Lost Girls

by Angela Marsons

  A road ran alongside the building, cresting in a hill before heading down the other side. Next to the complex lay a construction site following the demolition of a local council building. To the right was the entrance to a park. A dirt road separated the two areas.

  On the other side of the road stood residential properties set back from the pavement and elevated. A clutch of newer houses masked a road that led to a small council estate behind.

  ‘Too many possible directions of travel,’ Kim said.

  She suspected the kidnappers had parked on the dirt road between the building and the park. Close enough to effect a speedy exit but not close enough to the road to raise any suspicion if the girls put up a fight. A conveniently placed birch tree obstructed the view from the homes.

  Bryant followed her gaze. ‘You think that's where it happened?’

  ‘If they did their homework, yes.’

  Kim travelled the path towards the entrance door and placed her face close to the glass. There was no sign of activity.

  ‘We need the CCTV, Bryant.’

  ‘Err … I think it's closed for the night.’

  ‘No shit,’ she said, examining the door frame.

  ‘Yeah, Guv, just so you know, breaking and entering is an offence.’

  ‘Hmmm … Bryant, go back to the car and switch on the police radio.’

  ‘Oh shit. What are you—?’

  ‘Just go,’ she ordered.

  He huffed and headed back to the car.

  Kim crouched down to inspect the bottom half of the door. An alarm contact was fitted to the side edges but no lock. She'd already established the same at the top. The locking mechanism was at the centre.

  She kicked at the metal strip that ran the length of the bottom of the door. Nothing. She kicked again, taking care to avoid the glass panel. Still nothing. She threw back her right leg and kicked a third time. The alarm sounded a deafening wail and a strobe illuminated above her head.

  She strolled back to the car and got in.

  Bryant's head rested on the steering wheel.

  ‘Guv, why couldn't you just—’

  His words were interrupted by a radio message from their control room requesting officer attendance at a suspected break-in at the leisure centre.

  She shrugged. ‘Call us in, Bryant. We're pretty close.’

  Bryant shook his head and confirmed their attendance.

  Now all she had to do was wait. The alarm monitoring company had made their first call to the police. Their second would be to a key holder.

  ‘Couldn't you have shown just a little patience?’ Bryant asked.

  Kim ignored him. It would have taken time to track down the appropriate person on a Sunday evening, further time in persuading them to return to work to assist with CCTV. No, she liked her way better. A key holder was now on the way and it hadn't cost her a single threat. Woody would be pleased.

  ‘Patience? Come on, Bryant. Even you know me better than that.’

  Eight

  ‘That'll be him,’ Kim said, as a Volkswagen Polo pulled up beside them.

  Bryant had already called the premises in as secure but the alarm would need to be re-set.

  She got out of the car and came face to face with a man in his mid-twenties with bleached blond hair. She already had her warrant card in her hand.

  ‘Manager?’ she asked.

  He nodded. ‘Brad Evans.’ He tipped his head.

  ‘Attending officers. There's no intruder,’ she confirmed.

  He smiled. ‘Well … umm … thanks, but why …’

  She fell into step beside him as he walked towards the entrance of the facility. ‘Well, strangely enough we were on our way here when we got the call.’

  He turned towards her as he reached the door. The alarm had stopped but the intermittent blue light above showed both his good looks and his frown.

  ‘Yeah, that is strange.’

  Bryant coughed behind her.

  Brad unlocked the door and entered the foyer. The lights automatically illuminated the area. The second door was push button access.

  Kim looked to the ceiling and spotted the camera.

  She followed Brad into the reception area and inhaled the scent of chlorine.

  The café area was open and spacious. Plastic chairs and tables littered the room. A row of vending machines sat against the left-hand wall. Beyond was the entrance door to the communal changing rooms.

  At the furthest point was a partitioned glass viewing area that looked onto the shallow pool.

  While she assessed the area Bryant explained that they'd been on their way to view the CCTV following a serious assault.

  ‘Can't it wait until normal hours?’ Brad asked.

  ‘No,’ Kim said, simply.

  Bryant shrugged his agreement.

  Brad's face hardened. Kim was not concerned. His Sunday night plans would just have to wait a while.

  ‘If you follow me,’ he said, walking away from the swimming facilities. They passed a gym room on the right and public toilets to the left. At the end of the corridor was a door marked 'Private'.

  Brad keycoded himself in and sat, logging into the system. She was relieved the place had gone digital. That would make Bryant's job much easier.

  ‘The system covers every inch of the premises,’ Brad said. ‘Other than the changing rooms, for obvious reasons, but there is a static on the changing room exit.’

  He steered the system to the front screen and lifted his arm to check his watch.

  The pointed mannerism was not lost on Kim.

  ‘So, what would you like to see?’

  ‘Yeah, we can take it from here,’ Bryant offered. ‘We have a description of the possible offender.’

  Brad showed no sign of vacating the seat. ‘Ah, that makes sense. If you give me the description I can …’

  Kim had no idea what made sense, but Bryant pressed on.

  ‘We may be some time so it's probably best you get to work on re-setting the alarm,’ her colleague said, tapping the back of the chair.

  Brad looked from one to the other before reluctantly getting up. ‘It'll take a few minutes to check the building.’ He looked pointedly at Kim. ‘But I imagine it's all in order.’

  ‘Better to be safe,’ Kim said, stepping out of the way.

  Brad pointed to an internal phone and held up his mobile. ‘Zero will put you straight through to me, just in case you need anything else.’

  Kim offered him a smile. ‘Thank you, Brad.’

  Bryant took the controls while Kim instructed. ‘Go to the static camera on the changing room. I want to make sure there was no one else around when they came out.’

  Bryant typed in the date and time.

  Nine windows filled the screen; all freeze-framed at the time point of 12.05 p.m.

  ‘Top right and make it full screen until we identify the girls.’

  Bryant pressed the play button and the images spurred into life in real time. They watched silently. Two minutes later the girls came out of the changing rooms.

  Amy was wearing pink jeans and a navy jumper. Charlie wore black leggings and a long T-shirt. Both were carrying their coats and backpacks.

  ‘Go to camera five,’ Kim said. After a few key strokes Kim could identify the girls from a camera that watched ninety per cent of the common area.

  The two of them walked across the space to the vending machines and dropped their belongings at the side. They perused the snack machines, pointing before making their choice. Amy took crisps, Charlie chose a bag of sweets and both selected a hot drink.

  They sat cross-legged beside the Coke machine as though having a picnic.

  Kim watched the immediate area to see if anyone was paying particular attention to the girls. She had the eerie sensation that she could be watching the last few moments of these girls' lives.

  Her gut repelled the idea and, as it was normally the most reliable organ in her body, she had no choice but to believe it. Not even for o
ne moment would she allow herself to think these girls were already dead. She would bring them home alive. Changed, but alive.

  ‘Last few minutes of innocence, eh, Guv?’ Bryant said, echoing her thoughts.

  They both knew beyond a shadow of a doubt these kids would never view the world the same way again. Whatever the outcome.

  At 12.23 they both stood. Charlie took their rubbish to the bin and they donned their jackets. Amy put her left arm through the shoulder strap of the backpack but with her coat on couldn't get her right arm through the other strap.

  Charlie got hold of the strap and pulled it around, making a loop for Amy's arm. The dynamics of their friendship were clear even from this small gesture.

  They walked towards the foyer and entered. For some reason Charlie looked back into the café area but didn't stop.

  ‘Switch to the external,’ Kim instructed but she already knew.

  ‘Damn, he's under the camera and it points down the path.’ Not along the trodden path through the grass.

  ‘Pause, rewind, just a couple of frames.’

  Bryant did so and she saw the unmistakable lift of Charlie's head to look up into the face of an adult.

  Something else caught her eye.

  ‘Bryant, take it back again.’

  Now she was in no doubt. She picked up the phone and called Reception.

  ‘Brad, I need you back in the CCTV room. Now.’

  Nine

  ‘That is you, isn't it, running through the foyer?’ Kim asked.

  Brad squinted at the screen and shrugged. ‘We all wear—’

  Jesus, it couldn't be that hard to recall. ‘Brad, this was lunchtime and you were running.’

  ‘Oh, yeah, yeah, it was me. A woman had collapsed in the main area. It's my job to greet the ambulance and get them to the location quickly.’ He paused, looking at the screen. ‘But, what's this got to do with an assault up the road?’

  Oh dear. God had blessed this guy with brains as well as beauty. Kim exchanged a look with Bryant. Before them was a man who had walked right past their kidnapper.

  ‘Brad, did you get a look at the man who was speaking to these girls?’

  His face hardened. ‘Oh, yeah, and I can tell you he needs bloody speaking to.’

  ‘Can you tell us what he looked like?’

  He thought for a moment then looked her up and down. ‘About your height, maybe an inch taller. I'd say thirteen or fourteen stone. His face was kinda ordinary. Nose was a bit long but his voice was soft and quiet with no local accent.’

  Kim frowned. ‘How do you know how he sounded?’ The kid had only been running past.

  ‘I asked if he could lend a hand. I told him we had a first aid incident but he flatly refused. He wasn't unpleasant about it but I got a bit rude. You'd think—’

  ‘Brad, could you get down to the station at Halesowen and work with a sketch artist. We need to know who this man is.’

  Brad frowned and offered a nervous laugh. ‘You're kidding?’

  Kim shook her head as a sickness began to rise in her stomach.

  ‘Can't you just track him through your own system?’

  ‘Why would we know?’ Bryant asked but Kim didn't need to.

  ‘Because the guy I spoke to was a copper.’

  Ten

  ‘Thanks, Brad,’ Bryant said. ‘We'll call you again if we need to.’

  ‘Umm … is this going to take much longer?’ he asked.

  ‘No. We'll be done in just a minute.’

  Brad edged out of the room.

  ‘Damn it, Bryant,’ Kim growled.

  He knew exactly how she was feeling. Criminals impersonating police officers were abhorrent to them both.

  ‘Are we done?’ Bryant asked, pushing the chair away from the desk.

  Kim opened her mouth to say yes but a thought occurred to her.

  ‘Hang on, we spotted the girls leaving the locker room at 12.09 so go back to 12 dead but I want the camera that covers the viewing area.’

  Bryant tapped in the time and then selected the third camera. The screen sparked into action. Kim scrutinised the seating area that was closest to the small pool.

  She studied each individual body, and a minute and a half in she found what she was looking for.

  ‘Pause,’ she said, and the picture froze. Kim stabbed the top right-hand corner. ‘Press play and keep your eyes on her. I've got a feeling she's not going to feel very well in a minute.’

  They both watched the screen, looking predominantly at the back of a blonde head. Every twenty seconds or so the head would turn slightly.

  ‘She's keeping an eye on the exit from the changing rooms,’ Bryant noted.

  Kim nodded. ‘Keep watching.’

  The routine continued with a few quick lifts of the arm. Checking her watch. At 12.09 Kim saw the girls in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen leaving the locker room.

  The figure turned away completely and covered her face for a couple of seconds by scratching her left temple. She then turned slightly in her chair so that she was side on to the viewing area but with the vending machines in her peripheral vision. Her hand continued to obscure her face from the view of Charlie and Amy.

  As the girls stood up to leave, Kim watched the woman take a mobile phone from her handbag. She fiddled with it for a few seconds before putting it back.

  As Charlie and Amy headed towards the exit the woman stood and left the viewing area. Three paces out, she folded to the ground.

  From this second camera Kim noted that Charlie looked back at the commotion but she was too far away to see anything.

  ‘Distraction,’ Bryant said.

  Kim nodded. ‘And a good one. Everyone would have been looking in that direction. It's human nature. Spectators wouldn't have noticed the two girls simply leaving the building. Charlie looked back to see what was going on, but she didn't stop. She expected her mum to be waiting outside.’

  ‘Clever bastards,’ Bryant murmured.

  Yeah, Kim thought. That's what she'd been afraid of.

  ‘But you know something else, Bryant. As the girls came out of the changing area our woman raised her hand to her face so they wouldn’t see her.’

  ‘Oh, shit,’ he said, shaking his head. He knew what this meant.

  The woman deliberately causing a distraction was someone the girls knew.

  Eleven

  As Bryant spoke into the phone, summoning Brad back to the CCTV room, Kim knew they had a problem.

  The case was top secret and she could not divulge the details to anyone.

  The manager poked his impatient head around the door. ‘What now?’

  ‘About that sketch,’ Kim said, pleasantly. ‘Any chance you could come with us now to make a start?’

  His eyes widened and Kim sensed that his patience was already stretching beyond its normal tolerance.

  He shook his head. ‘I’m sorry, that’s impossible. I’ve got plans, Officer.’

  ‘Brad, I need you to come with us to the station. This is not an assault case, it’s much more serious, and now you’re involved.’

  He paled as he looked from her to Bryant and back again.

  ‘But … I don’t get it. That bloke was a copper.’

  Kim shook her head. ‘No, he wasn’t. He was impersonating a police officer to get what he wanted and you can identify him. I think you’re vulnerable.’

  Brad was now standing fully in the room. ‘What’s he done? Has he killed someone?’

  ‘Well … not that we—’

  ‘Inspector, I’m over your cryptic answers. You can’t tell me what’s going on but you want me to cancel my plans?’

  Kim was astounded at the drama of it all. Not going out for a few beers was hardly the end of the world. Not much of a sacrifice for the rest of your life.

  ‘Brad, I can only ask that you—’

  ‘Are we done?’ he asked, as the colour returned to his face.

  Kim reached into her pocket and handed him a card
. ‘Okay, keep your wits about you and if you experience anything out of the ordinary I want you to call me. Got it?’

  He put the card in his pocket without even looking at it and held the door open for the two of them to leave.

  She paused as she drew level with him. ‘Brad, will you just listen to—’

  ‘Officer, please let me lock this building and get on with my life.’

  She hesitated for another minute but Bryant nudged her forward.

  ‘Damn it,’ she said, pushing the automatic door before it got a chance to open.

  Bryant matched her step as she headed back towards the car. ‘Much as you’d like to, Guv, you can’t protect ’em all.’

  True, but she could bloody well try.

  She turned back as Brad locked the door.

  ‘Sorry about this, but there’s something else I need to look at,’ Kim said, offering what she hoped was a regretful smile.

  His face darkened. ‘Is this some kind of joke?’

  She stepped closer to him. ‘Please don’t be rude, Brad. I’m not being rude to you. I just need—’

  ‘I’m not being fucking rude. I’m just saying—’

  She stepped forward again and frowned. ‘Please don’t swear. That’s an offence under the Public Order—’

  ‘Is she for real?’ Brad asked Bryant.

  ‘Don’t ask him, Brad. Speak to me. Unless you’re trying to insult me by speaking to “the man”, that is?’

  ‘You’re a fucking lunatic,’ Brad said, stepping back against the wall. He had nowhere left to go.

  Kim took another step forward and crowded his personal space. Her face was an inch from his. ‘I’ve only asked for your help and co-operation …’

  ‘Back off, Officer,’ he said, pushing her shoulder.

  She turned to Bryant with a smile. ‘Okay, cuff him and read him his rights.’

  Woody was going to love her for this one, but it was as much as she could do to keep Brad safe. Even for just a little while.

  She just hoped it was enough.

  Twelve

  ‘I hope you know what you’re doing,’ Bryant said from the side of his mouth as he closed the back door.