the start. There can be quite a backlash against authors who kill off canine characters. And with Thor being such a major part of the series, I was really worried that his demise would upset readers and that Sheila might get some bad reviews. But she believed in her plot, so I didn’t voice my doubts until the book was almost ready to go. It was late – later than it should have been, really – but I suggested to Sheila that she changed it, so the dog survived. It took some persuading, but she eventually agreed.’

Between them, they’d come up with an alternative ending; Thor would recover from the attack, but would retire from his police work. He’d be adopted by James’s lovely next-door neighbours, so that James could stay in touch with him. That way, he could make an occasional guest appearance in future books in the series.

‘So Thor was spared?’ Elizabeth says. ‘You didn’t kill him? So why is there a problem?’

‘Well, by then there were about six different versions of the manuscript floating around. The original, the copyedited one, my revision – all saved as slightly different files. I sent the wrong one to the typesetter – the original version where Thor dies. And nobody noticed until it was too late. In my defence, I was very tired, working insane hours, but still… I should have checked – I mean, I knew there were multiple versions. I was mortified. It was such a silly, careless mistake. Every editor’s nightmare.’

‘But if you were tired, darling…’ Elizabeth begins.

‘It’s no excuse. Not really. I just wish I’d been more careful with those files. If I’d labelled them properly, or deleted the previous versions, then it wouldn’t have happened. Anyway, the book came out. Readers were furious, as I knew they would be. The early reviews were terrible. Sales plummeted. There was a backlash in the press. The TV companies pulled out. I’ve felt terrible ever since. I mean, it could be the end of Sheila’s career.’

‘Everyone makes mistakes,’ Jack says.

‘Yeah, but most people’s mistakes don’t lead to someone receiving hate mail and death threats.’

‘Sheila’s had death threats?’ Elizabeth has gone white.

‘She has. And I guess one of those people has decided I’m also to blame for Thor’s demise and has tracked me down.’

Jack turns the stuffed animal over in his hands. ‘Don’t people realise it’s just fiction?’

‘Some people blur the lines between real life and fiction,’ Maddie says. ‘Have you seen Sheila since?’

‘No, I apologised, of course. Sent an email.’

‘An email?’ Maddie is incredulous.

‘Yeah, I know,’ Louise says. ‘I should have apologised in person, but some conversations are just so difficult.’

‘Tell me about it,’ Jack mumbles.

‘So that’s why you left your job. I knew it had something to do with that book, but you never told me the full story,’ Elizabeth says.

‘I was ashamed. I feel like I always let people down,’ Louise says.

‘Nonsense,’ her mother says. ‘It was an error, that’s all.’

‘Anyway, it’s a huge relief that the truth is out now.’ Louise gives Richard a pointed look, but he’s running his fingers along one of the bookshelves and doesn’t even notice.

‘And you don’t always let people down, Louise,’ her mother says. ‘Why would you think that?’

‘I do. I’ve let you down for a start, Mum. I didn’t visit you nearly enough when I was in London.’

‘You always phoned, and it was a long way.’