James was able to speak to them on the phone once a fortnight and somehow he managed to keep up a convincing front. I visited him without them, studied the case with the lawyers. But there didn’t seem much to know. The police had impounded a huge amount of heroin that had been contained in the shipment of furniture – and that was that. James swore at first he didn’t know what Lana meant about the blackmail, but he did eventually admit that Kate was the same girl from the café all those years ago, that cold morning in Oxford. The waitress who’d stolen my scarf.

‘I bumped into her,’ he said when I confronted him about it. ‘I went to the bank and it was opposite the café. She recognised me from Facebook.’

‘So you didn’t just bump into each other? Make up your mind, J, for God’s sake.’

‘We’d emailed a bit on Facebook last year,’ he scowled. ‘But we had no plans to meet. It was just – oh God, Rose. Whatever. We met, we went for a drink.’

‘And?’

‘And one thing led to another. She’d trained at the circus place in London, but she still helped her mum and dad out when she was back in Oxford. I got her a job in Paris.’

‘Very convenient. So why – what happened?’

‘Nothing happened.’

‘You fell in love,’ I said sourly.

‘Not love, no. Just—’

‘What? Lust?’

‘I suppose. It was nice to feel wanted. But it was only once or twice, Rose, I swear.’ He took my hand. ‘I want to make things work.’

It was too late for us, though. I knew that much. Only – what do they say? Don’t kick a man when he’s about to go down.

‘And the money thing? The big man thing? Kate’s flatmate, Lana, mentioned a big man – and she means Higham, I know she does. He hauled me in to see him. He was threatening me. Trying to buy me off.’

‘There was no money thing.’

‘James, I know you were in trouble financially. What were those photos doing in the cupboard? The photos of Higham?’

‘They were his son’s.’ James wouldn’t meet my eye now. ‘Charlie Higham’s.’

‘When did you get involved with him? Why didn’t you tell me you’d met him?’

‘Why would I?’

‘Oh, come on, James. The kid who Dalziel tried to get us to kill. Why would you not mention him?’

He dropped my hand.

‘I felt bad when I first met him, I admit it. I gave him free entry, VIP membership, free drinks – but he’s just an arrogant little fucker who thinks the world owes him a living, Rose. Just like Dalziel, in fact.’

‘I don’t think Dalziel really thought that,’ I said quietly. ‘I think he was desperately lonely and unhappy.’