‘I agree. There was no evidence that I saw. And there aren’t many places to hide the stuff. They stick to beer and tobacco, I think. Addictive, but legal.’

Tailby looked unimpressed. ‘Check up on the progress of Peakstone’s injunction, Paul. It would be ironic if they got moved on before we’ve finished with them.’

Cooper raised his hand tentatively. He could feel that Todd Weenink was staring at him. More than that, he was using his famous glower. He managed to avoid Weenink’s eye.

‘Yes, Cooper?’

‘There’s Warren Leach as well,’ he said. ‘He does have a link to Maggie Crew. We shouldn’t forget that.’

‘We could put that surveillance on him for a while, I suppose,’ said Tailby. ‘We can spare the resources.’

‘How do we put surveillance on that farm?’ asked Fry. ‘There’s nowhere we can position somebody where he won’t see them.’

Tailby considered it. ‘It doesn’t matter. In fact, it might be better if they do show out. It’ll put some pressure on him. Fry, Cooper – you know the ground.’

‘But surveillance? Are you sure? There’s nothing to see up there, except cows.’

‘In that case,’ said Tailby, ‘watch every cow that moves.’

‘Meanwhile, we’ve got Wayne Sugden coming in again,’ said Hitchens. ‘In fact, he should be downstairs now.’

‘Why?’

‘That burglary at the Westons’ cottage. It isn’t so simple. When we looked at the files, it turned out that the officers dealing with the incident report called out a key-holder, because the Westons themselves were away in Cyprus. And the key-holder wasn’t their neighbour. It was Jenny Weston.’

Wayne Sugden was working himself to a peak of outraged innocence. He had been easily prompted to it by the first questions about the burglary. It had turned on a tap, the flow gradually becoming hotter until the steam began to rise.

‘That tart, why did she say all those things? She said I nicked jewellery and all sorts of stuff. She said I pissed on her carpet and chucked some kind of sauce at her walls. Why would I want to do that?’

DI Hitchens explained patiently: ‘It was done by whoever burgled her parents’ house, Wayne. The court said that was you.’

‘It’s rubbish. I wasn’t even there.’

‘Come on, Wayne. There was enough evidence to convict you.’

‘I don’t care. It was all crap.’

Hitchens sighed. ‘We can’t help you if you’re so stubborn.’

‘That bitch got me sent down. The things she said, they were wrong. She turned the magistrates against me, otherwise I could have got off with probation or something. Pissing on the carpet – I mean. That’s not me.’

‘How well do you remember Jenny Weston? Did you see her in court?’

Sugden’s face went pale.

‘She got done, didn’t she? I saw it on the telly.’

‘Yes, she got done.’