‘Feet are an adult male shoe size 10, although no shoes were recovered with the body. There are no obvious injuries to the soles, and the skin on the upper surface is intact. However,’ Dr Lambert pulled down a light attached to a magnifying glass, positioned it to show the soles, and pointed, ‘the general redness indicates a recent irritation. On closer inspection I found patches of what could be either thorns or splinters. Those have been removed and sent for testing to ascertain what plant or wood they came from.’

Ava paused the video file to write herself another note: where are his shoes? Was he running away? As she hit play again, she imagined the pain of having soles full of thorns or splinters and wondered why he hadn’t removed them himself. Unless he couldn’t.

‘Come on, Ailsa,’ Ava whispered to the screen. ‘Give me something useful.’

‘Just above the ankles,’ Dr Lambert continued, ‘there are bands of faint redness indicating further skin irritation. There’s no bruising and no abrasions, but the pattern indicates repeated pressure or rubbing in that area over both ankles. I’ll be excising the skin over those patches to take a look below the surface for a better indication. Other than that, the legs have no external injuries.’ She ran her hands up and down each leg. ‘I can’t feel any abnormalities. Muscle tone and condition is within acceptable ranges. No evidence of wasting that would indicate disease or malnutrition.’

She gently parted his legs.

‘Penis and testicles are undamaged. Swabs of the skin have been sent away for trace evidence. Around his anus, however, there is substantial reddening and some chafing that forms a drip pattern towards his coccyx. If he had been tied down on his back for long periods and not allowed use of a toilet, that might explain the reddening. It’s not dissimilar to nappy rash in babies.’

Ava made herself an additional note to run theories about that past the pathologist.

‘No external injuries on the arms. Some older scarring,’ Dr Lambert pointed to one or two areas, ‘but I’d say those injuries are all more than twelve months old. The wrists have similar vague and broad red lines to the ankles, which I will investigate further. There are no specific pressure points or marks but certainly there’s an indication of interference. I’d rule out any hard restraints as the cause of these marks. It’s certainly not chain, handcuffs, cable ties or thin ropes. Maybe a wider section of material, strong but soft.’

She picked up his right hand and pointed the camera at the nails, close-up.