She took Annabel and Richard Grey into her office, the office that had belonged to Jimmy Perez, not to the interview room. That was hard and impersonal. It didn’t smell of offenders, but still the ghosts of the addicts and the drunks somehow lingered there. And perhaps because she was using his space, she asked Jimmy, not Sandy, to sit in on the discussion. Sandy would find it hard to get beyond the woman’s beauty. Perez was still so caught up in his own loss that he would scarcely notice it.

Annabel Grey was determined to tell her own story in her own way. She opened the conversation as soon as she took a seat.

‘I want to see Jerry. Would that be possible, do you think?’

‘His body’s not here.’ Perez answered before Willow could reply. ‘It’s gone to Aberdeen for the postmortem.’ He paused. ‘The pathologist there is very good. Very respectful.’

It was clear that the woman was disappointed, shocked even. It wasn’t what she’d been expecting.

‘You see, sweetheart. I said that was how it would be.’ Richard Grey patted his daughter’s hand as it lay on the table. He looked up at Willow. ‘I’m a barrister. Not in criminal practice, but I do have some understanding of the procedures.’ The charming smile that was also a warning: Don’t mess with me. Willow gave herself a mental pat on the back for guessing his profession, before thinking that this was an added complication she didn’t need.

‘I loved him.’ For the first time Annabel’s voice broke a little, but there was still the childish intonation. They sat in silence for a moment. Willow thought Perez might offer a word of sympathy, but when he spoke it was a question, blunt and matter-of-fact.

‘Where did you meet Jerry Markham?’

That was all the encouragement Annabel needed to begin her story. Willow thought she had turned it into a legend, polished it by retelling, not just to her friends in her smart university, but to herself. ‘It was in December, and I was home for the Christmas vacation. In the breaks I do some voluntary work – a regular commitment, started when I was still at school. I’ve been lucky in so many ways, and it’s important to put something back. Don’t you think so?’

Annabel looked up at them, but her father was the only person to respond, patting her hand again.

Left to herself, Willow would have urged the girl to continue more quickly, but Perez was content to wait. She hadn’t seen him so still. Willow had heard about his legendary patience, but this was the first time she’d seen it in action. At last Annabel continued: ‘This year there was an advent course in St Luke’s, the church on the square close to where we live. Beside other things, I helped out with that.’