“We start from today and we work backward, connecting the dots as far back as we need to in order to get the full picture. But,” he emphasized, “this is, first and foremost, a murder investigation. If we connect the train robbery and the diamond heist as well, that’s a bonus.” Then he changed the subject. “Jack, you’re with me tomorrow morning. We’ll go and tell Audrey about her son.”

Anik buried his head in his work, trying not to look fazed by Ridley’s decision to take Jack and not him on the second notification of death. Laura, as his sarge, felt she had to say something.

“Notifications are tough, Anik. Because not only are you the one who will knock them down with the news that you bring, you’re also the one who will pick them back up again. That takes control.”

Jack repeatedly kicked on the front door until Maggie finally turned on the hallway light.

“Darling, there’s someone at the door!” she shouted up the stairs.

This was closely followed by Jack laughing from the front doorstep. Maggie opened the door, to reveal Jack laden down by a mini fridge. He staggered in and set the fridge heavily down on the bottom stair. Maggie wasn’t amused.

“When some fuckwit kicks on my front door in the middle of the bloody night, I’m bound to pretend that my massive cage-fighting husband is upstairs, aren’t I!”

Jack hugged Maggie and rocked her in his arms. He was so tired, he could have fallen asleep right there.

“Why have you bought a fridge?”

“For the spare room. So I can work late without waking you up by going into the kitchen.”

With that, he picked up the fridge and took it upstairs. Maggie couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“I’ll nick you a commode from work as well, shall I? Then you can lock yourself away for days searching for the elusive Jimmy bloody Nunn!”

Jack bounced down the stairs, grabbed her by the hand, and dragged her back up. In the spare bedroom, they both faced his ever-growing evidence wall. Jack stood behind her with his arms wrapped tightly round her waist.

“You were right, Mags. I did need a better reason to exhume Rawlins’s first grave and now I’ve got it. This Rose Cottage case goes back way further than we thought . . . this far.” He swept his hand through the air in front of Maggie’s face, indicating every piece of evidence collected. “Right back to 1984. Back to the diamond robbery. Back to Harry Rawlins. Ridley’s sold on the idea now, so all I need to do is persuade him that something relevant is hidden in that grave.”

Jack couldn’t see Maggie’s face, but it was a combination of worry and confusion. What the hell is he talking about?

“The diamonds, Mags! They’ve never been found and they’ve got to be somewhere.”

“Jack . . .” Maggie started.

“I know what you’re going to say. But this is as relevant to the Rose Cottage case as it is to mine.”