‘You’re not coming inside if you’re going to cause a scene,’ said Shelby. ‘If you can act like an adult, I’ll make you dinner.’ She turned, skirt flicking, and walked back to the front of the house.

Limping, he rushed to catch up with her. Why did it seem like all the women in his life had a Master’s degree in throwing him off balance? ‘You can’t just send me money without asking.’

‘Also,’ said Shelby casually, ‘you’ll need to explain this.’ She pulled a pistol out of the pocket of her dress.

In the space of a breath Mackerel knew that Shelby must’ve found one of Davey’s hidden weapon caches. He lunged for it and she twitched it out of his reach. ‘Careful,’ she warned, holding it away from him. He saw now that her lips were drawn tight in fury. ‘I don’t want any accidents.’

‘You can’t just flash that around!’ he whispered. ‘What if Kane sees it?’

She stood on the front step and folded her arms, holding the pistol far too casually. ‘We need to talk about a few things.’

‘Shelby, pass me the gun,’ said Mackerel.

‘Oh relax, Mackerel, it’s not loaded. My dad used to take me to the rifle range – I probably know as much about guns as you do. Let’s recap.’ She held up her fingers, counting. ‘First, they find Forest, but Davey is missing. Then there’s a man in my ceiling, presumably looking for Davey. Next day, Davey goes diving in Devils Kitchen, which makes no sense, and he . . . he’s dead. Now, I find a gun strapped under the shelf of my husband’s bathroom mirror! Why? That doesn’t make sense either. None of it makes any sense.’

She put up a finger to stop Mackerel from interrupting.

‘And so then I tear this whole house apart, looking for something, anything. And what do I find? Hidden in Davey’s side of the wardrobe, in a shoebox beneath a pair of smelly old runners?’ Her voice rose. ‘More guns, Mackerel!’

‘. . . They’re mine,’ said Mackerel.

‘Don’t lie to me, Mackerel! Tell me honestly: was Davey dodgy?’ This new grief tearing her voice was different. She sounded like she was drowning.

‘Not a chance,’ he said. ‘Davey was as straight as they come.’

‘“Tell Jesse I’m sorry” . . . Forest comes back . . .’

‘Tell Jesse I’m sorry?’

‘It was on a note Davey left me. A note which is now missing, by the way. I found it just before you and I met at Seaglass.’

‘Maybe the man in the roof took it?’ said Mackerel.