The news races through the nick; a Halloween horror story with a happy ending. DI Lewis collared a nutter who threatened a little boy with a knife.

"I heard it was a sword," PC Wollert says.

Tomlinson scoffs. "Nah, a carving knife. Proper pig-sticker. Bastard was going to slit the kid's throat right in front of his mum."

Everyone agrees on the crucial detail: the nutter surrendered because he said an angel descended from Heaven and ordered him to. Crazy talk, but Lewis and his bagman must surely have God on their side or the devil's own luck. Perhaps both.

Jean Innocent hears about it immediately. Of course it involved those two! Who else would stumble into that situation while off-duty? She shudders, imagining what could have gone wrong: a murdered child, dead or wounded officers, screaming headlines, and a photo of James in a crumpled heap of blood-stained feathers. The report only says Hathaway phoned Dispatch, so she can't take official action. She doesn't know if he deserves a commendation or her fiercest bollocking. Perhaps both.

She goes home with a throbbing head, not sure if she wants a migraine tablet or a celebratory glass of chablis. Perhaps both.