‘Fantastic. I didn’t want to ask.’

‘It was a little one, but they all count.’

He held her close, and kissed the top of her head. There had been numerous attempts at lovemaking since Sam’s kidnapping ordeal a year ago. Faltering to begin with, each in its own way had been a stepping stone to rebuild the trust and intimacy that her PTSD had shattered. Today was the first time since then that she had been able to surrender to the pleasure. He knew it would get better from here.

For the rest of that evening Sam was in a bubbly mood, affectionate and relaxed. Abandoning plans to cook, they ordered a Chinese takeaway, and instead of drinking wine, shared a pot of loose leaf jasmine tea. For once the crime gods were kind to them and Gillard’s mobile stayed silent all evening. As they slipped into the cool sheets, they both knew they were going to make love again. After a few minutes under the covers, she pulled his head up from between her thighs. ‘God, I’m ready. I think today’s the day. Let’s build a new future.’

While Gillard was busy at home, someone else was busy at the crime scene. PC Sarah Noakes was sitting in her patrol car at the bottom of the lane in Rissington Common next to the gate which led to the meadow. She could see the embankment and the silhouettes of the motionless machinery against a Prussian blue sky. The CSI team had finished for the night, but she was to keep an eye on the crime scene until they came back at seven the next morning. She had with her a takeaway coffee, now cooling, and a magazine of sudoku puzzles. She was just finishing a fiendishly complex one when she saw movement in her peripheral vision. Looking up, there was a figure moving in the meadow amongst the willows that marked the water’s edge. Male, large, hooded, stealthy. Carrying something heavy. The silhouette passed behind a thicket and disappeared. She picked up her radio and called it in, then repositioned the car so she could shine the headlamps towards him. With the lights on full beam she stepped out, and called across towards the water. ‘This is a crime scene. You are not allowed here. Come away immediately.’