Long Gone

by Paul Pilkington

  ‘Thanks, Conner, I know it’s a massive favour.’

  ‘We won’t be able to do much more than that, though, I’m afraid. We can’t start looking at CCTV, for instance. It just wouldn’t fly.’

  ‘I understand,’ he said, deciding not to reveal that he’d already done some looking of his own with the help of Anthony Braddock. ‘Just remind me, when could this be escalated?’

  ‘She went missing on Sunday, did you say?’

  ‘Yes, last sighting was at half past ten, leaving a property in Mayfair. But her scheduled train from Paddington back to Bristol was only at eight thirty-five that evening.’

  ‘And you’ve no idea where she went from the property?’

  ‘No. Last contact from her was later that day, saying that she was just about to board the train. But Amy thinks that the message was sent by someone else.’

  ‘If she’s still missing at the end of the week, then we could get authority to launch a full-scale national alert. We can also access the CCTV across the rail network, try and see if we can pick Natalie up en route to Paddington, at the station, or on trains to Bristol. Let’s hope she reappears by then.’

  ‘Indeed.’

  ‘But in the meantime, if you come across anything that you think raises the threat level, let me know and we can take things from there.’

  ‘Thanks, Conner, you’re a true gent.’

  23

  Previous Saturday morning

  TABITHA PAUSED AT THE RECEPTION, turning to the group.

  ‘Very best of luck today to you all. We’ll reconvene here in the drawing room at six, where the winning team will be announced.’

  ‘But what about who wins?’ Krishna asked over Natalie’s shoulder. ‘There can be only one winner, surely?’

  Tabitha smiled. ‘The successful candidate will be announced later this evening. The person will not necessarily come from the winning team.’

  ‘I don’t understand,’ Krishna said. ‘Surely the team that’s triumphant must contain the…’

  ‘We’ll be making an overall assessment of you all, based on your performance over the day,’ Tabitha said, cutting him off with merciless ease. ‘We’ll be seeking expert advice from the client, as well as judging from our own observations – both today and yesterday.’

  ‘I knew they were assessing us over dinner,’ Ben whispered to Samantha.

  She smiled. ‘Of course they were.’

  ‘So,’ Tabitha said. ‘Are there any further questions?’

  There weren’t. Or at least none that people were willing to vocalise.

  ‘Great. So, if you’ll just follow me, the cars are waiting. The Red Team can take the front car, and the Blue Team the vehicle at the rear,’ Tabitha explained.

  The seven emerged into the morning Mayfair light, to be faced with two bullet-grey Mercedes.

  ‘Nice wheels,’ Matthew noted.

  Natalie breathed in. It felt great to be outside; although they hadn’t been in the house for even a full day, it had still felt like a long time.

  ‘I hope you all have a lovely day,’ Tabitha said, as the drivers of both vehicles opened the back passenger doors and gestured them inside.

  NATALIE SLID into the plush leather seats and sat against the window, with Penny in the middle and Susie getting in last. The door was closed with a reassuring thunk and, ignition turned, the car growled into life.

  ‘Any guesses as to where we’re heading?’ Susie said, as the car pulled away.

  The driver, wearing white gloves, kept his eyes on the road, giving nothing away.

  ‘Not got the foggiest,’ Penny replied. ‘But I’m happy with the team I’m in, so I don’t mind where we go.’

  Natalie smiled across to the two of them. ‘I think we should do okay today, wherever we’re headed.’

  ‘Sorry, Natalie,’ Susie said. ‘We haven’t really had a chance to speak properly yet, have we?’

  ‘No.’ Natalie shook Susie’s hand across Penny’s lap. ‘Nice to meet you.’

  Susie peered out the window. ‘I’m looking forward to this. It’s definitely going to be a challenge, we can be sure of that. We already know how the company likes to spring surprises.’

  ‘They do,’ Natalie agreed.

  ‘It’s a shame about Russell leaving,’ Susie continued. ‘I guess he’d have been in our team, if he’d stayed.’

  ‘Probably,’ Penny mused.

  ‘I heard the commotion during the night,’ Susie continued. ‘Not sure what on earth went on there.’

  Natalie had been people-watching out the window, but she suddenly processed what Susie had just said. ‘What? You heard Russell leave?’

  ‘I think so, yes. It sounded like him, anyway. He was in the room next to me.’

  ‘You said there was a commotion?’

  ‘Well, I suppose most things sound like a commotion at two in the morning when you’re half-asleep. There were voices, a heated discussion, maybe an argument, I’m not sure. And then I heard the door close and it all went quiet. Later on, I heard other noises from the room, and in the morning we were told he’d left.’

  ‘Did you recognise the other voice?’

  ‘Oh yes. It was Tabitha.’

  Natalie caught the driver glaring at Susie in the rear-view mirror.

  Susie continued, unaware of the driver’s interest. ‘I’m one hundred percent certain it was her.’

  THE MERCEDES ENTERED PICCADILLY, in the heart of London, turning right at the famous statue of Eros, skirting past Leicester Square and heading past theatres advertising the latest shows. The three girls craned their necks expectantly, trying to somehow spot their destination in advance of their arrival.

  The driver hadn’t uttered a word throughout the journey and, apart from that one moment in their earlier conversation about Russell, had kept his eyes on the road.

  Finally the car slowed to a stop in a side street.

  ‘EXCEL-ENT,’ Susie said, looking at the sign on the building next to where the vehicle had stopped. ‘Any ideas?’

  ‘It’s a media agency,’ Natalie replied. ‘Represents clients across a range of areas, film, TV, books. They’re one of the best.’

  Penny looked across at her, impressed.

  ‘We covered them as a case study in our course last year,’ Natalie explained. ‘They’re really into branding for their clients. You know, Harry Jones…’

  Harry Jones was a young British heartthrob who had starred in a trilogy of vampire romance movies. He’d been tipped as a future James Bond.

  ‘The actor? Wow, he’s hot,’ Penny said, before blushing at the thought that had escaped her mouth. ‘They represent him?’

  ‘Yes. They won an international branding award a couple of years ago for the work they’ve done with him. Took him from a daytime soap actor to an international superstar. He’s got his own range of “HJ” clothing, aftershave…’

  ‘I know,’ Penny laughed. ‘I bought a bottle. Smells pretty awful, to be honest.’

  They all laughed at that.

  The driver opened the door and ushered them outside. ‘Just buzz through to reception and ask for Catharine,’ he explained. ‘She’ll be expecting you. I’ll be back to collect you at three. Best of luck to you all.’

  They watched as the Mercedes drove off.

  ‘So,’ Susie said, her finger hovering over the buzzer. ‘You two ready?’

  ‘Ready,’ Penny replied.

  Natalie reached over and pressed the buzzer. ‘Let’s do this. Go, Blue Team!’

  24

  Tabitha had offered to organise a lift over to West London, sort out a taxi, but Cullen preferred to make his own way there and think during the journey. He’d told her to warn the staff of his arrival, but wanted to keep them on their toes as to the time he would appear.

  He called Amy and updated her on the visit to Brand New. She still hadn’t heard anything from Natalie, and was sounding worried again. But she was heartened by the news that there would be some kind of
missing person’s alert, even if it wasn’t full-scale.

  Cullen promised he’d let her know any new developments, and she did likewise. It was strange, but having put Amy off returning with him to London, he missed her company during the investigation. She’d make quite a good partner.

  But he would never encourage her to follow in his footsteps.

  Life was just too short.

  He’d only just slipped the phone back into his pocket when it rang out again. Maybe Amy had just remembered something.

  It was an unknown number.

  ‘Hello?’

  ‘Detective Chief Inspector Cullen?’

  He didn’t recognise the voice. ‘Who’s calling?’

  ‘Zack Carter, London Daily Post. I was wondering if you had a minute…’

  ‘Depends what it’s about,’ Cullen cut in. He was annoyed at the intrusion, but it was important to keep the press on side, and he did actually have a couple of friends on the staff of the paper.

  Zack, though, he wasn’t familiar with.

  ‘It’s about what happened on Monday morning.’

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t comment,’ said Cullen. ‘There’s an ongoing investigation, I’m sure you understand, Zack.’

  ‘So there is an investigation? Is that an internal police investigation, Detective?’

  Cullen tried to think calmly. ‘Any death of this sort is automatically referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct. It’s a matter of course.’

  Which you should know, he felt like adding.

  ‘Are you suspended?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Oh, I thought I heard that you…’

  ‘Well, I’m afraid your sources are incorrect.’

  ‘So you’re still working as normal?’

  Another pause. Another deep breath. ‘I’m taking a voluntary leave of absence.’

  ‘Oh, I understand.’

  ‘Do you. Listen, Zack, I’ve really got to go.’

  ‘We’ve been contacted by his girlfriend,’ Zack revealed hastily, as if to keep Cullen on the line. ‘Shazney Powell.’

  ‘Oh.’

  Ever since the event he had wondered whether she would want to tell her story to the press. He had expected it, even. But when that seemingly hadn’t happened within the first twenty-four hours, he thought that maybe she would surprise him by keeping a dignified silence.

  ‘She’s very upset, DCI Cullen.’

  ‘I’m sure she is.’

  ‘She wants answers.’

  Cullen had to resist the temptation to say the same himself. He wanted answers to why the guy had turned and fled in the way he had. He also wanted to know why the girlfriend had lied about the instigation of his chase. But he was aware that everything he was now saying was on the record, and he certainly didn’t want this to play out in the papers. ‘That’s what the investigation is for.’

  ‘Of course, Detective. She says that you pursued her boyfriend off the train without reason. Can you confirm this? There is a conflicting story that there was an assault, and that you were asked by Shazney to give chase.’

  It sounded like his colleagues back at Force HQ were briefing behind the scenes on his behalf. Unless one of the fellow tube travellers had come forward as a witness. But it had all happened so fast, he doubted that the other passengers had had time to realise what was going on.

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t comment on the ongoing investigation.’

  ‘We’ve been doing some background research on the deceased. It seems he was known to the police. Maybe that explains why he reacted the way he did when you gave chase. Do you have any further information about him that might be of public interest?’

  ‘Well, I can tell you what he looked like after he’d been crushed under the wheels of the truck,’ Cullen replied, finally losing his patience.

  ‘Sorry?’

  ‘I can describe his face for you, if you like. And the way his body was twisted around the underside of the vehicle.’

  ‘No, that… that won’t be necessary, Detective,’ the reporter said, sounding shocked and spooked.

  ‘Tell me,’ Cullen said, ‘did she contact you, or did you make contact with her?’

  ‘Well… we made contact with her.’

  Cullen shook his head. ‘She was there, just behind me, when he died. She saw everything. The impact from the bus, him fly across the road, the truck crunch over his body. She watched as I cradled his head. She stood there, screaming. That was just over twenty-four hours ago. Leave her alone.’

  ‘We were careful,’ Zack said. ‘We know she’s vulnerable.’

  ‘It’s been nice speaking with you.’ Already, Cullen was slightly regretting the tone he had taken. ‘Are you new on the paper?’

  ‘First month,’ he revealed.

  ‘Well, I hope to speak to you again, in better circumstances. Do say hello to Trevor.’

  Trevor Goulding would be his boss.

  Cullen and Trevor went back a few years, ever since they’d met on a particularly brutal case of a serial killer who was targeting late-night commuters. It was the first big case Cullen had been involved in after he’d moved down from Manchester. Since then, they’d worked together quite closely and amicably in a symbiotic relationship that suited them both. Trevor got his stories, and Cullen sometimes got some very useful leads.

  ‘I will,’ Zack said, without missing a beat.

  Cullen wondered whether Trevor had put Zack up to this, although it didn’t seem like his style, especially with someone he knew as well as Cullen. Trevor was one of a dying breed of journalists who wouldn’t trample over their grandmother for the next headline.

  ‘Just one thing, though,’ Zack added, ‘before you go. If you don’t mind.’

  ‘I really must go, Zack.’

  ‘It’s about something Shazney said. Something I think you should really know about.’

  PART III

  25

  Previous Saturday morning

  ‘HELLO, CAN I HELP YOU?’ The male voice had an unmistakable French accent.

  ‘Hi, we’re here from Brand New,’ Susie said into the intercom.

  ‘Great. Do come on up. We’re at the top of the stairs.’

  The three of them were buzzed through and made their way up to the reception desk. There the man they had spoken to on the intercom was waiting to greet them. ‘Catharine will be along in a minute,’ he said, as if they knew who Catharine was. ‘If you’d just take a seat.’

  They did as requested, waiting nervously on the blood-red sofa, wondering what lay in store.

  A girl appeared from around the corner. ‘Hi, lovely to meet you. I’m Catharine,’ she said, shaking each of their hands in turn. ‘Please, do follow me, and I can give you a quick tour of our offices.’

  The three of them followed, throwing quick glances at one another. They passed along the corridor and then out into an open-plan office, filled with long desks where dozens of twenty- and thirty-somethings were working at computers. None of them looked up from their tasks.

  ‘This is the main office hub here at EXCEL-ENT,’ Catharine explained. ‘It’s where the day-to-day business of the company takes place.’

  ‘Do you usually work on a Saturday?’ Susie asked, surveying the full office.

  ‘For the past six months,’ Catharine said. ‘We have Mondays off instead. It helps with avoiding the rush hour one day a week, and you also get a lot fewer emails, so it’s a good day to just get your head down and focus.’

  Natalie wasn’t really focussing on what Catharine was saying. She was too busy looking at all the telephones and imagining taking the opportunity to call Russell and settle the matter once and for all as to why he left, or had had to leave, the house.

  But would she get a chance to call him?

  ‘Those guys over there,’ Catharine continued, pointing to the far corner where there was a group of eight people, ‘are our branding team.’ The team were all hipster clothes and demeanour, just like everyone else
in the room. ‘They work across our whole portfolio, from some of the world’s biggest film and TV stars.’

  ‘Like Harry Jones?’ Penny couldn’t help but ask.

  ‘Yes. They work with Harry.’

  ‘First name terms,’ Penny whispered to Natalie, who couldn’t help but smile.

  ‘The branding team will be helping to assess you today,’ Catharine said.

  Natalie was going to ask a question, but Catharine had already moved on.

  ‘Our agents occupy a suite of offices just down here,’ she explained. ‘We’ve got twenty agents, who represent the very best artists in the entertainment industry. We also have an office in New York City, staffed by a permanent team who work across North America, both for our UK clients and our US and Canadian clients.’

  As they passed one of the offices, which all had clear glass walls, Natalie thought that she recognised the man inside.

  But she couldn’t quite place him.

  She didn’t think he was an actor. A famous author, maybe?

  ‘At EXCEL-ENT, we pride ourselves on our bold spirit,’ Catharine said, stopping outside one of the offices. ‘We like to keep moving forward, keep developing, keep growing. If you’d like to step inside the office here, Diana will be with you in a few minutes.’

  Natalie gulped at the name.

  ‘Can I get you a drink?’ Catharine offered, ‘I can do tea, coffee, mineral water.’

  They ordered coffees.

  ‘So, do you know who this Diana is?’ Susie asked, as they waited in the office.

  ‘Diana Saunders,’ Natalie replied. ‘It has to be her.’ She looked across at the photographs on the wall. There was Diana Saunders on stage with Tom Cruise, receiving an award from the superstar actor. Another photo showed her sharing a joke with Hillary and Bill Clinton, cradling a glass of champagne.

  Penny looked worried. ‘Should I know who she is?’

  ‘She’s one of the founding partners of the company,’ Natalie explained. ‘It was set up by a few agents who broke away from their former agency. Diana was one of what the industry called the “Fantastic Four”, all of whom are still directors. They took a lot of clients with them, but attracted more, and they’ve been tremendously successful. You heard what she said about the New York office. Since it opened a year ago, they’ve poached quite a few big names from the States, right under the noses of the established agencies.’