His light, calm tone made Jake’s skin crawl.

‘I caught you red-handed—literally—trying to force poisoned strawberries into your daughter’s mouth, to both kill and implicate her in the deaths of Ava and Liam O’Brien.’

‘You misread the situation.’

Jake snorted. ‘I’m sure Evelyn will make a statement that you tried to kill her.’

‘She won’t.’ There was not even a suggestion of doubt in Kelly’s manner. ‘She’s a good girl, she’ll tell you it was all a misunderstanding.’

‘I doubt that. In the end, though, it doesn’t matter what Evelyn says.’

Kelly laughed. ‘You don’t have any evidence against me.’

Jake savoured the moment. He smiled broadly, leaned back and slowly put his hands behind his head, lacing the fingers together. ‘Except …’

Confusion and curiosity—but not fear—vied for position on Kelly’s face. ‘You’ve got nothing.’

‘… for the collected fingernails of your victims that you kept in the rainmaker in your study …’

Kelly’s nostrils flared.

‘… that are now on the way to the pathology lab for identification.’

Jake’s quarry snarled. ‘How did you find …?’ Kelly regained his composure and returned to staring implacably ahead.

*

Nothing else Jake said in the interview room goaded Kelly into a response.

It didn’t need to. Jake had everything he needed.

It might take a few days, but the DNA from those fingernails would tie Kelly back to Ava, Lilith, Amelia and God knew how many other girls.

Murphy was in the corridor outside the interview room when Jake and the officer from Hobart emerged to march Kelly to the holding cell.

‘You’re Stewart Murphy’s brother, aren’t you?’ she said.

‘That stupid little bastard,’ Kelly muttered. ‘This is all his fault.’

‘What?’ Murphy said.

‘Your little cunt of a brother,’ Kelly spat at Murphy. ’If he’d just kept it in his pants he would’ve been in Hunter’s job.’

‘How is any of this to do with us?’

‘You owe me.’

‘You think I’d cover for you on a murder?’ Murphy appeared genuinely taken aback.

It was all too rich for Jake. ‘Geezus, Murphy,’ he bellowed. ‘He pulled strings to get you assigned to his station knowing you’re a serial rapist. Of course that’s what he was counting on.’

The constable’s face drained, then flushed, his mouth gaping open and closed like a goldfish.

‘What the hell?’ the Hobart officer said. ‘Are we arresting him too?’

‘Unfortunately not,’ Jake said.

‘Just to be clear, it’s this one who goes to custody in the ambulance,’ she stabbed a thumb at Kelly. ‘The younger Campbell goes free, and this’—she narrowed her eyes at Murphy—‘continues to wear the uniform.’

‘You got it. For now.’

She nodded grimly.

Murphy slunk away.

‘I have to get back to the scene where I arrested Kelly,’ Jake said.

‘Is that where the younger Campbell needs to go?’