Dan was in front of the board again. ‘I agree with both those possibilities. My gut feeling is that we can rule out extremism, but I think we need to consider that it may have been a racist attack.’

I gestured to the board. ‘OK, until we know what or who the targets of the arson were, we will need to consider all of these hypotheses. What else do we need to know?’

‘Was the flash mob a distraction so that the arsonists could start the fire?’ A familiar voice echoed through the room. ‘In other words, are we looking at organised crime?’

‘Jackie?’ I said, incredulous. ‘What are you doing here?’

Maya, 7.45 p.m.

Maya, 7.45 p.m.

‘Surely the grapevine hasn’t stopped working?’ Jackie chuckled as she cruised in confidently and surveyed the incident room.

The team were transfixed.

‘Hello, everyone. I’m DCI Jackie Lawson. I’ll be covering your DCI post until a permanent appointment is made. If you’re nice to me, you might get stuck with me. I’m looking for a cushy number.’ She peered at me and grinned, and I couldn’t help noticing that a curiosity-induced pink filter had slid over Dan’s usual white face. ‘I’m not here to be SIO, Maya. Don’t worry.’

‘The last I heard you’d moved from the Met to the North-West,’ I said.

‘Correct. I’ve been leading a new team there as part of the Serious Organised Crime Strategy. Masses of it in the North-West, lots in the South-East. The hotspot is in London. I’m going to be based here at Limehouse, but my brief is to monitor all ongoing Met investigations for elements of organised crime.’

The room was silent. All eyes were on the woman who was the epitome of smart-casual in her black jeans and white cotton shirt. It was clear she hadn’t gone soft. Jackie Lawson was known for her mischievous sense of humour and was one of the sharpest and toughest cops in the service. ‘It’s great to see you. I had no idea you were coming here.’ I’d only checked my email ten minutes earlier and there’d been no mention of Jackie joining the team. ‘We’ll catch up after briefing, yes?’ I faced the room again. ‘Dan, add DCI Lawson’s question to the board, please, and let’s continue. Who’s next?’

‘The analysts are working on a number of significant eyewitness statements,’ Shen said. ‘Their initial report is due any moment.’

‘And we’ve made a start on the CCTV,’ Alexej said. ‘The fire took hold so quickly, and produced so much smoke, it’s difficult to see much but if there’s anything useful, we’ll find it. I’m still calling security operators for footage from the hours prior to the flash mob and the fire.’