‘There are two things I’ve held back,’ she said at last. ‘In doing so, I’ve had to lie to you. I apologise. Firstly, Morahan did, by the end, tell me everything about his source.’ Evenly and without emotion, she gave Patrick the account Morahan had given her of his dealings with Sayyid; his summary of the contents of the note that accompanied the Blackburn files; and Morahan’s description of his conversation with Sayyid in the car.

Patrick listened in silence. He fixed his gaze on her as she gathered her thoughts, composing herself for the further revelation.

‘The second thing is this,’ she resumed quietly. ‘After I discovered Morahan’s body, I did a quick search of his office.’ He eyed her sharply. ‘Don’t worry, I found a way of leaving no trail. Behind the radiator covered by the grille below the main window, an envelope was sellotaped. It turned out to be a second delivery from Sayyid.’ She described the corporate profile of her and the words of Sayyid’s accompanying note. Patrick was slowly shaking his head. ‘What have you done with the note?’

‘I hand-wrote a copy, then flushed it down the toilet.’

‘OK, but—’

‘There’s more,’ she interrupted. ‘Just as I was about to leave Iona Morahan’s house, she stopped me. She went upstairs and returned with a small package. She’d wrapped it in birthday paper. I went straight home, not to have lunch with my father but to explore that package. I didn’t dare open it until I was on my own, out of sight. It turned out to contain the further delivery Sayyid had promised Morahan if he succeeded in recruiting me to the Inquiry.’

‘I realised you weren’t telling me everything,’ he said. ‘But I never imagined how much you weren’t.’

She sagged, her head drooping. ‘I couldn’t tell you yesterday, Patrick. Not before the interview with Buttler because it was better I carried the strain of it alone. And not after because too much was swirling around. I had to let it settle. To work out where I stood.’

‘It’s all right. You’ve had so little time to see into me.’

‘It’s only in the last few minutes that I’ve come to be sure of where I stand.’ She said it flatly, oppressed by the weight of the secrets she’d been forced to carry and the lies she’d been forced to tell. ‘Look away for a minute.’