I pictured it, bright red and glowing. The Hugo Boss one he’d left lying on the decking. ‘He didn’t have it when they took him in?’ I remembered going up to him in the swing seat, noticing the gooseflesh on his arms. ‘No, he wasn’t wearing it, I remember now. He took it off. I don’t know where it is.’

She tapped her pen against her notebook. It had owls on the cover, I noticed. A thing that a child might use to write their sums in. ‘OK, well, we need to find that jumper. If any of his clothing’s gone it’ll seem dodgy. Now. They’ve made a decision to charge him, as you know, so that means it goes to the magistrates’ court tomorrow.’

‘Will he get bail?’ I was realising how little I knew about this process.

‘Most likely, yes. Even with the suggestion of violence it’s rare not to.’

‘So . . . he comes home?’

‘Sure. Then you wait until the trial. Your husband is a lawyer?’

‘Corporate, yes.’

‘So, it’s likely he wouldn’t be allowed to work until cleared in the trial.’

‘What?’ I’d spoken too loudly.

She blinked. ‘It’s standard procedure, Ali. You can’t practise law if you’ve a criminal record. Most companies would at least suspend an employee accused of something this serious, if not start disciplinary action.’

I thought of our bank accounts. I hadn’t even looked at them for years now, too scared of the sums involved. Mike assured me it was all OK, we spent a lot but he made a lot too. He’d pay off the house move in a few months, and then his Christmas bonus would come. But now – the kids had school fees. I was barely earning. What would we do if he lost his job? Could they do that when he hadn’t been convicted of anything? It occurred to me how this really was a case of her word against his. I’d never fully understood it before, for all my knowledge of rape. The same act between them could have been consensual or a crime, depending on the point of view. Was it possible he’d thought she consented a second time? But then again I thought of the grass stains on her face, the bruises round her neck. How could someone not know?

I realised Anna was looking at me expectantly. ‘Your phone?’

It was ringing. I hadn’t even noticed. By the time I’d fumbled it out, it was on voicemail. Giving the solicitor a tight polite smile, I keyed into it, hearing Vix’s cool, confident voice. ‘Ali, it’s me. Trying to reach you. If you have time, can you swing by the office, please? I’ll be there.’

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten