by K Leitch
CHAPTER 43 – HELEN
Helen parked her car in front of the café on the green, she was meeting Wills.
He had phoned her last night, she hadn’t heard from either of them since her altercation with Sarah a week ago, so she was quite relieved that he had called and asked to see her today, a chance to clear the air hopefully.
‘Just you and me Helen ok,’ he had said. ‘Surely we can sort this out between us?’
So Helen had agreed to meet him at one o’clock…and there he was ‘right on time’ she thought as she saw his car pulling into a space further up the road. She got out to meet him, waving as he came running over…she thought he looked tired and anxious as she kissed him hello and they went into the little coffee shop.
‘Thank you for agreeing to meet me Hels,’ said Wills as they found a table. Helen just smiled and they faffed about with their coffees for a couple of minutes until Helen said, ‘Wills I’m so sorry about what happened with Sarah, I didn’t mean to lose my temper like that but some of the things she was saying…’
‘Don’t apologise Helen, she had no right coming to you like that…I was furious when I found out. Yes I am upset that you’ve stopped me from seeing Abby, and yes I do agree with some of what Sarah has said…but I realised that we needed to sort this paternity thing out once and for all, otherwise we’d never know where we stand…anyway the long and short of it is, I’ve done the test…I haven’t told Sarah so…’
‘Hang on a minute Wills, you’ve done the test… how…when? asked Helen, bewildered.
‘Last Wednesday if you must know…I’ve got plenty of stuff with Abby’s DNA on it at my house, her brushes…toothbrush, that’s what I used actually, her toothbrush and I sent a sample of my saliva as well…got the results yesterday.’ He pulled a crumpled letter out of his jacket pocket and handed it across to Helen.
Helen stared at the letter in dismay…it confirmed that they were 99.9% sure that William Drover could not be the father of Abby Drover.
‘Oh Wills I’m so sorry,’ said Helen grasping his hand, ‘I wish I’d never asked you to do it now…’
Wills pulled his hand out of Helen’s grasp. ‘Well you did…and now we know. Question is what do we do now?’
Helen looked at him…his eyes were brimming over with unshed tears, his hands were shaking, he looked as if he hadn’t slept for a week. ‘What do you mean?’ she asked. ‘I assumed that you would want nothing more to do with us.’
Will looked a bit sheepish. ‘Well I can’t deny that was my first reaction…I was furious for a while if you must know. But then I got to thinking…I love Abby, Helen. It was like a precious gift when I found out I had a daughter…you know better than anyone how little the chances are that I will ever be able to father a child, so when I thought I had…and I could be a proper dad to her…well it was everything.’ Wills voice broke slightly and Helen reached over and grabbed his hand again holding it tightly. He looked up at her with such sadness in his eyes that Helen thought her heart would break.
‘I am so sorry Wills…I don’t know what else to say…’ she began.
They sat in awkward silence for a few minutes, neither one knowing how to continue until. ‘We could…just not tell anyone,’ Wills blurted out, ‘I could still be her dad, she need never know… after all she already thinks of me as her daddy and…’
‘Oh god Wills, I don’t know…’ said Helen putting her head into her hands, ‘I mean she would have to be told sometime…wouldn’t she?’
‘Oh of course,’ said Wills, sensing Helen weakening, ‘I wouldn’t want anything else…but when she’s old enough to understand. Old enough for me to be able to explain to her that I love as my own and that I always will. Please Helen, don’t take her away from me,’ he finished desperately.
Helen thought hard for a moment or two, ‘What if you get fed up with her?’ she said at last.
‘I won’t,’ replied Wills simply.
‘Because if we do this Wills, you will have to think of her as your own child…be there for her good times and bad…and there will be plenty of bad let me tell you, teenage girls are the very devil. And what happens if you and Sarah have a child…what becomes of Abby then?’
‘That’s not going to happen,’ Wills said bluntly. Helen just raised her eyebrows questioningly.
‘Sarah was sterilised a few years before I met her,’ he said ignoring Helen’s shocked expression, ‘she always knew that the whole pregnancy thing wasn’t for her…oh don’t get me wrong she loves the thought of a child…just not giving birth to one. Which given my almost non-existent sperm count is a good thing I suppose,’ he finished, a little bitterly.
‘I won’t let you take her away from me though Wills,’ said Helen with quiet determination. ‘I don’t care what bigoted ideas Sarah has about mine and Maya’s relationship. I know my child is being brought up in a home filled with love and happiness, and that is all she needs as far as I’m concerned. I don’t really care about fancy private schools and all of that either…she will do just fine at the local school, and if she does come in for any stick about me and Maya…well we’ll just have to deal with that at the time, but she stays with me…okay?’
Wills nodded. ‘You have my word, I will make Sarah understand, I promise…does this mean that you are willing to let me be her dad then?’ he looked at her eagerly.
Helen smiled, ‘I don’t think I could stop you, she already loves you so much…but when the time is right…we tell her together okay?’
Wills jumped up and came round to give Helen a bear hug. ‘Thank you Helen…thank you so much,’ he whispered in her ear.
CHAPTER 44
Vanessa slowed the car down looking out for Rosie, who had said she would wait for her a little way outside the village. She was shaking with suppressed excitement…if all went well tonight Carla would never be able to forget Vanessa Poole. It was a brilliant revenge…she felt terribly pleased with herself.
Rosie was waiting near the allotments sitting on a bench flicking through her new phone; her long dark hair fell over her face as she did so. A pretty child thought Vanessa dispassionately. She could see Carla in her, just the turn of her head or her sudden smile…it all helped to fuel her determination to do this.
Carla had had this coming a long time, Vanessa blamed most of the events of three years ago on that interfering bitch…oh obviously Giles had played a part in it…but she had dealt with him. She had taken petty revenge on the other girls as well over the last few weeks. Poor Tracy…Vanessa chuckled to herself…what a nasty surprise, and that holier than thou Helen… the fun she’d had defacing those pathetic canvasses of hers, looked better after she’d finished with them she thought with another chuckle. Even that pompous old snob from the women’s institute had been given a taste of ‘Vanessa justice’, but today it was Carla’s turn.
‘Sally’ waved as she pulled up beside Rosie who waved back and climbed into the car.
‘Hey neat phone,’ said ‘Sally’ admiringly, ‘Birthday present?’
Rosie nodded, ‘Yeh…from Mum and Dad,’ she said proudly, ‘it can do everything. Dad said he would be surprised if it couldn’t make him a cup of tea if he asked it nicely…ha ha he is sooo dorky.’
‘Sally’ smiled, ‘Where do they think you are going this evening?’ she asked casually.
‘I told them I was having tea with Alisha, she’s this girl in my class…real geek…Mum thinks she’s wonderful, she will be jumping for joy that I’m having tea with her…Mum is sooo sad,’ said Rosie shaking her head in disgust.
Vanessa sighed inwardly; she didn’t know how she was going to keep up this friendly banter for the next few hours. She pinned a bright smile onto her face, ‘I hope you don’t mind Rosie but I’ve just got to pop somewhere first before we go to get your ears pierced…it won’t take too long, promise.’
Rosie just nodded, ‘That’s cool Sal…I’m not expected home for ages yet.’ She seemed to want to say something else.
&nb
sp; ‘Are you ok with this Rosie…the ear piercing I mean, because if you are having second thoughts …are you worried about how cross your mum will be is that it?’
‘NO!’ shouted Rosie, ‘honestly, she doesn’t bother me…it’s just…it’s not going to hurt much is it?’ she finished anxiously looking at ‘Sally’.
‘Sally’ laughed. ‘No you wuss, it doesn’t hurt at all…I promise. Hey I wouldn’t have had all these done if it was painful…I am a total coward believe me.’
Reassured Rosie’s face cleared and she spent the next half hour or so chatting on about the play, which was to take place the next weekend. She was so distracted by the conversation that she didn’t notice that they had driven far out of the village, through Redbank town centre and they were still going. She did start to notice that the light was beginning to fade and they still hadn’t got to where ‘Sally’ wanted to go.
‘I hope the tattoo parlour stays open this late,’ she said a little tentatively. ‘Is it much further… this place you need to go to?’
‘Sally’ didn’t answer, just carried on driving.
Rosie was beginning to feel a bit nervous now. Sally had been really friendly and chatty when she had first met her this evening, but for the last half hour or so she had said hardly a word…and it was getting dark.
‘Perhaps we had better give it a miss…my ear piercing. Because it is getting rather late and Mum and Dad will start worrying soon,’ she said…‘Sally’ didn’t seem to have heard.
‘Sally,’ she began again, ‘have I upset you…because if I have I’m really sorry…are you cross with me?’
Vanessa slammed on the brakes…she couldn’t bloody do it…she just couldn’t. She turned the car round violently and started speeding back the way she’d come. Rosie was really frightened now and was crying and asking her to stop the car…but she couldn’t stop it could she, not now…not now. Rosie would tell and then all hell would break loose. She needed time…time to disappear…what the fuck did she do now? And all because this bloody irritating little girl had got under her skin…FUCK!!!
She slammed on the brakes suddenly, throwing Rosie back into her seat; the little girl looked at her, really scared now.
‘Sally,’ she said nervously her eyes welling up, ‘are you angry with me…what have I done, is it because I was talking too much…I’m always doing that, Mum is always telling…’
‘SHUT UP,’ shouted Vanessa, ‘just shut up and let me think will you!’ She was running her hands through her hair in an agitated way…Rosie kept quiet…crying silently.
Suddenly ‘Sally’ seemed to come to a decision, she turned to Rosie taking her chin between her fingers and forcing her to look at her.
‘Get out of the car,’ she said coldly.
‘But I don’t know how to get home,’ wailed Rosie. ‘Please Sally, whatever it is I’m sorry…I won’t tell anyone. Please take me home, don’t leave me here…I don’t know the way…’
‘Listen you stupid little girl,’ Vanessa spat at her impatiently, ‘Do yourself a favour and get out of the fucking car NOW! You just keep walking back down this road and you will get home…now GO!’
Rosie fumbled nervously with her seatbelt…her little body wracked with terrified tears…she tried one more time. ‘Please Sally…PLEASE!’
Vanessa ignored her pleas and kept her eyes on the road ahead while Rosie climbed out of the car, just as she went to close the door however Vanessa turned to her.
‘Give your mum a message from me Rosie,’ she said with a malicious smile on her face, ‘tell her Vanessa said hello.’ And with that she pulled the door closed and drove off into the darkness… leaving Rosie sobbing and scared by the side of the road.
CHAPTER 45 – CARLA
Carla and her team had gathered together a mass of information about Kerry Webb. They knew where she grew up, where she went to school. They had information about the number of times she had been in and out of mental institutions, and they had even got reports that neighbours had given social security about the way her father had mistreated her. It was obvious from all that they had heard that Kerry had spent most of her childhood living in fear of her religious zealot of a father, who beat her regularly and had an unnatural control over her.
‘Maybe he knew what she was,’ Jay suggested. ‘I’m just saying you know if he suspected that she was some sort of psychopath…well maybe that’s why he kept her under his control.’
‘Hmm could be I suppose,’ said Carla, ‘or he was just a nasty sadistic bastard, when did his wife die?’
‘About thirty years ago…when Kerry was about ten I suppose…poor kid, first your mum dies then you have to live your life with a father that thinks it’s ok to beat you black and blue because it’s in the bible for Christ’s sake,’ said Jay in disgust flinging down the case files. ‘Fucking religion…it’s got a lot to answer for.’
‘No I’m not having that…’ said Carla bristling, ‘there are some amazing people out there who practice Christianity, or Buddhism or Judaism even Muslim. It is always the nasty little minority that give these religions a bad name…like fucking, what’s his name…Gregory Webb, it’s probably down to him that seven more men have died…because of his bullying,’ said Carla…on her soap box.
Jay held his hands up in mock surrender, ‘Hey, keep your panties on…I was just saying there are people who like to use religion as an excuse for doing some pretty fucked up things, that’s all. Do we have anything more recent about this Kerry woman?’ he asked hastily changing the subject.
‘No,’ said Carla shaking her head, ‘that’s the bugger…we lose her completely when she goes to the States. We do know that she was travelling with someone though…a boyfriend. Mandy is trying to come up with a name for us, then maybe we can find them through the airlines.’
Just then Frank put his head round Carla’s door. ‘There’s some woman downstairs insisting on speaking to you Carla…a Mrs Pincher, Larry’s mum I think. Sheila says she’s in a right state.’
Carla pulled a face, ‘Wonder what she wants, couldn’t get rid of me fast enough when I went round to her house to speak to Larry…maybe she’s had a change of heart?’
‘I’d rather she’d had a change of clothes…’ said Frank flapping a hand in front of his nose, ‘she’s smelling out the reception area. Sheila’s put her into an interview room…I’d leave the door open if I was you.’ He finished laughing at Carla’s disgusted expression.
‘Thank you Frank,’ said Carla primly, ‘you never know the poor woman may have some medical problem.’ She picked up her note book and headed out of the office.
‘Yeh it’s called toolazytobloodywashitus,’ Frank called after her.
Carla found Mrs Pincher in interview room three. Frank was not wrong and Carla did indeed leave the door open, but it was soon obvious that the poor woman was seriously distressed. Her eyes were red and puffy as if she had been crying and she was visibly shaking.
‘What can I help you with Mrs Pincher?’ asked Carla more gently than she had first intended.
Mrs Pincher looked at her with brimming eyes. ‘It’s my Larry…’es gone missing…it’s been two days now, an ‘e ain’t neva left it that long wiv out getting in touch wiv me. I didn’t do nuffin at first ‘cus I fought ‘e’d be ‘ome before long…’e’s a right ‘andful that boy, most times I don’t know where ‘e is. But not two days…’e would always let me know…’e knows I worry see?’ the woman finished, tears streaming down her face.
‘Ok Mrs Pincher, let’s take a few details…when exactly was the last time you saw Larry?’
‘Wednesday morning, when he left for school…we ‘ad a row; ‘e said the place was a pigsty and ‘e couldn’t bring any of ‘is friends ‘ome ‘cus ‘e was ashamed like. I told ‘im ‘e should fucking clear up after ’imself then shouldn’t ‘e…bloody cheeky little git. Then he stormed off to school.’ Mrs Pincher’s face crumpled, ‘That’s the last I seen ‘im…’e didn’t come ‘ome that night…’
‘Weren’t you worried when he didn’t come home?’ asked Carla.
‘Na…I fought ‘e might not on account of the row, you know making me pay,’ she smiled bitterly.
‘So where does he go if he doesn’t come home…is there someplace he stays?’
‘Oh I don’t know…maybe a mates ‘ouse. I fink ‘e might ‘ave gone to that little kids ‘ouse, you know that Danny kid, ‘is mum works nights sometimes I fink, and Larry goes over there…but when I went round there was no one there.’
‘Do you mean Daniel Rushton, Mrs Pincher?’ Carla asked, ‘You think he might be there?’
‘No ‘e ain’t there I told you, I went round didn’t I…there was no one in.’ Mrs Pincher shouted agitatedly. ‘So I don’t know where ‘e is…that’s why I’ve come ‘ere isn’t it.’
‘Right well we will start looking for him Mrs Pincher. First I will need you to give us a few details, what he was wearing, did he have his mobile with him that sort of thing?’
‘Well I can tell you that…’ said Mrs Pincher impatiently. ‘He was wearing ‘is school uniform, and ‘e did have ‘is mobile…at least I fink ‘e did it’s not at ‘ome anyway. But ‘es got it switched off, or it’s run out of battery or someink ‘cus it’s going straight to voicemail.’
‘Ok…well, we’ll need his mobile number…we might be able to pinpoint where his phone is, but first you need to go home. For all you know Larry might be waiting there for you right now. I’ll arrange for Constable Hale to run you home, she can take any details from you, like names and addresses of friends and relatives etc., and she will stay with you until we have some news ok? Try not to worry Mrs Pincher…most children that go missing turn up safe and well and feeling very sorry for themselves.’
After leaving Mrs Pincher in Constable Becky Hale’s capable hands, Carla made her way back up to the office. She had better fill Frank in, and then head off over to the Rushton’s house just to make sure the boy wasn’t over there.
