‘Yeah, I get that sense from you. You don’t exactly hold back, do you?’

Dani ignored that comment. She knew that her irritability was just one of many side effects of that damn TBI, but she didn’t feel like trying to justify it each and every time she snapped at someone unnecessarily. She carried on walking quickly along the corridor and through the Homicide team’s office. The floor was already emptying for the day, but Fletcher was there, standing just outside McNair’s office. The DCI was next to her, pouring water from the cooler into a little plastic cup.

‘Stephens,’ McNair said looking up. ‘Where the hell have you been?’

‘Ma’am?’

‘I told you earlier. We’re having a press conference. We needed you to help prep.’

‘You didn’t tell me what time,’ Dani said.

‘I didn’t?’

Dani looked to Fletcher who was unable to meet her eye. Dani remembered the call she’d taken earlier in the day in Harborne. Not for the first time she wondered if Fletcher was deliberately holding back on her. But why even bother? It wasn’t as though Dani was much competition to her at the moment.

‘Well, too late now,’ McNair said. ‘We had to work around you. Come on, Fletcher.’

Fletcher just shrugged and set off alongside McNair. Dani scuttled behind.

‘Where exactly have you been all day anyway?’ McNair quizzed, sounding less than impressed, though Dani had no idea why.

‘We were with forensics at the murder scene,’ Easton said. ‘Then at the house of Mrs Staunton across the road. We think the killer may have snuck in there.’

‘Then I went to Missing Persons with Fletcher,’ Dani said.

‘Then to the house of Peter and Linda Agnew to see if we could ID our victim,’ Easton added.

McNair looked around, an eyebrow raised. Was that an impressed look? The activity list certainly sounded like a lot to cover in one day.

‘And?’ McNair said.

‘And everything’s in the balance at the moment,’ Dani said. ‘We weren’t able to ID our Jane Doe. Yet. But we do have some other possibilities to check out.’

‘Then we go ahead with the press conference as planned,’ McNair said.

‘So how are we playing this?’ Fletcher asked.

‘You and me, just like we planned,’ McNair responded. ‘Stephens, Easton, you can sit this one out.’

‘Ma’am, don’t you think I should be up there too?’ Dani protested. ‘I’m SIO. And for continuity? Fletcher won’t be around much longer.’

At Dani’s words Fletcher frowned and began gently stroking her bump, as though what Dani had said was somehow offensive to her unborn child.

‘Good point,’ McNair said. ‘But…’

McNair looked Dani up and down, clearly disapproving of something.

‘But you’re too recognisable right now, Stephens. Because of… you know. I don’t want the press’s attention to focus on you and your brother rather than this case.’