They began to go through the little piles of possessions beside the bunks and to lift things out of bags to look further inside. At first they were cautious, reluctant even, held back by the taboo against touching things that didn’t belong to them. But gradually a feeling for it came over them and they pulled open cases, unravelled clothes and plunged shoulder-deep into rucksacks.

Then Gavin said, ‘I think I’ve got something, boss.’ Tweezing it between finger and thumb, he held up a pair of boxer shorts patterned with penguins and intoned, ‘World Exclusive: Beast caught with its pants down’.

Adrian’s laugh came out as a snort. He said, ‘Come on, put those back.’

Gavin bent over to replace the patterned boxers in the bag he’d taken them from but stopped midway. ‘Hold on,’ he said. ‘There’s a document in here as well.’ Adrian looked around while Gavin ceremoniously unfolded a handwritten sheet and, holding it out in front of him, began to read: ‘“My dear R…”’

‘My dear what, sorry?’

‘It’s just the letter R.’

‘Oh, right. OK. Shorthand, probably. Maybe an emotional farewell to his wife.’

Gavin re-centred himself. ‘“My dear R, I’m too happy to sleep and so I have to write to you. Your closeness – knowing you’re in a bunk only a few feet from mine, is—”’

‘Stop, stop, stop,’ interrupted Adrian in embarrassment. ‘That’s just someone’s personal letter.’

‘Sounds like two of them are shagging. Do you think this is an all-male dorm?’

‘That makes no difference at all. Put it back. Although, there’s nothing in there about how sad he’d be if the other one got blown up, is there? Or how worried he is about the other one?’

Gavin scanned down the page. ‘It’s pretty hard to read.’

‘He must have been writing in the dark. With the torch on his phone.’

Gavin continued to the bottom and turned the page over. As he squinted at the progressively smaller, messier script, a plummy female voice hailed them from the door. ‘What the bloody hell are you two doing?’

Adrian saw a bush of sand-coloured hair, a blue jacket and a summer dress printed with enormous pale flowers. He started to put together an excuse, but she carried on over him: ‘Don’t you know that everyone’s supposed to be in the newsroom already? Or did you think you rather felt like doing a bit of malingering instead?’

Adrian took his cue. ‘We were just tidying up a bit first.’

‘Tidying up! What are you, maiden aunts? Or is it just that subs really are the most hopeless gang of pedants?’

Geraldine glared at them as if expecting an answer. Adrian played his part, mumbling, ‘We just thought it’d be better if things were in order.’