When he’d found the report (after having patiently worked his way through the pile of paperwork that had somehow accumulated on top of it!), the first thing he’d done was phone Dr Douglas Carey to confirm his findings and ask when the post-mortem on Mr Parker was due.

His phone call, it turned out, had been very well timed, since the doctor himself had just been on his way out the door to start that very procedure. Jennings had also extracted a promise from him that once that was done, he’d call the police station and give a preliminary verbal report, so he wouldn’t have to wait for the paperwork to come through. Because who knew how long that would take?

‘Once we’ve got the results of the post-mortem, we’ll be in a better position to know what’s what,’ he informed Trudy. ‘And if we are looking at a suspicious death – and the way things are shaping up, I think that’s a high possibility,’ he grudgingly admitted, ‘then we’ll have to open a more robust and official investigation. I’ll assign Sergeant O’Grady to head it. He’s still feeling a bit ropey from his bout of illness but he rang to say he’d be back in the office today. Since the blasted weathermen are saying there’s going to be no let-up in sight from all this snow, and we’re still having trouble getting staff into the city, he’s just going to have to bite the bullet and take it on.’

He sighed heavily.

Trudy, at this litany of woe, felt the first blossoming of hope flutter in her chest.

Jennings, sensing it, scowled at her, but without any real venom. She had ambition, this one, which wasn’t a bad thing in an officer, he supposed. ‘Since you’ve got the best grasp of this case, you can work under the sergeant from now on, keeping him firmly in the frame, understand?’

‘Yes, sir!’ Trudy said smartly.

‘Be his right-hand man whilst he’s not at his best,’ the inspector ploughed on grimly. ‘You’ll have to work hard, since I don’t know how many other officers I can spare for his investigation.’

‘Yes, sir!’ Trudy said happily.

Looking at her glowing, happy face, Harry Jennings tried to remember the last time he’d felt so keen and eager to do his job. And couldn’t. It made him feel vaguely depressed.

‘I take it you and the old … Dr Ryder have plans for today?’ he swept on.

‘Yes, sir. And I’m sure Dr Ryder will be happy to continue to help us out,’ she said daringly, ‘especially since he knows how stretched we are.’