‘Why would I do that?’ he says, in a tone suggestive of concerned, professorial enquiry. It’s fake, she thinks, the regard, the flattery, the attention. It’s all a sham. It was right in front of me but I didn’t see it. The man I looked up to is at best a liar and a drunk. At worst he’s something else too. Something more sinister.

‘How are you feeling in yourself, Nevis?’

The change in him is so unmistakeable that even she can sense it. His body has stiffened around the edges, like a slice of cheese left out on the counter too long. He is drying up, curling, turning in on himself. Before she can say anything, he goes on. ‘This thing with Natasha must have come as a big shock. I wonder whether you are coping. I’ve been thinking that perhaps the best thing for you would be to step down from your studies for the remainder of the academic year. Perhaps take a year out to regroup?’

‘This really isn’t about me.’

‘I’m afraid I have to disagree. Your essay on oceanic deep vent modelling, for example. Well, why don’t you tell me what you thought about it?’

‘It was fine,’ she says, perplexed, doing her best to think back.

‘This is what I’m talking about, you see…’ the Dean says. He blinks at his screen and with one hand swivels it around so that Nevis can see her file for herself. He is pointing at a tiny line of script three-quarters of the way down. ‘Yes, yes, here it is. Oceanic deep vent modelling. Thirty-two per cent. A fail by any measure.’ He looks up. ‘We understand that the last few weeks have been rather unsettling, but we really do feel that it would be best for you to take time out.’

‘But you said…’

‘Well never mind. This is what I am saying now. If we can make this quick? I’ve got rather a lot on.’

Nevis swallows and tries to clear her head. Her neck begins to prickle and goosebumps spread across her arms. The smell of alcohol hits her nostrils once more. Play him at his own game. Think about Satnam.

‘I spoke to someone close to Satnam,’ she says.

Cullen blinks. When she doesn’t go on, he says, ‘And?’

‘This person saw an older man leaving our flat a few weeks ago. He says the man got into a dark blue Volvo.’

Silence falls. Cullen watches her steadily.

‘And?’

‘I think that was you.’