Potting glanced at his watch. ‘Got to go now, chief, got to ring my Swedish lady.’ He hurried from the room, closing the door behind him. Leaving Grace shaking his head in bewilderment and drawing a large intake of breath.

No more than a few seconds later the door burst open and he saw a huge beaming smile on Norman’s face. ‘By the way, chief, I’m only joking about Kerstin . . . she’s not my next lover! I’m working with her on a romance fraud case that the Swedish police are dealing with. You should’ve seen your face, I had you going there for a minute, didn’t I!’

Roy picked up a magazine and hurled it at him as Potting ducked behind the door and slammed it shut.

61

Thursday 16 May

The jury bailiff, Jacobi Whyte, peered around the jury room, checking everyone was there and in place, before announcing, ‘Very regrettably, one member of the jury is indisposed. I’m informed the lady in question apparently came off her bicycle on her way home from court yesterday evening. I understand she was found lying in a hedge, unconscious, with very serious injuries.

‘The judge is now speaking to counsel, which is why you are remaining here for the moment.’

It was quite wrong, Meg knew, not to have much sympathy for her, but she wondered how many of the other jurors felt the same. Everyone in the jury room earlier had been commenting on Gwendoline Smythson’s no-show, and they’d all presumed she must have been delayed by a puncture or some other problem with her bike – or, as Mike Roberts had suggested, perhaps she had been unavoidably detained by her own self-importance. And it was ironic how the woman had told them, the first time they’d all been together, that cycling here was the best solution to the parking problem in Lewes.

Then her mind went back to the phone call she’d had at home last night.

Please, I’m doing everything I can.

Oh, we know that, Meg. And we are right with you, doing everything we can . . . You will see tomorrow how we are helping you in other ways, too. We have made your life easier, but so much is still down to you.

Was this bastard behind what had happened to the woman? It seemed just too coincidental. And how easy would it be to knock someone off on a country lane?

OK, so she and Gwen hadn’t exactly become instant buddies, but she didn’t wish her any ill. And if these evil people were capable of causing this accident, did they have no limits?

The eleven of them remained in the jury room. Some of them sat at the table, others stood to help themselves to drinks.

Meg poured herself some coffee, then sat back down, looking around, thinking back to the words of her caller last night.

You do have a friend on the jury.