‘I know. You have been the strength in our… in our partnership.’

She sighed. ‘The most important thing now is that you and I maintain the trust we’ve built. It hasn’t been easy.’

‘You know how much I appreciate it. And how much I rely on you and your judgement.’

‘Thank you. It’s not often said.’

‘I hope I never give you reason to doubt it.’

‘No.’ She stared at him grimly. ‘Are you truly set on pursuing this trail?’

‘Yes, I think so.’ He sensed the inner steel flexing. ‘Yes,’ he repeated curtly.

‘I warned you that taking on this Inquiry might have consequences we couldn’t anticipate.’

‘I can face them. Now.’ Saying the words, he forced himself to believe them.

‘Yes, it’s time. After what those bastards tried with you.’ Her vehemence shook him, another punch in the ribs; his wife was a woman who hardly ever swore.

‘That pretty much,’ said Morahan to Sara, withholding just the final reference to his own past, ‘is what has led us to being here today. I’m sorry it’s taken so long to explain.’

Their circuit on the Common was drawing them back to the café, now becalmed in the lull between the afternoon mothers and children and the early evening mob of skateboarding teenagers.

‘It’s fine. Best for me to know everything,’ Sara said. Morahan averted his gaze. Her instant trust reminded him of what he could not yet tell her.

‘To put it bluntly, I need your help.’

‘Why me in particular? I can see you need someone trusted by young Muslims to be your foot soldier. I can certainly give you suggestions.’

She was sharp. He had prepared his response. ‘That’s not enough. This person – or people – must be able to take affidavits. To unlock witnesses.’

‘There are lots of Muslim solicitors. And it’s the solicitor’s job to provide evidence, counsel’s job to interrogate it.’

‘I realise that is the usual practice.’

‘My career at the Bar has taken a new direction.’

‘Yes.’

‘This feels like a return to old territory.’

‘For me, taking on the Inquiry feels like a return to a treacherous world of politics that I escaped fifteen years ago. But there’s a tug of duty.’

‘Duty?’

‘It’s an odd word these days, isn’t it?’ He paused and edged closer to her. She saw something different in his eyes; excitement, recklessness even. ‘This is not just legal niceties. It’s about the nature and the behaviour of the state – our nation. I need someone special. Trust me, I’ve looked around and, in discreet ways, asked around. There is no one better suited to the task than you. I am pleading with you to take on the role of junior counsel to my Inquiry.’

‘And to be your investigator too. Your own private eye.’

‘Yes, if you put it like that.’