I met CW outside the beauty salon on Broughton Street. She told me all about the botox treatment around her lips as we walked up the street.

Later we met the other members of our book group to travel to a party out of town. On arrival at the venue, we discovered that we had the ‘wrong date’. The hostess’ old retainer told us that his mistress had been away for some time, but we could make a meal for ourselves if we were hungry.

We managed to scrape together a few scraps in the shabby kitchen with its peeling 1970s wallpaper. None of us thought to question the whereabouts of the lady of the house.