‘Mrs Chatwell, it’s DI Fanshawe. We did ask you to keep yourself available for further questions, but it seems nobody, including your husband, knows where you are.’

They could only have got the phone number from Jack; he’d neglected to tell her he’d given it to them. She bit back the feeling of abandonment and instilled some strength in her voice. ‘I’m in Pembridge Square Gardens with a friend.’ She didn’t think there was any point in adding she’d come to discuss her situation.

But Fanshawe wasn’t a fool. ‘Your friend? The one you went to Semington House with when you ran into Oliver Vine?’

She was tempted to point out that she had more than one friend, but she didn’t think the detective would appreciate the sarcasm. ‘Yes,’ she said without elaborating. Let him think what he wanted. He would anyway. Would he think there was some kind of conspiracy? That she and Amelia had plotted together to kill Oliver Vine? Molly looked across at her friend, who was regarding her with concern, and managed a smile. ‘She is offering me some support. Jack said you had more questions for me. I’m happy to answer any you might have.’

There were muffled voices in the background. She guessed he was speaking to someone else, his large hand covering the phone. ‘Okay,’ he said, his voice suddenly loud and clear. ‘Here at West End Central Station at two, if you please.’

In the police station, not at home. She swallowed the lump in her throat. ‘Perfect,’ she said, her voice cool, and hung up.

She put the phone gently down on the table with a shaking hand. ‘It was the police, they want to see me today, at the station.’

17

Amelia stood, moved around the table and enveloped Molly in a hug. ‘You haven’t done anything wrong, remember?’

‘I don’t think Jack would agree with you,’ Molly said, giving a loud sniff. ‘And the police… I know they don’t believe me.’

‘They have to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s. It’s the way it works. You’ll go, answer questions you’ve already answered, and come away wondering why you were worried.’

‘Sounds like you’re speaking from experience.’

‘I read all those crime novels and watch every crime drama,’ Amelia said, sitting back in her chair. ‘I’m almost an expert. I know how it goes.’