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“That’s where his friend found him.” Pam pursed her lips. “This is so much harder than it usually is. I’m sorry I can’t give you any straight answers.”

“Does he live there?” Maybe he was a warden or worked in tourism.

“In a way.”

Every answer made the situation more confusing.

“Can I talk to him before I agree to anything?”

“Yes. But there is no guarantee he’ll answer.” She took a sip of her coffee. “Not because he’s rude. He can’t always talk.”

“Selective mutism?”

She visibly cringed. “Not quite.”

Pam picked up her coffee again, then set it down without drinking.

“I think it will be easier to explain when we’re there. Maybe I should have met you at the castle, but I wanted to give you a comfort break. It’s quite a drive from Glasgow.”

I ate while I considered my options. I could ask Joseph to take me home. Pam had made that clear, and nothing about her seemed threatening. Odd, yes. She was definitely odd. But if this was a scam, I couldn’t see how anyone intended to make money from me. So far, the agency had paid for everything.

Besides, I wanted to see the castle.

“What exactly do you need me to do?”

“Meet your match. That’s all.”

“And if I don’t like him?”

“Then you walk away. The DNA test doesn’t oblige you to do anything.”

That was the first straightforward answer she’d given me.

“Fine,” I said. “I’ll go.”

Pam smiled. “Finish your lunch first. We have plenty of time.”

Once we were done, Pam paid and we left the crowded Inn. Joseph waved happily from his jeep, clearly glad to move on. Pam joined him in the front while I returned to my seat in the back.

We drove east along the road we’d arrived on. Pam pointed out Kilchurn Castle before I would have noticed it myself. The ruins stood alone at the edge of the loch, the dark stone blending into the landscape, with a square tower rising above the remaining walls.

Joseph stopped beside the road rather than turning towards it.

“There’s no car park?” I asked.

“We have to walk from here,” Pam said. “It’s not far.”

Joseph opened the boot and took out a folded aluminium ladder.

I looked at Pam.

“I’ll explain when we get there.”

The path led beneath the railway and into a field. It had rained recently, and my trainers sank into the mud within the first few steps. Pam had come prepared in walking boots. Nobody had thought to suggest that I do the same.

The castle looked much further away once we were walking towards it. Joseph carried the ladder over one shoulder while Pam told me about the building’s history. I only caught half of it. I was more interested in the ladder and why it was necessary for meeting a date.

By the time we reached the ruins, my feet were wet and cold. The wind coming off the loch didn’t help.