She heard it by accident.
That was the thing about this house. It was large enough to feel private but old enough in its architecture that sound traveled in ways that were not always predictable. Voices from the study reached the upper landing under certain conditions. The kitchen carried conversation to the garden when the window was open. She had learned these things gradually the way you learn the particular habits of a place you are beginning to call home.
She had not been listening.
She was coming downstairs on a Saturday morning with the intention of making coffee and reading in the garden before the day got warm. She was three steps from the bottom of the staircase when she heard Damian's voice from the study and understood from the tone that he was on the phone to someone import
