Kelly noted their grim faces and knew she had to rally them today. It was a welcome diversion, if a short one, for her to recharge and reset. They sat round a large table set up in the centre of the roomy space, and each was ready with a laptop, but also a good old-fashioned pen and notepad. The room was warm and coffees were distributed generously. There was no time for pleasantries, other than a cordial greeting. Kelly would have liked to have asked everyone’s plans for Christmas, already knowing that Kate was planning to introduce Andrew to her girls. But it wasn’t really the time. DC Rob Shawcross, her money expert, looked drained, as he had done since the day his son was born just over a year ago – in fact, they’d had cake in the office to celebrate the milestone. His wife was pregnant with number two. His Christmas would be full of nappies and cheap plastic toys, as would Kelly’s. Kelly had come into the office early on several occasions to find Rob asleep on a few chairs pulled together, covered with coats, and she understood how he saw the office as a calmer place to be than home.

DC Emma Hide sat next to DS Dan Houghton, as they did frequently and openly now. They manoeuvred themselves on to the same jobs but, to Kelly, this wasn’t a professional problem, because they worked together so well. But she was well aware that the two were lovers as well, despite Dan being married. Her eye was firmly on their corner, in case the relationship spilled out into the work environment. It happened. Sometimes detectives spent so many long hours together that they became the job. Kelly had done it herself, back in London with her boss, somebody she’d taken years to forget. Relationships were complicated, she should know. But she was no marriage guidance counsellor.

Her team was solid, even if they didn’t really want to talk about Christmas.