‘What are you getting at, Laura? What’s the relevance?’

‘I’m saying that things aren’t always as they seem. Don’t jump to conclusions. If someone claims he saw a woman matching Megan’s description carrying a child from the house that night, we can’t rule it out without very good reason. Things can be infinitely more complex than they first seem. The bleach investigation taught me that. We could be dealing with one of those complicated cases.’

Lewis turned his body, speaking in a steady, lower-pitched voice. ‘Why would this so-called witness be out and about at that time of the fucking morning? It’s bullshit. He’s full of crap, a wind-up merchant. We shouldn’t get drawn in.’

‘Did you run a credit check?’

‘Yeah, she’s fine, no significant money worries. I wish I were half as well off.’

‘It’s the same with social services, Megan’s not known to them.’

‘What about the school?’

Kesey smiled thinly. ‘I spoke to the head, Sheena Aldridge. I know her pretty well. She’s down to earth. I feel I can trust her judgement.’

‘What did she tell you, any concerns?’

‘No, she had nothing but nice things to say, nothing but positives. Sheena’s known Megan since they were both kids and says she’s a devoted parent. She feels nothing but sympathy for her situation.’

‘There you go. What does that tell you? The woman’s a victim, not a suspect. It couldn’t be more obvious.’

Kesey opened and closed her mouth, collecting her thoughts, struggling to find the right words. ‘I know what you’re saying, Ray. But we still can’t ignore the call. If we do nothing and it turns out that Megan was involved, however remote the possibility, where does that leave us? And that’s a rhetorical question, by the way. I’d be hung out to dry. Right up shit creek.’

‘Okay, I’ll run with it. But if Megan did take Lottie into the street at four in the morning, what did she do with her? It’s bullshit, utter crap. We’ve searched the entire area. If Megan hurt Lottie, or even killed her, and then dumped her, we’d have found the body. How far could she carry a child of that age, and without being seen by anyone else? I’m telling you it didn’t happen. The caller wants to cause disruption. He’s a troll who wants a reaction. And I say fuck him. He’s got nothing to offer us.’

Kesey frowned hard. ‘We’ve had this conversation. We’ve got to follow it up, simple as. I’m not any happier about it than you are. But that’s the way it is. I’m not going to change my mind however long you bang on for.’

Lewis met her eyes with a look of resigned acceptance. ‘Okay, you’re the boss, we’ll do it your way. But let’s tread carefully. We’ll have a good look around the house, talk to Megan, and then we can put it to bed and forget it. We’ll have done our duty, and hopefully, we won’t have caused the unfortunate woman any more distress than we have to. She’s got enough shit to deal with without us trampling all over her life. Can you imagine how she’s going to feel when we turn up at her door? If she’s innocent, which I’m telling you she is, it’s going to be the worst feeling in the world. And even worse than that, she’s never going to trust us again.’