Being a journalist means you override the normal, polite keep-away signals. These are the people trained to thrust microphones under the noses of fraudulent financiers or cowboy builders who've robbed old ladies of their life savings that's their job. So no way was Emily going to respect my feeble 'sorry, I have to go'.

'You know that Robert Earle isn't exactly the most popular guy on Planet Media,' she ploughed on. 'I considered that might be worth looking into and it turns out I was right. He has a long list of enemies, including a dozen editors he's fired without warning, rival newspaper owners oh, and of course Dave Peacock, the guy he sacked on the spot for driving Anna Earle to see you, Alyssa.'

'You contacted him again?'

'Yeah, and according to Dave it's surprising what gets said during drives from one business meeting to another. He got to hear personal phone calls and off-the-record conversations with Earle's business associates. There was one in particular earlier this summer that Dave overheard.'

'To do with Lily?'

'Indirectly. This was about a protest staged outside Comco's offices on the Euston Road. Apparently Robert Earle totally lost his rag over it, yelled down the phone to the organizer of the protest, swearing and saying it didn't change anything, he wouldn't give way to threats or buckle under pressure and so on.'

'Was that all?'

'No. Dave says he heard the protest guy talking on Robert Earle's speaker phone in other words he got both sides of the conversation and he didn't like what he heard in the end the guy was actually threatening members of Earle's family.'

I took a deep breath. 'Thanks for telling me I appreciate it.'

'But it's not new to you?' Emily was smart in picking up on my reaction. 'Which means we've been digging the same kind of dirt, you and me. Maybe you should consider a career as a journalist.'

'No thanks no offence.'

'None taken.' She grinned like a co-conspirator. 'But if you want me to follow up on this anti-Comco group, which was issuing threats against Earle's family, I reckon we should pool our resources.'

'In other words, I just tell you what I know?' I glanced at Jack and saw him nod. He meant I should trust his journalist friend, which was a pretty big challenge for me, as you know. But I rose to it as part of my growing-up process. No more green-eyed-god jealousy towards Emily Archer from now on. 'They're called the Campaign for Racial Purity,' I told her.

She raised her eyebrows and sighed. 'Whoa, why do I not like the sound of that?'

The Askwith's guy had just finished his delivery and called to see if she wanted a ride out of the grounds. She told him yes.

'Be careful with these CRP people,' I warned. 'They're lowlife. Don't let them know you're investigating them.'

Emily nodded. 'Likewise,' she told me.

My warning to her was in time, I hoped, but hers to me was way too late. The CRP already knew I was on to them and were going to extreme lengths to shut me up.

Guy wasn't in the main school, and Jack and I had moved on to the stable yard when we heard two raised voices coming from inside Franklin's stable. We recognized them straight away Guy Simons and Harry Embsay.

It turned out that stables are an ideal place to eavesdrop you just have to stand in one stable and listen in to the conversation in the stable next to it. The sound drifts across the partitions separating one stall from the next.

'I'm not going in there!' Jack hissed when I put my finger to my lips and pointed to Mistral's stall.

'Shh!'

'Small stable giant horse!'

'Shh, Mistral won't hurt us.' I had to hope that I was right. 'Hey,' I murmured as Paige's horse rustled through his straw and stuck his head over the door. I stroked his neck and finally managed to slide the bolt silently, signalling for Jack to join me inside.

'Jeez!' he groaned as he backed into the furthest corner.

We were in with Mistral and safe so far, though he didn't seem all that happy to have visitors. His ears had gone flat against his head and he rolled his eyes suspiciously.

'I think that's horse speak for "Get the hell out of my stable!"' Jack mouthed.

'Shh!' I needed to listen to Harry and Guy.

'I told you I just spoke to him!' By the time we were safely hidden, Harry was almost bellowing. 'Chris told the cops he was with me both times I'm his alibi!'

'So you just say yes, you were with him.' Guy made an effort to stay calm. 'You back him up. What's the problem?'

'The problem is I wasn't!'

'They don't know that. You say you and Chris were together. Where were you, as a matter of fact?'

'Which time when he rode the bike at Alyssa or when he attacked Paige's horse?'

'Both.'

'Number one there was a blizzard and I was stuck here until it stopped.'

'OK, so you say Chris paid you a visit in your room and you were snowed in together.'

'Number two everyone knows where I was I was out riding your stupid horse!'

Guy thought before he went on. 'You were out riding and you ran into Chris on one of the bridleways just outside the Bottoms. You stopped to talk. That's good enough. But you need to get together to work out the details. Where is he now? How soon can you meet up?'

'He went back to work.'

'Whereabouts?'

'With Audley at Upwood House. They're there all this week that's what he said.'

'OK, so get over there now before it gets dark.'

'And you'll give me a lift?' Harry laughed. 'Yeah, thought so like hell you will!'

'I'm not the one in deep shit,' Guy told him. 'You are. Just get over there now and do what you have to do to firm up Chris's alibi.'

Jack and I heard the bolt to Franklin's stable door slide back and one pair of footsteps walk across the yard. We ducked down, well out of sight. In the stable next door we heard Harry swear and pick up a plastic feed bucket then slam it against a wall. Franklin gave a scared whinny and Mistral threw back his head and squealed a reply. I had to agree with Jack all of a sudden the stable did feel pretty cramped and from our perspective crouched down in the straw the grey horse was a quivering mountain of muscle.

'Let's get out of here!' Jack whispered.

But we had to wait until Harry had taken out his anger on the bucket. It landed on the stone floor then he kicked it out into the yard, ran after it and stamped on it, went back to bolt Franklin's door and finally strode off after Guy.

'At least now we definitely know what we're dealing with,' I said to Jack as we left Mistral's stable. 'Chris Cooke, Harry and Guy are in this together, and most likely D'Arblay as well. All we have to do now is find out who made Lily pregnant.'

'And exactly who killed her and how,' he added.

'Alyssa Hooper here.'

I was in the middle of convincing Jack to come with me to Upwood House when I stopped to answer my phone. 'You found something new?' I asked.

'Yeah. I printed off a membership form for the CRP then I rang the membership secretary, a Michael Morrison, and asked if I could come to their next meeting, but he said I had to fill in the form and join first. We got into a long conversation.'

'Cool, Hooper, but can you speed it up? I'm in a hurry.'

'I'm getting there. I asked what I got for my hundred and fifty quid membership a card, a badge, whatever. He said no, no card or badge. But listen to this, Alyssa all members are invited to wear a special ring.'

'Two bands of interlocked gold,' I said with total, heart-stopping certainty.

'With the initials CRP engraved on them,' Hooper confirmed. 'I guess it's their form of the freemasons' secret handshake, so that members can recognize each other . . . Alyssa, are you still there?'

'Yeah, thanks, Hooper. Thanks for that.'

'Where are you now?'

'In the stable yard with Jack. We're going to sneak out and follow Harry. He's meeting Chris Cooke at Upwood House you know the place?'

'Over by the abbey yeah.'

'I'm officially grounded so don't tell anyone.'

'I won't. Call me if you're in trouble, though.'

'We will. Bye.'

Jack waited for me to finish talking. 'So we're sneaking out?' he said edgily.

'We have to!' I frowned and bit my bottom lip. 'Listen, Jack you don't have to come if you don't want to . . .'

'Alyssa!'

'Yeah, sorry.' I was amazed how easily I still slipped back into sulky-child mode. 'But we do have to go. We can't come this far and back out now.'

'I know, but I'm slower than you at taking it all in Harry, Guy, Chris Cooke and now D'Arblay.'

'Definitely D'Arblay,' I said. He wore a CRP ring on the third finger of his right hand.

'OK Tom's party,' I said to Jack.

We took two bikes and cycled as fast as we could past the lake and through the wood, across the stream and out on to the back lane with not more than two hours of daylight left on this overcast winter's day.

'That was ages ago,' Jack replied. 'I thought you'd remembered everything already.'

'There's always more.'

We pedalled fast through the Bottoms and only slowed down when we turned up on to Meredith Lane, heading for Upper Chartsey and beyond that Hereward Ridge. My lungs were close to bursting so I had to speak in fits and starts.

You had to be brain dead to live in chocolate-box Chartsey, Tom had told me the first time I'd met him while I kept my eyes glued on Jack and Jayden in the corner of the room.

This was before Lily had thrown herself at him.

But that had been a whole hour into the party. What had happened before that? 'Alex and Micky were part of the Ainslee Comp gang who gate-crashed with Jayden,' I told Jack. 'That's right isn't it?'

He nodded and we cycled on.

'But I didn't really notice them because I was on edge about meeting everyone. I only really paid attention to the people from St Jude's who I already knew.'

'Me, Zara, Luke, Paige . . .' Jack said. 'Anyone else?'

'Harry. There was almost a fight between him and Jayden out in the hall.'

I'd seen it through the door Jayden rushing up to Harry, ready to head butt him, Alex and Micky stepping in to stop him. The music had been loud, but I could still work out what they were saying.

'What did Harry do?' Jack asked.

'He threw a punch at Jayden as soon as his back was turned. He looked like he wanted to knock him dead. Then the front door opened and that was when Lily arrived.'

I stepped forward to say hi, told her she looked cool in her shiny top.

'Thanks, Alyssa.' She slurred my name, couldn't focus as she tottered across the hallway and ran into Harry literally smack into him. It took a full three seconds for her to register and recognize him.

'You're pissed again,' he sneered as she fell sideways against the hall stand.

'Better pissed than a wanker like you, Harry.'

I was convinced he'd have punched her too if Jayden hadn't pulled free from Micky and Alex, and stepped in between them.

'Ah, sweet!' Harry laughed. 'Look at this, the ex-boyfriend still has "feelings" for you, Lil.'

'Wanker,' she muttered. 'Everyone knows what a tosser you are, Harry Embsay.' She was out of her head on drugs and alcohol, but she still had enough focus to want to hurt him. She hated him. She loathed him so much she wanted to destroy him.

He moved in so close that I couldn't hear what he said to her, but I had a crystal-clear picture of the way she glared at him and I would be able to re-run and lip-read his words as many times as I wanted.

'Don't drink when you're pregnant!'

He wasn't offering advice he was tormenting her.

'Don't drink when you're pregnant.'

She crumpled and fell against Alex, who handed her on to Zara and told her to take Lily into the downstairs cloakroom while he and Micky steered Jayden into the lounge.

That was when Jayden cornered Jack, and I was left talking with Tom.

'So how come you live here?' I asked him, one eye on Jack and Jayden, the feral kid.

Tom called it la-la land and we'd chatted for a while then Lily escaped from the loo and targeted Tom. 'There you are!' she cried, kissing him full on the lips and swamping him in an octopus embrace to make Jayden jealous.

And after that the 'Don't drink when you're pregnant' episode out in the hallway had completely slipped from my eidetic memory, until right here, right now.