Wright Watson hated Monday mornings. As he walked into his office, he knew that there would be a pile of reports waiting for him to read. Once he had taken in their contents, he would then need to determine how to proceed in each case. The Detective Chief Inspector checked to see if Makepeace had arrived, but there was as yet no sign of the Detective Sergeant. Once his colleague was available, it would be possible – and, indeed, necessary – to divert all attention and energy to the murder of Dr Thomas Burchill and the swift apprehension of his killer or killers.

In the meantime, the DCI determined to make swift work of the recent crimes that had been logged over the weekend for his immediate inspection as the new working week began. Two reports caught his eye. The first related to a man...

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