It was rare for Spencer to be taken aback, but Michael made him feel guilty for wanting to question him. But Michael showed no embarrassment whatsoever, smiling broadly.

‘I suggest that if we want a bit of peace and quiet, detective, we should go to my room. Or we can go next door. It’s a sort of hospitality area for when guests are visiting as some of the rooms are not really designed for groups of people.’

Spencer smiled. ‘I’m very impressed with this place. It looks like a lot of thought and care has gone into it.’

‘Believe you me, it has. I don’t know how long it took to be converted from an oldies’ home, but Wandsworth Council are really one of the best councils for disabled people. A lot of us here are on benefits so we don’t cost them too much.’

Spencer pointed to the easel. ‘I like your work too. That’s pretty good.’

Michael nodded towards his painting. ‘I must say, horses are quite difficult. I’ve done a lot of pets, cats and dogs. But this is for one of the resident’s sisters – she’s a show jumper. I’m not doing very well with the hooves . . . and that feeling of getting the horse jumping forward, that’s hard, too.’

‘It looks good to me,’ Spencer said. ‘We can go wherever’s most convenient for you – next door or in your room?’

‘Let’s go to my room,’ Michael said. He turned the chair so Spencer was behind him. ‘This is the only tricky door in the whole place.’

Spencer was impressed by his ability as Michael opened the door and moved the chair through. He followed him down the corridor to a small lift. The young girl he had seen in the kitchen walked past.

‘Hi, Mikey,’ she said. ‘Do you need some tea brought up?’

‘No thanks, darling, I’ve got my coffee percolator.’

‘OK.’

The lift only just accommodated Michael’s wheelchair and Spencer. They went up to the second floor and Michael led the way along a wide corridor to a room at the end. In the breast pocket of his tartan shirt, he had a wide stick with a rubber end attached to it, which he jabbed into a keypad. The door opened.

‘Come in,’ Michael said as he moved ahead of Spencer, replacing the stick in his pocket with his mouth.

The room was quite small, with a single bed by the window. The bed was quite high off the ground, with a very thick mattress. There was a chair, a chest of drawers, a wardrobe and a desk with a typewriter. The furniture left very little space in the room. Michael eased his wheelchair beside the bed and Spencer sat in the chair. Michael nodded to the typewriter.