As she took off the fur hat – if Madeleine saw the bullet gouge, she didn’t mention it – and peeled off her gloves, Ellie’s gaze strayed to Madeleine’s glass of wine and she found herself wishing she’d ordered something for herself before sitting down. She reminded herself she was on duty. “Take it you’ve heard about the latest drama?”

“Which one?” Madeleine took a sip of wine and gave a crooked smile. “Sorry, I shouldn’t make light. I can think of three off the top of my head, and none of them are funny.”

“Wakeman Farm, the Bell, and –”

“And what just happened over at Barrowman? Yeah. You okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Madeleine’s gaze strayed to the hat, and Ellie looked too. It was the first time she’d paid proper attention to the damage – the singed, ragged black hole next to the hammer and sickle badge. The room seemed to roll and spin as the full reality of what had happened crashed in on her again.

Dimly she was aware of Madeleine talking, of footsteps and of Sally Cupit coming over and setting something down on the table. A hand touched hers. “Ellie?”

She looked up. Madeleine was leaning forward, frowning. “You okay there?”

“I’m...” She was still holding the fur hat in her hands. She put it down on the table beside her gloves. “Sorry. Bit of a senior moment there.”

“Senior moment my shiny red arse,” said Madeleine. “You’ve only got a couple of years on me, and I’m not ready for the bloody geriatrics ward just yet. Anyway –” She nodded down at the table, and Ellie saw there was a glass of whisky there “– that’s a Cragganmore. Couldn’t remember which was your favourite.”

“I’m working, Madeleine. I can’t –”

“You shouldn’t still be working after the day you’ve had already, but here you are.”

Sod it. One wouldn’t hurt. “Thanks,” Ellie muttered, and enjoyed a sip of the whisky. “Anyway –”

“Anyway, this is about the ‘drama’, I’m guessing?” Madeleine grinned. “Let me guess, it’s about those marks over the door at Wakeman?”

“You heard about that?”

“Around here? Come on, people talk. Take it with a pinch of salt, obviously – all gets a bit Chinese Whispers otherwise. Inverted crosses and ‘Hail Satan’.”

“That what they’re saying?”

“Close enough.”

“All right. Well, I talked to Matt Williams, and he referred me to you.”

“I swear he thinks I’m a secret pagan,” muttered Madeleine.

“He just thought you might know a bit more about the occult angle, Satanism, that kind of guff.”

Madeleine rolled her eyes. “Sodding Nora. Well, obviously, I will if I can.”

Ellie lowered her voice. “You heard about Tony Harper as well?”

Madeleine nodded. As ever, word travelled fast.

“You heard there was a weird mark near his body too?”

Madeleine’s eyebrows rose. “I did not know that. Same one, or different?”