‘Sorry about the mess. I’ve got two-year-old twin girls. I just put them down for their mid-morning nap, so we shouldn’t be disturbed for a while.’

Becky asked Annette if she’d mind her and Boon taking some notes.

‘Not at all. I don’t really know if I can help you much. I was only ten when the convent closed.’

‘Can I ask why you rang Becky, Mrs Gorman?’ Boon asked, wanting to get straight to the point.

‘I was shocked when I read her article. I couldn’t believe one of the nuns was murdered. I showed it to my husband before he went to work. He knew I’d been an orphan at the convent and said I should call you to see if I could be of any help. He also said I should call the police. But there was nothing in the article about who to call . . . other than Miss Rogers.’

Boon explained they had been keeping quiet about the murder as they had hoped to identify the nun before going public. ‘When were you at the convent?’ he asked.

‘From about 1957 until just after the fire, which I think was in the summer of 1962. It wasn’t long after that my brother and I were moved to different orphanages.’

Boon realised Annette would have been at the convent at the time the nun was believed to have been murdered. He was about to pick up on it when Becky butted in.

‘Sorry, did you say your brother was there as well?’

Annette nodded sadly. ‘He was my twin. I don’t know where David is now . . . or if he’s even alive,’ she said, welling up.

‘Have you spoken with the Catholic Children’s Society in Westminster?’ Boon asked.

‘Yes, but they couldn’t help. They don’t keep orphanage records. Sadly, they didn’t have a David Bell with the same date of birth as me on their records. I also wrote to the diocesan archives but just got a letter back saying there was no record of him.’ She started to cry.

Boon felt downhearted. It seemed the Children’s Society would be another dead-end inquiry, though he’d still contact them to double check.

‘I’d like to try and help you find your brother, Annette,’ Becky said.

‘How? I’ve exhausted every avenue there is.’ She wiped her eyes with a tissue.

‘I’ll ask my editor if I can do an article on the orphanage, the loss of your parents and the struggle to find your brother. It might help to locate him.’