‘Let’s take a few minutes,’ said Erika. She grabbed her cigarettes and made her way outside.

When she came out onto the steps of the front entrance, Diana Douglas-Brown was just lighting up a cigarette. She stood at the bottom of the steps, and wore a long, black fur coat. Her hair was immaculately blow-dried and feathered around her exhausted face.

Erika was about to turn and go back inside when Diana noticed her.

‘DCI Foster, what’s happening?’

‘We’re conducting our interviews,’ said Erika, with an air of finality.

She went to go back indoors but Diana said, ‘Please, would you give this to Linda?’ She reached into the folds of her coat and held out a tiny stuffed cat on a key ring. It was black with soft brown eyes and a tiny piece of faded pink material for a tongue.

‘I’m afraid I can’t, I’m sorry,’ said Erika.

‘Please . . . you don’t understand, Linda needs familiarity.’ Diana took a drag on her cigarette. ‘When I gave birth to her, she was starved of oxygen. She has emotional problems. She can’t cope with the world!’ The last part was almost shouted.

‘Our Duty Sergeant can have a doctor here within minutes, but Linda is fine, I promise you. We just want to ask her some questions.’

Diana burst into tears. She bowed her head and her hair fell forward, covering her face. She brought the tiny stuffed cat to her face and sobbed. Erika turned and went back into the reception area.

‘It checks out,’ said Crane, meeting her when she arrived back in the incident room. ‘I have a passenger manifest saying Igor Kucerov left the country on December 31st from London Luton Airport on a flight to Romania. He flew back on January 15th.’

‘Shit!’ said Erika. All eyes turned to her. ‘What if he did something in-between? Have you got CCTV evidence of him walking through that departure gate?’ she added.

‘Boss, this is information from Passport and Immigration.’

‘I know, but we’ve got stuff here from the CPS and court records which have been altered. It shows Igor Kucerov was given some special treatment during a trial! Someone has been in and altered official records . . . Could he have come back on a bus, a car or a coach, and then gone back and . . .’

Crane scratched his head. ‘It’s feasible, boss, I suppose.’

‘Let’s stop supposing and find out. I want pictures from passport control, CCTV when he arrived in Romania; a digital footprint confirming that Igor Kucerov left the country on December 31st and came back on January the 15th.’

‘Yes, boss.’

‘And remember, the clock is ticking,’ said Erika, looking at her watch. ‘We’ve got nineteen hours.’

Erika came back outside and met Peterson and Moss in the corridor. She told them that Igor Kucerov could have been out of the country when Andrea vanished.

‘So this means that he didn’t kill Andrea, or Ivy. We can’t pin him directly to their murders,’ said Moss.

Erika shook her head.

‘What about the other girls? Tatiana Ivanova, Mirka Bratova and Karolina Todorova? We have the dates when they were discovered. Can we find out where he was?’ asked Peterson.

‘There are only loose forensics for the first three girls, and for the times when they vanished. Besides, I came out publicly and linked those three murders with Andrea and Ivy. And I believe they are linked. Unless it’s a copycat? Jesus, this is just so complicated,’ said Erika, rubbing her face. She saw a look pass between Moss and Peterson. ‘What is it? Spit it out.’

‘Simon Douglas-Brown’s solicitor is really kicking off. He’s been trying to phone the Assistant Commissioner,’ explained Moss.

‘He’s trying to phone Oakley?’

‘Yes. And it wasn’t through the switchboard; he has Oakley’s direct line.’

‘Did he get through?’

‘No, not yet. Oakley is away on a mini-break.’

‘He’s on a mini-break. Marsh is wining and dining his wife on a painting holiday . . . Who the hell is in charge around here?’

‘Well, boss. Technically, you are,’ explained Peterson.

‘Good point. Okay, well, let’s have a crack at Giles Osborne,’ said Erika, determinedly.

65

Giles Osborne sat in the interview room with an embittered face, as Erika and Peterson filed in with Giles Osborne’s solicitor, another grey man in a good suit, called Phillip Saunders.

After Erika had read out the formalities for the tape, she put the same questions to Giles, asking about the forty-six thousand pounds he had received from Simon Douglas-Brown and why he had then transferred it to Mercury Investments, owned by Igor Kucerov.