‘No thanks, luv, I’d rather be on me own right now,’ Betty said with a sniff.

She shuffled over to the dining table, where she sat down and started doing The Hay Wain jigsaw without another word.

Jane walked back to the pub with a heavy heart, but also feeling puzzled. It was abundantly clear Betty was far from being senile, and she couldn’t for the life of her understand why Kingston had dismissed her as a credible witness. When she got to the car, Teflon was talking to a young man. Teflon turned to Jane.

‘This is DC Reid, early turn CID from Leytonstone. The divisional surgeon’s pronounced life extinct to Paul Lawrence, who’s in the pub, and Murphy is on his way. Did Betty say who was working behind the bar?’

‘She was on her own when Betty saw her at six. Poor thing’s absolutely heartbroken about Fiona’s death. I’ll go and have a word with Paul.’

‘I filled him in about our investigation and Simpson being a witness. He said he’s looking forward to seeing his young protégée.’

Jane stood at the top of the cellar stairs and could see Lawrence, with his back to her, crouched down over Fiona’s body and bending her arm at the elbow joint, testing for rigor mortis.

‘How’s it going, Paul?’

‘Hello, Jane.’ He gently released Fiona’s arm.

‘Can I come down?’

He grinned up at her. ‘Of course you can.’ He opened his arms as she came towards him and they shared a tight hug. ‘How’s life as the first female on the Flying Squad?’

‘Well, I’ve only been on it since Thursday, but I think it’s going to take some time before they accept me as one of “the Dirty Dozen”.’

‘“The Dirty Dozen” – what’s that all about?’

‘I won’t bore you, but some of them have the mentality of a child at times.’

‘You’ll win them round, you always do.’

‘I’m not so sure this time. What was the state of rigor?’

‘She’s cold and stiff. Considering she’d probably have closed the pub between eleven and twelve last night, the rigor fits with her being dead eight to ten hours.’

‘Any signs she was pushed down the stairs?’

Jane went over her earlier observations with Paul about the cellar light being off, the locked doors and the beer garden gate. She then showed him the set of keys.

‘I didn’t have an exhibits bag so I had to put them in this coin bag; whoever last used the Chubb key on the back door might have left their prints on it.’

‘Good thinking.’

He pulled out an exhibits bag from his pocket and dropped them in.

‘I’m worried her death might be connected to our robbery?’

‘Why?’