---

First thing in the morning, Robyn and Mitz headed to Hamstall Ridware to talk to Juliet Fallows before she left for work. Her daughter, Steph, dressed in pyjamas and a loose-fitting dressing gown, opened the door and let them in, trailing after them into the kitchen where she sat to finish a bowl of cereal. Juliet, in a white uniform, appeared almost immediately.

‘I haven’t got long,’ she said. ‘I have to leave in ten minutes.’

‘We won’t keep you. It’s a couple of things we’re following up. Last time we spoke, you mentioned Roger had a girlfriend.’

Juliet’s face darkened. ‘Why don’t you ask Roger about her?’

‘We’re not able to contact him. We thought his girlfriend would be able to tell us where he is, but we don’t know who she is.’

‘I only know she’s called Naomi. You’ll be able to find out about her from the shooting club near Uttoxeter – Bramshall Leisure. She and Roger are both heavily into clay pigeon shooting. They used to be on the same shooting team. Roger often talked about it. They won quite a few matches. Try the club.’

‘Thank you. I also wanted to ask you about Tessa again.’

Juliet looked at her watch.

‘Tessa made a phone call to you on December the thirtieth.’

‘What of it?’

‘She phoned you, Roger and Anthony, one after the other, after 11 p.m. I wondered why she’d have made the calls. You said you weren’t in contact with the others you met up with on quiz nights. It struck me as odd she rang you all.’

Juliet shrugged, her eyes darting round the kitchen as she tried to think of a response. ‘It was about the staff meeting we were having the next day. I’m sure that’s why she rang me. She couldn’t remember what time the meeting was.’

‘She could have found out when she got to the clinic in the morning.’

‘She was off work that day. She was only coming in for the meeting.’

‘And you didn’t speak to or have any contact with the others yourself?’

Juliet looked at her watch again. ‘No. I didn’t keep in touch with any of them. Look, I told you all this already and I really have to go to work.’

‘Of course, and thanks for talking to us.’

Steph stood up. ‘I’ll let them out, Mum. You get off.’

She waited until they were out of hearing range and whispered, ‘If I wanted to report my dad to the police, could I do that?’

Robyn gave her a gentle smile. ‘Did he hurt you too?’

Steph nodded and chewed at her lip before speaking. ‘It was mostly Mum he hit. I was really scared of him all the time. I didn’t dare say anything but since we moved away I feel I can talk about it. I spoke to my best friend and she agrees I should do something about it. He should pay for what he did to Mum. I thought about it a lot after you came last time. Mum won’t shop him but she should. She’s still scared stiff of him and worries he might turn up one day and beat her up. I don’t want that to happen. If he’s put away, he won’t be able to.’

‘I can give you a number to ring to talk to somebody about pressing charges but you really should talk to your mum about it first. She won’t thank you for going behind her back. It’s a major decision to take your own father to court, Steph. You’d have to be very strong-willed and determined. Don’t do anything without talking to your mum.’

‘I guessed you might say that. Thing is, she’s too frightened to say anything, even now. I’m not.’

‘Think about it again and ring me when you’ve made up your mind. I’ll put you in contact with the right people.’

Steph palmed the card Robyn gave her with thanks before shutting the door quietly behind them both.

As soon as she got into the car, Robyn rang David and asked him to contact the shooting club to find out Naomi’s surname and contact details.

She and Mitz drove along the narrow lane from Juliet’s house that meandered past fields of cows and dairy farms into the village of Yoxall, where it came out almost opposite Liam’s house.

‘Pull up in that drive, Mitz. I’d like a quick word with Liam or Ella about Henry. He was definitely in the village on Tuesday.’

They drew up outside the house, but Liam’s old Audi wasn’t on the drive, and when Robyn knocked at the door, there was once again no answer.

---

Back at the station, David and Anna had been productive.

‘Roger’s girlfriend is called Naomi Povey. She’s a member at Bramshall Leisure where she practises shooting regularly. She won Staffordshire skeet champion in 2016.’

‘Skeet?’

‘It’s a type of clay shooting. She’s one of the best at the club and won several competitions. Roger Jenkinson was also a member but he left last year. Before that, he did a lot of shooting at weekends – competition level. I got hold of Naomi and she’s on her way here now.’

‘Excellent. What about Roger?’

‘Still out of contact. Naomi also thinks he’s gone off to the Peak District for a couple of days. She says he’s sure to return soon because he’ll need to prepare his produce for Thursday’s farmer’s market in Lichfield. He has a stall there.’

‘Can’t we get hold of him at all?’

‘No, guv. He disconnects from the modern world when he’s away – doesn’t turn on his phone, goes hiking and stays under canvas in fields.’

‘Sodding man. He’s not making this easy for us.’ Robyn stomped about the office, scowling at the other desks cluttering it.

‘He isn’t making it easy,’ agreed David, ‘but this might raise your spirits. You know I’ve been going through those numbers Tessa rang or messaged? Well, one caught my eye after I rang Naomi. It looks like she and Tessa messaged each other several times over a period of two days in January.’

Robyn stopped scowling. She had another lead. ‘Great. Let me know the instant Naomi arrives. I want talk to her.’

---

Naomi was at best described as shrewish, with small, mousy features and limp hair pulled back in an elastic band. Her face wore a scowl as if she were sucking lemons. Dressed in unflattering, dark trousers, a baggy top and flat, lace-up boots, she looked far older than thirty-six.

‘Thank you for coming in. I’d like to ask you a few questions about Tessa Hall. You do know who I mean, don’t you?’

Icy eyes glared at Robyn. ‘I know her.’

‘Have you spoken to her in recent weeks?’ asked Robyn.

The room was filled with a high-pitched laugh. ‘Why would I want to talk to her?’

‘I was hoping you might tell me.’

Naomi crossed her arms. ‘I have nothing to say.’

Matt, who sat adjacent to Robyn, pushed across a photocopied piece of A4 containing a list of phone numbers. One was highlighted in green. ‘Is that your phone number?’

Naomi’s eyelids fluttered several times before she nodded.

‘I’m going to ask you again, have you spoken to Tessa in recent weeks or contacted her?’

Naomi remained button-lipped.

‘Miss Povey, you’re not helping yourself by keeping quiet. If you continue to refuse to answer my questions, I’ll have to consider your silence as suspicious. We’re dealing with a murder enquiry here. I don’t need to tell you how serious that is. Why did you and Tessa message each other in January this year?’

Naomi almost spat her reply. ‘The bitch was seeing Roger. He denied it but I knew he was. I found a text message from her on his phone that proved they were having an affair. I copied down her number and then I challenged her over it.’

‘You believed they were having an affair?’

‘I know they were. I told her I was going to come over and rip her fucking head off if she kept seeing him. It’s not like she cared about him. She was nothing but a tart, throwing herself at every bloke in the pub. I saw her in action when I went along one night – smug little bitch.’

‘You threatened her?’

‘Yes. It was the only way to get her to understand I wasn’t going to give him up.’

‘Did she confess to the affair?’

‘Eventually. She was so full of herself. She said Roger would always choose her over me so I’d better piss off and leave her alone. I wasn’t having that. I’ve known Roger a long time. I know her sort. I’ve met plenty like her in my life. She’d have led him on and dropped him as soon as she found a new bloke to chase after. I wasn’t going to let her do that to Roger. He’s already suffered one horrible break-up. I helped him through that, not her. We’re good together. I’ve been there for him when he’s been at rock bottom. I wasn’t going to give up without a fight. I told her I’d make sure everyone at her work knew she was a slag who stole boyfriends and husbands. I promised to make her life a misery. In the end, she said she didn’t give a shit any more, that she wasn’t interested in him. Shows how little she really cared – the bitch.’

Naomi’s lips pressed together in a thin line and Robyn wondered how Roger Jenkinson could be attracted to two such different women.

‘And I have to ask you this, to eliminate you from our enquiries, where were you Thursday morning?’

‘At work at the JCB factory outside Uttoxeter. I went on shift at seven.’

If Naomi’s alibi bore out, it was still possible for her to have travelled to Tessa’s house in Barton-under-Needwood, some thirty minutes away, kill her and return in time for her shift.

‘And for the record, I haven’t told Roger I know about his fling with Tessa. Some things are best kept secret,’ said Naomi.

Robyn chewed over her words. Here was another person keeping secrets: first Henry, then Tessa and now Naomi. It prompted her next question.

‘Do you know Henry or Lauren Gregson?’

‘Can’t say I do. Not names I recognise.’

‘Sergeant Higham, can you show Miss Povey the photographs?’

Matt rummaged in the file he’d brought into the room and slid photographs of the couple across the table.

Naomi studied them carefully and shook her head again. ‘I definitely don’t know them.’

‘They never turned up to any of the quizzes?’

‘Not when I was there.’

‘Were you at work on Tuesday the fourteenth?’ Matt glanced quickly in Robyn’s direction but she ignored his look.

‘Am I under suspicion for a crime?’

‘I’d like to know where you were, please, Miss Povey.’

‘I took the day off.’ Naomi’s eyelids fluttered quickly. ‘I got up at eight, did some housework and then went to Tesco to get something nice for dinner. I was cooking a meal for us both for Valentine’s Day. Do you want me to drag in the checkout girl to prove I was there?’

Robyn gave a tight smile. ‘I don’t think that’ll be necessary. Going back to Thursday the sixteenth, you said your shift at JCB began at seven.’

‘That’s right.’

‘And before that you’d have been getting ready to go to work?’

‘Isn’t that what people normally do? Look, where are you going with this?’

Robyn wondered if she should push for more details, but decided she had little to gain by riling Naomi. ‘Have you heard from Roger recently? We’d like to talk to him.’

‘He was in one of his moods – he gets them from time to time. We call them his dark moods. When they come on, he usually goes up to the Peak District. He spends time outside, getting his head straight. I spoke to him on Friday evening and he was definitely out of sorts. I could tell by his voice. I usually leave him alone when he gets like that. He snaps out of it again. He has a stall at Lichfield market on a Thursday, so he’ll be back for that. He can’t afford to miss a market day.’

‘Any idea where he might be in the Peak District? Does he favour an area in particular?’

‘Roger loves all the great outdoors. Me, I hate it. I like shooting clays but I don’t like living under canvas and walking over muddy trails in the rain and wind. I’ve never even been to the Peak District, so no, I have no idea.’

‘You’ve known him a while?’

‘About five years. We met at Bramshall Leisure. Used to shoot together. He was the best male shot there. Pity he gave it up. I keep telling him to take it up again, but he can’t afford the club fees. I offered to pay them for him, but he won’t let me. Says he can’t accept charity. Shame, because we used to have a lot of fun together there.’

‘If he rings you, will you let us know, please?’

Naomi nodded.

‘I think that’s everything for now.’

Naomi rose at the same time as Robyn. She only came up to Robyn’s shoulders. Her face was expressionless. ‘I didn’t like Tessa but I had no reason to kill her. She dumped him. I got what I wanted. I didn’t need to kill her.’

She picked up her coat and snorted. ‘Tessa was always trouble. Even now she’s dead, she’s still causing it.’

Matt escorted her from the room and earned a glower for his efforts.

As she returned to her office, Robyn reflected on those words and decided Naomi bore enough of a grudge, especially if she knew about the baby, to have murdered Tessa.