‘Kindly take your eyes off your screen for a second and look at this, and then I’d like to speak to Dr Merrill as soon as his current appointment finishes.’

The receptionist frowned and began to trot out her practised response. ‘I’m afraid you’ll have to wait your turn –’

‘Listen,’ Geraldine said quietly, ‘I don’t want to have to charge you with wasting police time and obstructing the course of an investigation into a serious crime, but I should warn you that’s the way this conversation seems to be heading.’

The receptionist glared at her. ‘I’ll call the practice manager,’ she said. ‘Please take a seat.’

‘So you’re still asking me to wait? Listen, I need to speak to Dr Merrill as soon as possible, and neither you nor your practice manager is going to cause me any further delay. As soon as the patient who is with him right now leaves his consulting room, I want to speak to him.’

‘I’m calling the police,’ someone shouted out.

Geraldine turned round. ‘Yes, please do that,’ she replied loudly, holding up her identity card. ‘And please tell them that I need the nearest patrol car here right away, so that two uniformed constables can close the surgery until we’ve finished our enquiry.’ She turned back to the receptionist. ‘Or you can tell Dr Merrill I’d like to speak to him right away. It’s up to you.’

An older woman came bustling out of a door behind the reception desk.

‘What seems to be the trouble?’ she asked.

Once again, Geraldine held up her identity card and lowered her voice. ‘I need to speak to Dr Merrill, and your receptionist seems to think it’s your practice policy to obstruct the police in conducting an enquiry into a serious crime.’ She flipped open her phone. ‘You have my location. I need a couple of uniformed officers to help me out here with a situation, and we’ll need to charge a couple of ladies with obstruction –’

‘No, no, wait!’ the practice manager cried out in alarm. ‘There’s no need for any of that. Of course you can see the doctor right away. This way, please. And please, cancel that request. This is all a misunderstanding.’ She turned and glared at the receptionist.

Muttering ‘Cancel that’ into her unconnected phone, Geraldine followed the manager along the corridor to a consulting room. As soon as a patient emerged, the manager ushered Geraldine into the room.

‘This is a detective sergeant,’ the woman said, anxious to smooth over the disagreement. ‘She would like to ask you a few questions.’

‘Are you a patient?’ the doctor asked.

‘I’m here in a professional capacity.’ Geraldine turned to the manager. ‘I’d like to speak to the doctor alone.’

Mumbling under her breath, the manager left.

‘I’m part of the team investigating the death of a patient of yours, David Armstrong,’ Geraldine explained.