Well, they’ve done a good job hushing it up. Liz Marcek was always very precious about the school’s reputation. She was horrified at the idea of students having sex on school premises, kept bleating about how the school would be closed. She sighed again. We were hardly the first residential school where something like that had happened. But I shouldn’t be too hard on her, she was grieving for her brother at the time and her behaviour was erratic. She refused to take any time off and wouldn’t talk about it, but rumours were that he’d overdosed.

Jane seemed to have another thought, cocked her head on one side and looked at me. Do the police suspect Leon of having killed his teacher? she asked, a frown on her face.

At the moment they don’t know exactly what happened, I replied, so they’re keeping an open mind. I didn’t want her to start grilling me about the case.

Jane nodded thoughtfully. Well, I can’t imagine that the boy I knew would hurt someone. How was he killed?

Anna and I looked at each other. This wasn’t something I had even discussed with her. He was stabbed, I eventually replied.

Jane grimaced. They’ll think it could be him, because of his history with his father. But it can’t have been Leon.

Why do you say that?

Because I know that boy, and he’s changed. He can control himself, and I know he wouldn’t have done something like that. She slapped a hand down on the arm of her chair. I know Leon. I know all of my students, and just because I was forced out early doesn’t mean I don’t still think about them and have concerns for them.

Could Leon have seen what happened? Jane continued. Could he have witnessed his teacher being killed? she asked me.

I don’t know, I replied, but it is possible. They were in the park at the same time, in roughly the same area, so the police can’t rule it out.

That could explain why he ran away, she replied. If he’s a witness, he will be terrified.

Wouldn’t he want to go to the police and explain what happened? Anna asked.

Not if the person who killed Mr Wilkinson is someone he trusted, Jane reasoned. The school is Leon’s only safe place, and if someone there has shattered that safety, he’ll be scared and won’t know what to do. If he goes to the police, maybe they won’t believe him, then he’ll be sent back to school to spend time with the very person he knows is a murderer.