Larssen stirred his latte, put the spoon delicately back on the saucer, and leaned in a little closer. The noise of the wine bar seemed to recede, everything else sliding into the background apart from me and my solicitor opposite. A fluttering in my stomach. Fear.

Larssen said: ‘One sample’s been matched to you. The other one to Ben Delaney.’

Chapter 65

65

For a moment I couldn’t speak and just stared at his face, a numb feeling spreading out from my chest into my arms and legs.

‘Do you understand what I’m saying to you, Joe? Both blood and hair samples have been DNA-matched to Ben Delaney.’

‘Ben.’

‘Yes. In the boot of your car.’

‘How much blood?’

‘Enough to make a match. They don’t need much – microscopic traces are enough.’

‘It’s not possible.’

‘Why not?’

‘He’s never been in my car, for one thing.’

Larssen shook his head.

‘You’re missing the point, Joe. This is not him travelling as a passenger, or as the driver. They found blood in the boot.’

I stared at him, blinking fast. My caffeine headache was getting worse, a rigid band of pain across my temple.

‘How do you know all this?’ I said. ‘Who’s your source?’

‘Don’t ask.’

‘I’m asking. It’s pretty bloody important at this stage.’

He considered for a moment.

‘The source is my wife.’

‘How does she –’

‘I told you – don’t ask. The point is, we need to be prepared, Joe, we need to look at your options here. We should look at the smartest thing for you to do in this situation.’

‘I don’t like the sound of that.’

‘From a legal perspective – based on my twenty years’ experience in criminal law – the smart thing to do is for me and you to go down to Kilburn Police Station today, this afternoon. Tell Naylor you’re coming in voluntarily, you’re keen to cooperate, because you have nothing to hide. Take the initiative away from them.’

‘Are you serious?’

‘We should be prepared for charges and this is your best option in light of that. It’s my professional advice to you.’

I was struggling to get the words out in the right order.

‘I don’t . . . I don’t . . . understand. Charges. What . . . what does that mean?’

‘For the police to charge you, within the next twenty-four hours. We need to prepare for that. They have enough – more than enough – to arrest you again and I would expect that to happen very soon.’

I opened my mouth, closed it again. Words seemed inadequate – everything was happening too fast.

‘It’s not true.’

Larssen put a hand on my arm.

‘Joe, you need to go home, talk to your wife, tell her what’s going to happen. And your son. Give them a little bit of time to prepare for it. There will be nothing worse for them than having this happen out of the blue.’