by M A Comley
“On it now. Any specific time?”
“When it fits into his schedule, but within reason, bearing in mind we’re on a time limit on this one. Actually, tell him to come in ASAP, take time off work if need be. Let me know what his reaction is to that. Also, if his visit coincides with the appeal, you’ll have to interview him for me.”
“Let’s hope he can come in early in that case,” Katy said, giving Lorne a toothy grin.
“I’ll be in my office if you need me, guys.” Lorne stopped at the vending machine to buy a coffee then walked into her office. Her nose twitched as the sweet odour of her former partner’s aftershave filled her nostrils. She closed the door gently and whispered, “I could sure do with your input on this case, Pete. Feel free to chip in when you can.” She waited for some kind of response from her spirit partner. However, nothing arrived. She walked past the window and peered out. She gasped, thinking she’d caught a glimpse of Pete’s reflection in the glass. Lorne blinked several times, and when she opened her eyes, the only face she saw was her own. She shook her head and continued her journey to her desk.
With her notes for the appeal completed, she turned her attention to the pile of paperwork she had deemed needed her consideration the most, until the phone on her desk disturbed her. “DI Warner.”
“It’s me, Lorne. Any news?” DCI Roberts sounded stressed. She’d never heard him like that in all the years she had known him.
“It’s a little too soon for that, sir. I have the media appeal going out at three this afternoon. That’s the earliest they could slot us in. I’m guessing things will be different after that has aired. Don’t worry, Sean. My team won’t let you down.”
He let out a large sigh. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m being too eager. What I forgot to tell you is that Emma is my goddaughter.”
“Damn, I’m so sorry. Hey, keep the faith. I’m not in the habit of letting people down, Sean. You know that.”
“I know. Look, I’m here if you need me. I’m going to try my best to let you get on with the case without putting you under pressure, but I’m warning you I’m likely to slip now and again, so you’ll have to forgive my eagerness and my impatience.”
Lorne smiled. “I think that’s totally understandable in the circumstances. You know I’ll do my best not to let either you or her family down, Sean.”
“I know. I’ll go back to my staring into space, ignoring my work then. Good luck.”
“Thank you.” Lorne hung up and was shaking her head when Katy poked her head around the door.
“Can I come in?”
Lorne motioned for her partner to take a seat. “What’s up?”
“I rang Jack. He seemed pretty hesitant about coming in to see us.”
Lorne’s suspicion gene went on full alert. “Was he now? But he agreed in the end, yes?”
“He said he’ll come in during his lunch hour, around one fifteen.”
“Perfect. Did you find out where he worked?”
“At an accountants’ office close to the Lansburys’ home.”
“Hmm… okay. How is Graham getting on?”
“He’s still searching. Looks like a mammoth task. The roads are pretty busy around there.”
“Let’s hope he finds something soon. Has Pat found anything on the homeless centre?”
“Nothing really. A few minor scuffles over the food now and again have hit the headlines in the local rag, but nothing major.”
Lorne tapped the side of her face with her pen. “I’m itching to get this appeal out of the way. I hope for Sean’s sake something comes from it. I’ve already had him on the phone, pressing me for answers.”
Katy winced. “Ouch. It’s a bit soon for him to start turning up the pressure.”
“To be fair, he wasn’t really doing that. I do think he’s struggling, though, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he turns up a number of times during the day until the case has been solved.”
“We’ll just have to plod on at our own pace and try to ignore him,” Katy said, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.
“I have a feeling that’s going to be extremely hard to do. My biggest concern is, if Emma has been abducted, as Sean suggests, that she’s still out there and not lying dead on the roadside somewhere.”
“That’s not like you, Lorne. You usually think positive until all the possible leads have been exhausted.”
Lorne inhaled and exhaled a few short breaths. “I know. But you know what my gut instinct is like. There’s something about this case that just isn’t sitting right with me, and I can’t put my finger on what’s bugging me. It’s like one of those small ice picks, chipping away at my insides.”
“Your gut instincts have never failed you in the past.”
Lorne waved her hand in front of her. “I know. Just ignore me for now. Maybe it’s the pressure I’m under. Sean just divulged that Emma is his goddaughter.”
Katy sucked in a breath. “Oh heck. That does put a different spin on things. I better get the whip out on the team if that’s the case.” She rose from the chair and headed for the door.
Before she could reach it, Graham barged into the room. “I’ve managed to trace the car on the screen.”
Lorne sat forward in her chair. “And?”
“Nothing yet. I just wanted you to know that I’ve spotted it,” he said before he left the room.
Katy shrugged and shook her head. “You stay there. I’ll check and report back when we have something concrete to go on. It’s a start, anyway.”
When Katy left the office, Lorne tried her utmost to concentrate on the pile of paperwork, but the task proved impossible. She left her desk to join her team. Once she’d spoken to everyone, she walked over to the whiteboard and began scribbling down what they had stumbled across already, which amounted to very little in the end. Then she returned to Graham’s desk and pulled up a seat alongside him. “Just ignore me.”
Graham gave her a nervous smile. “Yes, boss. I’m still picking up the car on the cameras, but that’s about it.”
“Nothing on the driver yet?” Lorne asked, more out of hope than expectation.
“Not really. I can make out it’s a male, but that’s about all. I’ll enhance the images when I find out where the car stops—if I find out, that is.”
She placed a hand on his forearm. “You will. You have to, Graham. It’s all we’ve got.”
“I appreciate that. I’ll do my best.”
Lorne couldn’t tell if the next few hours dragged by or flew past. At times, her heart rate sped up as they watched the car weave in and out of the traffic, and at others, it dropped back down to its regular beat as the car crawled along at a snail’s pace. She wondered if the driver realised they were tracking his progress on camera.
“Do you want me to join you for the interview?” Katy called across the room.
Lorne’s gaze immediately homed in on the large clock on the wall. It was almost one fifteen. “Crap, I was so engrossed in this. Guess we’ll have to grab a bite to eat after the interview. Yes, come with me, Katy. Pat, would you mind going out for sandwiches for the team?”
“Fine by me, boss.”
Lorne raced into her office, withdrew a twenty from her purse then returned to the incident room. She handed the money to the young constable. “Lunch is on me today, guys. Let Pat know what you want. I’ll have a ham and mustard wholemeal roll. Thanks.”
“I’ll have an egg mayo roll if the boss is buying,” Katy shouted, rising to her feet.
“Got your notebook to hand?” Lorne asked when Katy joined her at the door.
“Of course. Ever prepared. That’s my motto.”
“Let’s do this. Let’s see what this young lady’s boyfriend has to say for himself.”
“My take is that it won’t be much,” Katy said, hitching up her shoulders.
“We’ll soon find out.”
CHAPTER THREE
The young man in question was waiting in reception when they arrived, pacing the
floor in a circle and running his hand through his spiky hair. Lorne couldn’t tell if his hair was standing on end because of the contact he was making with it or if it had been styled that way with gel that morning.
She extended her hand as she greeted him. “Hello, Jack. Is it all right to call you Jack? I’m DI Lorne Warner, and this is my partner, DS Katy Foster.”
“Yes, you can call me Jack. Have you found her yet? Emma? I’m going out of my mind with worry. Can’t concentrate at work. My mind is full of different scenarios, and it’s driving me crazy.”
Lorne smiled, trying to put the youngster at ease. “Not yet. Why don’t we go somewhere more private?” she suggested, casting her eyes around the room at the mixture of people waiting to be seen by various officers. One or two of them, she recognised as being regulars.
“Will this take long? My boss said it would be a waste of time going back to work, so I thought I’d go out looking for Emma this afternoon.”
“No, it shouldn’t do. Come this way.”
They walked down the narrow grey corridor to Interview Room One. Lorne and Katy sat opposite Jack. He sat forward in his chair with his hands clenched together on the desk.
“Okay, we’re not going to record the interview. However, my partner will be taking down some notes. I hope that’s acceptable with you.”
“Of course. I want to do anything I can to help you. Most of all, I want Emma back. I miss her more than I ever thought I would.”
Lorne nodded. “Perhaps you can run through the events of the day Emma disappeared for us.”
His chest inflated as he inhaled a large breath and glanced down at his hands. “It’s my fault. I was running late that day because of the traffic. My boss asked me to look up a particular customer’s file at the last minute, before lunch. I found the file in record time, but it meant I left work later than usual and hit a major traffic jam. I guess other people were leaving their places of work for lunch too. I texted Emma to tell her I was going to be delayed. We were both looking forward to having a good time at the Christmas party.”
“So what time did you arrive at the house?”
“Around one twenty or thereabouts. I knocked on the door, but there was no response. I thought that was strange. I couldn’t see Emma’s car anywhere, so presumed she must have forgotten something and nipped out. I sat in my car, twiddling my fingers for the next ten minutes. She didn’t turn up, though. That’s when I started to get worried. I rang her mother at her work, and she said as far as she knew, Emma was with me. I rang the library then, and they assured me that Emma had left on time and was going straight home to get ready.”
“Did you try to text Emma or ring her?”
“Yes, every few minutes, but her phone remained unanswered. I know why now—because her bag and phone were at the house. She never goes anywhere without them. Her mum and dad both arrived at the house soon after, and that’s when we spotted her bag sitting on the dining table. My heart sank. Her parents became distraught. We rang the police, and they refused to listen to us until the twenty-four hours were up. That’s ludicrous in cases like this, surely? People like Emma just don’t disappear into thin air.”
“You’re right. They don’t usually. I presume Emma’s parents rang DCI Roberts soon after getting knocked back.”
He nodded. “I think a few hours passed before Emma’s father suddenly thought about contacting his best friend. Our minds weren’t functioning properly. All we could think about was Emma and what had happened to her.”
“That’s understandable. Perhaps you can tell us what frame of mind Emma has been in recently?” Lorne asked.
His ocean-blue eyes looked into hers. “Perfectly normal. She’s a bubbly person, full of… life. Always sees the best in people and never slags anyone off behind their backs. She also loves Christmas. Not for the presents or anything as commercial as that. She adores the true meaning of Christmas. She’d arranged to spend Christmas Day at the homeless centre, ensuring everyone down there was well looked after. She always puts others’ needs before her own, you see.”
“I see. Maybe she’s mentioned recently if someone was making a nuisance of themselves?”
He contemplated Lorne’s question for a few seconds then shook his head. “No, I can’t remember her saying anything.”
“How long have you been seeing Emma, Jack?”
He fidgeted in his seat. “Around six months.”
“Is your relationship a happy one?”
His brow furrowed when his gaze met hers. “Yes, extremely happy. Emma truly is one of a kind. I’ve had other girlfriends before, and no one compares to Emma.”
Something about his demeanour forced Lorne to ask the inevitable question. “Have you slept together?”
“No.”
“Is that her decision or yours?”
“A joint decision. I really don’t see what this has to do with anything, Inspector.”
“I’m sorry. The more facts we know about a person, the more likely it is we’ll find them. Are you telling me that Emma is a virgin?”
Jack hesitated briefly before he answered. “Yes. She’s totally different in every way to other girls of her age. She has morals that most girls are lacking in. Her belief is that only people within a marriage should have sex.”
“And what’s your take on that idea?”
“I’m happy to go along with what she wants.”
“Are you in love with Emma?”
“Yes. Everyone loves her.”
“That’s not really what I was asking. Are you in love with her?”
“Yes. Please, you should be out there looking for her instead of asking me all these questions. Dammit, I should be out there.” His voice rose a little, and he flung himself back in his chair.
“Okay. Moving on. Has Emma ever been out with anyone other than yourself?”
He looked up and nodded slowly. “She told me she went out with someone, but the relationship came to an end a few years ago. She hadn’t been out with anyone else since the breakup. Until I came along, of course.”
“I see. Do you happen to know the name of the boy she was seeing back then?”
“A Phil Drummond.”
“Any idea why their relationship ended?”
“I think it was because his parents were relocating to the Birmingham area. His dad had a job offer he couldn’t turn down, from what I can remember.”
“Has Emma had any contact with him since he moved?”
“No. She would have told me if she had.” He sat upright in his chair and clenched his hands again. “With respect, Inspector, I don’t understand where this line of questioning is going. Please, can we hurry this up? I need to get out there to search for her.”
“I agree. We need to wrap this up now. One more question, and then we’re done. Has Emma ever had any misgivings about any of the people she comes across down at the homeless centre?”
“No, never. I’m sure she would have told me. I can’t recall her saying anything along those lines. I think if she’d had any bad feelings towards anyone, then she would have reconsidered volunteering for them. Like I said before, she always thinks the best of everyone, rich or poor.”
Lorne handed him one of her cards. “If you hear anything from her, please contact me immediately. I want to assure you that we’ll do our very best to bring her home.”
The three of them left the room, and on heavy legs, Lorne climbed the stairs with Katy and headed back to the incident room.
“Looks like we’re going to be reliant on the media release this afternoon,” Katy said dejectedly.
“Yep, that’s the impression I’m getting. I think we need to look into the ex-boyfriend, though. Can you do that for me?”
“Of course. What are you thinking?”
“About the ex or about the case?”
“Both,” Katy replied, pushing open the door.
“Maybe the ex isn’t happy that she’s found someone else. Mind you, it’s been a couple of y
ears since they split up. I’m at a loss to know what has happened to Emma, given that everyone says what a gentle soul she is.”
“I’m glad you didn’t tell the boyfriend that we think a male has taken her car.”
“Maybe I should have, if only to gauge his reaction.” Lorne sighed. “Graham, any news on the car yet?”
He looked up, disappointment etched on his face. “The last sighting I have of it, boss, is on the outskirts of town, heading out into the country.”
“Great. Okay, give me an accurate location and time, and I’ll make sure I mention it in the press conference this afternoon.”
He handed her a sheet of paper and offered a weak smile. “Already done for you. Last location I spotted him in was Abbots Langley just off the M1. That was at two thirty-five in the afternoon.”
“Excellent work. Thanks, Graham. Do me a favour and ring the local nick in that area and make them aware of the situation and ask them to look out for Emma’s car.”
“Will do, boss.” Graham hit the phone right away.
“Katy, let me know what the search for Phil Drummond comes up with, will you? I’ll be in my office.”
Lorne walked into her office, feeling despondent. She nibbled at the sandwich sitting on her desk while she jotted down a few notes to guide her media conference. During the next ten minutes, she struggled to dispel the doomed feeling coursing through her. It was unusual for her to feel that way so early on during a case.
Why? What is up with me? Is Emma dead? Am I getting extra perceptive to a victim’s plight? Nonsense. Don’t talk such bullshit, girl. She leaned back in her chair and whispered, “If you feel like chipping in any time, Pete, feel free, buddy.”
She waited and scanned the room for a fresh sign that he was with her, but nothing came. In the end, Lorne picked up the phone and rang her dear friend Carol. It was Carol’s day off from the kennel, and Lorne felt guilty for interrupting her free time. However, she needed reassurance that Emma was safe before she faced the cameras. “Hi, Carol, it’s me.”
“Hello, love. How are you?”
“Perplexed, I suppose you’d call it. I’m so sorry to bother you on your day off, Carol, but I could do with some spirit guidance on this one.”
