‘But you had fun, I know you did.’

‘Even if I wasn’t married, even if you weren’t too young, you’re a client.’

‘So? Is there some rule against it? Seeing an ex-client?’

I don’t answer.

‘There is, isn’t there? That’s all that’s stopping you.’

‘It’s a breach of protocol, yes, but I am married, and you forced yourself— ’

‘Forced myself?’

‘You kissed me, Cormac. Not the other way around. So that’s why I am ending this call now,’ I say, pulling into a park outside of my office. I think of Peter, how it ended, the weeks of uncertainty as the inquest went on.

‘You don’t mean it,’ he says slowly, and there’s sadness in his voice. ‘You don’t mean that, Margot.’

‘Please leave me alone now,’ I say, ending the call.

Chapter Nineteen

NINETEEN

THE REST OF the day is long and slow. I let Anna leave at five, knowing that I will be with my last client until six, then I’ll leave myself. At no point will I be alone. I try to focus that last hour, but I’m plagued by thoughts about the fingerprints, what it means if they’re a match and what it means if they’re not. The verdict is coming. When the session ends, I take payment and see the client out. I should leave. I know I can’t stay there alone but when I check my phone, I find I have one missed call from Simms. The anticipation makes my chest weak. I call him back.

‘Margot,’ he says. ‘I’ve got news. I’d suggest you grab a seat.’

‘Tell me, what is it?’

‘I ran the prints.’

I draw a breath. ‘And?’ There’s a long pause. Too long. I can hear my heart slamming in my chest. ‘What is it, tell me?’

He clears his throat. ‘We have a partial match of the left thumb.’

‘What does that mean?’

‘It means with a likelihood of about ninety-five percent, he’s touched the sheet of paper that was left on your doorstep. It looks like he’s our guy.’

I feel I could collapse as relief surges through me. I compose myself. I knew it, I just knew it, the bastard. ‘So will you arrest him now?’

‘Well, listen, we almost always know who has committed most crimes, but that’s not how the courts work. You need to be able to prove it.’

‘We can prove it with the fingerprints.’

An uncomfortable moment of silence. ‘Well, that’s not quite true. Like I said today, we can prove that he touched that piece of paper that had the image on it. The police prosecutors would call this evidence flimsy, especially given how I came upon this evidence, but it’s enough to bring him in for questioning.’

‘You’ll do that now?’