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they’re focused on the job?
FM: Yes.
JC: She’s like that. So when she wanted to keep herself to herself I respected that. And, to be honest,
we didn’t really have time for our relationship once the case started because it consumed us both. It’s
the nature of it.
FM: Do you think Emma was prepared for that?
JC: Absolutely.
FM: You put a lot of responsibility on her, recommending her for the post.
JC: I’ve already told you, I had faith in her.
FM: Did you talk about that?
JC: I wasn’t going to patronise her. That would have been out of order. And she didn’t need me to.
His foot begins to tap a swift staccato on the floor, signalling that he knows it’s only minutes until
the end of our session.
FM: Just one last thing before you go.
He raises an eyebrow enquiringly.
FM: Did you feel that you were able to keep your distance from the case? Personally?
JC: What do you mean?
FM: The age of Benedict Finch, the visit to his school. Occasionally when I read your report I get the
feeling that he might have got under your skin a bit.
JC: I was professional.
FM: I’m not suggesting for a moment that you weren’t.
He stares at me.
JC: It’s not wrong to care.
FM: Was this the first case you worked on where a child was involved, or in danger?
JC: Yes.
FM: Was that hard?
JC: It was hard in that we had to find him. It was our responsibility to him. He’d done nothing wrong.
He was just a kid. But that didn’t make any difference to anything I did.
FM: Do you think your response to the case could have been affected by the relatively recent death of
your father?
JC: What?
FM: Sometimes when we lose a parent it makes us reflect on our childhoods. It’s not an uncommon