‘Come on now …’ It was Vincent who tried his best to stem the tide. He offered his handkerchief, reached across to pat her shoulder, murmured apologies for being so beastly and offered vague reassurances.

It took him a few minutes, but eventually he succeeded in calming her down. Before she could set off on another round of tears, Clement thought it best to get the rest of the story from her as quickly as possible.

‘So what did you do later?’ he asked gently. ‘When you realised … er …’

‘That he was dead?’ Patsy asked helpfully. ‘Oh, I was so sorry. I mean, I know he was a horrible man, and a gigolo and all that, but I didn’t want him dead, did I? Well …’ She wiped her eyes with Vincent’s hankie and a stubborn look crossed her expressive face. ‘I certainly didn’t want him dead,’ she repeated with heavy emphasis.

Clement caught on before his son. ‘But you think that maybe the twins did?’ he asked softly.

At this, Patsy began to squirm. ‘Well, no! I mean … not really. I mean … well, Jasper can be very mean sometimes. I’m sure Juliet wouldn’t have done anything …’ But her voice trailed off uncertainly, because, of course, she remembered that it certainly didn’t pay to get on the wrong side of her either.

‘So why did you phone the police station now?’ Clement tried to keep her to the point.

‘Well, I’m scared, aren’t I?’ Patsy said, and for the first time, she sounded more like a normal young girl, and not someone playing a part. Her voice was unsure and all her ebullience was gone. ‘And when they paid me to keep quiet, and sort of … well, they didn’t threaten me. But …’

Patsy heaved a sigh.

Clement and Vincent exchanged another appalled look.

‘They paid you?’ Vincent repeated, stunned. This was just getting worse and worse. Was this scatty but surely harmless-looking girl really an accessory to murder?

‘Yes. Afterwards. They said the police had come sniffing around their house, and I was to just keep my mouth shut about stuff. And I mean, we didn’t actually go ahead with the plan, did we?’ she said self-righteously. ‘About the naughty photographs and everything, I mean. So I thought that was sensible. But the more I thought about it, the more scared I became. I know Jasper and Juliet are so much cleverer than me, you see,’ she said with devastating honesty. ‘And I did begin to worry … and wonder …’

‘If they were setting you up for something?’ Clement asked gently. ‘Yes, I could see how you might think that. That was very astute of you.’

Patsy visibly brightened. ‘So you think I was right to call the police?’