‘And if she decides that she and this man “don’t fit” — isn’t that how you put it? — might he not be upset? And if he’s unstable, we all know how unpredictable these patients can be if their equilibrium is disturbed.’

Sam said, ‘For your peace of mind, my friend, of course I’ll stay for a while. But, please, try not to worry unduly. I promise I’ll give you my impression after I’ve seen the young man for myself, and if I find him in any way unsettling, I’ll make quite sure that she doesn’t see him again.’ He chuckled. ‘Now, what excuse do I make for inviting myself to stay?’

‘Let’s stick to the truth, Sam. This case I’m on is ramping up, so I’m going to be working some very late nights, and it will give you the opportunity to discuss her patient with her while I’m out of the way.’

‘I’ll tie things up here and be at Mill Corner by late tomorrow afternoon, okay?’

‘Perfect! And thank you, old friend. I owe you one.’

Jackman walked into Ruth’s office with a much lighter tread.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Annie Carson was just about to prepare supper when her phone rang. It was PC Jay Acharya.

‘I’m sorry to bother you, Annie. But I wondered if I could ask you a personal question? I promise it’s pertinent to the investigation.’

‘Okay . . . go ahead.’

He cleared his throat. ‘We need to know if Callum is your natural son or if he’s adopted. As I said, it could be important.’

‘I gave birth to Callum in Saltern Cottage Hospital, the year before it closed down.’

‘I appreciate that, Annie,’ said Jay. ‘Thank you, and I’m sorry I had to ask.’

‘Why did you want to know?’ she said.

‘It’s an avenue we are following, Annie. Nothing for you to worry about. But there is one other thing. We have a photograph of a man. It’s not very clear, I’m afraid, but if I emailed it to you, could you tell me if you think it might be your Sky engineer?’

‘Of course. You have my email address, send it now and I’ll look at it straightaway. Hang on.’

The attachment came through. Jay was right, it wasn’t clear at all. ‘Sorry, Jay, but even though it’s pretty grainy and you can’t see his face properly, I’d say no. This man is a different build to the one who came here, and I think he’s younger too. I’d put our bogus engineer in his late thirties, early forties. This man looks younger than that.’