He had seen his boss talking to Simmons on Friday night through a window blurred by rain. He saw how awkward Porter looked at the mention of her name now, and decided to skip any cheeky comments about the two of them. Porter could handle almost anything you threw at him, but this was his weak spot, and Styles knew to leave well alone. It didn’t affect his work, at least not that Styles could tell, but he hoped for Porter’s sake he managed to get his head around the idea that life without Holly was possible eventually.

‘I thought no one was going to make a move until we had something on Bolton and Locke?’

Porter shook his head. ‘They’re going to be there just in case. Sometimes Bolton is around, sometimes he isn’t, but if it’s just Carter and Patchett, then it’s look but don’t touch. What about you? Any luck with the school?’

‘Yeah, they’re sending over what they have, so we can start calling around this morning.’

‘Good stuff,’ said Porter, taking a sip from his cup. ‘I’ve had another idea as well.’

‘Careful, that’s your quota for the week used up in one go.’

‘I’d throw a few more into the mix as well, but I know you struggle to keep count once we get past two,’ said Porter, without missing a beat. ‘So I was thinking, Nathan Barclay had no family apart from his daughter and ex-wife, nobody else to speak to about what kind of guy he was. He ran that company for a long time. I know he sold up over thirty years ago, but there’s a chance that there could still be some people working there from back in his day.’

‘Maybe,’ said Styles thoughtfully. ‘What’s your plan?’

‘I say we go to Atlas and tell them we’re investigating the disappearance of the former owner’s daughter, ask if she ever visited her old man at work – that kind of angle. In the meantime, we see what we can find out about the man himself. What was he like to work for? How did he react when he had to sell up? How well did he handle the pressure?’ Porter counted the questions out on his fingers as he went.

‘Sounds good to me. We might as well head over now. Even if the school sends through the info straight away, there’s a good chance most people will be at work. It’ll be easier to catch them when they’re finished for the day.’