What remained from all that religion was a lasting memory of the power the Church had over people, and children in particular, especially via priests like Father Barry.

As a ten-year-old from a single-parent family, he’d been taken on a free week’s holiday to the seaside with the priest. There had been eight boys in total, all between the ages of ten and twelve. They’d had a great time on the beach and in the amusement arcades. The Church had even presented them with pocket money for the trip.

They were put up in a boarding house where the food was good and the woman who ran it unfailingly cheerful, despite having eight boys under her roof. They’d all slept together in a dormitory, and that was fine too. There was just one weird thing about it. At night, before they went to sleep, they were required to lie on their beds with their bare feet sticking over the end, so that Father Barry could inspect them in some detail.

The excuse for this being, he didn’t want any smelly or dirty feet.

At age ten, the idea that a priest had a foot fetish involving small boys would have seemed ridiculous if presented, although they’d all thought the practice strange and a little creepy too. But basically, if a foot inspection every night was required to avoid being sent home, then no boy in that room would have refused.

But what if the required favour in order to stay had been something more than that? And maybe it had been, just not for him.

McNab had never mentioned Father Barry’s interest in small boys’ feet to his mum, because he somehow knew she would have been upset. And, after all, for him at least, it had gone no further than that. Later, he’d heard Barry had left the parish somewhat abruptly, having been transferred elsewhere. At that point his mum had questioned McNab about the priest and that holiday. By the worried look on her face, he’d wondered just why the priest had gone. Even then he hadn’t had the courage to tell the tale.

The name following Karen’s father on the list was Father Joseph Feeney. McCreadie had been fairly cutting about the priest in his notes, so he was definitely worth checking out.

McNab briefly contemplated doing a search for his own Father Barry, just to see what had happened to him, then decided against it when the alarm on his phone reminded him that it was time to depart.

Having come to work on his Harley, he decided to leave the bike where it was and make his way to the Rock Cafe by other means. Ellie always went to work on her bike, so he could have a drink and she could run them back to the flat together.

As he passed the desk, the sergeant called after him.

‘DS McNab. There was a guy in here earlier asking after you. I thought you were out.’