Murphy scrunched up his face. ‘This is all so fucking unreal. I can’t help wondering if the state she was in played a part in what happened to her. Perhaps she offended someone, the boyfriend maybe, and he lost his temper with her. She had no filter when she drank too much and that was why I asked Libby to speak to her. I feared she was on course to make things difficult for herself and everyone else.’

‘Am I right in thinking that you didn’t have much time for Rachel?’ James said carefully.

‘I’ve never made a secret of the fact that I wasn’t her biggest fan,’ he replied. ‘She was quite jealous of Libby and would sometimes say things that really upset her sister. And I know she never liked me. If she really was planning to unveil her boyfriend at the dinner then I suspect it was with the aim of upstaging Libby and me on our big day. But that doesn’t mean I don’t care that she’s dead. Most of the time she was pleasant and easy to get on with. But she simply couldn’t take her drink. What’s happened is a tragedy and my wife is heartbroken. She’ll never get over this.’

He closed his eyes for a couple of seconds, teeth tugging at his bottom lip. When he opened them again, they were glistening with unshed tears.

‘I’m sorry, Inspector,’ he said. ‘It’s just that I’m so worked up and emotional. I’m not thinking straight.’

‘That’s understandable, Mr Murphy. It’s a lot to deal with.’

Murphy pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes, trying to regain his composure. ‘Is it all right if I go to speak to the staff before going back upstairs?’ he asked.

‘I will need to talk to you again later,’ James said. ‘But it can wait.’

Murphy nodded, turned away and walked towards his manager’s office, leaving James wondering just how much of a problem the man had had with the woman who was murdered on the day she became his sister-in-law.

There was only the PC outside the bridal suite when James got there as the assistant manager had been summoned to the impromptu staff meeting Murphy was holding.

When he stepped inside the suite, James found Fraser, Denise and Libby sitting together on a sofa, Libby in the middle and being hugged by both parents.

Their faces were still stricken with shock and bewilderment, and screwed-up tissues littered the floor in front of them.

Before James even spoke, Fraser asked again if he could go to the lake to see his daughter.

‘That’s not going to be possible, Mr Elliott,’ James said. ‘We can’t allow anyone to go near to Rachel at this stage. A forensic pathologist is about to carry out an examination.’

The poor man’s nostrils flared and he started blinking rapidly, crushing tears with his eyelids.

James had always empathised with the families of murder victims, but this time it felt like his emotional response was off the scale. And he knew why. It was because he now had a daughter of his own and was therefore more sensitive to the pain that Fraser Elliott was having to endure. He couldn’t even imagine how he would feel if anything happened to Bella.