Her depth of focus shifted, and she caught sight of her ghostly reflection in the pane. She had aged well, despite the stress of the job, and thought she was still reasonably attractive, but other than a few brief physical relationships, she had lived a solitary life.

She often thought back to the Elmys investigation, to the white-hot feelings of love she’d had for him. No one could ever hope to measure up to that profound emotion, but he’d ruined her. She could never trust anyone again. Her mind sometimes wandered to the sour old woman who lived in Barmouth with her dog. At the time, Harri had sworn she would never end up like – what was her name? Abbott? Allen – Margery Allen, that was it. But now, as the years had ground down her optimism, Harri had to admit a solitary end was a distinct possibility. And if that was the worst life had to throw at her, it wouldn’t be so bad. She, too, could buy a dog and do lots of fast walking.

Harri exorcized her melancholic thoughts with a sigh and turned to face her desk. The job was all the comfort she needed for now, and her morning routine after the briefing was a ten-minute trawl through her email inbox. As she brought her computer to life, she noticed the post had come early. There was a small parcel in her tray.

She examined it and found a typed name and address label, but no stamp. She tore away the brown packing paper to reveal a white cardboard box. She removed the lid. The inside of the box was padded with dense grey precision-cut foam and at the centre was a beautiful crystal cube about four inches wide. At the heart of the cube was a two-inch glass ball filled with what looked like stars. It was shimmering as though it contained a whole galaxy. The ball was like a living gem. Harri had the vague sense she’d seen something like it before, but couldn’t remember where.

She checked the box and packaging, but found no note or any trace of who’d sent her such a beautiful gift. She would ask Marcus, the guy who ran the internal mail, to see if there had been a delivery slip. In the meantime, she put the cube on her desk, next to the well-thumbed copy of Happiness: A New Way of Life. She kept the book front and centre, to remind herself and the detectives who worked for her that in the hands of the right investigator, even the smallest clue, the most tenuous thread could have far-reaching consequences.

Chapter 38

Elliot followed the police officer up a flight of stairs. He noticed the man’s shoes were scuffed and worn, a far cry from the high shine he’d imagined were part of a regulation uniform. The officer swiped a keycard over a reader and unlocked a glass door that opened onto a large office. Elliot trailed the uniformed officer across the space, aware he was being watched by the men and women at their desks.