I had to admit it was a good hiding place. I would take the greatest of pleasure in returning the rings to Mrs Helena Burgoyne. I tried them on. I quite liked the emerald, but it was made for daintier fingers than mine and so, reluctantly, I dried the rings off, wrapped them carefully in kitchen paper and stowed them in my bag.

‘I don’t suppose there are any more in here,’ I said aloud to myself as I rattled the sugar sifter. I heard the clunk of a solid object. There was more in there than sugar.

Unlike the flour shaker, the lid of the sugar sifter was stiff, rusty around the rim, and I had to bang it on the edge of the table to force it off. It was about two-thirds full of sugar. As I tipped out the sparkly little granules I could see the top of a pale, rounded object breaking through the surface. I poured the sugar down the sink, watching the object in the bottom slowly reveal itself. Then I slid it out from the sifter and held it in my hand.

I knew now why Old Nick had been murdered. And I knew who had killed him. A cold feeling of dread settled inside me. I knew who the murderer was now. And I wished I didn’t.

CHAPTER FORTY

‘Hello, Juno.’ He looked up from his work, surprised. ‘I wasn’t expecting to see you today.’

‘Hello, Paul. I wasn’t sure if you’d be here.’

He had an upturned table on the workbench and was delicately gluing a sliver of thin veneer on to one of its legs. He smiled. ‘Just let me get a clamp fixed on this and I’ll be with you.’

I watched him silently, watched his strong, clever hands. Why didn’t I just walk out again, forget the weighty little object in my pocket, walk away, let Paul go back to his family unchallenged, live his life? Because Nick, lying dead on the rug, wouldn’t let me.

He wiped his hands down over the hips of his jeans. ‘There.’ He looked at me, brows raised enquiringly, and his smile faded. ‘Are you all right?’

I swallowed. There was a lump in my throat, hard as a boiled sweet. ‘I think this belongs to you.’ I pulled the object from my pocket and placed it on my palm, holding my arm outstretched. For a moment his eyes widened, lighting up with relief and joy. He reached out as if to take it and then faltered. His eyes looked into mine, all the colour in his face draining away. Even his lips looked bloodless. He knew that I knew.

‘Where did you find it?’ he asked softly.