‘And what?’ Harri pressed.

‘I don’t want to disrespect their memories,’ Dr Abiola said at last.

‘The truth is never disrespectful.’

‘But rumour and scandal are,’ Dr Abiola replied thoughtfully. ‘I recognize you from the newspaper, you know.’

Harri flushed, suddenly acutely aware of her disgrace.

‘It’s OK,’ Dr Abiola said. ‘For what it’s worth, I thought you were innocent.’

‘I was, but others didn’t feel the same way as you, so I work privately now,’ Harri replied, breathing a little easier.

‘Who for? Is it Mrs Hughes, their housekeeper?’

Harri recalled the name from the article about the vigil.

‘She loves Elliot. If anyone is checking on him, it has to be her.’

Harri ignored the question. ‘Why are you changing the subject? What were you about to tell me, Dr Abiola?’

The graceful woman came to a halt and took a deep breath.

‘People often used to comment on Elliot’s resemblance to Ben, and, well . . .’

It took a moment for Harri to understand what the academic was getting at.

‘You think Ben Elmys is Elliot Asha’s father?’ Harri had registered some resemblance, and had even flirted with the same conclusion. ‘You think David Asha would have been friends with his wife’s lover?’

Harri’s mind came alive. A love triangle. The oldest motive for murder. But who killed who? And exactly who was this man? Maybe it was a good thing he’d broken up with her.

‘As I said,’ Dr Abiola continued, ‘rumour and scandal. I think Ben is a lost soul. Personally, I don’t believe he’s interested in love. Not as we might understand it. I think he lives for something else. Excellence. Achievement. I really don’t know what, and even if I did, I probably wouldn’t understand it. I think Beth and David took pity on him. He was a stray, and they gave him a home.’

Like most gossips, Dr Abiola was backtracking now that she’d planted the seed in Harri’s mind. She was talking about his honourable motives and decency, but if she truly believed that, why share the scandal? Why colour the air with tawdry suspicion? Harri went off the confident academic, but knew better than to give any sign of her feelings. This woman was a useful source.

‘What kind of work do you do here?’ Harri asked.

‘We study the tiny particles that make up the universe. A mix of theoretical modelling and practical work in the lab.’

Harri felt the germ of an idea form. She wondered what kinds of materials David Asha and Ben Elmys might have had access to.

‘I have to ask you a difficult question, Dr Abiola. The cancer that killed Beth Asha –’ Harri paused for a moment as she thought about how best to phrase such a delicate idea – ‘do you use any dangerous substances in your work? Is it possible Beth’s death could have been caused by exposure to a toxin?’

The question chilled the air between the two women, and Dr Abiola’s demeanour changed instantly. She looked at Harri with ice in her eyes.