‘You heard, then,’ he says, holding Fin close.

‘About your happy event? Yes. Good on you. Seems a nice girl. Fiery temper, of course, but that’s in the blood. Seems to have done wonders for you.’

He smiles, unable to help it. ‘I’ve tried not to tell people, but I know word gets around …’

‘You should have just told me,’ she says, looking a little disappointed in him. ‘None of my business, of course, but were you seeing each other before it happened?’

He shakes his head. ‘No, I just knew the family. Kind of a whirlwind, I suppose.’

‘That’s what she said.’ Bradley nods. ‘Wish I had better news for them. I’m not part of it anymore. The file’s still officially open but we’ve nowhere left to take it. You’ll have heard about the two brothers? Missing for months now. Maybe recipients of some summary justice but Roper’s not giving it any more resources than needs be. Did I hear you’re moving onto his team?’

‘Possibly,’ says McAvoy, conscious of the falling temperature and his son’s warm breath at his neck. ‘I need to make sense of some things first.’

‘Don’t we all.’ Bradley smiles and shakes her head again. ‘They never listened to me anyway. Roper and his hangers-on. Lost interest in Eva-Jayne pretty quickly. Chalking it down to somebody feeling pissed off about hearing their future wasn’t much better than their present. I can’t say for sure. We’ve traced her regulars – all had plenty nice things to say about her. A lovely lady. Wouldn’t be a bad inscription on a headstone, would it? Is she OK, your wife? Memories like that …’

‘She never really saw anything, as she said in her statement,’ says McAvoy, fidgeting. He fiddles with Fin’s little bootie. Unlaces it and laces it up again.

‘The chap she bumped into on the stairs – you can tell her he’s grand, by the way. Still has the odd nightmare about the girl who jumped down the stairs and put him on his backside but I think he rather enjoys having something else to occupy his time. Bit of a saddo, if that isn’t too cruel. Armchair detective. Rings me every couple of days for updates. Wish I could tell him something other than the truth.’

McAvoy presses his lips together until they become a single, bloodless line. ‘Wrong place, wrong time, eh? Thanks for asking, though. I’ll pass that on.’

‘It’s the crystal that’s doing me in,’ says Bradley, talking more to herself than to McAvoy. ‘Not one of hers, that’s pretty clear. Labradorite. It’s a beautiful thing, once you’ve sponged the gore off. Hammered right into her, like a stake through a fucking vampire. It’s a healing stone, your Roisin will know that, I’m sure. To cleanse and realign your chakras – to protect you from bad spirits, bad vibes.’

McAvoy nods, afraid to speak.

‘The mouth injuries too. Roper has it that the tongue was cut out but I’ve seen the photos. Looks to me more like a mutilation – like somebody was cutting it in two.’