He was unsurprised to find it closed and noticed there was no sign on the door telling customers when it would re-open.

The satnav then guided them to a quiet cul-de-sac of small, dated bungalows. Ethan and his mother lived in the one that looked in most need of attention. It was a small property with white, weather-beaten walls and a driveway with an ageing Vauxhall Corsa parked on it.

Claire answered the door and it appeared to James as though she had shrunk since he last spoke to her at the hotel.

She was wearing an oversized jumper and leggings, and grief was scored into her gaunt features. She seemed surprised to see them so perhaps her son hadn’t yet received a call from Libby.

‘Oh my, it’s you, Detective Inspector Walker,’ she exclaimed. ‘What is it? Have you found out who killed Rachel? Please tell me that you have, for all our sakes.’

‘The investigation is still ongoing, Mrs Prescott, but we are making progress,’ he said.

‘Then why are you here?’

‘We’d like to speak to Ethan if that’s okay. Is he home?’

The furrows in her brow deepened. ‘He’s in his bedroom. What do you want him for?’

‘We need to ask him some questions. May we come in?’

Claire fixed James with a steely gaze and he noticed that red veins laced the whites of her eyes.

‘Of course you can,’ she said after a pause. ‘I’ll get Ethan and then put the kettle on. He’s getting ready to go out.’

She turned and called her son’s name as she limped along the short hallway. James waved Abbott ahead of him and closed the front door behind them.

Ethan appeared then, stepping out of one of the rooms clutching his mobile phone in one hand and a pair of leather gloves in the other. He was wearing a crisp, white shirt, the sleeves rolled to the elbows, exposing tattoos on both arms.

When he saw who had come calling, he stopped dead, a shocked expression on his face.

‘The detectives have come to ask you some questions,’ his mother told him. ‘They can do it in the kitchen while I make some tea.’

‘I’m sorry we weren’t able to let you know we were coming, Mr Prescott,’ James said. ‘A lot has happened this morning and we’ve had to make some sudden changes to our schedule.’

‘That’s not a problem, Inspector,’ Ethan said. ‘You’re lucky you caught me in. I was just about to go and do some work at the shop before I re-open tomorrow.’

‘We’ll try not to keep you long then.’

As they followed Claire into the kitchen, Ethan said, ‘Have you solved the case yet? Do you know who killed Rachel?’

‘No, we don’t,’ James answered. ‘But we’re pursuing various promising lines of enquiry.’

‘Thank God for that. Do you think the boyfriend did it?’

‘We won’t know until we’ve talked to him.’

The kitchen was large and well equipped, with a table and chairs and a door leading to the patio. Claire invited them to be seated before she started filling the kettle.