‘Julian Greenwood was standing somewhere over there.’ Priest indicated to where the incline softened and an unkempt pathway wound its way into the distance. They started to walk upwards.

‘If this was Alexia and Dominique’s house, why does the picture show Dominique’s illegitimate child standing outside it?’ asked Georgie. ‘You said you thought he lived with his mother.’

‘Somebody’s trying to make a point,’ said Priest. It was something he had presumed from the moment the photograph conveniently fell out of its hiding place, but he’d yet to articulate it out loud.

‘You think Julian was taken here against his will?’

‘Not necessarily.’

‘But he was here, right?’

‘Have another look at the photograph.’

Priest handed the picture to her. She studied it carefully, held it up so it was level with the horizon. Moved it around to reconcile the images. Waited for her to work it out. He didn’t have to wait long.

‘Oh, I see,’ she said. She stood roughly in the spot where Julian stood in the photo, measuring the location against a distinctive cluster of clay stone protruding from the grass. ‘On the photograph, Julian’s shadow pitches forward, towards the camera, suggesting the sun is behind him.’

‘Whereas?’

‘Whereas the treeline obstructs the lower part of the skyline. At this distance, if the sun was low enough to cast a shadow at the angle in the photo, it would be obscured by the trees. It would be almost overhead by the time the light broke over the treeline.’

‘Very good.’

‘But couldn’t the photograph have been taken in autumn or winter?’

‘Nope. They’re evergreens, meaning the picture is a fake.’

Georgie handed the photograph back and they resumed their trek up the hillside.

*

When they reached the house, Georgie did her best to hide the fact that she was slightly out of breath. She was slim (like an eel, as her father used to say to tease her), but she wasn’t one for going to the gym and she preferred pizza to the protein shakes and bird seed that Li ate all the time. I swear I’m a fat girl trapped in the body of a gymnast.

By contrast, Charlie looked like he was strong enough to run up the hill with the house on his back.

‘I wonder why the house wasn’t sold,’ Georgie mused. ‘It looks abandoned.’

‘Mm. Looks like it could make someone a good project.’