The ridge above the loch was exposed and the gusts even colder. She leaned into the wind, picking up pace and widening her stride, one foot in front of the other, until without pausing she stepped off the edge and plunged feet first into the freezing water below.

2

Day 1

Gerald Porter sat upright at the small table. The mop of red hair he usually wore long and a little unkempt was today brushed back from his face. With no press or public to see there was no need to cultivate his trademark ‘man of the people’ image. The glass of water in front of him remained untouched and the seat opposite empty. He knew they were leaving him to stew; expecting that the longer he spent in this windowless room alone, the more desperate he would become to speak and escape. But Porter was stronger than they knew.

An hour and forty minutes later the door opened and a smartly dressed Asian woman entered. Her black hair was secured neatly at the nape of her neck and her dark eyes studied him, not with the awe and respect he was used to but with curiosity and a touch of impatience. She was accompanied by an older man. The one who had brought him to this room earlier today. What was his name again? It had been a town, Chester or Lincoln maybe?

‘Mr Porter, I am Detective Chief Inspector Mirza. I believe you’ve met Detective Inspector Bristol.’

Bristol. His first wife had been from Bristol. He should have remembered that. He did not respond to their introductions. There was no need. They knew who he was.

DCI Mirza sat in the chair opposite. ‘I understand you are having some trouble recalling your whereabouts from 8am on Wednesday 24th January until midday on Friday 26th?’

Porter smiled. She got straight to the point. You had to like that.

When he did not respond she continued. ‘Your PA informs us you had not booked any leave and that you claimed your last-minute trip was urgent. She also told us that having no details of your whereabouts in your diary for this amount of time is rare, if not unprecedented. So, where were you?’

‘Why do you want to know?’

‘You know why.’

‘Explain it to me.’

Mirza placed her hands together on the table and leaned towards him. ‘A serious accusation has been made against you, Mr Porter. It would be in your best interest to cooperate.’

Porter sat back in his chair and placed his hands behind his head. ‘It’s not my responsibility to prove my innocence. It’s your responsibility to prove my guilt.’

‘But surely it’s in your interest to prove your innocence. This will be less painful if you do. Now, why don’t you tell me who you met and why?’

Porter returned to his previous position with his hands on his thighs and his back straight.