‘It’s your day off, boss. You should take it easy. There’s nothing that won’t keep.’

‘I’m sure there’s not, but I’m feeling guilty at leaving you to it,’ Tom said. ‘I wouldn’t have come home this afternoon if there hadn’t been something personal I needed to deal with.’

Becky knew there was no point asking what it was. He wouldn’t tell her.

‘All okay now?’ she asked instead.

‘Not really, no. Tell me what’s been going on there.’

She didn’t like the sound of that. ‘It’s nothing to do with Lucy, is it?’

Becky had developed a good relationship with Tom’s daughter over the years and had occasionally taken her into Manchester when she wanted female company on a shopping trip. Louisa would no doubt be fulfilling that role now, and Becky missed the girl.

‘No, Lucy’s fine. She wants to come and see you the minute you’ve had the baby – so be warned.’

Becky smiled. ‘She will be very welcome. Now, a couple of things. I had thought about calling you, but I decided to leave it until tomorrow.’

‘Go on,’ Tom said. ‘I’m not doing anything else useful.’

Becky repeated all she had learned about the woman found on the golf course. ‘You were right about her name too. It was Williams.’

‘Oh well, good to know I don’t have too bad a memory.’

‘The thing is, Tom, it sounds like there’s quite a bit of similarity between the woman who befriended the golf-course victim and the one our Penny – sorry, Jasmine – was seen with a couple of times.’

‘What did she look like?’ Tom asked abruptly.

‘She was quite an elderly lady, apparently, with long silver-grey hair, sometimes tied back. Quite elegant, they said. Wonderful bone structure, another one said. Why? You sounded almost excited then.’

‘Hang on, Becky. I’m going to make a call on my personal mobile. Stay with me.’

Becky could only just hear his voice, but not what he said or who he was talking to. He must have put his phone down and walked away. All she heard was one word.

‘Shit.’

As soon as Tom heard Becky’s description of the woman who had been seen talking to the two supposed suicide victims, he knew he had to get hold of Jack and Nathan urgently.

Dorothea Atwell had been on the mindfulness retreat with Hannah, and Hannah had said that the wonderful woman she had met was going to be holidaying on a boat on the Irrawaddy in January. Thea Atwell was on that boat, and now a woman of a similar age was linked to both of the dead women. There was nothing to tie her to Hannah’s disappearance, so it could be a coincidence, but Jack was right – Tom didn’t believe in them. Jack and Nathan could be walking into something they didn’t understand.