‘Don’t take this the wrong way,’ said Priest. ‘But, I don’t know you and I’ve got no idea whose side you’re on.’

She laughed and took a step closer to the island, leant over and rested her chin on her hands playfully. Priest resisted the temptation but he knew if he looked down – as she surely wanted him to – he’d see that pink bra again.

‘I want to see Alexia Elias go down just as much as you do,’ she said.

‘Why? What has she done to you?’

‘I just have a very strong moral sense.’

‘Not a common disposition that. For a reporter, I mean.’

‘OK, fine.’ She straightened up and shrugged her shoulders. ‘When I was young, my school was collecting money for the Elias Foundation and my mother refused to give me anything to take in. I guess at the time I was too young to recognise how out of character this was but over the years I noticed that she always avoided that charity. Once I overheard her talking to Dad about them, saying the Eliases were crooks, criminals even. I was shocked. She’s always been such a forgiving, gentle person and yet here she was with nothing but disdain for a children’s charity. Dad, too. He hid it better but I could tell they both had a problem with it. So when I was looking for a story to cover, the Turkish scandal was in full swing and that all came together. I started looking into it – I even went to Ankara and spoke to people there. And I believe that Alexia Elias is up to her neck in it.’

‘You’ve got evidence?’

She faltered, brushed her hair away from her face. ‘No, but you do. Or did . . . until . . .’

‘Until Simeon turned up dead in the back of your car.’

Fox looked down, drew in her lips. ‘That’s right.’

‘So, this is some kind of quest for justice?’ said Priest, unconvinced.

Fox narrowed her eyes; the flirting was evidently over. ‘You’re better than that, Charlie. Don’t lower yourself to using cynicism as a defence. We both have a common goal. Why don’t we join forces?’

‘I let you tag along to Simeon’s flat, didn’t I? What more do you want?’

‘Whatever you do next, I want to be there.’

‘How do I know I can trust you?’

‘Seen the news lately? Not exactly overwhelmed with talk of a dead witness in a high-profile libel case, is it?’

She had a point. The latest round of North Korean economic sanctions and some boy band split were the only current news topics of interest. So far, nothing about the libel trial, or Simeon’s murder.

‘Look,’ she said, ‘if not collaboration then at least cooperation. What do you say?’

She cocked her head to one side again – she never seemed to blink.

‘What exactly do you mean?’ asked Priest.