Hannah rested a hand on the doorframe and thought about a third guy. Bradley Barker, Darren Grant, Faisal McNish, someone else walking about out there with a guilty conscience, or maybe not feeling guilty at all, maybe thrilled or proud or turned on by the memory of what he did.

‘And you had no idea?’

‘None.’

A flicker of something on his face made Hannah pause. ‘What?’

He shook his head. ‘It never occurred to me there were other guys, but…’263

‘But what?’

He looked awkward. ‘She had an appetite.’

Hannah squinted at him. ‘How do you mean?’

‘Sex. She was, you know, full on. Like, she wanted to do some crazy shit, but I wouldn’t.’

Hannah felt another part of her image of Mel crumble. Was it this easy to keep so many sides of yourself secret?

She felt herself deflate just like Xander. This was sucking the life out of her. Maybe she didn’t have the stomach to be an investigator, if that was even what she was. She had exams coming up, coursework, she wanted to sit in the sunshine right now with Indy flicking through a no-brain magazine full of opinions on people’s dresses or diets. But that was a lie too. She would get bored doing nothing, and frustrated that someone was out there who hadn’t paid for what he’d done. Mel and her family deserved answers. The police would do all they could, but they didn’t care like she cared, it wasn’t personal for them. Plus they had to obey the law, follow due process. But she could do what she wanted, if only she knew what that was.

‘I know you mean well,’ Xander said. ‘But I’m not the enemy, we’re on the same side.’

Hannah wished she could know that was true.

‘Here,’ he said, ducking behind the door. He appeared with a bin bag of stuff, nothing heavy from the way he held it out to her. ‘Take this, it’s Mel’s clothes that she left here.’

‘Didn’t the police want this?’

Xander shrugged. ‘They never asked. Anyway, I trust you to find out what happened more than I trust them.’

She took the bag and opened it. A couple of T-shirts, some nightwear, a sweatshirt and an old jacket. The smell of Mel’s perfume came off the clothes and made Hannah feel sick.

‘Thanks,’ she said, slinging it over her shoulder.

Xander swallowed hard. Maybe she was wrong about him, maybe he wasn’t hungover, maybe he was just sad. Or both.264

‘Find the bastard who did this,’ he said.

‘I will,’ Hannah said, but she wasn’t convinced by her own words.

She went downstairs and along Clerk Street and was turning into Hope Park Terrace when her phone rang. Thomas.

‘Hannah.’

‘Have you got something?’