Pip takes Barney for an evening walk in the woods, even though her mother has warned that it is getting late. The sky is darkening, and Pip tells herself she will only stay out briefly because she needs air and distance from her workstation.

Earlier that day, Pip has been split between revising for an upcoming exam and obsessing over her suspect list. She considers whether to approach Daniel da Silva’s wife because of the tension between them, or whether to pursue the burner phone by searching suspects’ homes, but she rejects those thoughts for the moment.

Trying to clear her head, Pip listens to a true crime podcast and takes a short circuit through the woods. As twilight turns to darkness, she leaves the path to cut through the trees toward the road, then calls Barney when the gate comes into view.

Barney does not come. After a passing car’s headlights briefly blind Pip, she calls and whistles again, but there is no sound or movement from the dog in the trees.

Pip’s unease turns into fear. She runs back into the dark woods, screaming Barney’s name while holding his empty lead.