Vanessa had found it all very difficult to believe, until he showed her the body in the freezer. She was stunned to see the poor poisoned woman. That’s when she knew Kyle couldn’t be lying. She had cried for the poor girl, living undercover as a musician, working for the underground opposition. Kyle had explained that he wanted to goad the authorities, to convince them Beatrice was still alive, which would force them to show their hand with a huge police operation. He had told Vanessa to expect the British state would kill more people, and try to blame it on him. The newspapers would be proof. In the end he was proved right. Kyle had such a difficult life to live. Even his partner, the awful Angie, didn’t know who he really was, and the terrible secrets he was holding.

Vanessa was very excited, even though she was dizzy from where he had hit her. She quickly realised it must just have been the stress of the situation. She could feel the big roll of cash in her pocket, all her savings that he had asked her to withdraw, because his accounts were being monitored. Once she had burned the car, all she had to do was find her way to Manchester Airport. He would meet her there, in departures by the Thai Airways desk, this evening for the 20.50 flight to Bangkok. It was so romantic. She had been so excited about this that she could hardly sleep.

The one thing he had not explained was how to burn a car.

She assumed that if she just sloshed the petrol around on the seats, and tossed in a match, that would do the trick. But what about the suitcase? If that was all his stuff for their trip, clothes he had forgotten in his haste, he would be furious if she set it on fire. She thought about messaging him, but remembered how angry he’d been before when she disobeyed him. She lifted the rear hatch and tried to open the case. It was locked, and there was also a surprisingly big padlock with a combination on it. Clearly there was something important in there, and there was no way he would want her to burn it. She tugged it towards the edge of the boot, and tried to lift it down. It must’ve weighed almost as much as she did, but she managed. Why didn’t it have wheels? Vanessa slid, pushed and shoved the case into the base of the hedge, next to the car. She covered it with a branch so it couldn’t be seen so easily, but then realised it might catch fire when she burnt the vehicle. What was she to do? She thought for a moment and then realised that driving the car a short way would avoid the problem. Then if Kyle needed the suitcase he could come back and pick it up. Although he had been so stressed with her, she thought he would be pleased that she had shown this piece of initiative. She climbed into the car, started the engine, and set off further down the lane. She found a layby midway between two bungalows. She leaned over to the passenger seat and unscrewed the can of petrol. The stink of the fuel filled her lungs, and she tipped it out onto the passenger seat. A sudden coldness on her thigh made her realise she had splashed her leggings. She would have to be really careful. Opening the door and easing her way out of the driver’s seat, she took the box of matches and a single match, holding it away from her, and struck it against the side of the box. It flared, and she immediately tossed it inside the vehicle.