Gary seemed larger and more belligerent than he had the day before, as if the scuffle outside had released a squirt of testosterone into his bloodstream. It was useful to see – I was getting a much more genuine impression of him than if he’d been stuck in an interview room, minding his P’s and Q’s, even if we couldn’t use it overtly in evidence.

‘We have some more questions for you,’ I said, rather sharply. ‘About Violet. Shall we sit down?’

‘Help yourself. I wouldn’t get too near Flossy though.’

I walked past the dog, who let out a low growl. I went for a chair near a surprising old-fashioned TV with a wooden surround. The kind of thing you’d pick up on eBay for a quid if you were prepared to drive and fetch it. Gary sat next to Flossy and Jai took the other chair.

‘I already told you everything yesterday,’ Gary said.

‘How well do you know Violet Armstrong?’ I asked.

Gary’s eyes darted to the kitchen door. ‘Not that well. I already told you.’

‘What’s your relationship like?’

‘She’s someone I see at work, and we’ve both done stuff for Anna’s stupid website.’ He lowered his voice. ‘She’s a cute girl. I guess she caught my attention.’

So that tied in with Daniel saying he leched after Violet. I felt a flash of sympathy for Mandy. ‘Have you any idea where she is?’ I said.

‘I already told you. No.’

‘Did Violet ask you about a Rebecca Smith?’

He looked up calmly, not concerned by this question. ‘Yeah, she might have done. Early on. I didn’t know what she was on about.’

‘Do you know a Rebecca Smith?’

‘Nope.’

‘What about Bex Smith, or you might have known her as Bex Nightingale?’

The air in the room solidified. This was different. Gary’s eyes narrowed. He spoke slowly, with forced casualness. ‘I vaguely remember that name. Kirsty’s little sister, wasn’t she?’

‘Have you met her?’

A pause. He was hiding it well, but his breath was coming faster, his chest rising higher. ‘I think she hung around a bit one summer when we were teenagers. She didn’t live with Kirsty and her dad. I might have met her, I don’t really remember.’

I was expecting him to ask if this was about Violet’s birth mother. Or at least to ask what it was about. But he didn’t, which was interesting.

The kitchen door poked open and Mandy said, ‘Who’s for tea?’

‘Mandy, you should go back to bed,’ Gary said.

‘I’m fine,’ Mandy said. ‘Someone needs to look out for you, getting into stupid fights.’

‘Well, since you’re here,’ Gary said. ‘Tell them I was with you all Sunday night.’