‘Yes, did you ever find out who she was?’

‘We think so. It was Callum’s family who found her.’

Johnny went back to the kitchen to say goodbye to his daughter, and Kelly finished up and dried herself vigorously. She kept some clothes at Johnny’s house too, and she found something suitable and applied some make-up, found in her bag. She was ready in time to give Josie a hug and wave her off.

‘What are you up to today?’ Kelly asked Johnny, after Josie had gone.

‘I’m going sailing. It’s a cracker out there, and we’ve got our final exams coming up.’

‘I know, I hope I can fit in a bit more time before then, this case is taking all my time and energy.’ She sat down at the table and Johnny put eggs, toast and mushrooms in front of her.

‘I’m ruined,’ she said, licking her lips. ‘Have you got a large map of the Lakes?’

‘How large?’ He sat opposite her and began eating. He poured hot coffee and dribbled brown sauce over his eggs.

‘About an inch per mile would do.’

He nodded. They ate in silence, each relishing the fayre. She sipped her coffee and pushed her hair behind her ear. She didn’t need to dry it, she’d always been lucky in that sense: it fell into place if she left it alone. It was thick and luscious from a long summer, and her tan was still apparent against her white top.

‘You look refreshed,’ Johnny said.

She nodded, in between mouthfuls. ‘I am. I wish I could come on the boat with you today. I fancy a day on the lake.’

‘I’ll get the map. What’s it for?’ he asked.

‘I’ll show you.’ She finished her food and cleared the plates away, making room for the map. When he came back with it, she cleared a space on the large oak kitchen table, opened the map and spread it across the table. She pointed to Braithwaite and then to Thirlmere car park, near where Carry had been dumped. The forensic team had ascertained that she hadn’t died there, there simply wasn’t enough blood or evidence of a scene of crime around the body. It had been pretty obvious to Kelly too, but she figured that it was the bodies that were important marker points. Given the need for their killer to communicate, she settled on Thirlmere being the point of axis.

The two sites formed a perfect axis of a saltire, going from left to right, downwards. Kelly looked around the kitchen and found a packet of spaghetti. She took a few sticks from the bag and placed one from end to end.

‘What are you doing?’ Johnny asked.