Mel’s hands dropped to her lap, her body slumped in defeat. The silence thickened, pressing down on her. Stevens cleared his throat, a reminder that they were waiting for an answer, and she knew there was only one course of action open to her. I’m going to have to tell them.

Her hands tangled together, fingers clutching at each other for support. ‘Um… I’ve had a bit of time to think and… well, I might have got a bit muddled with times. I was… I didn’t…’ She flicked her gaze from the inspector to the sergeant and back again, her heart hammering, as she fought against the words she had to say. Go on, tell them the truth. She took a deep breath, her words coming out in a long sigh of defeat. ‘I stayed with somebody on Saturday night. A work colleague. We left the hotel together on Sunday. Then we went to a pub for lunch. A long lunch. And then we went our separate ways.’

There, I’ve said it. She felt so weak it took all her energy to keep herself sitting upright.

‘Do you mean you were having an affair?’ Lockett laid it out, stark and bare.

Mel blushed. ‘No, no, not an affair as such.’ She stopped herself. Is that a lie? Would they know? ‘I just… slept with a client. One night. That’s all it was.’ Perspiration beaded on her forehead and she pointed at Lockett, who had that look on her face again. ‘Don’t you go judging me. Luke was hell to live with. Absolute hell. This was a make-or-break week away, but to be honest, I was coming to the conclusion that our marriage was over. As much as I love him and the children, it was…’ She stopped herself and selected her words more carefully. ‘It was a mistake that couldn’t be rectified.’ She took a moment before she carried on, sorting out her best line of defence. ‘I was upset. My client was concerned. We had a few drinks and well, one thing led to another.’ Her gaze was defiant now. ‘Luke was horrible to me. I wanted a baby and do you know what the man did?’ She looked at Stevens, then Lockett, as if they could possibly know the answer. ‘He had a vasectomy! Just to spite me.’ She nodded when she registered the shock in Lockett’s eyes.

Yes, she thought, he did that to me. Denied me the hope of a child of my own. And that was surely the worst kind of betrayal.

‘I have to ask again,’ Stevens said. ‘Is it possible he’s left you? Is that what this is all about?’

Mel shook her head, adamant. ‘I told you before – he wouldn’t do that.’ She sounded certain because she was. Luke knew she didn’t make idle threats. ‘It would leave too many loose ends. Hurt his family.’

‘And suicide wouldn’t? Weren’t you suggesting before that suicide was a possibility, or have we misunderstood?’ Stevens asked.

Mel looked at the inspector, her mouth opening to speak, but no words came out. Shut up! she warned herself, deciding that it would be better if she didn’t say too much more. She decided that she really didn’t like the way this was going, the spotlight being shone on her movements. Not to mention the cocaine. How had she not found that when she’d cleaned up?

She got up and started clearing the mugs away, putting them in the dishwasher.

‘We’ll just have another look down here, if that’s okay,’ Stevens said. It wasn’t a question.

She nodded, unable to look at the man. He was trying to trick her. Trying to get her to say things that would catch her out. He thought he was so clever, but she’d been trained in manipulation, trained in neurolinguistic programming and body language. Oh yes, it was clear as day to her what he was trying to do, and it wasn’t going to work. She puffed out a breath as she switched on the dishwasher, glad of the noise to break the silence. This was about damage limitation now, making sure she came out of this in the best way possible.

She scowled. The little bag of powder. What was that all about? Her heart started racing at the thought. If that was cocaine, then she was in trouble, that was for sure. But how did it get in there? It could only be Luke.

Her head was so full of worries, she felt it might crack open. She put a hand to her forehead as she gazed through the kitchen window into the garden, felt the dampness of sweat and wiped it away. Stay strong, she told herself as she gripped the edge of the worktop.

As far as she could see, there were two potential scenarios. There’d been an accident of some sort and her family were dead, or Luke had done a runner. Of course she’d be sad if they’d died, but if this was the second option being played out, she would be properly livid. It was a possibility she hadn’t considered before, but now the police officer had mentioned it again, she had to give it some serious thought. No way is he going to leave me! She’d loved him completely up until the vasectomy incident, had trusted their wedding vows and now, if he’d run away, and made trouble for her, well he was going to face consequences. Oh yes, she’d make sure of that. No way is he keeping his children. No way on this earth.

Lockett and Stevens came back into the kitchen and started opening cupboards, then got the bag out of the bin and started sorting through it. Mel’s eyes narrowed, her nose wrinkling at the mess. But that wasn’t her main concern. What are they thinking?

‘When’s bin day?’ Stevens asked.

‘Wednesday, I think,’ Lockett answered. She headed outside before returning a few moments later, shaking her head. ‘Nothing in the wheelie bin. Completely empty.’

Stevens looked at Mel and she tensed when she saw the glint of suspicion in his eyes. ‘That’s a bit strange, isn’t it? Everyone produces rubbish. Especially when you’ve got kids.’

Mel stared at him, not knowing what to say. There was no explanation. Then a thought crept into her mind that made her legs weaken. Do they think there was some sort of incriminating evidence in there?

‘We need to ask you to come down to the station with us,’ Stevens said. ‘So we can have a more thorough chat.’

‘Am I under arrest?’ The inspector’s gaze was unnerving and Mel leaned against the worktop, her hands behind her back so they couldn’t see them shaking.

‘No, we just need to ask you some more questions.’

‘Well, ask them here.’ Mel swallowed, panic crushing her chest. She knew all about being interviewed by the police and how they twisted your words, made you flustered, catching it all on tape. No, she wasn’t going anywhere if she didn’t have to.

‘I need to get my colleagues involved, and we need to test this powder. So I’m afraid we can’t do it here.’ He gave her a look that she didn’t like, the sort of look you give to someone when you know things they don’t.

Mel swallowed.

Now it really begins.