As he spoke the buffer symbol disappeared and the image jerked into life. The shape at the top of the screen was all that moved, coming further into shot, revealing the front wheel of a dark-coloured pickup truck, as it turned to cross from right to left.

Hawkins shooed several empty crisp packets to the back of the desk and leaned forwards on her elbows for a better view. She clicked her tongue as it passed. ‘Did you get the plate?’

‘No.’ The DI’s mouth twisted. ‘And you won’t, because the bloody thing passes just out of shot.’

Hawkins swore quietly, still watching the display, seeing nothing but the pitted mud track until a moment later when the screen blanked out.

‘Now there’s a thirty-odd-second gap.’ Frank pointed at the time signature in the bottom corner of the screen as it re-lit. ‘Before this chap appears.’

Hawkins watched the figure enter from the left and stride slowly towards the centre of shot. Once again, she recognized the coat and wellington boots, and the flat cap pulled low over the eyes. But it wasn’t the man’s clothing that piqued her interest;

It was the long implement down by his side.

‘Is that what it looks like?’ she asked, not having noticed it on the still shot from earlier, probably because it was in the figure’s left hand, shielded from the camera by his body.

‘Yep. Reckon that’s what he fired at you down at the church.’ Frank paused the footage with the weapon in its foremost position. ‘That’s a CO2 air rifle if I ever saw one.’ He restarted the film, allowing the man to sidle out of frame.

Another blank interlude followed, before the same figure retraced his steps, further back this time, his head skimming the top of the screen.

Hawkins tracked his progress. ‘Does he turn towards the camera at any point?’

‘Sadly not.’

‘Stop it there.’

Frank complied, allowing Hawkins to study the pixelated sliver of face between collar and cap; nowhere near detailed enough to make an ID.

She asked, ‘Have you tried enhancing this?’

‘Rog’s working on it now.’ Frank nodded at their Red Bull-slurping colleague. ‘Though we’ll only get a better view of what’s there in the first place, which isn’t much, I hasten to add.’

‘Understood,’ she said. ‘But this guy’s been to the church at least twice recently – once in this footage, and again to try putting holes in us – so some of the locals might recognize him.’ She asked Roger to produce hard copies once he’d finished enhancing the images, before turning back to her DI. ‘Do we see the vehicle again?’

‘Hold fire.’ Frank restarted the sequence. The gunman exited left, preceding another blank screen before the large vehicle skimmed the top left corner once again.