Kelly was confused. She found a tissue in her bag and wiped her eyes. Did addiction run in the family? Did George feel guilty about the death of his daughter because he was himself an addict? Ted had been adamant that the amount of drugs in the man’s system when he’d died ruled out one-off use. But that didn’t explain the money invested by Lord Allerdale. No business interests between the old peer and George Murphy had been flagged up by the heir to the estate, so Kelly assumed it was a private arrangement. A phone call to the family solicitors had already confirmed that the original trust arrangement in Alan Montague-Roland’s will had been successfully contested in a lengthy court case and a settlement was being drawn up to amend the terms. His grandson wouldn’t have to wait for the funds after all.

Money.

George was being funded by Lord Allerdale. The funding stops. The millions go into trust. Who controlled the trust?

She rang the solicitors and stared outside. They were stuck in traffic and going nowhere. It’d be a long journey.

Finally a senior partner came on the phone and explained that they were no longer at liberty to disclose the details of the estate of Lord Allerdale because of the new settlement.

‘On what grounds did Lord Allerdale’s grandson contest the will?’ she asked.

‘Oh, he didn’t. Well, not exactly. It was the executors.’

‘And who are they?’

‘I’m not at liberty to say.’

‘I’m a police officer!’

‘Perhaps you could send me a letter on headed paper?’

She stared into her phone. ‘Are you serious?’ she asked.

‘Of course, madam.’

She hung up. The paperwork involved in getting a warrant for such information was tedious and irritating, but it would have to be done; she tasked Emma, who was doing nothing else.

She sat back in her seat, closed her eyes and wondered what George had been up to. If he was trying to understand the chemistry of addiction, surely that was a good thing and not something that would end up getting him killed, along with his colleagues. It also struck her that Alan Montague-Roland had been an extremely moral man: maybe they should look into him more closely. He had been a champion of dozens of good causes and an active, well-liked member of the House of Lords, campaigning on issues close to his heart, such as education and health.

But he obviously didn’t trust his grandson.

Chapter 34