Kerry played with her tulle skirt. “Thanks for this, Leonie. I owe you one.”

I gave her a sideways smile. “I hope we can get this all wrapped up before Athena becomes suspicious. She doesn’t miss much.”

The interview with Lulu Stark was taking place in the press room of the Gala Theatre in town.

It was a cool, sedate space, all shadowy with a panoramic view of the turrets, spires, and tower blocks of Glasgow and framed by red velvet drapes sliding down to the polished beeswax floor.

Lulu Stark was already seated and waiting for us when we arrived.

She was a Scottish Rebel Wilson with an infectious smile. She indicated to the acid-green armchairs opposite hers.

Once small talk had been exchanged, I began by asking her about her skincare brand.

Lulu enthused about her brand, Stardust, and was about to extoll the virtues of its eco-packaging when I slid a measured side-eye to Kerry. This was her cue.

I noticed her fingers gripping her notebook as though she were about to tear it into shreds. “Ms Stark,” she smiled, swallowing. “Sorry to interrupt but I wanted to raise something with you.”

From the deep recesses of one corner, her agent Seth Gordon’s long, thin face emerged and flickered. He had been so quiet, so obscured, we hadn’t realised he was lurking there.

I gave an impromptu start.

“We have been led to believe,” faltered Kerry, “that the Stardust range has been…” Her voice struggled to maintain its level of authority.

I nodded my head at her in an encouraging fashion.

She carried on. “That your skincare range has been cutting some ethical corners, as it were.”

Lulu’s round, open face was stunned. “Sorry? Like what? Where has this come from?”

Seth Gordon strode out of the shadows like a Machiavellian villain in his slim-cut navy suit. “Ms Stark would be more than happy to discuss any questions about her skincare brand on another occasion. This isn’t the time or the place.”

“Oh, but I think it is,” I explained with a winning smile. “We’ve been led to believe that a number of the products you are launching will be sold for inflated prices. There’s also concern that the eco-friendly packaging isn’t as sustainable as you’re claiming…”

“This interview is over,” barked Seth Gordon, looming over Kerry and me. “This is completely unacceptable. You’ve come in here to speak to Lulu under false pretences.”

“Hang on,” said Lulu, at risk of giving herself a crick in the neck as she stared from her agent to me and then to Kerry. “What the hell is going on here? Do you have any evidence of this? Can I see it?”

Kerry dipped into her bucket bag to produce a collection of information she had been sent from a member of Lulu’s team, but Seth Gordon was too quick. He fired out a bony hand and grabbed it.

“Hey!”