Last night, Rusty insisted on walking her to the door when she told him Dean and the girls were away. Rusty’s eyes surreptitiously skimmed the house: the manicured front lawn, the standard rosebushes along the driveway. For a moment she thought he was going to offer to stay, but he mumbled something about needing sleep before his early start. Oli wonders if he’s seeing anyone, maybe that female cop, but she dismisses the thought and sets about finding her bag. It’s hanging on the end of the staircase. She takes out her laptop and phone, and connects them to the charger. Glances at the time: a quarter past nine.

In the shower she works the shampoo into foamy white peaks, lets the soft hum of the pipes massage her thoughts. What was Cooper doing yesterday before he was attacked?

Feeling sluggish, she dries herself and pulls her wet hair into a messy bun. Dresses quickly. Stuffs her laptop into her bag and grabs her phone. Messages fill the screen, and she instinctively goes to call Cooper. Then she pauses, determined not to let the grief paralyse her again.

As she heads down to the garage, the landline in the kitchen rings. She pauses. It’s Dean. It has to be. He’s tried her mobile and now he’s trying to track her down at the house. The electronic trill snakes down the stairs and echoes into the shadowy room. Dust motes are caught in the half-light and swirl around the car like insects. Dean’s wall of tools seems to watch her as she stands on the bottom step. She looks at the Audi.

Dean insisted on buying her a new car.

He always seems to know where she is. Where she’s been.

Isabelle had an appointment with the lawyers. He knew she was at the gym that morning.

He’s tracking her car, she knows he is.

Heart pounding, she heads back up the stairs, leaving the house on foot. She reaches the nearby shopping strip. Calls Pia.

‘Oli? Oh my god, it’s so awful about Cooper. I can’t believe it. Are you okay?’

Oli feels herself cracking. ‘I know, I’m okay. You spoke to him yesterday, right?’

‘Um, yeah. I was helping him try to find info on the housemates’ babysitting jobs. We were trying to access decommissioned websites and see if we could link them to their old mobiles. I spoke to the tech guys but didn’t have any luck.’

‘When he left the office, did Cooper say anything about what he was doing?’

‘He mentioned he was going to the university. Something about a tip-off he got.’

Oli pauses. ‘The university?’

‘Yes.’

‘Okay. Thanks, Pia.’

‘Are you coming in, Oli? The cops have been here. Dawn is looking for you. So is TJ.’