‘Suffolk Constabulary, of course,’ he said. He smiled, a face coming to mind. And not just a face, a body too. Rounded and curvy and moving under the sheets like no one else ever had. ‘Billie Cornish.’

‘Who’s he?’

‘She. Billie was colleague of mine when I was on the Met. I’d completely forgotten she moved to East Anglia. If she’s still there and in the job she might be able to help.’

‘Are we talking work-related help?’ Javed was digging, a grin on his face suggesting he’d worked out Holm’s past relationship with Cornish wasn’t solely on a professional level. ‘Only we don’t need any distractions.’

‘It was a long time ago. I was younger and she was much younger.’

‘I didn’t know you had it in you, boss.’

‘Fuck off.’

‘Sounds like I might have to if you’re planning to meet this woman. What are you going to tell her?’

‘I’ll tell her MI5 would appreciate some help.’ Holm looked round for his phone. ‘While I do that, you enter some of those crimes into our mock database so we have an excuse to go up to Suffolk and do some groundwork.’

‘Right, boss.’

Holm wasn’t surprised to find Billie Cornish had moved on and up. She’d been a Detective Constable fifteen years ago, wet behind the ears, wet… he felt a shiver go through him. He’d never met anyone as exciting before or since, and even though their affair had been short-lived, he still remembered every moment like yesterday. She wasn’t much more than half his age back then, mid-twenties to his early forties, but she’d made all the running. She’d ended it too, three months down the line. She was going places, she said. Too many things to do, too many people she wanted to screw. He was sweet, he was a great lover, but it was never going to be a long-term thing between them – he could see that, couldn’t he?

Yeah, he supposed he could. He’d had two kids under ten, a wife who’d made a nest without a word of complaint about the long hours he worked or the fact she’d had to sacrifice her own career to raise their children, a nice house in a decent part of London. And yet…

‘You going to actually make that call?’ Javed. The grin was now verging on subordination. ‘Only we’re supposed to be catching Taher before he retires and draws his pension.’

Holm dismissed Javed with a wave. He found a number for CID in Suffolk, but it took several calls before he was put through to Detective Chief Superintendent Billie Cornish at force HQ in Ipswich.