by Imogen Nolde
I glanced back. “You were on a date with Zoe last night? She told me about it yesterday.”
Dylan’s face twisted and then he grabbed hold of my arm violently.
“Hey!” I shrieked, dropping my carry-bag.
He yanked me back outside.
“What the fuck?” I exclaimed, punching him in the chest with both hands.
“Yeah, yeah, sorry,” he mumbled. “I need a favor from you.”
“What?”
“I wasn’t with Zoe last night. Okay?”
“What the fuck’s going on?”
Dylan looked around nervously. “Just don’t say anything. Please. It’ll save me a lot of bullshit.”
“Say anything to who?”
He blinked. “They haven’t rung you yet?”
My eyes widened. “Dylan. What are you talking about?”
He sighed. “Zoe is missing. The cops are waiting for us upstairs.”
11 Vera
There was more to the story. There had to be. More than what this scruffy pothead was giving me.
Instantly I’m on the phone dialing Zoe, my feet charging up the hardened steps. Somewhere in the background Dylan is following, saying a whole lot of bullshit I can’t focus on. All I can hear is Zoe’s answering message fading out, going to silence, waiting for me to speak. But I’m not ready to just yet.
I pushed open the door on floor three and wandered out through the hallway towards our workspace. The moment a uniformed officer surfaces in my vision, my stomach fills with lead.
She can’t just be missing. People wouldn’t have noticed so quickly.
At least…
I didn’t notice.
“There she is,” James announced from the doorway of Lucy’s office. He turned away, talking to someone. “No, not – it’s Vera. She’s arrived.”
There were three cops at Zoe’s desk going through her things.
There was a cop at my desk.
James turned back to me. “Why don’t you come on over here, Vera?”
I walked slowly across the room. “What’s going on?”
“Just come inside and we’ll bring you up to date…”
He held the door open for me.
Lucy was standing at her desk next to a woman in a suit at her computer.
James closed the door and motioned for me to sit down on the chair by the wall.
My eyes went from him to Lucy as I lowered myself down.
“You see, that’s – that’s what we were looking at,” Lucy said pointing to the monitor.
The woman at the computer remained focused. “But you’re not aware of whether any funds were exchanged?”
“I’m not a part of that process. I was privy to the final documents he sent me but, what he did with them after –”
“Excuse me,” I said. “Hello?”
The woman looked over the side of the computer. “Hello.” She glanced up at Lucy. “We’ll come back to this.”
I turned to James. “I’m waiting.”
James nodded. “This is my partner, Detective Amy Anders. She and I are conducting an investigation into the whereabouts of Zoe Clarke, as there is evidence to suggest she may have been abducted.”
“What evidence?” I demanded.
“We’ll be asking the questions, thank you,” Detective Anders said standing up. “This is the best friend, did you say?”
“Right,” James nodded. “Vera.”
She brought her chair around the side of the desk and moved towards me.
“I’m not talking to you until I get some answers,” I said.
She positioned the chair opposite and sat down. “It’s your right not to talk to us if you choose not to. At this time I should also make it clear that my partner has expressed to me that he has recently engaged in sexual activity with you –”
My jaw dropped furiously.
“ – And it may be inappropriate for him to remain present if it makes you uncomfortable. So … is it your wish for him leave or stay with you?”
I shook my head. “I’d rather talk to him than you.”
“Alright everyone, let’s calm down,” James said. “We know Vera had nothing to do with this, because –”
“Let’s just stick to the facts, shall we?” Detective Anders retorted. “Vera can speak for herself. Can’t you, Vera?”
I watched them all looking at me. “Uh. Yeah.”
“So what can you tell us about this?”
“Me?” I blurted out. “Nothing!”
“When was the last time you saw Zoe?”
I reflected. “Here. When I left work yesterday.”
“She was leaving work too then?”
“No,” I said. “I left earlier than her. I had a meeting in the city.”
“With whom?”
I looked around nervously. “Why is that important?”
“Her meeting was with Mr. Redthorn,” Lucy said flatly. “I booked her appointment.”
“Hey!” I exclaimed. “Aren’t you supposed to be his lawyer or something? Shut the fuck up!”
“Mr. Redthorn has nothing to hide in relation to this matter. As per instruction, I’ve been given permission to not stand guard over certain artifacts of information.”
“Mr. Redthorn knows about this?”
“Ms. Gibbons, you should wait outside,” Detective Anders said. “Thank you.”
Lucy crossed her arms and exited the room.
“So your meeting was with Mr. Redthorn,” Detective Anders stated.
James was looking at me awkwardly.
My posture stiffened. “Right.”
“So what time did you arrive at his office?”
“I don’t know. Before five?”
“And what time did you leave?”
“Around six.”
“Six pm?”
“Uh. Yes.”
Detective Anders made a note of it.
“You weren’t with Mr. Redthorn between the hours of six pm and midnight?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“That’s interesting,” James said.
“Where were you?” Detective Anders asked.
I stared at James. “Why is that interesting?”
He blinked. “Where were you, Vera, if you weren’t with him?”
“I was at home,” I said. “I didn’t go out last night.”
“Mr. Redthorn is using you as his alibi,” Detective Anders said. “Are you sure you don’t want to rethink your response?”
The room caved in on me.
I began to feel sick. “Why do you care what Mr. Redthorn was doing?”
“It’s important we establish a timeline,” James said.
“Were you with Mr. Redthorn between the hours of six pm and midnight?” Detective Anders repeated.
My lips trembled. “Yes. I was…”
James offered to escort me back to my car once the meeting was done. As we walked across the workspace floor, I was greeted by skeptical glances from both Lucy and Dylan. Inside, I couldn’t believe I just lied to the police. But at the same time I knew Mr. Redthorn was innocent. There’s no way he could have hurt my friend.
“Look, you should know I’m not upset about you not returning my messages or anything,” James said once we were alone. “I get it was a pretty stupid thing for us to do. It was –”
“How can you even think about that now?” I exclaimed. “Why would you think it?”
“Well, you initially lied about leaving Redthorn at six pm. To protect me. My feelings. And I know … you know, there’s something going on between you. But it’s none of my business.”
“Right.”
“I don’t want there to be bad blood between us. Especially not now. I mean, Jesus, I was friends with Zoe too.”
“Alright,” I conceded. “I get what you’re saying. It’s just … this is getting a bit much. I can’t even get my head around it. What the fuck has happened to her?”
“Well,” James said quietly. “There ar
e things we do know.”
“What things?”
“I’m not supposed to say, but…”
“Spit it out.”
“Alright.”
We stopped in the middle of the stairs.
He reached out, put his hand to my wrist. His head lowered.
“There’s surveillance. We have two guys in black masks pulling her off a side street at around eight thirty. She fought them. Screamed. Neighbors called the police. We looked at the surveillance cams in the area and saw her being shoved into the trunk of a car. But we couldn’t get a license number.”
“Oh God,” I cried, almost falling over.
He grabbed hold of me.
“Look we’re doing everything we can. We’re gonna find her. Sooner or later.”
“You need to find her now before she gets killed or something!”
“As I said, we’re working hard on it.”
“But do you have any idea? At all? Who did this?”
James swallowed. He let go of me. “It wasn’t random. It was an organized attack.”
“Organized. How?”
He sat down on the steps. “The car was parked outside her house from around five thirty onwards. They were waiting for her to come home. But when she didn’t … they eventually drove away. Only to show up fifteen miles away at her exact location.”
“Are you saying she was being stalked?”
“It was a targeted attack. We have to ask ourselves, who had motive to do this? What … what would Zoe have that was somehow valuable?”
“There’s nothing,” I said. “She’s…”
“We also have to ask, who had the means. Who could have done this?”
I exhaled.
Looked back at the steps above me.
“He asked me not to say anything, but –”
“What?”
“I think Zoe was with Dylan last night.”
“Dylan? Is the guy who –?”
“Yeah, he works here. We just walked past him.”
“Why do you think she was with him? He hasn’t told us that.”
“No, he’s … He doesn’t want to get in trouble.”
“He asked you not to tell us?”
“Zoe first told me they had a date last night. And then when I came in earlier I saw Dylan and confronted him about it. He didn’t deny it.”
James looked away. Thinking.
“What?”
“It’s not him,” James said.
“What isn’t?”
“He’s not the one behind this.”
“How do you know?”
He stood back up. “Cause I have a sense about these things.”
I frowned at him.
“Look, that guy’s a deadbeat. He might not be the most moralistically sound, but would he really go as far to have his friends abduct Zoe? I mean, that doesn’t fit with…”
“You don’t think Mr. Redthorn, did it, do you?”
“Well. Not anymore, I guess. If you were with him.”
“Right.” I breathed in deeply. “Is it okay with you if I go the rest of the way by myself?”
James sighed. “Yeah sure. Sorry.”
“What are you sorry for?”
“We’ll look into Dylan a bit further. Maybe there’ll be something there. Maybe there won’t be. Meanwhile, we should also have a look at who Mr. Redthorn’s enemies are. Supposing he has some.”
“And why is that?”
“Well,” James said, “if it wasn’t Dylan who kidnapped her. And it wasn’t Mr. Redthorn … one might deduce there is a possibility that Zoe found something out about Mr. Redthorn that his rivals, competitors – or whoever might be interested in. In other words, what I’m saying is…”
“You think I could be in danger too.”
12 Redthorn
Vera was calling to me. I could feel her voice in her mind.
By now she knew. She had seen the beginning of this evil work unfold. And I wouldn’t be there to guide her through it. Or provide explanation. That would come at a later time.
My hands in leather gloves gripping a pair of binoculars, I watched as the last police car left via the end of the street. I watched a few more moments, calm. Patient. Then I took out my phone.
“All clear.”
I put it away and resumed my binocular search.
The SUV pulled in from the opposite end of the road and made its way across the sloping hill. I waited until they were parked outside her place, exiting the car. Then it was time to move.
I tossed the binoculars aside and pulled on my helmet, shielding my face from the world. I hopped onto the motorcycle and revved the engine, before accelerating at industrious speed towards our desired location.
My main guy stood there burly and bald, waiting further instruction.
“Here,” I said throwing him a set of keys. “Silver one opens the backdoor. Be as fast as you can.”
“What about the neighbors? Shouldn’t we deal with them first?”
“I’ll take care of them.”
“Are you sure?”
“What did I say?”
His eyes lowered. “Right. Let’s go, lads. Through this gate here…”
I watched each of them as they passed me.
Almost too afraid to look.
I stepped off the motorcycle. I pulled out my phone and took a few shots of houses on both sides of the streets. I knew the police had already been to some of them, and the evidence had been taken, but I wasn’t too concerned about that. Evidence had a way of getting lost in police custody.
Once I’d selected the target, I zeroed in on the house, marching up the front lawn. I peered through the windows. Looked over the fence at the side. Then turned and faced the house standing opposite.
There was a camera just above me.
It’s blue light stood strong.
I knocked on the front door a few times and there was no answer. Satisfied by the lack of cars on the property, I made my way over the fence and into the back garden. I walked through it, kicking children’s toys out of the way, until I reached the sliding door at the back.
I pulled it open slowly and stepped inside the house.
13 Vera
Mr. Redthorn wasn’t answering his phone. I couldn’t get a hold of him.
Instead, here I was at the beach. Too afraid to go home. Too scared to drop by his office.
I didn’t know what was happening. I didn’t know anything.
I looked out into the ocean waters and saw nothing which explained my predicament. I wanted to help. I wanted to be proactive about doing everything that I could. What had happened to Zoe truly was tearing me up inside – but still I hadn’t accepted it. It didn’t seem real. I kept thinking about Dylan and how guilty he seemed. How I brought it up to James and he just dismissed it. It didn’t have to mean Dylan was behind the kidnapping, but he must know more than he was letting on. Was James being irrational in his pursuit to suspect Mr. Redthorn? Or was I being irrational in mine to defend him?
Looking at the phone, and still no call from him. What was he doing that made him so busy? Maybe he did have something to hide after all…
I stood up from my place on the sand and walked back to the car.
I kept going over what James had been saying. How Zoe never even made it home after work. It just felt so wrong. Why would she be a target? Why would she really?
I noticed there were more miscalls left on my phone.
Numbers I didn’t recognize.
I called the first one back and found myself in a conversation with Zoe’s Mom.
“Vera? Is that you, Vera?”
“Yeah, it’s me,” I answered.
“This is Danielle, Zoe’s Mom. Have you heard what’s happened?”
“Yeah,” I said leaning against the car. “Sorry if I haven’t been responding or whatever. I just got up, went to work and found out about it.”
“Have you spoken with the police yet?”
“Yeah,” I sa
id. “They’re at the office now, or at least when I left earlier. James – um, James Sheppard from school is working on the case. Have you talked with him?”
“Yeah, I’ve spoken with James. But he still wouldn’t tell me why they think that she’s been kidnapped. I was thinking maybe she was just hanging out at your apartment hung over or something.”
“Oh. No, no she isn’t, I’m afraid.”
“Look, I know you and Zoe are close, but I’m her mother. You would tell me if you knew what happened to her, wouldn’t you Vera?”
“Of course,” I choked. “I really don’t know. I’m sorry.”
Guilt hit me like a wave.
“Okay. Thanks, Vera. I appreciate it.”
“James said they have a few leads, so they’re going to follow those up and get back to us.”
“What leads?”
“I don’t know. Stuff … maybe to do with Mr. Redthorn.”
“I never trusted him. He’s your boss but refuses to meet anyone in person? He’s put you girls in the middle of something ugly, that I can tell you.”
“Well, we don’t know if it has anything to do with him yet. But … yeah. I don’t know. I don’t know where I can go to be safe.”
“I’d say come over here, but Zoe’s father and I aren’t in town.”
“Where are you?”
“Staying with relatives interstate. Our flight isn’t till tonight.”
“Shit.”
“Listen, can you do us a favor?”
“Anything.”
“Zoe’s cat Milo is still in her house somewhere.”
“What? Really?”
“I asked James about him but he said they didn’t see him. The poor creature is probably scared out of his mind. Not to mention hungry. Could you stop by her place and pick him up for us? Or I guess you could hang out at Zoe’s, maybe to see if she turns up as well.”
“Yeah sure. As long as I can get inside.”
“Zoe keeps a spare key in the peg bucket outside on the clothesline. You just have to fish it out is all.”
“No problem, I’ll head down there now.”
“Thank you so much, Vera. Hang in there. We’ll get through this together.”
“Same to you.”
Zoe’s street was busy. There were cars everywhere. Even cars in front of her house. None in the driveway though.
