Dani nodded in response, her eyes flicking between her boss and Chief Superintendent Baxter who were both sat over the other side of the desk in the meeting room. The internal investigation into Dean Harland’s death had been concluded in her favour. The investigation had found that Harland, along with Reeve, was a low-level drug dealer with a history of criminality, which was the likely explanation for why he had run from Dani that fateful day.

The witness evidence against Dani had been disregarded after several inconsistencies were identified, not in the least the fact the witnesses all turned out to be associates of Harland and Reeve and Grant, and most of them hadn’t even been in the area at the time. Ultimately Professional Standards had determined that Dani’s actions, under the circumstances, were reasonable and justified. Dani wondered if what had happened recently out at that warehouse had had any bearing on the result. After all, the investigation into the deaths of Mary Grant and Ethan Grant was still only just getting started. Perhaps the police thought the circumstances of their deaths would be a clear-cut opportunity to remove Dani from the force. Unlike her son, Mary had been pulled from the scene in Moseley alive, but brain dead from the blows to the head. Her life support had been turned off a few days afterwards and her death, like that of her son, had to be investigated.

‘Is he talking yet?’ Dani asked.

‘Who?’

‘Steven Grant.’

Baxter and McNair shared a look, as though weighing up whether they were prepared to tell Dani anything.

‘Not really,’ Baxter said, his decision to answer the question rather than brush it off taking Dani by surprise. ‘Of course there’s going to be a lengthy investigation into how many victims Mary Grant killed over the years, and we’ll likely need to look beyond the West Midlands, given she only moved here in her thirties—’

‘You think she was a killer even before she met Grant?’

‘At this stage we honestly don’t know. Though I would say her choice of husband is quite telling, wouldn’t you?’

Dani certainly would. She’d had the same thought back on that fateful night. Had Mary chosen Grant because she took some twisted pleasure in knowing his dark past? Similarly, was that the reason why Dani was apparently chosen for those notes and to be set-up for the murders?

‘Quite ironic really that the one man who could help us to analyse and explain the things that Mary and Ethan have done is keeping his mouth shut out of loyalty to his dead wife and son,’ Dani said.

‘We’ll keep trying,’ Baxter said. ‘Perhaps Grant will have second thoughts on his silent treatment when he realises just how long he’s going to be behind bars.’