‘What about Eleanor?’ McNab said.

Karen gave a small laugh. ‘My sister hated it most of all. She blamed Mary for everything.’ She reached for the school jotter and handed it to McNab. ‘I was just a wee girl,’ she said. ‘I didn’t understand what was going on. Except that if Mary was dead, it was my fault.’

‘Well,’ McCreadie said as McNab re-entered the conservatory. ‘How did it go?’

McNab ignored the question and addressed Marge. ‘I think Karen needs a friend. Maybe you could go and sit with her for a bit?’

‘I’ll go right up.’

Marge having departed and shut the door behind her, both Magnus and McCreadie were waiting for whatever McNab had to say. By the former detective’s expression, McNab suspected what he’d just been told by Karen wasn’t likely to have reached McCreadie’s ears between Karen’s arrival here and this morning. Not unless she’d been talking in her fever-filled state.

The diary, however, was a different matter. Once Karen had fallen asleep, there had been ample time for McCreadie to take a look at what was in the jotter that McNab now had in his hand.

McCreadie must have ordered more coffee, because just at that moment Lucy arrived with a tray. McNab was delighted. A caffeine fix was just what he needed at this point in time.

He told Lucy so, and was rewarded with a glimmer of a smile.

After Lucy left, McCreadie took his chance, his voice fierce and impassioned.

‘I know I’m not officially on the case, but I was the investigating officer forty-five years ago. I screwed up big time back then, so I’ll do everything in my power to get it right this time.’

McNab listened to McCreadie’s little speech in silence, then said, ‘So you’ll be happy to answer a few questions regarding Karen Marshall’s recent disappearance?’

McCreadie looked slightly taken aback by this, but nodded anyway. ‘Of course.’

‘Had you already seen Karen in Stirling since her disappearance, and before you met her in the castle woods?’

When McCreadie didn’t immediately answer, McNab repeated the question.

‘No. I had not,’ he said cautiously.

‘What if I told you that you were captured on CCTV in Karen’s presence at least twice in the time since her disappearance?’

‘Then I’d say you were mistaken.’

‘You haven’t asked where this might have occurred,’ McNab said.

‘Because I haven’t left the house for weeks, apart for my short walks on King’s Knot and Castle Hill,’ McCreadie said, seemingly on solid ground now. ‘I have a deadline to meet on the next book, so a quick walk is all I can spare at the moment. Ask Lucy, she’ll tell you.’

McNab could see that Magnus had no idea where all this was going, but he finally came in on the action.

‘You suspect from this footage you’re referring to that someone, a man, was stalking Karen?’ he said.

‘Our super recognizer thought so.’ McNab laid it on thick, just to be sure. ‘If he had an image of you for comparison,’ he said, looking pointedly at McCreadie, ‘then Ollie would be able to eliminate you.’