I understood why they wanted to do something. In a small community, you protected your own; even if they didn’t know Leon, they identified with him in many ways, and they wanted to make sure he was safe. They’d just gone about it in the wrong way.

‘Want me to wait around in case they come back?’ I asked Singh, as he watched the group trudge away through the slush.

He nodded slowly, deep in thought. ‘Probably a good idea. I’m off to look at the pavilion, if you want to come with me?’

It seemed a strange request, as I wasn’t a police officer, but I knew from the last case that he liked to have someone to bounce his ideas off, and it looked like there was something on his mind.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, following the police tape through the churned-up snow. It was only once the cabins were in sight that I ventured to ask a question.

‘What’s on your mind?’

‘I’m worried about Leon,’ he replied.

I nodded. ‘Do you think he’s alive?’

Singh blew out a long breath. ‘I hope so. If Steve’s murderer also killed Leon, why haven’t we found his body yet? No, I think he’s on the run.’

‘Do you think he killed his teacher?’

‘Either that, or he knows who did it and he’s trying to get away from them. Or they took him with them.’

I shivered. Leon was only fifteen, and whatever had happened I was sure he would be terrified.

We passed the cabins and carried on through the park, until the cricket pavilion came into view. There was blue and white police tape around the building, but Singh lifted it up to allow me to slip underneath, then followed suit.

‘What are you looking for?’ I asked, allowing him to go first as we approached the door to the pavilion.

‘I want to get a feel for the building,’ he replied, glancing at the windows before pushing open the door. ‘I want to try and work out what Leon could have been doing here, see what it’s like inside, find out what he might have seen.’ He gave me a brittle smile. ‘Until we can work out what actually happened, it might help.’

I nodded. ‘Whatever I can do.’ I thought it didn’t really matter who was there, he just needed a warm body to listen to his thoughts as he voiced them, but then he gave me a smile that made my insides glow. I realised he was genuinely pleased I was there with him, and felt flattered that he’d asked me.