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‘Was he upset?’

‘At the time, yes, but we’re talking thirty years ago.’

‘Stranger things have happened.’ Gray read the notes again. ‘And you said he was at the library event?’

‘Yes,’ Mary said. ‘He gave a lot of money to the library. Made a fortune in finance.’

‘And – what a coincidence – he was at the game today,’ Ryan said. ‘But not watching it. Just in the car park. Putting notes in people’s cars.’

‘We don’t know that,’ Gray said. ‘But it’s worth looking into. Is he married?’

‘Used to be,’ Mary said.

‘What happened?’

She shrugged. ‘I don’t know.’

‘Kids?’

Mary shook her head. ‘No.’

‘Hmm.’ Gray made some notes. ‘I tell you what I’ll do. I’ll make some inquiries into Carl Langton. Anything else?’

‘There’s—’ She hesitated. She didn’t want to accuse Trent falsely, but at the same time she didn’t want to leave out anything that might help Gray.

‘Yes?’ he said.

‘We have a new neighbour. They paid way over asking for the house and this morning he was following me—’

‘He was following you?’

‘Well, no,’ she said. ‘Not exactly. I was out for a run, early, and he was on Crimmins Field at the same time.’

‘That’s not illegal,’ Gray said.

‘He said he was there because his dog had got out, but when I got home she – the dog – was here.’

Gray nodded, slowly, and stood to leave. ‘OK. I’ll have a look into him as well.’

‘What was the second thing?’ Ryan said. ‘You said there were two odd things about the notes.’

Gray nodded. ‘That’s right. The second is why? What’s the point of them? Why would anyone bother with this?’

Anyone for Dessert?

She wanted to get out of the house. She felt trapped, like it was closing in around her. The idea of sitting at the table with Sally and Otis and Ryan, barely present for her family, her thoughts running in all directions, was unbearable. Before that, though, there was something she needed to do.

She called Joanie.

‘What’s cooking?’ Joanie said. ‘How’s your sexy new neighbour?’

‘Not sexy,’ Mary said. ‘Weird.’

‘Really? They can be the best ones. Kind of kinky, you know?’

‘Not now, Joanie. I need a favour.’

‘Anything.’