‘You see, no matter what you live through, there is nothing harder than losing our loved ones. And sometimes that loss comes with responsibility. Sometimes to watch them die. Sometimes you have to do what we’re asking you to do now. And no matter who you are – whether you’re a soldier or a spy or a cop who deals with death every day, or whether you’re just a regular guy – you have to bear that responsibility. That’s what you have to do now, Russell. It’s a shitty thing, but you have to. Because your dad deserves at least that. Doesn’t he?’

Longman sat silently for a moment as her words sank in. Her tone had been kind, empathetic, but the underlying message had been unmistakable.

Be a man, dammit.

‘But you don’t have to do it alone,’ Levy offered. ‘We can wait, if there’s someone else to be here to support you?’

They were the words that made him realise he had no choice. The task was his, and his alone.

He took a final deep breath, forced down the anxiety that was rising in his gut and looked Levy in the eyes.

‘What will he look like? Will he be bloody?’

‘No, Russell.’ Levy’s tone had not changed. ‘Your dad’s been cleaned up. He’ll look asleep. That’s all.’

‘But what about his injuries? His mouth? What the officers told me—’

‘That’s all been dealt with. We wouldn’t have left him like that.’

Longman thought he saw a flash of anger cross Levy’s face before she replied. He realised in that moment he had been told more about his father’s manner of death than Levy would have liked. Not that it mattered to him. He had other concerns.

‘And the cuts? Over his body?’

‘They’ve been cleaned and covered up, Russell. You won’t need to see them.’

‘Have they not been stitched? Why have they been left open?’ Longman’s voice began to rise. His mind had found an outrage onto which he could cling.

‘That can’t happen, Russell. It’s a murder investigation. That means we have to carry out an autopsy. Until that’s over there’s only so much we can do to your father’s body, otherwise we risk compromising evidence. I know how it must feel. Really I do. But believe me, it’d be worse if we did something that let this evil bastard walk once we’ve caught him.’

Longman nodded again. This time with more focus in his eyes. The good sense of Levy’s words once again cut through the confusion in his mind.

They brought clarity, but also more questions.

‘Do you have any leads yet? Any at all?’

His voice was stronger now. Less emotional.

‘It’s much too early, Russell, but we will.’ Levy spoke with utter confidence. ‘Your dad probably made a hell of a lot of enemies over the years, what with his position and who he was. But what was done to him? That was a special kind of evil, and that narrows the field. So we’ll find the bastard. He won’t walk away from this.’