They both chuckled at that one, then fell into a comfortable silence, broken only by the smoker’s cough of Mr Zimmer Frame as he made his way back inside.

‘I heard about Bolton,’ she said finally. ‘Heard you were there when … well, when he died.’ Porter nodded thoughtfully. ‘I don’t feel sorry for him. Not even a little bit. Weird thing is I’m pissed off at him for dying. For not being able to look him in the eye now I’m out, and tell him he didn’t beat me. I’m still here, you know?’

Porter grunted in agreement. ‘Yep. If anyone deserved to die, it was him, but yeah, I know what you mean. Feels like he cheated. Like he got away with everything. Same for Locke.’ He felt himself tensing up. It still annoyed him how things had ended, but he’d have to come to terms with that. To stop taking it personally. He turned to face her.

‘Seriously, though, Evie, it’s good to see you up and about. You had me – ah, I mean us – worried for a bit there.’ He reached out a hand, a gentle pat on the shoulder, almost without thinking. She turned her head to look over at him. Held his gaze. Silence again, but this one not so comfortable. Another few seconds and she looked down at her lap again, nodding, swallowing hard. Was she welling up?

Alan Simmons rolled to a stop in front of them, and Porter removed his hand, standing up in the same instant. Alan Simmons came around the front of the car, opened the passenger door and reached both hands down to his daughter.

‘Would you mind, Detective?’ He nodded towards the bag draped over the handles of the wheelchair, and Porter obliged. He popped the boot and placed the bag inside. Simmons lowered herself slowly into the seat, and swung her legs inside before her dad closed the door. As Porter came back round, her window slid down.

‘Thanks for coming to see me off, guv.’ If she had been getting upset seconds ago he couldn’t tell now.

‘No worries,’ he said, taking a step back up onto the kerb. ‘Coffee’s on me when you get back.’

‘I’ll hold you to that,’ she said, clicking her seatbelt into place.

Alan Simmons leant over from his side. ‘Thanks again, Detective.’ The window purred up as they pulled away, and Porter watched until they’d turned out of the car park and onto the main road. After all the shit that had happened in the last few weeks, it felt good to see her out of her hospital gown and on the road to recovery. It had been starting to feel like he’d playing against a stacked deck, but seeing her smiling, laughing, made today’s glass half full.