‘Same as you. If the fire at the soup shop wasn’t intended to be serious, and got out of control quicker than they expected, these scum-bags could have the same plan for Rosa’s place. The star could be the arsonists leaving us a message that Rosa’s shop is the next to be torched.’ She craned her neck to get a good look at Alchemia. ‘Isn’t that a CCTV camera over there? It looks like one of those high-spec rotating ones. If it is, it might have some film of Rosa’s shop when she was in hospital. Let’s go and see what the shopkeeper can tell us. See if she’ll let us view their CCTV.’

As they approached Alchemia, the woman they’d seen was replacing the COMING SOON sign in the shop window with OPENING NEXT WEEK. The tinted glass was even darker than it had looked, and the charcoal-grey interior gave a disconcerting impression.

‘They’ve transformed this place in the last twenty-four hours,’ Dan muttered. ‘They must’ve had half the local tradies on their job.’

They showed their warrants and Maya introduced themselves. ‘Are you the owner?’

‘Yes. Monika Waglowa.’ She had a pleasant manner and a cheerful face.

‘You’re working late.’

‘Tell me about it,’ she said wearily. ‘We lost so much time yesterday and we’re opening soon.’

‘That’s what we’d like to speak to you about,’ Maya said. ‘Our records show that the house-to-house teams didn’t manage to speak to you after the fire at the soup shop yesterday. Weren’t you around?’

‘I was at home all day, looking after my dad.’ She continued to buff the glass as she spoke. ‘He had a hip replacement last week and has moved in with us for a few weeks. The first I heard about the fire was when the fire brigade called me around two.’

‘Where is home?’

‘West Ham.’

‘Was anyone working here on Friday?’ Maya was peering through the window.

‘Until the fire officers switched off the electricity.’

‘What happened then?’

‘I rang my husband and he locked the shop up.’

‘One more thing.’ Maya pointed at the CCTV camera and Dan could see her assessing viewing angles.

His phone vibrated.

‘Does your system at the front reach the newsagent’s?’ she asked.

‘Yes, it covers two premises either side of this one, on both sides of the street. You’re welcome to have a look at it, but I’ll have to get my husband over. I haven’t a clue how to work it.’

Dan’s phone vibrated again. He scanned his messages and felt his spirits rise. This was what they’d been waiting for. Indra Ulbiene had been discharged from hospital. Hopefully now she’d tell them who the woman was that Simas had been having an affair with.

Maya, 10 p.m.

Maya, 10 p.m.