‘I’ll show you through, James,’ Charlotte barked to the farrier. Clearly she was not going to stay in Annie’s company for a second longer.

‘Can I help?’ Annie ventured.

Jack wasn’t sure what Annie knew, if anything, so he suggested that they all go to the house and wait for Charlotte there. Mason grabbed Jack by the arm. ‘If she won’t talk to us – right now – we should arrest her for obstruction.’

Jack shook his head. ‘We’re not going to do that, because if she’s the person I think she is, she’s desperate for someone to show her that there’s a way out of the mess she’s in. How the hell does a gardener from Chipping Norton get tangled up with a gang of burglars? She’s not connected emotionally or professionally – so we’re missing something. Once we have that, we have her. Look, Mason, if you want to take the car back to the station, you do that. I’ll make my own way back once I’ve spoken to Charlotte.’

Every instinct told Mason to go. He’d felt as though he was Jack’s ‘bitch’ ever since finding Mulhern’s dead body and he hated it. He only faltered because the ache in his neck was a constant reminder of Jack’s violent warning: ‘From this second forwards, you’re on my side, sir, or I’ll ruin you without a second thought.’

Mason followed Annie and Jack to the house.

In the kitchen, Annie made a pot of tea, then covered it with a woollen cosy in the shape of a hen, and poured a selection of biscuits onto a large plate, telling them to help themselves while she busied herself with tidying.

Jack was content with the silence while his eyes explored the kitchen, as he intuitively assessed their target’s home for psychological clues that could help them in the questioning.

Jack’s silent train of thought was broken by his mobile buzzing, and he quickly saw that it was Maggie calling. The fact that Maggie was calling instead of texting when she knew he was at work made him instantly worried. He excused himself and stepped outside.

Maggie’s first words were, ‘We’re all fine.’ She then fell silent and her noisy breathing told Jack that she was crying. ‘Take your time,’ he said gently. ‘I’m here.’

After a long silence, Maggie eventually said, ‘Regina’s been taken into hospital. Her baby’s going to come three months too soon.’ Jack said nothing as there was nothing to say. ‘I’m going to go and be with her and Penny’s going to look after Hannah. I just needed to hear your voice . . . I miss you.’

‘I miss you too,’ he said. ‘But you’re not crying because you miss me.’