Lucy had chosen a table by the window. She’d taken off her coat and was scrolling through her phone, which she dropped into her bag as Robin approached.

‘Thanks again for meeting me.’ She unloaded the tray and sat down.

‘No problem – I wanted to. We’re really worried – Harry and me,’ she clarified. ‘We were texting and calling but we kept getting voicemail. Then Valerie rang.’ In the light, the wisps of hair at her temples showed hints of ginger, and her skin was pale, its underlying tone blue. Some Celtic heritage, probably – Scots or Irish. Her hands were graceful, the fingers long and elegant despite a clutter of silver rings, eight or ten across the two hands. ‘We can’t believe the police won’t do anything. She wouldn’t just disappear.’

‘Okay. Before we start, I just want to say that as private investigators, not police, we – that’s Maggie, my colleague, and I – we’re not interested in getting anyone into trouble. We work for Valerie, and our job is just to find Becca.’

‘You think she’s all right?’

‘Do you not?’

Lucy looked down. ‘I don’t know.’

‘We’ve talked to Valerie, of course, but what someone tells their best friend is different from what they might tell their mum, right? I’m speaking for myself here, obviously.’ She’d intended the line to be mildly funny, to put Lucy at her ease, but it had come out sounding weird, confessional. She cleared her throat.

‘Basically, is there anything going on that she might have kept secret from her mum? Maybe something illegal – we know she used recreational drugs – or just something she didn’t want her to know. We can be discreet about where we get information; neither Valerie nor Becca need to know you told us anything if you don’t want that. For whatever reason. Okay?’

Lucy nodded.

‘So, is there anything new in her life, or unusual? Even if you don’t think it’s relevant. Was anything worrying her? Has she been in any trouble?’

‘No.’

‘Does she owe anyone money?’

‘No. I don’t think so.’

Robin stirred her tea as if they had all the time in the world. ‘What about men? Becca’s lovely-looking, and her mum said she gets a fair bit of attention – was anyone bothering her?’

Lucy shook her head and her long silver earrings swayed, catching the light.

‘How about Nick, her ex?’

‘Nick?’ Surprise. ‘They broke up months ago and they didn’t go out that long in the first place. He’s with someone else now, from his work – we saw them shopping in the Bull Ring before Christmas.’

‘How did Becca feel about that? Him having found someone else.’

‘Fine. Not bothered. She was never that into him, she was the one who dumped him, and …’ She stopped.