As he entered the funicular and waited for Thierry to start up the engine, he rested his head against the seat. Tomorrow, or the next day, or whenever Vidor felt ready, they would begin again. He had managed to buy a little time with the public prosecutor in Copenhagen. Enough time, he hoped, to gain additional insight into Vidor’s case. In his heart, he suspected there was little he could do to save Vidor (and Malik, of course) from the consequences of his actions, triggered by a long-buried rage. But that wouldn’t stop him from trying. If he failed, Vidor would be arrested and tried for the wrongful death of Mr Nielsen. In the meantime, he faced some probing questions from the police about Ismail.

It pained Gessen to accept he would have to face all of this alone. When he’d finally asked Ursula about her plans, she had told him, not without regret, that she planned to marry in the spring and move to Bern with her husband to set up a private practice of her own. They’d made a good team over the years and finding someone to take her place would not be easy.

As they lumbered through the trees and slid through a narrow gap in the ravine, he sniffed the air. Was something burning? He stood and craned his neck to peer through the dirty window. A streak of orange glowed above the treeline and a column of smoke billowed towards the sky. Something was wrong. He urged Thierry to move faster, but the old funicular was agonisingly slow. He checked his phone and saw that Ursula had rung him four times. When he tried to reach her, she didn’t pick up.

Frantic now, he grabbed the door and attempted to wrench it open, but Thierry clamped him by the arm. It was insanity to dash out into the dark, but he had to get to the clinic fast. One of the chalets must be on fire. How had it happened? Was anyone hurt?

The moment they jerked to a stop, he yanked open the door and began to run. Smoke was thick in the air. On the other side of the bank of trees, flames crackled and spat. He tried ringing Ursula again, but dropped his phone when he caught sight of her running towards him, her hair streaming loose.

‘It’s Vidor. He’s in the tower.’

Gessen unlocked the gate, and she stumbled into him, gasping for breath. There was a fire in the library. He must have started it and then locked himself in the tower.

‘And the others?’

‘Everyone else is safe. I had Jean-Claude evacuate all the patients and staff to the swimming pavilion.’ She touched his hand. ‘Fernanda’s okay. It was her barking that alerted Security. She must have sensed something was wrong. Hélène’s taken her in.’