‘For those of you who don’t already know, his oncology consultant has confirmed that what he said is true. Plus, I’ve done some checking online. Pancreatic cancer has one of the highest mortality rates of all major cancers. It’s also difficult to spot in the early stages because often there aren’t any symptoms until after it’s become inoperable.’

‘So do we rule him out as a suspect on the basis that he’ll soon be dead?’ Drummond asked. ‘Even though he has a strong motive for wanting to see us disband the task force and leave him alone?’

‘Absolutely not,’ I said. ‘It could be that he wants to go out with a bang. Pay us back for hounding him over the years.’

Drummond mulled this over. ‘That’s an interesting theory, but the guy has had an easier ride than most villains. He’s always managed to stay one step ahead of us and he’s never been banged up. I can’t imagine that he bears grudges that are so strong they would compel him to do something like this.’

‘Then perhaps it’s someone else in his firm who’s behind it,’ Kate said. ‘Maybe the person who’ll be taking over from him wants to make life hard for us.’

‘But he told us that nobody knows about his condition,’ I pointed out.

Kate shrugged. ‘Well, he could be wrong, or he could be lying.’

‘It wouldn’t surprise me if Danny Carver was being lined up to assume control,’ I said. ‘By all accounts he’s the closest Slack has to a family and he’s also a complete psycho.’

‘He was questioned by detectives in Streatham,’ Drummond said. ‘He’s insisting he knows nothing about the threats. And we know that he was in his house when the murder was committed because he’s one of those we’ve just put under surveillance.’

We were getting the same feedback from the teams who were interviewing all the other suspects who’d been rounded up. They all had alibis and they all denied any knowledge of the threats.

‘We have to keep plugging away,’ Drummond said. ‘Laura, you and Kate stay with Slack. He’s still my prime suspect despite the sob story. And let’s get access to everyone else’s phone records and online communications. And we need search warrants for all their properties.’

‘What about us and our families, sir?’ DCI Graham Nash said. ‘Will we be getting protection? My wife runs a bookshop in Clapham, and she’s insisting on going to work even though I’ve advised her against it.’

‘I can understand your concerns because we’re all in the same boat,’ Drummond responded. ‘The Commissioner has agreed that we can continue to station a patrol car outside each of our homes overnight.’

‘That’s not nearly enough, sir,’ Nash said.