Left to herself, Lindsay put a Charlie Mingus album on Paddy’s stereo and settled back for a solitary think. She reviewed all she knew about the case, from its beginning to the present, to make certain she had not missed some glaringly obvious piece of evidence. But eventually she was satisfied that no other vital fragment of information was lurking in the corners of her mind. All the evidence seemed to point inexorably to Anthony Barrington. She was forced to accept Cordelia’s hypothesis that Cartwright was still a possibility, but she had reservations about him. She made a mental note to see if she could find out anything firm about the financial status of his business. If he turned out to be sufficiently solvent, his motive would be virtually demolished.

She thought for some minutes about how she could easily discover the relevant information, but there seemed no obvious answer. She would ask Paddy that afternoon, she thought. Paddy always seemed to have her finger on the pulse of life around her.

She shrugged and reminded herself that, in any event, Cartwright was only second favorite. Anthony Barrington was the horse she fancied. As the phrase formed in her mind, she brought herself up with a jolt. This was no horse race, no game. It was a sick and serious business that had already cost one life and would damage others before it was over. All she could hope to do was to limit the damage by helping to clear the woman she knew in her bones to be innocent.

“And,” she thought wryly, “if I can’t manage this, there’s no hope on God’s earth for Cordelia and me. We’ll never be able to build any relationship with the shadow of Paddy perpetually before us. And I do want this one so very much.”

She was interrupted by a knock at the door. Chris’s curiosity had fired her to arrive ten minutes early. She clearly had difficulty in holding back questions as Lindsay deliberately took her time in making coffee for them both. As she came through with two mugs, Chris could hold back no longer. “What’s all this about?” she demanded.

“I have an idea as to how the murderer got into Music 2,” Lindsay replied. “And I need your help to try out my theory.”

“But I thought it was obvious how it was done. Surely whoever did it just pinched the key and put it back afterward,” said Chris, frowning.