Rita had given up waiting for a phone call during the long drive. Curled up on the sofa with Alfonso, she was watching a Netflix documentary about penguins. By the time Heather finally called it was almost too late to be up; she felt herself dropping off.

'Sorry for calling you so late, I hope this isn't a bad time. Only just this second got off the phone to TVP,' the British policewoman said as Rita dragged herself off the sofa.

'TVP?'

'Oh, sorry. Thames Valley Police.'

'I'm sorry to do this, can you pause it,' she whispered to Alfonso, before walking out of the room, into the office they were both using. He was a good guy. Maybe the best she'd ever had. It had to be too good to be true. He'd get pissed off and have enough at some point. Surely.

'If this is a bad time-' Heather said.

'It's not. Just - a long day. Visiting a friend.' Rita yawned, shutting the door to the office and sitting on the swivel chair.

'Lucky you. I lost touch with all my friends when I joined the force,' Heather sighed.

'This is one on four legs. The best kind.' Rita pinched herself to keep from shutting her eyes. Now she had to speak English to this woman late at night.

'Ah. Like, a sanctuary? My son helps out at one of them,' Heather laughed.

‘Something like that.’ There was a pause. Rita turned on her computer and opened the now repaired cabinet, taking out the files she had for Sonia Gutiérrez and Caroline McKenzie. With Castella ruled out, Rita was back heading up the case alongside Mansouri. He needed moral support; his confidence had been shaken after his meeting with Bonita.

'So, tell me why you think it's the same killer, then.' Heather said, her voice now tense and serious. Rita swallowed and drank a glass of water.

'Heather, I've read the postmortem report for Aidan Donnelly's killing. From my observations, the injuries found on the body are similar to those found on bulls during a fight, and appear to be made with similar weapons, like that dart,' Rita said calmly. Pepelito's suffering, exhaustion and helplessness in the face of such violence had been unbearable to watch. To even think of killing a person like that...

'Caroline McKenzie wasn't killed like that, though, was she? I haven't had time to go through the report properly, but...' Heather asked.

'No, although the cause of death was, again, multiple stab wounds. And Caroline had strong opinions on animal rights. She had a history of harassing those she saw as responsible for cruelty. As I said, this perpetrator has an unnatural interest in such activities, and I believe he targeted her deliberately. We have since linked her case to another victim, Sonia Gutiérrez, who often protested against bullfights. The last time she did, shortly before her murder, she was violently attacked.' Heather listened, saying nothing.

'There's no history of any protests or anything like that, that we've found with Aidan. The kid had just turned 18! Is there any way it could be a coincidence?'

'It could be, yes. But there's a similar lack of DNA found on his body. In all cases, he's abducting them, killing them, removing forensic evidence and dumping the bodies near where they were originally abducted.' There was a long silence. Caroline hadn't been killed at the hotel. And Sonia was found near a busy church, in an area many people walked.

Heather said shakily, 'Other police forces have been reviewing cold cases on our request. TVP found two, found a guy aged 55 who they said might be possible. But the only problem is, his ex-wife is already serving life in prison for his murder, although she always said she was innocent. That's why it took so long to call back, because they've not managed to track down the information...'

'Do you have any information about the victim's life?' Rita said.

'Nah, that's all I've got, I'm afraid. Police bureaucracy, you know what it's like,' Heather sighed.

'Who was the other possible victim?' Rita said.

'Her name was Samantha Berger, she was 30, got murdered a year ago. No animal rights protests, but she had a criminal record for direct action to do with other things, environmental issues, war. I think that's more likely, she was killed in quite a similar way to Aidan.' Looking at the postmortem report on her screen, Rita winced as she read the details of Samantha's now horribly familiar injuries.

'So if I am right, this sick fuck has killed at least four people.'

'What's confusing me though Rita, is if it is all the same person, is there's a gap of 10 or 11 years and then two within weeks of each other. A killer like this doesn't just stop.'

'Yes. It's possible he's been in prison or had a serious illness and couldn't continue for a while. But it's likely there are more victims out there, who we don't know about.' Rita's calm voice gave away little of what she was feeling.

'My God. Why do you think the UK murders are so much more elaborate and violent than the ones in Spain if it's the same guy? Surely he could get that - that equipment he's using more easily there?' Heather spoke in an agonised tone.

'Maybe he feels more confident, maybe he has more time. He might feel more comfortable there,' Rita said.

'Rita, you said your victims had a history of animal rights activism. If he's choosing them that way, he's really doing his research, isn't he? He's researching them for weeks. Aidan looked to be a random victim, but maybe he's not.' Alfonso opened the door to the study and then swiftly closed it. At least he had an alibi. The last time Rita had dealt with a serial killer was at least five years ago. That one had been very different, terrifying in her own way; a killer nurse in a local hospital.

This felt much closer to home.

A sickening thought came to her.

What if helping Pepelito made her or Alfonso the killer's next target?

'Yes. This is someone who chooses his victims. I don't think it's random - even with Aidan, if you dig deeper you'll find a reason.'

'How do you suppose he's getting rid of forensic evidence, or is he just not leaving any in the first place?' Viewing Aidan's body and attending the crime scene was clearly taking a toll on Heather. Rita sat, sickened by her question, and its likely answer.

'I think this is someone who has money, and lots of time to dispose of evidence. He clearly travels a lot between at least two different countries.' Rita swallowed, not wanting to voice the other thought.

'So someone like a long distance lorry driver, maybe?' Heather said.

'Yes. Although this is someone well educated with detailed knowledge of forensic techniques. I also...' She took a deep breath and drank some water.

Saying it out loud made it much more real.

'Some of the cleanup jobs are too perfect for one person. I think he's had help.'

'Jesus Christ. You think that's likely?' Heather inhaled sharply. It was a terrible line, but Rita could hear how shaken she sounded.

'I'd say it's more likely than not.'

'And a question for you,' Rita said, she had her opinion but it helped to confirm it with someone. 'Why do you think he's doing this?'

'Um, probably tells himself they've wronged him somehow, that they deserve it. But I think the real reason is, he loves to kill.' There was a bark in the background. A police dog?

'Yeah, I think so too.'

'Has there been any progress on finding a customer list for those darts?' Heather sounded exhausted too.

'Yeah, we've got a list for the last six months for a company called Divisas Taurinas Laguna de Duero, but they also do rosettes for cattle competitions, so you'll have to check what was actually bought. I'll send it over now.' Hadn't she done it earlier? Today had been so long. Even if the killer had bought it directly from the company within six months, the order would be difficult to trace; most such orders were made through associations.

'Cattle competitions? My wife's dad's a farmer, he loves those, he has a herd of prize winning Herefords!' Both women laughed. But the site made her nauseous, even the innocuous pages. And how innocuous could these competitions be for cows whose ultimate destination was dinner?

'Look. Thanks so much. I'll let you go now. There will be a press conference tomorrow at 2pm and we'd obviously like it if one or more of you attended via video.' Hearing these words, Rita was filled with dread.

'Yeah, we'll be there, one of us anyway. Take care, Heather.'

Rita hung up and walked back into the living room. 'Sorry about that.'

'No worries,' Alfonso said, putting an arm around her and turning the TV back to the documentary. As the penguins walked across the Antarctic ice Rita shut her eyes, feeling so comfortable with him. She needed to get her flat sorted, but for now it could wait.

*

'Has it finished?' Rita said blearily. The credits had just come on and she sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes.

'Yeah, you slept through three episodes, I didn't want to wake you because it seemed like you needed it,' Alfonso said, holding her foot gently.

'Oh, crap, I was enjoying it. I guess it's time to go to bed again. I need an early night. We're going to the plaza de toros tomorrow. Speaking to some possible suspects. Can't say I'm looking forward. I feel kind of sick.'

'Ugh. That's gonna be hard.'

'Yeah. It just feels personal now,' she said, picking up her phone.

'Speaking of which. Look at this, Alfonso. Mum was calling me selfish for not wanting to have anything to do with him a few weeks ago, now he's cheated on my sister it's like she's joined some militant group.' Not wanting to send her mother anything more recent, Rita had fired over a grainy screenshot of her and Pepelito from the video of him walking down the street. Her mum had just given it a love heart reaction.

'Aw ❤️ I love Pepelito, what a sweetie, so proud of you for saving him darling daughter! Love you lots!'

Alfonso shook his head. 'I don't even know what to say. Better late than never I suppose.'

'Who knows if it'll last, I never know with her. She's pissed off at him. Guess I'll take that.' Rita shrugged, checking her police phone in case Heather had sent her anything else. She hadn't, but someone else was calling.

'Sorry to call so late, is that Inspectora Silvera?' The girl on the other end sounded very young. Her voice was pleading yet oddly formal.

'Speaking.'

'It's Lucia Gutiérrez. I need to tell you something to do with my mum.' Rita froze. She got up and mouthed 'Sorry' at Alfonso as she walked out the door.

'Can you meet me on Saturday?' Lucia said, taking a very quiet breath. Rita didn't have the heart to tell her to call back.

'I can. Can you come to the station?'

'Um, could we, like, meet somewhere else, there's a cafe in the park? And - can you not wear a uniform when we meet?'

'I can do that,' Rita said, wanting to collapse in bed.

'Can you, like, come on your own?' Lucia's voice was anxious and insistent.

'I can't -' she started; this was a 14 year old child. And apart from the safeguarding issue, Lucia had thrown stones at her. Her mind flashed to the teenagers and the dead man in the park. Lucia didn't give her those vibes, but of course she needed backup.

'Please. Now I know the truth, you're the only cop I trust.'

AN: what do you think Lucia is going to tell her? :)