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wondered how his wife and daughters were doing. Would they be coping? Sleeping? Crying? Unable to go to bed because they didn’t want to wake up in the morning and realise their nightmare wasn’t a nightmare but was in fact a reality, that they had lost a husband, a father and a friend because some heartless idiot had taken him away from them?
    Maybe the team would get a break tomorrow, realise that it was just some random act of violence – a druggie after a quick hit or something. Something simple yet, if so, bloody tragic.
    He reached across and turned out the light. Exhausted and emotional, Perry hoped sleep would wear him down soon.

    Allie parked her car in the driveway of her home and killed the engine. She let herself in, hoping to remove the heaviness of th e d ay along with her coat as she left it in the hallway. In the living room, she found Mark sprawled along the length of the settee.
    ‘Hey.’ Allie ruffled his hair. ‘How was your first day back?’
    ‘It seemed to go on forever. But not as long as yours.’ Mark yawned and stretched his arms in the air. ‘You got anything concrete ?’
    ‘Not yet.’ Allie perched beside him and relayed the details that she could.
    ‘I can’t believe this is someone else you know,’ Mark said afterwards. ‘I hope this isn’t going to become a habit.’
    ‘I knew him vaguely!’ Allie nudged his shoulder, thankful that he was joking. But she did pause for a moment, recalling her last murder investigation. Both she and Mark had met Steph Ryder, although neither of them could claim to have known her all that well. It was a good thing, really, Allie deduced, considering the circumstances leading up to the arrest of her killer.
    ‘Mickey Taylor.’ Allie shook her head slowly. ‘I still can’t believe it. Perry knew both him and his wife. He reckons he was a right lad at school.’
    ‘We were all right lads at school. Most of us grew up, though, when we walked out of the gates for the final time and joined the real world.’
    ‘I suppose. Most of the time I can distance myself from my work, but it was really sad. Gorgeous house, one of the large detached ones on Holly Lane. And, do you know, apart from the obvious signs of grief, Kath’s really looked after herself. Makes a refreshing change.’
    ‘You mean she still looks good for our age group?’
    ‘ Your age group, old man,’ Allie mocked. ‘I’m younger than you.’
    ‘And, boy, will you never let me forget it.’
    ‘No, I never will.’ She bent down to kiss his forehead, so grateful that they still got on so well after fifteen years of marriage. She watched him for a moment longer, letting his familiarity stabilise her. It made her feel peaceful, lucky to have him to come home to.
    She went through to the kitchen. Despite the lateness of the hour, she was hungry after grabbing what she could throughout the day. The first hours of any murder enquiry were manic, with hardly a moment to breathe. There were no properties near to the scene of this one, but house-to-house enquiries had started around the surrounding streets, which meant setting up the enquiry, rounding up extra bodies, appealing for witnesses and dealing with them – although there hadn’t been any so far – scouring CCTV to see if it had panned over the area at the right time and caught anything, waiting for forensics coming in, getting the Financial Forensic Unit to check Mickey’s position, obtaining the family’s phone records. If it weren’t for the fact that everyone they wished to speak to, or anyone who could give them information, would be asleep now, most of the team would still be at their desks.
    Mark padded into the room, barefoot, dressed in navy pyjama bottoms and a white T-shirt. Allie’s stomach flipped over at the sight. She felt blessed that he could still do that to her, that he still warmed her heart, still made her insides tingle. She reached up as he drew near, running a hand over his late-in-the-day