Cracking a case is a unique feeling, a mixture of relief, selfcongratulation and a curious sense of deflation. I felt all that and more at Neil’s words, and I struggled not to show him any of it. Until the net was ready to close round Kevin, I didn’t want anyone to know how much I had on him. I searched my mind for another question to ask Neil, so his last reply wouldn’t stick in his mind as the thing that had sent me haring off. “Have you told Jett about the abortion yet?” I hazarded.

He froze, and a mottled flush spread up from his neck. “A-abortion,” he stuttered.

I’d got him. Time for the major league bluff. “I know all about it, Neil. And I know you know. I just wondered if you’d told Jett yet.”

He shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re on about, Kate, I swear.”

“You can’t bullshit me, Neil. Either you co-operate with me, or I go straight to Jett and tell him you’re planning to drop that little bombshell in the public domain just to make yourself a shilling.”

“You’re a hard-faced bitch,” he complained, his face the picture of petulance.

“Yeah, but I’m good at it. Now talk. When did you find out about the abortion?”

“A few days before Moira died,” he admitted sulkily.

“Just as a matter of interest, how did you find out?”

“I ran a financial check on her, then I rang the clinic pretending to be Moira’s accountant, saying she was now in a position to settle the outstanding amount, and could they send the account to me. I confirmed it was for a termination, and gave them a fake

“So how did you plan to use the information?” I asked.

He shrugged. “I thought about telling Jett, but it didn’t seem like a good idea when he and Moira were working so closely together. He’s not exactly what you’d call a New Man when it comes to abortion and working wives, is he? It would have caused an almighty row, and God knows what would have happened. I decided to hang on and see what happened after the album was finished.”

“You mean you were going to wait till the book came out, then sell it separately, and to hell with the damage it caused?”

His angry look told me I’d hit the nail right on the head. But he wasn’t going to admit it. “Of course not,” he said hotly. “What do you take me for?”

If I were American, I’d have pleaded the fifth. As it was, I just gave him my most contemptuous look and walked out.