Their position and that of the swords seemed to Rhona’s judgement to suggest neither sword had been used to inflict the major blows. Added to that, the angle and depth of the chest wounds implied that both blows had been struck by someone taller, and possibly left-handed.

The swords themselves had been bagged for further examination, but in her minimal handling of them, neither blade had appeared sharp enough to result in such penetrating wounds. Added to that, the male’s lower leg had been sliced cleanly off, and she couldn’t see the slightly built female being able to do that.

If she was right, then a third person had been present, and that person had been taller, more muscular and had had a weapon capable of bringing about this carnage.

When this had happened depended on multiple factors. A body exposed to the air decomposed more quickly than a buried body. The virtual game might be still playing, but any heating that had been on was no longer in operation. In fact, the area was cool, verging on cold. That, and the fact it wasn’t yet summer, had meant the flies weren’t numerous.

The bodies had gone through rigor mortis, which broadly happened between twenty-four and thirty-six hours after death. Post-mortem decomposition usually began immediately after death, often not visible at first until greening of the skin began in the right flank of the abdomen at around two to three days, gradually extending to cover the whole abdominal area.

In this instance, decomposition had progressed further, showing swelling in the face, genitals and abdomen, but hadn’t yet progressed to marbling of the skin, where the vein patterns are visible. At a broad estimate, the two fighters had died three to five days ago.

Chrissy had been concentrating on the small wounds on the legs. Their initial interpretation, that they might have been caused by the points of the swords, had been tempered by the presence of the rats, which was also feeding into their interpretation of the overall state of the bodies.

It was a slow and laborious process, but just as in the Glasgow fire, they had to retrieve as much as possible before the bodies were removed.

Kneeling back, Rhona signalled that the music should be turned off. Chrissy did so. The sudden silence, from both the rats and their virtual audience, seemed deafening, until they gradually registered again the metallic creaks and clangs as the ship circled its mooring with the shifting tide.

‘I used to fancy going on a cruise,’ Chrissy said. ‘The Norwegian fjords, or maybe the Mediterranean for the sunshine. Don’t fancy it so much now.’

‘Did you get the vomit?’ Rhona said.

‘I can confirm I have taken possession of the pavement pizza,’ Chrissy said, using a favourite Glasgow expression.

Not for the first time did Rhona say a silent thank you for Chrissy’s take on the world in general.