‘I’ve been spying on her from upstairs while you and Mum were chatting,’ Agnieszka said. ‘She and her hubby are acquaintances of Olaf’s. He does their accounts.’ She turned to her mother. ‘Anyway, let’s get you back in the warm, Mum. Thanks for your help with the bags, Inspector.’

‘It’s no trouble.’ My mind was buzzing with questions, including why the bar owners hadn’t come up in the H-2-H inquiries or mobile phone ring-fencing.

Agnieszka and Rosa clattered through the shop, and back up to the flat, and Dan walked over to speak to the crime scene guard. It was then that the turmoil of the day hit me. I stood outside the newsagent’s, facing the street, taking in the cool evening air. What an awful day it had been. The squat, Ali, the UnSub. And now this stuff with Dad.

I sank to the ground and perched on the shop step for a few moments, my back against the door. How I wished Jasmina had been with me to see the photos of Dad with Józef and the other two men. Had she forgotten things about Dad too? I stood up, wanting to see Rosa’s shop as I had as a child. I turned and looked up at the glass-panelled door. The CLOSED sign. The window displays.

And there it was, above the door frame, the Star of David that Rosa had seen earlier, etched into the brickwork.

And I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling I’d had when I first saw it. In fact, the more I thought about it, the more certain I was that we were missing something. What if it wasn’t a despicable act of anti-Semitism, but a missing link in our case?

Dan, 9.30 p.m.

Dan, 9.30 p.m.

‘What d’you think it means?’ Maya asked him, and pointed at the Star of David outside the newsagent’s. She’d called Dan over to look at it again, and he could feel her studying his reactions.

‘Definitely looks new.’ He shone his torch on the brickwork and stepped back to get a longer view. ‘Could be kids. Most people will know Rosa’s a Jew. Maybe anti-Semitism . . . ?’

Dan caught Maya’s worried expression.

‘On the other hand,’ he looked over at the remains of the soup shop, ‘. . . it could be those low-lifes leaving us a message that they’ve got their sights on Rosa’s shop too?’

‘Which d’you reckon is most likely?’

Dan sucked air in through his teeth. ‘That’s a tough call. But having her windows smashed is a lot less serious than having her shop set light to.’ He glanced at Maya. ‘What’s your take on it? You’re usually Ms Instinct.’