Porter moved away before Anderson could respond, an uneasy feeling making his scalp tingle as he walked. He’d considered a dozen angles to the case already, but a fresh one squatted front and centre in his mind now. It was there and couldn’t be ignored. He just prayed this one was as fruitless as the others.

NATHAN – APRIL 1983

He explains the family tree for a second time. That Natasha’s mum is dead. That Mary is both her stepmum, and his ex-wife. The young sergeant nods, crosses out the last few lines with his pencil, scribbles some shorthand hieroglyphics on the page. Nathan feels the fool as he runs through it again. There’s a good chance Natasha misheard. That Alexander was just mouthing off about him in general. They’d never exactly been best pals. How could you be, with the man who stole your wife? The man who wants to take over your business. A firm you’ve shed blood and sweat for. But not even Alexander is capable of this, surely?

Nathan has heard rumours. Stories told in hushed tones over a pint down at the Brown Badger on a Friday night. Tales that Alexander isn’t the upstanding member of the community he seems to be. That’s all he has them pegged as, though – tales. Stories embellished by a few pints too many. If Natasha hadn’t already called the police after she spoke to him, he would have laughed it off, but this sergeant who had taken the call insisted on following it up.

He glances at his daughter, and is struck as ever by the similarity to her mother, God rest her soul. He feels the briefest of tugs at his heart. Knows that he would do anything for his little girl, even soothe away her unfounded fears over what she thinks she has heard. He reaches across, takes her hand in his and gives it a gentle squeeze.

The sergeant asks her to explain, again, exactly what she heard. She lets out a heavy sigh through pursed lips, like air escaping from a tyre. Tells him for a second time what she heard. Tells him that James will be giving her dad a choice. Sign or suffer. Something about shipments starting in two months, and that it has to be done by then. Nathan explains to the sergeant that Locke had made him an offer for his business the week before. Well below market rate. He stops short of telling the officer that he nearly took it. Doesn’t tell Natasha that he’s so deep in debt that he can barely breathe when he thinks about the numbers. He simply smiles and tells the policeman and his daughter that it’s all some sort of misunderstanding. He tells them he’ll pop round and see Alexander the following day and straighten all this out.