Yes, they could see it quite clearly on the photographs. Some of the officers looked away for a moment, but forced themselves to turn back. Jamieson left the most revolting photograph on screen while he finished off.

‘Adipocere inhibits putrefying bacteria, so when a body reaches this state of decomposition it might stay that way for several years before it decomposes any further. There was a large quantity of adipocere beneath the chest and abdominal regions in the case of Victim A. So I would say you have the cold, wet soil of Rakedale to thank for the relatively intact condition of this body. If I might offer a very non-scientific comment, it’s almost as though Victim A has been waiting in her half-decomposed state for someone to find her.’

Jamieson smiled as he diverged from his professional approach for a moment. He waited for comments, but none came.

‘Finally, then,’ he said. ‘There was no sign of trauma on either victim – no fractures, cut marks, or signs of perimortem damage on any of the bones we’ve recovered. But we don’t have every bone for Victim B. As we’ve already mentioned, there is no skull. And, before any of us run away with assumptions, I should mention that it’s very common for the head to come off when a body disarticulates. With the skull, we have one of the heaviest parts of the skeletal structure, supported by one of the most fragile.’

The anthropologist finished with a flourish, closing his laptop and waving his arms in a graphic gesture.

‘To put it plainly, ladies and gentlemen, if you left a body out on a slope to decompose – the head might just roll away.’

Cooper had been considering the anthropologist’s presentation as the rest of the team dispersed and went about their tasks for the day.

‘Diane, do you think we could analyse the chemical content of the bones to get an angle on her origins?’ he said. ‘I’ve heard that it’s possible.’

‘You know we don’t have facilities for anything like that, Ben.’

‘But the FSS might. Or a university somewhere.’

‘It would take months and months. And besides –’

‘– it would cost a lot of money. I know.’

‘Think budgets, Ben. The fact is, this will probably remain an unsolved case.’

‘No. You’re joking.’

‘If there were any leads at all, any sure indication of a cause of death that suggested murder, or even a confirmed ID that we could work with … But, as it is, we have nothing. We could faff around here for months and still have nothing.’

‘We can’t just leave it, with these two women unidentified.’

‘We might have to,’ said Fry.

‘No.’

‘Look, how many cases have you got on your desk at the moment, Ben?’

‘Well …’