Joanna gave a tight smile. “Thank you for your time, madam. We might be in touch again.”

As she started to move away, the woman shouted after her, “Hey, this isn’t about that missing woman with the girl, is it? I heard it on the news.”

Well, I did mention that it was about a woman and a child, thought Joanna. “Oh?”

“Only, if it is, I did find something on the towpath. Thought it was an interesting coincidence that someone would drop one so similar. Maybe it wasn’t a coincidence at all. Look, I hung it on the fence, just down there. It looks like the hat they were talking about on the news, doesn’t it?”

Jo walked toward where the woman was pointing, and there on the fence was a scrap of pink something. Harper picked it up and brushed the ice off. It was a woolen hat with two bobbles like a bear’s ears. Identical to the one Leonie had been wearing in the images from the train station. She tucked it into a plastic evidence bag.

Just then, Jo’s phone rang. It was Atkinson.

“Hello, boss,” he said.

“Hello, Steve. Have you found the fugitive yet? Any leads?”

“Where are you?”

“I’m … at home.”

“No you’re not. I’m standing outside your place right now. Your car’s gone.”

“What, are you checking up on me now?”

“I came over to tell you that the surveillance system recorded a location flag from a number that I didn’t recognize, that I hadn’t keyed in. I couldn’t get in touch with Eddie, but I assumed it was something to do with you. Something to do with the case that you are not supposed to be investigating anymore.”

“You’d be right about that, Detective. It’s Ruby’s number. I got an email notification about it this morning.”

“Is that where you are now? I could have come with you, if you’d said.”

“Probably best you stay away from me, Steve. You’re in charge of the operation, and you don’t want to chuck that opportunity away. Could be great for you, career-wise. It’s different for me. It’s personal.”

“There’s more to this case than your daughter disappearing, Jo. I had that preserved finger we found fast-tracked by forensics. It was a child’s, like you thought it might be. Around eight to ten years old.”

“Can they tell if it’s from a male or a female? When was it severed?”

“They couldn’t say much more than the fact it wasn’t recent. They’re running DNA, but Thrupp is also talking about opening several linked inquiries.”

“Several?”

“One for each victim. They opened up the wall yesterday. There were two bodies inside. A female and a male.”