He turned on his heel and strode out. Nobody moved for twenty seconds or more, and then Challice said, “Are you all right, Mr. Fowler?”

“He’s been holding me hostage for three hours,” Aaron said through a cracking throat. “I don’t think he’s a danger to the public, but if anyone forces a confrontation—”

“We’ll get after him,” Hollis said. “Challice, call it in to the Yard and the nick. Come on, Farrell. And—I’m sorry, mate,” he told Aaron. “Colthorne said things about you that I oughtn’t have listened to.”

“That’s all right. Thank you.”

The two uniformed men left at a jog. Aaron told Challice, “Use my telephone. Warn people. Put a man outside Joel’s lodging house, he might go there. Where is Joel?”

“At the Italian restaurant on the corner; we thought Colthorne oughtn’t see him. He wasn’t awfully happy about it. Shall I get him?”

“Call the Yard first,” Aaron said, and sat down hard.

Challice made the calls, speaking urgently, while Aaron drank a lot of water and had a few private moments to recover his composure. She went out after that, and Aaron waited for what seemed like hours, although it was barely long enough for the kettle to boil before she returned with Joel in tow.

Aaron wanted nothing more than to grab him, to grapple him close and kiss everything he could reach and never let go. He said, “Hello.”

“Evening,” Joel said. “Is that tea? Oh thank God. So I was right?”

“Joel got your letter and telephoned me, saying he thought you were in grave danger,” Challice told Aaron. “It seemed obvious what that was likely to be, so I found some help. It was a bit touch and go, because all I had to show was a perfectly ordinary letter, but luckily Sergeant Hollis remembered Joel, and Malcolm was happy to help. Constable Farrell, you know. He’s very sweet. Really, they both were.”

“And you didn’t twist their arms at all,” Joel added helpfully.

Aaron would have liked to know more, but not at this moment. “Thank you. Thank you so much for coming, and thank you for seeing that, Joel.” He couldn’t help a shudder. “He had a gun to my head when I wrote it.”

“Yes,” Joel said, with an air of polite interest. “It did rather feel that way.”

“I must say, I’d quite like to see this gift of yours in action, rather than just take everyone’s word for it,” Challice remarked.

“You get free readings for life,” Joel assured her.

She gave him a beaming smile. “So I should hope. What now?”

“I’ll make a complaint of wrongful imprisonment if it’s required. Tomorrow.” Aaron was absolutely exhausted, he realised. “Today has been rather wearing. You may know, I resigned earlier.”

“Yes. I’m very sorry.”