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“Really.” Hannah confirmed. “I’m not really in touch with my family and I’ve never been a Christmas person.” She needed Lottie to know she wasn’t a charity case.

“Well,” said Lottie, a wide smile almost cutting her face in half, “my mission over the next few days is to convince you that you are a Christmas person, after all.”

“Good luck with that!” chuckled Hannah. “But can I just check, do you have rooms available? I’m sure you’re fully booked for Christmas itself. I can always find a bed and breakfast somewhere…”

Lottie didn’t let her finish. “I couldn’t let you go anywhere else after what’s happened.” She flushed. “After the thing in London, I mean.” She looked at her feet. “I’d have put you up in my cottage, if need be.”

It was Hannah’s turn to flush. How big was the cottage? She found herself imagining what Lottie’s bedroom looked like. She pictured bright bedclothes, lots of books and a wardrobe packed with practical clothes. It made her smile.

“Oh,” was all Hannah could manage.

“But as it happens, we’ve had a few cancellations due to the weather. The thaw isn’t due for a few days, so a couple of the rooms we were due to have guests in will be empty anyway.” Lottie smiled. “So you’re all good.”

“I’ll pay, obviously,” said Hannah.

Lottie waved a hand. “That’s a discussion for Anne-Marie. But I’ve already spoken to her about you staying, given the circumstances. I hope that’s OK.”

Hannah was touched, feeling every bit of Lottie’s kindness and care.

Back in her room, Hannah was gathering her thoughts. This trip seemed to have gotten completely out of hand. Lottie, the snow, the death threats. It was supposed to be a simple few days away from it all. She gazed out of the window at the snowy scene. Perhaps a walk in the snow would help clear her head.

Once outside in her boots, coat and hat, Hannah felt her load lighten slightly. Perhaps it was the snow, reflecting every bit of light there was, but the world felt a little less scary outside.

Danny was busy digging out some of the pathways, which she gratefully used, giving him a smile as he paused to wipe sweat from his brow.

Once she was out into the snow proper, it came up almost to her knees, and some of the drifts looked like they’d be even deeper. She decided to avoid those. She could see Satnam and his son building a snowman. She smiled. It was good to see other people enjoying the weather. She gave them a wave and they waved back.

She made her way to the edge of the loch, where the water lapped up against slushier snow. There were wispy clouds over the hills on the other side of the loch, and here and there, houses with smoke coming from chimneys. She reflected that the scene before her could have come from any time in the last century or so. No electricity, and the wild scenery of the Highlands. Perhaps this was the right place to be, after all.

As Hannah walked, her mind drifted to Lottie, to her face, her lips, to the feel of her body, even through her jeans and her thick coat. She felt like her brain had been kidnapped. Despite everything Mark had told her, and the warnings the police had made, Lottie was all she could think of.

The snow made a pleasing crumping sound beneath her feet as she made her way along where she thought the path must lie. It was disorientating in a way, the land going so quickly from thousands of shades of green to white and grey.

The police officer she’d spoken to, DC Jay Lasota, had told her they had a few lines of enquiry, and he was confident they’d be able to welcome her safely back to London fairly soon. He had even remarked that threats like this rarely came to anything, but that it was important to take them seriously. The unspoken part of that sentence was that occasionally they did come to something.

Hannah hated the idea that this person had been to her flat. How had they found out where she lived? She shivered at the thought that she might have been followed. How long had they been planning this? Mark wouldn’t tell her the contents of the letter. The journalist in her wanted the gory details, but she took his word for it. She had a famously strong stomach, having spent years as a court reporter on some of the grisliest cases. The public didn’t know how sanitised the court proceedings were before they made it into the newspapers.

The wind had dropped a little since the night before, but it was still cold and biting. Hannah pulled her hat down over her ears in a bid to keep them warm.

It was heavy going, and she hadn’t got far. After she’d been walking for a good hour, she paused. She cleared some snow from what looked like a tree stump and sat down for a breather. She pulled out her trusty hip flask and took a sip of the rum, which provided much needed warmth. She felt grateful for the beauty of the place she was in, and the relative safety.

After a short break, she decided to head back towards the hotel. The landscape was unforgiving, and she was still sleep deprived.

The water of the loch rippled in the wind, and she could see warm lights from the windows of the castle. She hoped the generator was working now. She could do with some internet access.

She was greeted by Lottie at the end of the castle drive, a spade in her hands, and her winter coat tossed aside in the snow. “This is warm work,” she exclaimed, her cheeks glowing. Hannah longed to touch them.

Oh God. She longed to touch Lottie.

“Well I can see you and Danny have made good progress,” said Hannah mildly, convinced Lottie would be able to hear her pounding heart.

“Well I’ve done at least as much as him in half the time,” replied Lottie with pursed lips. “But he’s back tinkering with the generator again.”

“Any joy?” Hannah asked.

“I think it’s unlikely. But we have candles and a fire and good food, good drink and good company. I don’t think we could ask for much more, could we?” Lottie grinned, then shovelled some more snow, widening the path that Hannah was taking.

“I guess not,” chuckled Hannah.