Back off? I have a very clear memory of each of yesterday’s sessions and the sheer weight of the evidence they seem to have amassed against me still makes my pulse quicken, yet I believe this woman when she advises me to simply be myself.

‘Tony says you’re an actress by trade.’

‘That’s true.’

‘And is yourself a role you might play to some effect? Because he thinks it is.’

‘I’m flattered.’

‘Don’t be. The police don’t take prisoners, not in the way that you and I understand, and neither do lawyers. Bullivant can be a real monster, especially around women. He might not look the part, but lie down and he’ll kick you to death. This happens to be his last big case. Which gives him every incentive to misbehave.’

‘I know that.’

‘Brett told you? Tony said you two were buddies.’

‘That’s true. On both counts.’

‘Good.’ She gathers her papers together and swallows the remains of her coffee. ‘That’s something else I’ve had a word about. Putting you in with young Brett breaks every rule in the book.’

We have to wait a while before Bullivant and Leadbetter appear. The atmosphere in the interview suite is immediately different. Bullivant is more cautious. Yesterday, he was far from cavalier, because he doesn’t do reckless, but I get the feeling my insistence on hiding behind ‘no comment’ gave him ample scope to put his jewels on the table, fix me with that dead stare, and browbeat me into submission. This doesn’t work with Andrea. She clearly comes with a reputation, or perhaps a health warning. Tread carefully. Treat with care.

She begins by suggesting to Bullivant that I might like to make a statement. This I’m more than happy to do. I tell him that I knew Christianne for just three days, and that there’s absolutely no evidence they’ll ever find to suggest otherwise. Christianne was French, like me. We got on incredibly well. We laughed a good deal. And we compared notes on what our lives had taught us with that candour that only a brand-new friendship can spark. Should I have been more curious about little physical problems she seemed to have? The answer is yes. Did she ever admit to having MND? Absolutely not. The issue of what she might have in mind to do about it therefore never arose. We were briefly mates. In French, le mot juste would be copine.

‘That’s c-o-p-i-n-e.’ I spell it for Bullivant’s benefit. ‘I imagine you might like to write it down.’