‘It was at Clara’s christening. I think she felt ashamed because of her humble background, and it’s true that Charles had behaved appallingly towards her. Anyway, that was when she told me about what he had done to his brother. She also told me that his mother had blamed him and had eaten herself to death. She was grossly overweight when she died. I never told him that I knew. Whenever he became hysterical, it was almost as if he was reverting to being a child, slapping himself in the face, screaming, “It was not my fault, it was not my fault,” but I think his mother always blamed him and he had been consumed by that knowledge all his life.’ Tears streamed down her face. ‘I drove home and was terrified that he would come after me. When he didn’t turn up, I called him, but he didn’t answer.’

Tyler had been taking notes, and now held up his pencil. ‘Ms. Harris, could you just describe to me again how you struck Mr. Foxley with the cricket bat?’

She closed her eyes and sighed. ‘Well, I just told you that I thought he was coming after me. I just picked it up and I swung it.’

‘Where exactly did you strike him with the cricket bat?’

She touched the right side of her head. ‘I almost missed . . . It was just a sort of glancing blow.’

‘Did it draw blood?’

‘No, I don’t think so. As I said, I almost missed him.’

Jane made a note and passed it to Tyler. Bat had handle rope: no prints. Blunt force was to the back of the skull.

Tyler glanced at Jane’s note. ‘So, Ms. Harris, after you had struck Mr. Foxley with the cricket bat, what did you do with it?’

Again, she shrugged her shoulders. ‘Well, I just threw it aside because he was still standing. I thought he was going to try and stop me, and that is when I ran out. The following day, when I still hadn’t heard from him, I was worried that I might have really hurt him and that was why I went back to his flat. Then . . . I saw his body.’

Tyler nodded. ‘So you went home. What time did you call Mr. Foxley?’

‘It must have been about nine p.m.’

Tyler made a note. If Justine was telling the truth, they now had a solid timeframe for the murder. Foxley was alive at 5:30 p.m. but did not pick up the phone at nine p.m., presumably because he was already dead.

After a few more formalities, Justine was released from custody and McDermott offered to drive her home. He also agreed that her passport would be retained; she would not be allowed to leave the country with the possibility of an assault charge against her.