Just then the door to the pub opened and a man and a woman entered. James recognised Beth the barmaid and assumed the guy was Josh the chef.

‘Sorry we’re late,’ Beth said when she spotted Sonia. ‘But all hell has broken out and …’

She trailed off mid-sentence when she realised that the atmosphere in the room was charged and that her boss was clearly distressed.

‘What is it, Sonia?’ she said. ‘What on earth is wrong?’

It was up to James to put the pair of them in the picture. They were already aware that a body had been found and that was why the police had descended on Kirkby Abbey. But they were shocked to learn that the dead man was Charlie Jenkins.

James told them the pub would have to remain closed and asked them if they would sit with Sonia for a while. He learned from Sonia that her parents were still alive and living in Leeds, and her twenty-two-year-old daughter, Maddie, was living and working as a nanny in Dubai. Charlie had a mother in York and a brother in Sheffield.

He asked Beth to write down their contact details and told Sonia that he would make sure they were all told what had happened.

‘I want to break the news to Maddie myself,’ Sonia said. ‘I’ll call her.’

‘Are you sure?’

She nodded. ‘I can’t let a stranger do it.’

James fully understood where she was coming from. He knew that in her position he would feel the same way.

‘I have to go and see what’s going on, Mrs Jenkins,’ he said. ‘But I’ll arrange for an officer to come and stay with you. He or she will answer any questions you have and keep you informed of progress with the investigation. I’ll come back and see you in a little while.’

She looked up at him, her eyes pleading. ‘You have to find out who did this to Charlie. He was far from perfect, but he didn’t deserve to be murdered like that.’

James nodded. ‘I promise I will do everything I can to find whoever did this. In the meantime, I’d like your permission for us to go through your husband’s belongings. It’s possible we’ll find something that will provide us with vital information.’

‘Do whatever you have to,’ Sonia said, before breaking down in tears again.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

There were still dozens of people in the square when James exited The White Hart. They were mostly huddled together in groups or being spoken to by uniformed officers.

It was much gloomier now, thanks to a threatening mass of dark cloud that hung over the village, looking ready to unleash another pile of snow.

He picked out one of the uniforms he’d never met before, and asked her to go and stay with Sonia Jenkins.

‘Don’t let her out of your sight,’ he said. ‘And call me if there’s a problem. I’ll be back shortly.’

As he started walking in the direction of the field he heard someone call out his name. He turned to see Father Silver striding towards him after breaking away from a group that included the school’s headmistress, Lorna Manning, and Peter King from the grocery store.