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Graham.’
    ‘And Dizzy – and Mr. Barrymore. I think he was listening at the door when she mentioned it. But most of them only heard about it today.’
    ‘Indeed. The question is, who knew before those letters started arriving. And why send them in the first place? If it was David, what would he hope to achieve? We need to take a look at that video, Emily.’
    ‘It’s gone missing. And so has Dizzy.’
    ‘Well, David is looking for Dizzy, so let’s you and I hunt the video together. Where should we look?’
    ‘There’s a cupboard somewhere with a video cart with a TV and video player on it. Seema mentioned it. We could try there. I’m not quite sure where it is…’
    ‘Perfect! Can’t be hard to find.’
    Dr. Muriel opened the door to the office, and they set off. They tried the handles of the doors as they passed. Most opened onto classrooms. One opened onto a staffroom. One opened onto a small kitchen with a fridge, a kettle and a microwave. Eventually they found a door that looked promising. It was marked ‘AV Cupboard’, and it was locked or blocked from the inside. As Emily and Dr. Muriel pressed their weight against it, they heard the sound of David’s mellifluous voice behind them. ‘Maybe the door opens outwards, ladies. Have you tried it?’
    He reached through their arms and tried it, but the door did not open outwards. It opened inwards like the others, and it was stuck. David laughed. He said, ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to be a patronising git.’
    ‘Any luck with finding Dizzy, David?’ Dr. Muriel asked him. ‘Did you see him?’
    ‘Didn’t see anyone except the landlord at the sink at his kitchen window – at least I suppose it was the landlord. Wearing an England shirt? Thuggish-looking bloke. But he gave me a big smile.’
    ‘That sounds like a very practical and comfortable solution to the question of how best to avoid Victoria’s end-of-term show,’ said Dr. Muriel. ‘Warm and cosy in his kitchen, out of sight and sound of a hundred-odd children, no doubt putting the kettle on. No wonder he was smiling.’ She turned back to the door. ‘Let’s try this, then. On my count: one, two, three.’
    The three of them pushed, and the door opened a little way and then opened further. It was blocked by a man’s body lying on the floor. The man was wearing dark blue overalls. It was Dizzy.
    David went over to him and put his fingers on Dizzy’s neck to check if he was alive. Dizzy groaned, looked up, and said, ‘Great admirer of your work, man.’
    ‘You’ve been knocked unconscious,’ said David. ‘Looks like a blow to the back of your head.’
    ‘Have I? Woah! How long have I been out? I was having this really nice dream.’
    ‘Did you bring the video up here, Dizzy?’ asked Dr. Muriel.
    ‘I’ve got aspirations,’ said Dizzy, sitting up and touching the back of his head delicately with his fingers. ‘Acting – I’m drawn to the profession. That’s why I work at this place. David Devereux: household name. Thought if I watched a vid from his early days, I might learn something.’
    Emily stepped over him and pressed the narrow letterbox opening on the video player with her fingers. It flapped inwards, gently. She pressed the eject button anyway, just in case, but there was nothing in the machine. ‘There’s nothing here now,’ she said.
    ‘Perhaps we should get you to a hospital,’ Dr. Muriel said to Dizzy. She leaned in to him and waggled her hand in his face. ‘How many fingers am I holding up?’
    ‘Three. No, two. No, three.’
    ‘Sounds OK to me,’ said Dr. Muriel. ‘Of course, I’m not a medical doctor.’
    ‘Someone knocked you on the head and stole the video?’ asked Emily.
    ‘Could be,’ said Dizzy. ‘Could be. They might of misunderstood the nature of the content of it. There’s some unsavoury people about.’
    ‘You didn’t see who it was?’ Emily asked.
    ‘I didn’t, Emily. Must of been a fella, though. Gave me a pretty good whack.’
    Emily