‘That was the part that really had me stumped, and I’ve never been able to stop thinking about it. We searched the farm and the hundreds of acres that surround it. We put out appeals and chased down a few false leads, but got nowhere. We never found her body, but we felt fairly certain that something happened to Megan before her parents died – and that was the likely catalyst for the murder-suicide.’

As James listened to Keegan, he noted the arrival of Dr Pam Flint, the forensic pathologist. He was anxious to speak to her before she started to examine the bodies so he told Keegan he had to go but would drop in on him at some point soon to learn more about the Batemans and the Roths.

‘I’ve got one final question, though,’ James said. ‘Why did Robert Bateman take over the running of the farm after something so dreadful happened there?’

‘The property was originally passed on to Simon Roth’s brother because Amanda had no siblings and her parents were dead,’ Keegan said. ‘The brother didn’t want anything to do with it but he did ask Robert to keep it going for a while, which he did for some months while it was up for sale. Robert’s mother then died and left him her house in Sunderland but the Batemans didn’t want to move there and someone had offered to buy it so they sold it and used the money to purchase Oaktree Farm. Robert felt that Simon and Amanda would have wanted him to save the place along with the animals, so he persuaded his wife that it would be a good idea. Mary had already given up her job as a nurse to become a full-time mum and they both put their hearts and souls into keeping the farm going. Mind you, I learned some years later that it was a move Mary eventually came to regret.’

‘Do you know why?’ James asked.

‘She became convinced that the house is haunted. She mentioned it to a few people in the village and claimed that she often heard noises that seemed to come from behind the walls.’

CHAPTER EIGHT

Dr Flint was escorted towards the house by a uniformed officer. She was already kitted out in full forensic gear, minus the mask.

‘I got here as soon as I could,’ she said to James as he approached her. ‘I was briefed on the phone so I know what to expect.’

Pam Flint was one of the county’s most highly rated pathologists and with good reason. She was shrewd, thorough, and she didn’t kick off when detectives pestered her for answers.

She had narrow, analytical eyes and smooth unblemished skin. James recalled being surprised when he was told she was in her late forties. He’d thought she was much younger.