was no answer to that.
The church offices were situated behind a locked door at the far side of the shop. Jenny pressed the intercom and was answered by a male voice. 'Hello, how can I help you?'
Jenny looked into the lens of the built-in security camera. 'Jenny Cooper. Severn Vale District Coroner. I'd like to talk to the church administrator.'
'That would be me,' the voice replied. 'Come on in.'
She pushed open the door at the sound of the buzzer, and was met in a spacious reception area by a wholesome- looking young man in a neatly pressed shirt and tie.
He shook her hand. 'Good evening. Joel Nelson. What can I do for you?'
'I'm conducting an inquiry into the death of Eva Donaldson,' Jenny said, almost without realizing that she had just made her decision. 'I'll need statements from anyone here who had dealings with her. I thought you'd be the best person to ask who they might be.'
'Right,' Nelson said, his face devoid of any trace of alarm. 'The first thing you should know is that Miss Donaldson didn't actually work for the church. She was retained by the Decency campaign, which is an entirely separate body.'
'But she spent a lot of time here.'
'That's true, but she wasn't part of the management, so to speak.'
'A boy in the shop told me she was the leader of his study group.'
'That's a purely voluntary role.'
'I see.' Jenny cast her eyes around the comfortably decorated room. There were pastel-coloured sofas, two top-of- the-range plasma screens, and several modern private offices separated from the reception area by plate-glass walls screened with sleek Venetian blinds. The largest office was signed 'Boardroom'. 'I'd be grateful if you could at least give me a list of your employed staff so I can contact them.'
'Certainly,' Nelson said, and moved over to a computer sitting on the receptionist's desk.
'Were you friendly with Miss Donaldson?' Jenny asked.
'In as much as we all try to be friends here,' Nelson said. 'I wouldn't say we were close.' He tapped on the keyboard and strolled over to a printer, which was already whirring into life.
Jenny ran her eyes over the polished solid-wood shelving that lined the wall behind him and noticed a section of box files marked 'Decency'.
'Does Decency have separate offices,' Jenny asked, 'or does it operate from here?'
Nelson glanced back at her, then at the shelves, working out how she'd made the connection. 'They have a small part-time staff here,' he said, 'but the main office is in London.'
Jenny was about to ask if he could provide a list of their employees too when Bobby DeMont, Michael Turnbull and Lennox Strong came through the door, buzzing with excitement. Wiping his perspiring neck with a towel, Bobby was saying, 'You think we couldn't be any more blessed, then we have a night like tonight.'
'You were great,' Lennox said. 'The energy, man.'
It was Turnbull who noticed Jenny first, catching Nelson's glance before turning to greet her with a warm hello.
'This is Mrs Jenny Cooper,' Nelson said. 'She's the coroner looking into Eva Donaldson's death.'
'Ah, yes. I'd forgotten about that part of the procedure.' Turnbull reached out a hand. 'Michael Turnbull.'
Bobby stepped forward unprompted. 'Bobby DeMont. Pleased to meet you, ma'am.' He enclosed her palm with a hot, strong handshake. 'What a terrible tragedy. Each time I met that woman I came away in awe. One of life's fighters. A real inspiration.'
'Mrs Cooper would like to take statements from people who knew her,' Nelson said.
'Didn't we already do that with the police?' Turnbull asked.
Jenny said, 'Don't worry, there's no fanfare or publicity. I just have to make sure that cause of death is ascertained correctly.'
'I don't understand,' Lennox said. 'We've just had the court case. There's more?'
'An inquest may only be a formality,' Jenny said, 'but there's always the chance there were areas the police didn't look at too closely.'
'Oh. Such as?' Lennox asked.
Bobby pressed a hand to Lennox's back. 'You're guaranteed our full cooperation, ma'am. The church will help in whatever way it can.'
'Of course,' Turnbull said. 'When can we expect this to happen?'
Jenny said, 'I appreciate the timing isn't great for you—'
'Can't it at least wait until the Decency Bill has had its first reading?'
Reacting to Turnbull's anxiety, Bobby interjected, 'Hey, you don't have to worry about that, Mike. A man's been convicted. This is just a technicality.'
With a forced smile, Turnbull said, 'I do hope so.'
'There's really nothing to worry about,' Jenny replied. 'This is perfectly standard procedure.'
'You'll forgive my concern