So that was why the child had her name and not Jordan’s.

‘To our surprise,’ Bourne continued, ‘she improved, if anything, and we finally acquiesced to the marriage.’ He paused, a rueful expression on his face. ‘Sadly, we were so involved with Claire’s condition that we never thought to ask ourselves about Jordan and why he was so determined to marry Claire.’ He drained his glass.

‘He had problems too?’ asked Marie.

‘He had a very jealous, controlling nature.’ He exhaled loudly. ‘Theirs was a marriage that was truly made in hell. I should think the reports about their relationship were all correct. Sometimes it would be her, if a rage came over her, other times it was him, eaten up by jealousy. Oh, and Jordan was the most convincing liar I’ve ever met. If he wanted you to believe something, you believed it.’

The charming Mr Edwards, whom all the kids loved. The neighbour, who called him thoughtful and polite. His roofer friend, who swore that Jordan was a terribly abused husband. They were finding more answers tonight than at any time in the investigation.

‘But,’ Bourne continued, ‘and I must emphasise this, Jordan loved that boy. He adored Christopher. Claire found this impossible to swallow. In her mind, Christopher was hers, and I think she resented the fact that the lad loved his father so much. So she started using him to get at Jordan. Things went from bad to worse. I wanted to step in, but they were adults, and I was told exactly where to take my concerns.’ He hung his head. ‘I was helpless, and my wife was very ill by that time. I couldn’t cope with Claire and her situation as well as worrying about my wife and keeping my practice afloat, so I decided I had to let her go. I was there if she needed me, but there was nothing else I could do.’

What a situation to be in. Jackman truly felt for the man. ‘I’m sorry to have to make you relive all this, sir, really I am, but the burning question right now is what happened to Christopher? Jordan told a friend that Claire had had a car crash in which the boy died.’

‘My daughter said some terrible things to hurt Jordan. In a rage, she could have said anything. By then, she’d stopped taking her meds.’ He shook his head. ‘She stopped hauling her boy from refuge to refuge and came home.’

‘And Christopher?’

‘He’s with some wonderful long-term foster parents, in a small village not far from here. I couldn’t take him in. I needed to keep him away from Claire, and my wife was dying by then. Fostering seemed the best thing for our grandson until I was better placed to . . .’ His voice tailed off.