In Jack's head he was sighing with relief as he indicated right and turned into the small driveway belonging to Peter Rose. For the past twenty minutes he and Brian had been stuck in the delightful backlog of metallic vehicles. If the endless screeches of horns blown by angry commuters in frustration weren't bad enough, Brian had been picking Jack's brains over every tiny aspect related to the sport that made Dervla Spencer a household name.

Jack smiled contently as he rapped three and a half times on the subtle brass doorknocker; he finally had the two seconds of peace he had been craving.

"Mr Rose? I'm Jack Halford and this is Brian Lane, UCOS. We did ring earlier" Jack automatically said as the door swung open.

The man standing on the opposite side to the geriatrics wasn't overly tall. His appearance wasn't what Brian or Jack had been expecting, instead of the smooth impeccably groomed face, staring back at them was a face that was weathered, and the unhealed fracture serenading the bridge of the man's nose suggested that he had recently been in a scrap of some sort.

"Come in" he replied dusting down his paint splattered overalls.

"Mind the paint, I'm redecorating the hallway" Peter Rose said, his accent was a thick accent that sounded like it originated in the East End of London.

Once they had successfully dodged the open tins of white paint which were balanced on top of the extra long step ladder directly under the doorframe, Peter offered his visitors a seat.

"Mr Rose, can you please tell me what your relationship with Dervla was like in the months leading up to her death?" Jack asked getting the inquiry underway.

"Fine" he uttered without so much as a shrug, causing the pair of retired policemen to get suspicious.

"What do you have to say about the rumours that circulated around that time that you had a violent relationship towards Dervla?" Brian inquired.

"Rubbish" he said laughing off the accusations. "Nah me and Derv were solid" he said, as he did he began rubbing the right side of his neck. The repetitive, agitated motions caused Jack to wonder if this was his tell.

"So what your neighbours said about you arguing with her in the street and the fact you disliked the fact she could stand up to you-"

"Lies" the man interrupted coldly. "I mean I won't say our relationship was perfect, with roses around the door. It wasn't, we had our disagreements and yes sometimes the noisy neighbours overheard, she was feisty and dedicated most of her time to golf and fighting the keep her bairn, I was just the live-in handyman."

"How did you get that injury to your nose?" Brian asked partly out of curiosity and partly as it may shed some well needed light onto Mr Rose's temperament.

"I fell" the man quickly responded, giving Brian a cautious glare.

"Do you think the pressure of fighting for custody had taken its toll?" Brian asked aware he had rattled the cage belonging to the man sat opposite him.

"Probably, I don't really know, me and Derv didn't really have deep conversations we had fun. When she remembered what that was."

"How do you mean?" The younger of the civilian investigators asked.

"She was always training, she had a tight regime and when she wasn't playing golf she was taking the kid out to various places" Peter explained.

"When was the last time you saw Ms Spencer?" It was Jack's turn to fire the questions.

Mr Rose tutted as he thought. "A week or so before she died, I guess, I can't remember exactly it was a long time ago."

"That's alright, we just need a rough idea, is there anything you can think of that might help us?" Jack replied.

"I did ring up and ask her if she wanted to go to the flicks the day she died as she wasn't looking after the nipper but she said she had to train and an old friend might be popping round." Admitted Peter Rose.

"Did she say who she was meeting?"

"No, that's all I know."

"Where were you on the day of her death?" Brain tried.

"My ma's house, feel free to go and ask her but you won't get much sense outta 'er she's got early onset of Alzheimer's but the staff at the home she is in will vouch for me. I was there all day and all night. She lives at Willow's Specialist Care Home just around the corner."

"Were you aware that Ms Spencer had been treated for anxiety in the months prior to her death?" Jack pushed.

"I knew she was on edge a lot of the time what with the golf and the divorce, she had talked about getting looked at by a quack but I told her she was talking rubbish, she was just a bit stressed. After that she never mentioned it again."

"When did you have the conversation" asked Mr Halford.

"Well I don't know the actual date or time"

"Just a rough estimate will be suffice, Mr Rose."

"About three or four months before she died." He said coldly. It was clear to both detectives that even now after all this time and what had happened that Peter Rose wasn't in the slightest sympathetic towards his late girlfriend.

"Thank you for your time Mr Rose, that is all for now but I expect we will be in touch" Jack said rising from the settee that was desperately indeed of new springs- if not a replacement.

"So what do you reckon?" Brain asked his colleague once the front door had been closed to.

"I don't think it was him but he wasn't telling us the entire truth about his relationship with Dervla."

"I am with you on that one, shall we check out this care home as we are in the area, see if his alibi stands?"

"We might as well, come along Brian" Jack said unlocking his car.