‘Yeah. A lot of us had crushes on her. Which somehow made what happened even more excruciating. She had a boyfriend, a postgrad, quite a bit younger than her, so that was a bit dodgy too. He was, like, this maths genius…’

Honor feels her breath quit. At that moment the dog, sensing some tension in her, wakes and looks up, cocks his head.

‘Chris or Christopher as I remember. I think he was, like, the same age as us, so eighteen, nineteen, and she was in her mid-twenties.’

‘You remember his last name?’

Gary taps his fingers on his chin and stares into the middle distance for a moment. ‘I’m not sure. Mulholland was it? Something like that.’

Honor feels the blood drain from her limbs. The world billows and flattens. On the chair opposite, Gary bobs forward, as if poised to leap up and catch her.

‘Are you all right, Honor?’ asks Alex.

She nods, unable to speak just then, and, reaching for the photograph of Madeleine Ince on the table, picks it up and inspects the long dark hair, the giant, dimpling smile. The resemblance to Zoe is so uncanny it takes her breath away.

‘I’ll make some more tea,’ Gary says, hastily disappearing into the kitchen and returning, moments later, with mugs, a teapot and a carton of milk on a tray and, laying it down on the table, says, ‘I’m wondering why you’re interested in all this? It was all so long ago.’

Alex’s eyes dart to Honor, waiting for her to speak.

‘We think there may be something similar going on, in another university, perhaps, though we’re not sure.’

She watches Gary slump back and heave a deep sigh. Holding his head in his hands, he says, ‘It never stops, does it? These universities care more about their reps than the people they’re supposed to be serving. Young people. Vulnerable people.’ He looks up, his eyes bright with tears, jawline trembling with emotion. ‘It never leaves you. Never.’

‘I do know,’ Honor says, softly, and in an impulse reaches for his hand and squeezes it, saying, ‘We’re going to try and stop it, Gary. What you’ve told us today, what you’ve shared, that’s going to help enormously.’

Gary blinks but does not answer.

Later, on the drive back to Bristol, Alex says, ‘So what was that back at Gary’s house?’

She looks straight ahead and in a calm voice says, ‘Unfinished business.’

‘You want to tell me? It’s another hour to Bristol.’

She checks the time on her phone. It is nearly three o’clock.

‘Can I think about it?’

He does not answer. She reaches for her phone and texts Nevis. On way back R U OK?

‘Why are you smiling?’ Alex says.