They then discussed the possibility that Rachel might not have been attacked by a guest or member of staff, but by someone who entered the hotel through the garden gate.

‘I, for one, think this is the most unlikely scenario,’ James said. ‘But nevertheless, we have to give it full consideration.’

He then read from his notes a list of tasks he wanted carried out, including speeding up the background check on Ethan Prescott.

‘We know he runs his own gift shop in Windermere and lives with his mum, but there’s a lot we don’t know. Is it significant that he and Libby Elliott might well have been the last people to have seen Rachel before she was killed?

‘Based on what we’ve seen in the photos and videos of the event, we’ve concluded that the murder must have been committed between half five and half seven. The sit-down meal began about six but throughout it the surveillance camera shows people getting up and leaving the room for various lengths of time. In addition, quite a few tables in the room are not covered by the camera. Plus, Grant Fuller stopped taking pictures during the meal and was waiting to video the speeches and toasts.

‘All of this means that any number of people could have slipped out of the hotel during those two hours and carried out the killing as it takes only a few minutes to get from the terrace to the jetty. It was also dark and there are lots of bushes and hedges in the garden so the killer could easily have got there and back without being spotted if they so chose.

‘We also need to know more about Greg Murphy. DC Hall, I need you to dig up information on the man, including details of his hotel business. He’s been described as a bully and a control freak so I suspect he has more than a few enemies,’ James said. ‘We know that Rachel didn’t much like him so perhaps she had something dodgy on him that she was going to share with others. If so, did he follow her to the jetty to confront her and things got violent?’

James then passed on what Claire Prescott had said about Murphy’s father, Michael.

‘Her late husband worked for Michael Murphy for a time and she claims he treated him like a slave. She even blames Murphy senior for the stroke that made her a widow. I’d therefore like someone to delve into this just in case it has a bearing on what’s occurred. There’s quite a bit of info about the man online so let’s start there.’

He then asked Sergeant Dale Thomas how things were progressing with taking statements from guests and staff.

‘It’s slow going but we’re getting there, sir,’ Thomas said. ‘As you can probably guess, they haven’t got much to say except that they all saw Rachel during the ceremony and at the start of the reception but only a couple of them spoke to her. They say she appeared anxious and it was obvious she was a little tipsy.