‘People were never going to grieve for that man,’ Niall says. ‘I think it’s healthy for people to have a place to express their emotions.’

‘You clearly didn’t see all the comments calling for my head on a block,’ I answer, turning to look at him. ‘That didn’t feel particularly healthy to me. The knives are out. Not to mention a troll account, in Kelly’s name.’

He is still staring straight ahead, his gaze on the tree, which is shedding more and more leaves with every gust.

‘I saw that,’ he says. ‘Nothing but keyboard warriors. I wouldn’t take it seriously. I imagine it will all blow over now that Jamesy is dead.’

‘Unless I prove he was innocent, after all,’ I say.

Niall’s jaw tightens just a fraction.

‘Although, I’d guess whoever is threatening me doesn’t want that to happen.’

‘Maybe that’s because he was guilty,’ Niall says. ‘I admire your commitment and your sense of righting a great wrong here, but Jamesy Harte was no saint. Don’t let championing his innocence be the hill you die on. If you want my advice, walk away from it all now and it will all be forgotten in a few days. People will move on. Find someone else to spew their hatred about.’

I shift in my seat. ‘The thing is, I can’t just ignore my gut on this. Something isn’t right about the whole situation and I want to get to the heart of it. Even if we take Jamesy out of the equation, the Dohertys deserve to know the truth. On a personal note, since I am gainfully unemployed as of yesterday, getting to the heart of this would put two fingers up to my former boss.’

Turning his gaze to mine, Niall places his coffee in the cup holder on my dashboard. ‘Well, I can’t say I’ve ever been a fan of Ryan Murray. He’s a slippery fucker if ever I met one. He’d fall into the Foyle and come out with a salmon in his mouth.’

‘I didn’t realise you knew him,’ I say, eyebrow raised.

Niall looks at me incredulously. ‘Come on, Ingrid! Everyone knows Ryan Murray. He’s been sniffing around, acting the big man for years. You want to hear my da about him. He said he wouldn’t spit on him if he was on fire. He was only a wee runt when Kelly died. Made a name for himself with all the coverage back then. My da says he’s never done an honest day’s work since.’

I’m not sure what to say. Ryan may well be on my shit list right now, but I have admired his journalism throughout my career. I don’t want to start an argument about it though, so I ignore the dig and put my half-full coffee cup in the cup holder beside Niall’s.