‘What does it matter?’ she said. ‘I won’t be jealous. I won’t behave like that. I’ve packed all his stuff and he’s gone.’

‘If we find him—’

‘Don’t tell me,’ she said. ‘I don’t want to know.’

Eva was impressed with her composure. She wished she’d been as confident, as able to draw a line under their relationship, when she left Piotr. Not that he’d given her any choice. She felt a stab of anger, but swallowed it down.

‘We do need to find him though,’ she said, her tone a little too formal for the mood that Piotr had created. ‘He has information, about FullLife …’

She trailed off, expecting to be met by the stare of Julianne Quentin. But Julianne was looking at Piotr.

‘Perhaps he’s left some clues in his study …’ he said.

So that was his play.

‘Or on his computer?’

‘Empty,’ said Julianne. ‘And wiped.’

‘You wiped his computer?’ asked Eva, unable to help herself.

‘Do you have some family you could call?’ said Piotr simultaneously.

‘The twins will be home this evening …’

‘Someone who’ll understand?’

‘There’s my brother. He’s divorced.’

‘Yes, call your brother. That’s what I’d suggest …’ he smiled apologetically. ‘But what do I know?’

‘Oh, that’s a good idea,’ she smiled back. ‘After work. But I really do have to go …’

Perhaps they could rescue some information from the hard drive, thought Eva, if they could get hold of the computer after she’d gone. They might have to break in.

‘We’ll walk you to the station,’ Piotr said. ‘If you don’t mind the company?’

And ten minutes later, Eva was standing on the platform watching Piotr and Julianne wave goodbye to one another, waiting for him to turn to her and suggest returning to the house, to see what they could salvage. But he didn’t say anything.

‘What now?’ she asked. ‘We could break a window?’

He laughed, a big belly laugh with no criticism in it, only warmth.

‘Come on,’ he said. ‘We can go back to my flat.’ He looked at her as if offering but not wanting to suggest she would join him. She’d always assumed he wouldn’t be living in the same flat. Something in his expression told her he was. But it was just a building. She wouldn’t let herself be upset by a building. If he could stand living in it after everything they’d been through, then she could stand visiting it.

‘OK, but what then?’ she said, businesslike and brusque.

‘Then I need to feed my cat,’ he replied.

Chapter 12