‘So how do you fit the Eden Valley Hunt into this picture?’ asked Cooper.

‘Patrick Rawson was staying at the Birch Hall Country Hotel, and had arranged to meet someone near Birchlow. During that encounter, he was killed, and the hunt were right in the middle of it. Given Michael Clay’s origins in Birchlow, you can’t tell me that’s a coincidence.’

‘No. So, what? Some kind of old family feud that Rawson stumbled into by accident? Could Clay have been the real target?’

‘That,’ said Fry, ‘is what we should be trying to find out.’

Hesitantly, Cooper continued to hang around Fry’s desk until there was no one within earshot. After a moment, Fry looked up at him again. She seemed uneasy, probably because she wasn’t sure what Cooper wanted, or what he was going to say. Silence unsettled her, he’d noticed.

But Fry had no reason to be uneasy. As soon as he’d seen her enter the room, Cooper had been overwhelmed by an impression that she was going through a difficult time. She’d looked so alone and vulnerable.

‘Was there something else you wanted to say, Ben?’ she asked.

Cooper took a deep breath. ‘Just that . . . I’m concerned about you, Diane. I know it’s difficult going through a stressful time without any support . . .’

She stared at him. ‘Is that it? Is that what you felt you had to say?’

‘You can feel very isolated. If it were me, I’d be glad of all the support I could get.’

Fry was lost for words for a few moments. ‘Support? From you? What kind of support do you think you can give me?’

Cooper was deterred only for a second. He glanced around the room, made sure there was no one near, moved in front of Fry as she seemed to be about to get up and walk away. There were times for walking away, and this wasn’t one of them.

‘Just talk to me, Diane.’

‘Talk to you?’ she said. ‘Ben, we’re different people, you and me. You have support from your family, you’ve been surrounded by it all your life. I’m sure that’s lovely and warm and fuzzy, and all that. But some of us have grown up without the need for support. We’re strong enough to look after ourselves. So your concern isn’t necessary.’

‘You know, if we’re going to get a forced shake-up in this department, we should stick together.’

‘Are you the shop steward all of a sudden, Ben? I didn’t even know we’d got a trade union.’

‘I’m not suggesting we work to rule or anything. Just – you know, support each other.’

Fry hissed, a sound low enough that no one else in the office would hear it, but piercing enough for Cooper to get the message loud and clear.

‘Ben, I don’t need your support, OK? I’ll be just fine. Go and give your support to someone else.’

‘Think you’ll get support from Superintendent Branagh? It would be like Dracula becoming a vegetarian.’