‘I spoke out of turn. I do care, of course I do, but my main concern at this moment in time is you.’

‘Then let me do this. I need to know for sure that the person we’ve been applauding is a hero and not some glory-seeker. These people can’t hide behind their good causes and expect us not to notice when they’re taking us for idiots. Claudia didn’t save Amelia, and I’m going to prove it, with or without your blessing.’

‘I don’t know. This can’t be good for you.’

‘No, Mal. Stuck here with nothing to do but stew is no good for me.’

‘You were supposed to go home to your family and recharge your batteries.’

‘Oh, they’re recharged,’ warned Leanne with a glint in her eye. ‘And if you’re not interested in this story then you’d better hope that I don’t find my proof, because it could be a national paper grabbing the headline, not the Courier.’

Mal closed his eyes and tipped back his head.

‘I’m doing this for Lois,’ she said. ‘Heroes might exist, but they’re few and far between. We can’t all be saved, and we shouldn’t be worshipping false gods.’

Straightening up, Mal reached for his coffee. ‘I think I need something stronger,’ he said after taking a sip. He sighed. His body deflated. ‘If I say yes, it doesn’t mean it’s going to be top priority, and you have to promise that when it comes to nothing, you’ll draw a line under it and move on.’

‘Agreed,’ she said without hesitation. It wouldn’t come to nothing. The truth was waiting to be uncovered.

The Empress Theatre

Sedgefield, Cheshire

When Declan Gallagher hurried out of his flat and towards the theatre, he thought it would be a simple matter of resetting the alarm. They would need clearance from the fire officer, but it was only eight o’clock. There was plenty of time to get the audience back in and restart the show. He didn’t need to be there, but he would be interested to know what had triggered the sensors so he could add it to the snagging list. The theatre had to be perfect when the project was signed off. Phillipa Montgomery was one of the few people who still believed in him, and he wanted this for her.

It was as Declan drew closer that the smell of smoke stopped him in his tracks. A moment later, the ground shook. ‘Sweet Jesus,’ he said.

In less than a minute, he had reached the theatre and couldn’t believe what he saw. Flames licked at exposed rafters in the roof, but Declan was more interested in what was happening at ground level. There were people flooding out, many of them families with children, but nowhere near enough for what equated to a sell-out show. There were people still inside.