William laughed as if the idea of him attending church was a great joke. “Me, go to church?” He started laughing anew. “Oh man, that’s rich.”

He calmed down, wiping tears from his eyes. “When you’ve been fucked by the minister, you don’t go anywhere near his fucking church. Put that in your detective guide book, Corstorphine. I don’t know who killed the bastard, and I’m happy they’ve got to the minister – but Oscar was my mate. If I had any idea who it was, I’d shop them to you now. But I don’t.” He looked them both in the eye without any sign of guile. Corstorphine was inclined to take him at face value.

“Tell me about your time at the orphanage, William. You were there from…” Corstorphine referred to a sheet of paper in his hand, “age five to sixteen. Were they good to you there? Treat you and the other children well?”

A veil came down across Booth’s face, his features at once expressionless. “I’m not saying anything about that place. I’m the one you should be defending, not treating me as a potential murderer, so either tell me what you’re charging me with or I’m out of here!”

Another self-taught bloody criminal lawyer, Corstorphine thought to himself. “We’re just trying to get to the bottom of this, William. You are one of the few people we can identify who went to that orphanage, and we believe there may be a connection with the orphanage to the recent murders. We’re just looking for your help, nothing else.”

He snarled in response. “You lot, you’re all in it together. You’re the last people I’d ever go to.”

“What do you mean, we’re all in it together?” Frankie asked.

“Not you, Frankie, but all the rest of them. We either shut up, or…”

“Or what, William?” Corstorphine’s voice came quietly.

“You work that out, big man. There’s enough of us died and nothing ever happened, nobody came.”

“We’re on your side. William. We are not the enemy. If you don’t give us any information, we can’t start to put things right for you.”

“Aye, right! I don’t believe any of you bastards. All you do is protect the rich and famous. People like us – children like us – can be killed and it’s as if we never existed.” He folded his arms in determination, lips tightly pressed together to reinforce that he’d said all he was going to say.

“Interview paused at 7:57a.m.” Corstorphine switched off the recorder and stood up. “Come with me, William, and keep quiet.”