‘Abbott had been up in his study working on his book when we found him dead at his home. If he was scribbling away hard and fast, several hours each day, he’d have completed a lot more of it in the space of three weeks. The latest draft could be hundreds of pages longer than the version you’ve seen.’

Shelton nodded. ‘True, but those extra hypothetical pages wouldn’t be of any more use to us than the earlier draft, if he was concealing real names.’

‘Which brings me to my next question,’ Ben said. ‘Because it doesn’t make sense to me that he’d have pulled his punches like that. If you’re going to blow the whistle, then blow it. Who writes an exposé making serious criminal allegations against their peers, but at the same time protects them from being identified?’

‘Someone who’s well placed to know what could happen to them if they named names.’

‘Then why take the risk in the first place? Abbott must have known they wouldn’t take it too well, either way. The whole point of writing the book would be to make a packet out of it, and run like hell in the hope that they’d never catch up with him.’

‘Which they would have,’ Wolf said. ‘They only employ the best manhunters in the business. Right, Ben?’ Ben made no reply. Wolf paused a moment, then added, ‘How d’you suppose they found out that he was getting ready to spill the beans on them all?’

‘Like I said, they have eyes and ears everywhere,’ Shelton replied. ‘He was a damn fool if he thought he’d ever get away with it.’ Turning back to Ben he said, ‘What are you suggesting?’

‘I don’t know much about publishing,’ Ben said, ‘but I’d bet it’s a tough game. Truckloads of competition, no guarantees. When he submitted his proposal to them, he couldn’t assume they’d run with it, or agree to represent him, or whatever it is that literary agents do. For all he knew he’d get a rejection letter by return post.’

‘So?’

‘So he wouldn’t have tipped his hand too early by letting them see all the dirt. That would be far too trusting. Instead he’d have played it safe, and sent them a redacted version that offered a taster, but no more, with all the real names temporarily switched for fictitious ones. At least, that’s what I would have done.’

Shelton didn’t look convinced. ‘Rewriting a whole chunk of your manuscript with fake names and editing out all the incriminating details sounds like a lot of work.’

‘Didn’t you and your buddies in the Gang of Four pull a few all-nighters when you were creating the computer app that made you your millions?’

‘Damn right we did; more than a few.’