‘Oh my God, she was buried alive!’ Jane exclaimed. ‘Her mouth must be wide open because she died gasping for air.’

Pullen looked closely at the scratch marks and torn satin, then pointed to a strand. ‘There’s a bit of fingernail just there.’ She used the tweezers to pick it up then looked at Jane. ‘I’d like to treat this as a suspicious death and carry out a full post-mortem.’

Jane nodded. ‘I agree, and I’m sure the coroner will concur when he hears what we’ve found.’

‘I don’t mean to sound silly, but could she have been buried alive by mistake?’ Boon asked.

‘It’s possible but highly unlikely,’ Pullen said. ‘There was a case from my medical studies which has always stuck in my mind. In the early 1900s Essie Dunbar, who was thirty, suffered a severe epilepsy attack. It was so bad she passed out and everyone thought she was dead. Even her doctor couldn’t detect a pulse. For religious reasons the funeral was arranged for the next day and the body was put in a burial coffin. Essie’s sister, who lived out of town, arrived after the coffin had been covered in soil, and demanded the body be removed so she could see her sister one last time. When the coffin lid was opened, Essie sat up and smiled at everyone around her . . .no doubt frightening the crap out of them at the same time.’

‘No way,’ a disbelieving Boon grinned.

‘Apparently it’s true, and then she lived for another forty-seven years.’

‘So, if our body was deliberately put in the coffin when she was alive, murder could be hard to prove,’ Jane remarked.

‘As strange as it may sound – and excuse the pun – but the hand of God might help us here,’ Pullen replied.

‘I didn’t take you as the religious type, Sam,’ Jane said.

Pullen laughed. ‘I’m not. The last time I was in a church was at my sister’s wedding, eight years ago. It’s the adipocere that might help us. It sometimes preserves the soft tissue and internal organs, thus allowing a pathologist to identify internal injuries on the body. She may have been attacked, knocked unconscious and then sealed in the coffin, so I want to do some X-rays on the body and skull for any fractures before we remove it for a full examination.’

Jane looked at Boon. ‘Go tell Rogers what we’ve found and make sure he tells the coroner and asks for a full post-mortem.’

‘It will be my pleasure, sarge.’

‘I think it may be advisable to have a lab liaison sergeant present and take photographs before the body is examined any further,’ Pullen said, removing her latex gloves.

‘I’ll call the lab sergeant after I’ve deflated Rogers’ ego,’ Boon smiled.

‘See if you can get DS Paul Lawrence to attend,’ Jane said.

‘Any particular reason?’ Boon asked, clearly wondering if she had a soft spot for Lawrence.

‘I’ve known him since I joined the Met and he’s the best at what he does when it comes to forensics and murder. Something tells me this case isn’t going to be straightforward, so his knowledge and experience may prove invaluable.’