The Discovery of Rochelle’s Killer

Rochelle’s murder transforms the inquiry from an examination of Lula’s death into an urgent hunt for someone willing to kill again.

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A Witness Goes Missing

An Uneasy Farewell Knowledge held back Rochelle insists Lula jumped, but her evasions around the Vashti meeting and the call suggest she is concealing important information. Strike senses that she knows more than she is willing to say. A dangerous departure Rochelle leaves with Strike’s card and promptly makes a call. Her complacent reaction to his warning suggests that she believes she has a private arrangement that protects her.

The Body in the Thames

A Second Death The discovery Police recover Rochelle’s body from the River Thames. Strike identifies her and tells the officers that he recently bought her food and spoke with her, contradicting the suggestion that her body had been in the water for weeks. A repeated dismissal Carver again assumes suicide because Rochelle was mentally ill and had recently spoken with Strike. The earlier failure to listen to Tansy now appears to have had a direct human cost.

The Blackmail Theory

A Threat with a Price Money and silence Strike argues that Rochelle was blackmailing the person she believed killed Lula. Her expensive coat, designer possessions, and refusal to sell stories suggest she had another source of money. Urgency for police The theory gives investigators a reason to search beyond the original suicide finding. Strike pushes Wardle to act before another person close to Lula is killed.

After Strike interviews Rochelle

About two weeks after their meeting

During Strike's meeting with Wardle after Rochelle's death