‘You knew very well, it was going to be a nightmare. A public place, more DNA and fingerprints than you can shake a stick at.’

Barrett found himself chewing his lip in order to stop anything negative leaving his mouth.

‘But.’ Bob took a dramatic pause. ‘There is some good news.’

Barrett let out a long slow breath.

‘He was drugged. We’ve found Rohypnol in his system. The stomach contents confirm it was likely put into a drink. Probably tea.’

‘Interesting.’ Barrett had wondered how on earth the killer had managed to manoeuvre his victim into a position where hanging him would have been feasible.

‘The other thing, which is not good news for our man, was that his finger was cut off when he was alive.’ Bob wiped some sweat from his forehead; despite the fact it was minus one outside. ‘Whoever is responsible doesn’t have a brilliant knowledge of anatomy. The wound left behind was messy. I suggest some sort of saw was used. There are small abrasions around the skin that suggest it wasn’t a clean cut.’

Although likely relevant, this wasn’t the sort of information Barrett relished.

‘Likely that the Rohypnol was in his system before the finger was removed,’ Bob added, wanting to improve the situation. ‘The removal of the finger likely took place when the man was suspended.’

Hanged, you mean, Barrett thought to himself.

‘There was evidence that the killer cleaned the floor and the blood afterwards. Why? Well that’s your department. The cause of death was asphyxiation, unsurprisingly.’

Barrett waited hoping there was more.

‘That’s it so far.’ Bob wrapped up the conversation.

‘Right.’ The cogs of Barrett’s brain were whirling. Why remove the finger? ‘Well thanks, Bob. Keep in touch.’ He hung up before the pathologist could respond.

‘Hanging was cause of death. The finger was removed before he died. He had Rohypnol in his system.’ Barrett reeled off the facts to Palmer as if he were reading a shopping list.

‘Rohypnol?’ Palmer’s eyebrows rose. ‘That, I was not expecting.’

‘Unusual, I agree.’

‘Flunitrazepam is usually proscribed for insomnia. It has ten times the strength of Valium, but it’s easy and cheap to get hold of, so it’s sometimes used as a parachute drug, to lessen the effects of coming down from other narcotics.’

‘Presumably the drug was used so that the killer could get his victim into the noose.’

‘That’s what I’m thinking, Joe.’

‘Hanging… it’s pretty old fashioned.’ Palmer picked at the skin around one of his fingernails. ‘I mean, if you want to kill someone, there are easier ways.’

Barrett had turned his back to his colleague and watched as minute flakes began to float from the sky, promising to refresh the disturbed layer on the ground.

‘What are you thinking?’ Palmer asked the question before he had a chance to check himself. Barrett turned, a bemused expression on his face.