Lindsay smiled grimly. “I’m glad I was right. But even with that, they’ll never nail her for Ian’s murder. Too much time’s gone by, and the evidence was never more than circumstantial at best.” Lindsay paused while their lasagne was placed in front of them.

“At least she can’t wriggle out from under with Union Jack,” Sophie consoled her. “You did a great job there.”

Lindsay shrugged. “I had some pretty serious help,” she said through a mouthful of green salad.

“What I’m still not clear about is how so many details came to be published in Conference Chronicle. It can’t have been Laura herself behind it, or that story about her being a Special Branch plant would never have seen the light of day.”

Lindsay frowned. “That’s true. So how did they know I’d spotted her in the corridor? Who else had the remotest notion that I was interested in Laura?”

There was silence while they both chewed that over with their pasta. “Do you suppose . . .” Sophie started, then trailed off. Lindsay gave her an inquiring look. Sophie sighed. “It’s just a thought. But loads of people knew you were nosing around into Union Jack’s death. And anyone who’s been around the union long enough to remember there was a curious death at the Blackpool conference would also probably remember that it was Laura Craig’s ex-lover who died. When you said you’d been to Blackpool smack-bang in the middle of the conference office where anyone could have heard, then mentioned it in passing to dozens of other people . . . Well, anyone could have jumped to the conclusion that the link between the two deaths was Laura and guessed that she was your number one suspect. Don’t forget, you and your doings were hot gossip round the conference hall. It’s not surprising it made it to the Conference Chronicle.”

Lindsay sighed. “You’re right, I had forgotten.” She ate another mouthful, her face screwed up in distaste.

“Something wrong with your food?” Sophie asked.

Lindsay shook her head. “No. It’s you. Sometimes you really piss me off.”

Sophie knew her lover too well to be offended. “Oh yeah? Just because I remembered you’d been shooting your big mouth off ?”

“No. Because I’m sitting here, congratulating myself on a job well done and you have to remind me that there’s still a hulking great mystery floating around in the atmosphere. I still don’t know who’s behind Conference Chronicle, and now you’ve reminded me, it’s going to bug the hell out of me.”

Sophie grinned. “It’ll just have to remain one of the mysteries of the universe, won’t it?”

Lindsay scowled. “Not necessarily.” Then her eyes twinkled in an evil grin. “After all, we’ve not left town yet.”