It was Gillian who woke first the next morning, startled by the banging on the front door. Rudely pulled from her dreams, she untangled herself from Caroline's arms and the bedsheets.

"Caroline! Caroline!" shouted Cheryl.

Despite her sleepy state, Gillian recognised the voice as she scrambled to grab a dressing gown.

Caroline hadn't registered the banging and shouting, or even Gillian's rising; it was only Ruth's urgent barking that had woken her. The unexpected intrusion broke into the quiet, pre-dawn hours and she hoped the noise wouldn't wake Flora. She sat bolt upright in bed as Gillian flung a dressing gown at her.

Gillian made it down the stairs, just steps ahead of Caroline but well behind Ruth, flipped on the outside light and tore open the front door all while trying to calm Ruth to keep her from charging out at Cheryl. She angrily shouted at her, even before the door was fully open, "Where's the fire? There'd better be a good reason to be banging on our door at this hour."

"At the school," Cheryl replied flatly as she pushed past Gillian to explain herself to Caroline.

"There's been a fire at the school," she began. She looked back at Gillian and realised she didn't seem to be wearing anything under her robe. Looking back at Caroline, she added, "Since my shift was ending, I thought I'd better come let you know."

"A fire? Christ. How much damage?" a flummoxed Caroline spluttered as she tied her robe tighter to preserve her dignity from Cheryl's prurient gaze. "How? Where? How much damage?"

"The new wing. It's bad," Cheryl stammered. She noticed, when Gillian protectively moved to stand between her and Caroline, they were both barefooted and wearing matching dressing gowns. The sight of Ruth, with her tail furiously wagging, pacing back and forth between her mistresses, was further evidence of the togetherness of the curious couple in front of her. "We couldn't reach you by phone but knew you needed to know. If you get dressed, I'll take you over."

"You'd better come in Cheryl." Caroline ran her hands through her hair as she moved to pick up her phone from the nearby table, turned it on and saw all the missed calls and texts. She gave Gillian an inscrutable look. "Any idea how it started?"

Gillian couldn't read whether the look was because it was her idea to turn their phones off for the night or because Cheryl was standing in their house looking almost gleeful.

Needing something to do to get over her embarrassment at having Cheryl gawking at them, Gillian offered, "Coffee or tea?"

"I could murder a cup of black coffee." Seeing Gillian's eyes narrow, Cheryl immediately broke off eye contact. She hadn't meant to say the word murder to her face. She tried to gloss over it by adding, "If it's not too much trouble. It's been a long, cold night outside and I'd be grateful for a warm drink."

Taking pity on the tired copper, Gillian led them all out of the foyer and into the heart of their home. She motioned to a chair for Cheryl as she moved to the coffee maker. Caroline took the seat directly across from her, oblivious to Ruth looking at her empty water dish.

"Is it out? Anyone hurt?" Caroline was anxious to hear the details to curtail the thoughts and fears whirling around in her mind. With the coffee pot loaded, Gillian grabbed three mugs that clinked against each other as she carried them to the table where Cheryl, who knew far less than she wanted to let on, was visibly fidgeting in her seat, still wearing her police jacket.

"The first alarm went off around two. Five departments responded in all. By four it seemed to be under control. The inspectors are waiting for the all clear to go in to sort out the cause." A long yawn temporarily stopped Cheryl from saying anything more.

"Were you there the whole time?" Caroline asked, feeling sorry for the woman having to work the night shift. After the incident with Gillian's sheep, they'd heard from Robbie's mate Dave that Cheryl had somehow angered her sergeant and was relegated to the night shift to get her out of Cawood's sight. It appeared she must still in the dog house.

"Aye. I got there with the first fire crew. As my shift was nearly over, I offered to come notify you. Thought you'd want to know firsthand rather than on t'morning news." Gillian filled the mugs and placed one in front of her and Caroline before turning to grab the toast rack and some plates. A silence fell over the room as Gillian reached for some butter and jam from the fridge.

Cheryl warmed her hands on the mug before releasing it to butter her toast. She'd missed her dinner break and was starving. There was a chill in the kitchen that was from more than just Gillian's disbelief that she was serving Cheryl breakfast. Gillian remembered the day Caroline had first met Cheryl and how right Caroline was when she called her annoying as soon as the ditsy Cheryl was out of earshot. She then briefly flashed on the memory of their boozy lunch at the hotel and a smile ghosted across her face before she remembered why Cheryl was in their house.

Oblivious to Gillian's thoughts, Caroline scrolled through her text messages as she tried to devise a plan of action. Knowing Gillian would sort out Flora, she eventually declared, "Thank God it's Saturday and there's no school—that takes some pressure off." Seeing Cheryl hanging on her every word, she quickly added, "Thank you for going out of your way to let me know. I think I'll get dressed and drive myself over to see the damage."

Cheryl dutifully took her cue and left. She had heard Dave and some of the other officers laughing down the pub about Robbie's ex hooking up with the head teacher, but she didn't believe it. If she was honest, she used the fire as an excuse to knock on their door. Finding them in what appeared to be nothing more than their robes confirmed all the rumours she didn't want to believe. The guys joked how lucky Gillian was that he was in Canada and had no clue, as they were sure he'd have blown a gasket; they all pitied him too much to tell him. She tried not to smirk at the thought about how delicious it would be for her to rub that two-timing Robbie's nose it in but she was sure none of the guys would tell her where he was. As she started her car's engine, she wondered if Caroline always slept in her pearls. She knew Caroline was classy, so for the life of her she couldn't understand why she was with Gillian.

Gillian followed Caroline to their bedroom and as the blonde took off her dressing gown and walked into the ensuite to take a quick shower, she asked Gillian to take Flora to Raff and Ellie if she wasn't back by 10.

Gillian nodded. A thought occurred to her. "Take your wellies! There'll be filthy water everywhere if they've been fighting the fire for 3 hours."

"Good point!" was shouted over the noise of the shower.

Only a few minutes later Caroline climbed into the Jag, her mind buzzing as she drove the well-worn path to work in the remnants of the night. It had just gone 6am when she pulled up in front of the school. There weren't too many spectators about as the police had blocked access, but there were still several fire crews on site.

Relieved Gillian had suggested she wear her wellies, Caroline sloshed through blackened streams that drained from the skeleton of the new gymnasium, the bones of it puncturing the dawn sky like ribs from a gigantic beast. The air itself was charred, with soot lacing through the smoke which made it hard to breathe. By the time she'd surveyed the scene her mouth tasted of ash. It brought with it a sharp, grisly reminder of Kate's ashes; her life, her body cremated like that was somehow the end of things. Caroline's intellectual understanding of life's impermanence had been burned by fire into her soul, the weight of her grief apparent in her physical form. The thought of losing Gillian too crashed through her mind, wiping everything from it, leaving her paralysed in fear. Gulping short breaths of air, she opened and closed her fists, pushing the fear deep inside so she could function. It was unimaginable that she could lose Gillian as well. It couldn't happen.

It took a minute but she focused on keeping her thoughts embedded in the practical. It helped to calm her. Caroline clung onto the realisation there would be no indoor sport for a year at least. Searching for solutions, she ran through the Rolodex in her mind for neighbouring gymnasiums, and the Head of the nearest independent school who might be persuaded to help. The thought of losing the interest of the 20% of kids who really only come to school for sport was devastating. Think of them, she told herself, using the distraction to avoid the terror now lurking in her heart.

A police officer marched towards her, yellow high visibility jacket reflecting the dawn light. The still-flashing red lights from the large fire trucks strobed across the approaching woman, lending a surreal edge so she appeared large and menacing.

"Catherine Cawood," the officer introduced herself, "And you are?" she asked, clearly suspecting she'd found the head of the school from the posh outfit and tidy makeup at dawn. Everyone else looked distinctly sooty and exhausted by comparison.

"Caroline McKenzie-Dawson. I'm the Head Teacher." She managed to keep her voice even and was relieved the officer didn't offer to shake her hands, the wetness from her fear still clammy in her palms. "Do you know what happened?"

Catherine nodded. "We know some." She pulled a notebook from a pocket in her jacket and flipped through pages until she found a blank one. She wrote Caroline's name on it and the contact details Caroline supplied.

While Catherine added details to her notebook, Caroline inspected the officer in front of her. The three stripes on her jacket indicated a sergeant she thought, which suggested a reason for the power and casual confidence evident in every movement the woman made.

"Do you know of any students likely to do something like this?"

Caroline's eyebrows lifted before a frown formed. "Do you think it's arson?"

"Could be. We're investigating every scenario; we're keeping an open mind." She peered at Caroline, her gaze piercing.

Caroline swallowed. She had mastered her own stare of inquisition, but this woman was in another league. There was an edge to her manner, suggesting a readiness to follow words with action. Like a bear approaching a tiger, despite the current calm, Caroline knew to tread carefully.

"I'll have to think about it. There are a couple of possibilities, but this seems—" Caroline was unsettled looking at the damage before her.

"Right. We'll interview them and see what turns up if we need."

"I'll send the names through later this morning." Caroline accepted the card the sergeant handed over. "What happened?" She asked again.

"Near as we can tell, it started in the bins on the south side. Not sure if you have CCTV but it would be good to check," she surveyed her notes, "about 1.45am. Spread to the beams and then down the walls. Not sure if the sprinklers worked at the far end, but the end by the library has the least damage and looks like the sprinklers functioned. I'll ask the fire captain to keep you posted."

"Please. I'll need that for insurance I expect."

Sergeant Cawood focused her attention for a moment on the Head Teacher, who looked very well put together for someone dragged out of bed in the wee hours of the morning. The woman was clearly smart enough to wear waterproof boots to the scene, which impressed her more than expensive looking cream jumper and the blue jeans that were still immaculate. She observed the posh blonde in front of her, studying her face in the scorched light as the Head Teacher stared at the gym, transfixed by the carcass of something that had been whole when she'd last seen it less than twelve hours ago. The woman looked really familiar. It was then Catherine remembered this woman was rumoured to be shagging Robbie's ex wife. She couldn't picture what someone who obviously had money and education was doing with Gillian, but Gillian was brighter than Robbie. Presumably she had something going for her, because Robbie'd been a right plonker and Catherine had been relieved to be rid of him when he retired. She was sure, despite Cheryl's presence, the IQ in her squad room had risen 10 points on average when he left.

"CCTV footage?" Catherine prompted.

"Right. Sorry." Caroline pointed to the admin building. "This way."

They walked through the soot-coloured mud to the building together, strides matching. Caroline let them into the building and turned off the alarm before they weaved through the eerie interior, turning lights on as they went. She led the Sergeant to the dark and empty security room, turning the light on, the intermittent buzz of the fluorescent light loud before it flickered on and bathed the small room in pale green.

"We upgraded the CCTV system, and it should upload to the cloud in real time. I find it easier to login through here," Caroline admitted.

As Caroline sat and logged into the system, the hair on the back of her neck told her the copper was inspecting her rather than the computer. Finally in the system, she turned slowly to the sergeant.

"Here's the footage from last night." Caroline peered over her glasses. "Was there something else?"

"Let's see." Catherine stood behind Caroline, bending over to look at the computer screen. They watched it together repeatedly trying to make sense of the grainy images. The three people dressed in black moved unknowingly through the camera's view. Catherine, after the second time through the footage, returned her attention to the confident head teacher. The scent of her skin was a nice change from the remnants of the smoke that lingered in her sinuses and she noted the expensive Longines watch and pearls. She wondered how Caroline fitted in with the plaid-clad farmer.

Gillian was two years below Catherine at school and but they didn't really know each other well. Like Catherine, she wasn't much of a joiner so they weren't in any clubs together, but she'd see her at the Jessop's annual family picnic for its employees; her mother took a job as a secretary in Alan's department after Catherine's father died. Then her mother died when Catherine was barely a teenager and Catherine had to focus on taking care of her younger sister. She remembered Gillian as more of a tomboy even back then, hence her surprise when Robbie married her.

Clearing her throat in an effort to refocus on the task before her, Catherine felt the pressing need to return to her own office. "Could you get me a copy of that and the list of possibles? Maybe the lads at the station can get something off this to match some of them. Can't imagine there will be any fingerprints left."

Caroline was disappointed she couldn't identify anyone. "I wish I could be more help. Let me know whatever else you need. My staff and I are at your disposal," she said as she rose to see Catherine out. Inspecting Catherine more closely under the better light, Caroline could see the edge of something she couldn't quite put her finger on. It was more than the recognition of someone smart and capable; there was a determination, a strength apparent in the set of her shoulders, her jaw. She saw the ghost of recognition flash across Catherine's face when the lights flickered before fizzing and leaving them in the dark. The only light remaining was the glimmer of sunlight making itself known on the horizon visible outside the windows.

Catherine tugged at a velcro closure on her vest, the sound cutting loudly through the silence. She flicked on her standard issue torch seconds later. "They might have cut the power. You should probably follow me out to your car to be on the safe side."

Caroline nodded before realising she wasn't visible to Catherine as the torch was focused on the ground in the hallway, so replied, "After you."

As they traipsed along the various corridors to the main doors, Caroline was impressed Catherine seemed to know her way already. Analytically she was wondering if it was memory, counting, or spatial awareness, but it gave her a better idea of the capabilities of the sergeant leading them into the morning light.

They stood facing one another, a last opportunity to size each other up. Catherine nodded, turned smoothly on her toes and headed towards the gym, the red light strobing out of sync with the no-nonsense stride.

Caroline watched her go, a niggling sense of something she's missed left as residue in her mind. She reset the security alarm, locked the door and walked back to the Jag. She cast a lingering look at the smouldering remains of the gym. She kicked off the bulk of the ash and mud from her filthy boots, hauled herself up and into the car and sighed. She headed home, allowing the details to consume her thoughts as she pulled onto the main road. While she drove she called the security team and set up extra monitoring for the school, called the handyman and set up a meeting for later in the day.

It was only when Caroline parked in her driveway, gathering her thoughts for a moment, that her world started to shake again. She shook her head to disperse the encroaching fear and strode inside. She enveloped Gillian in a long hug, almost squeezing too tight, her face buried in Gillian's hair. She allowed the soothing scent of her lover to flood through her, trying to breathe through the panic threatening to engulf her.

Gillian recognised the need for comfort, letting her hands reassuringly stroke the back of Caroline's jumper. Caroline's hair smelt of fire, bringing the reality of the day into their home. Gillian, ever aware of Caroline's moods, could tell something had shifted; the longer Caroline held onto her, the higher her level of concern.

It was several minutes before Caroline let go and folded herself slowly into a chair. Moments later she distractedly accepted the hot cup of coffee placed in front of her. She took hold of Gillian's hand and squeezed.

"Give me two hours so I can get this..." she waved her other hand in the air, "Underway, then I'll be yours."

Gillian nodded, knowing Caroline was mentally rearranging the universe until the pieces made sense again.