James then brought up the subject of Daniel LaPlante and told the team how the man spent months hiding behind a wall and nobody knew he was there. Some of them had heard the story and others like it. One support staff member mentioned the case of a small hotel owner in London who put up a partition wall in a large bedroom and then installed a small hole through which he spied on and filmed female guests. He got away with it for several years and it only came to light after he suffered a fatal heart attack while watching a couple having sex.

Before James ended the meeting, he brought the discussion back to Nash’s unfinished suicide note.

‘It raises two important questions,’ he said. ‘Was he a witness to what happened at the farm on Christmas Eve? And was he aware that baby Megan was buried beneath the cellar?’

James spent the next hour typing up notes and finding out as much as he could about William Nash. He spoke again to DS Stevens who said the SOCOs would soon be wrapping up for the day but were planning to return at six in the morning. He told Stevens to head for home when the SOCOs left.

When James left the office he was feeling physically and emotionally exhausted. He promised himself a relaxing evening and an early night because he was sure that tomorrow was going to be another long and challenging day.

But as soon as he climbed into his car, he received a call from Leo Freeman in London. And even before his former colleague spoke, James knew his stress levels were about to rise.

CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT

‘I’ve got an update for you on Andrew Sullivan,’ Leo said.

James groaned. ‘From the sound of your voice I’m guessing you’re not going to tell me that you’ve collared him.’

‘I’m sad to say we haven’t, James. But I think the net could be closing in on him. You see, we’ve discovered that seven months ago he took out a three-year lease on a house in Scotland. It’s a remote property a few miles south of Dumfries.’

‘How did you find that out? Did his lawyer finally decide to distance himself from him?’

‘It wasn’t arranged through his brief. Sullivan kept it away from his legal team and his minions.’

‘So, he intended it to be his secret bolthole for when he needed somewhere to hide out?’

‘That’s what we believe. And you’ll know yourself that it’s something most of the organised crime lords have been doing for years.’

‘Then how did you get wind of it?’