Jane noticed Katie make a quick glance towards her desk. She started rummaging through Katie’s filing trays and quickly found her pocket notebook and the rest of Rachel’s notes, along with photocopies of them. She held them up for Katie to see.

Katie shrugged. ‘I’ll deny it and say you’re lying. Murphy will have you kicked off the squad before you know it.’

Jane thought for a moment. ‘Did Murphy tell you to take the notes and copy them?’

Katie said nothing, her eyes full of contempt. Jane decided to try and rattle her.

‘I’ll take your silence as a yes, but tell me . . . who do you think Kingston will believe – me or you?’

‘He’ll believe me. He wants rid of you just as much as Murphy and everyone else does.’

‘That’s not the impression he gave me in the pub earlier; he was all over me. He definitely didn’t want you there to cramp his style.’

Katie began to shake with anger.

‘You’re lying – it was you that was all over him and he rejected you.’

Jane was taken aback. ‘Were you spying on us at the pub?’

‘If you think you can take Stewart from me you’re wrong. He loves me.’

Jane laughed. ‘If you think being fucked on a weightlifting bench is love you need your brains tested.’

Her eyes opened wide. ‘You were watching us in the gym!’

‘And I can’t wait to tell the rest of the team—’

Katie screamed, launching herself towards Jane with her fingers splayed like a cat’s claws.

Jane took a step backwards.

‘You’re a fucking bitch, Tennison!’ Katie shouted as she stepped forward.

Acting instinctively, Jane blocked Katie’s right hand with her left and landed a straight right on Katie’s chin, knocking her off her feet and onto the floor. She lay there for a long moment, eyes wide open staring into space. Jane thought she’d knocked her out, but then she took a deep, rasping breath and started to cry. She put her fingers to her split lip and they came away bloody.

‘You cut me,’ she sobbed.

‘You’ll live,’ Jane said, grabbing a wad of tissues from the box on Katie’s desk. She helped her sit up and pressed the tissues against her lip. ‘No more games, Katie. I want to know what’s going on.’

Katie took a couple of deep breaths. ‘All right. I was told to keep an eye on you and find out what you were doing in the hope you’d mess up.’

‘Who told you to spy on me?’

‘Murphy.’

‘That doesn’t surprise me. Was Kingston involved?’

‘No, he didn’t want any part of it. He stuck up for you and I was jealous because I thought he fancied you, so I didn’t mind doing what Murphy wanted. Oh my God, my lip is split open!’