by M A Comley
“All right, bro?” Harvey squeezed his brother’s shoulder on his way to the fridge. He removed a bottle of Chablis and opened it. He handed a glass to his brother. Daniel refused to accept it.
“I don’t want one. How can you see this as some kind of celebration?”
“Get a life, Daniel. It is a celebration, I’ll do it alone if necessary, no skin off my nose. You should have seen her in there, she gave as good as she got, if you get my drift.”
“You disgust me.”
“Says you, who…”
“Don’t start. Leave it in the past.”
“Where’s the fun in that?” Harvey asked. He took a large gulp of wine and spun his glass around by the stem. “You’re letting me down. I’m getting the impression you want to back out of the deal.”
“You catch on slowly. Fucking hell, I can’t believe it’s only just sinking in.”
“Cut the crap, Daniel. Climb down from your principled mountain and accept the situation for what it is.”
“Why should I?”
Harvey heaved out a sigh. “Because if you don’t, you can say farewell to any inheritance coming your way.”
Daniel laughed. “You see, that’s what I mean, you’re frigging warped. Insane even.”
“How do you figure that out?”
“What do you propose will happen when Mum and Dad find out about all of this shit? You think they’ll slap us both on the back? Wrong with a capital W, mate.”
Harvey fell silent. But only for a moment. “Well, with everything we have in place, the likelihood of that happening is non-existent. So, we’ll be high and dry, ready to rock and roll when the time comes to hand her over.”
“She doesn’t deserve this, neither do the others.”
“We’ve been over this a thousand times already. Give me a break and stop pulling against me. In order for us to succeed, we need to show a united front in all we do, and to be honest with you, I ain’t getting that, not right now.”
“I can’t guarantee you will in the future, either.”
Harvey noted the defeat in his brother’s voice. “You’re negating on our deal, is that what you’re saying?” He yelled. “In spite of the warning I gave you barely half an hour ago. How do you think our folks are going to react when they find out what you did?”
“As if I care any more.” Daniel shrugged. “It was nothing compared to what you have planned. For what? Money. Bloody money, that’s all you care about. You should be putting yourself in their shoes.” He pointed at the door. “How do you think these girls will feel when you abduct them and ship them out to the highest bidder? All to line your own pockets.”
“Correction, our pockets.” Harvey sighed impatiently. “This was a team effort, abducting her. It was you who flew the plane, or have you conveniently forgotten that part? I guess you must have, otherwise you wouldn’t be giving me such grief. Your morals suck, I’ve told you that for years. Hence us embarking on this adventure. This financial venture which will probably make us millions and now, all of a sudden, you develop a conscience. You confuse the hell out of me.” He downed his drink and tipped his chair over as he stood. “We need to get out of here. Get back to Hereford.”
“We can’t just leave her here, alone.”
“Can’t we?” He rushed forward and jabbed his brother in the chest. “Who says? Are you telling me you want to remain here with her?”
Daniel recoiled from his aggression. “Why not?”
Harvey slammed his clenched fist on the table and shouted in his brother’s face, “It’s not in the plan. The same blasted plan you agreed to partake in last month when we started all this.”
“I’m allowed to change my mind. I’m a grown man.”
“Except you’re not… allowed to change your mind, that is. As for the grown man part, start bloody acting your age and not like a whining teenager.”
“Sod off.”
“I rest my case. You, big kid. Now, pack your bag, we’re going tonight and don’t even think about objecting to flying at night, or you’ll get my fist in your face.”
“I won’t. Like I said already, you’re a sick shit.”
“Yep, I totally agree, and the best thing you can do to keep this ‘sick shit’ happy is to go along with the plan we agreed to work with.”
Daniel rose from his chair and shrugged. He left the room and returned a few minutes later, carrying a rucksack.
“Don’t tell me you didn’t pack my bag as well.”
“Fuck off! I ain’t your slave. Do it yourself.”
“I’ll be right back.” He kicked out at the chair leg. “I can’t wait to get out of this dump and back to Hereford. I never thought I’d hear myself saying that.”
4
Sara paced the hallway outside the appointed press conference room; the previous inspector was running late, eating into her slot. She wasn’t happy, she hated dealing with the press as a rule, without the added stress of pacing the corridor until one of her colleagues had finished their appeal.
The door flew open and DI David Cooper exited the room, his cheeks resembling an over-ripe tomato. “God, I hate it. My apologies for holding you up, Sara. The savages wouldn’t stop firing questions at me, most of them useless, I hasten to add.”
“Not to worry, at least you made it out of there alive.”
“Barely.” He wiped the beads of sweat from his brow and then ran up the concrete stairs next to her.
Jane emerged from the room moments later. “Are you good to go?”
“I am. Ready to tear into me, are they?”
Jane chuckled. “Some of them might. They’re eager to leave, so we’d better get in there quickly while there’s a glimmer of hope of keeping their interest.”
Sara’s eyes widened. “Are you kidding me? As if I’m not nervous enough already, you have to fling that into the mix.”
Jane reached for her arm, turned and headed back into the room, tugging Sara behind her. “You worry too much and sometimes forget that I’m here to hold your hand. Just say your piece to the cameras. I’ll limit the questions, it’s not as if you can give them any other titbits this early on in the investigation, is it?”
“No, that’s right. Okay, I feel a bit better now. You can unhitch my arm, Jane.”
“Sorry, force of habit. Let’s get this show on the road.”
Sara sat next to Jane on the mini stage, a sea of pissed-off faces watching their every movement. After Jane introduced her to the crowd, Sara cleared her throat and began.
She told the press the reason they were there, then looked directly into the television camera a few feet in front of her to present her plea to the public. “If anyone saw this young woman, Amber Rowse, on Monday, the day she went missing, or indeed any day since then, please contact me on the number at the bottom of your screen. I can’t emphasise enough the importance of finding Amber quickly. Any questions?”
One of the male journalists raised his right hand. “Why the importance in finding her early, apart from the obvious? Is she ill? Does she have ongoing health issues?”
“Not that I’m aware of, no. In any missing person case, it’s always imperative we find the person promptly.”
The journalist nodded, seemingly satisfied with her response, and then asked, “What do you believe has happened to her?”
“It’s really too early to speculate. In fact, I’d rather steer clear of any kind of supposition and stick to the facts. We have a nineteen-year-old woman missing, something that is completely out of character for her. If you’ve seen Amber recently, please contact me. Amber, if you’re watching this, please come home, your parents miss you terribly and are worried sick about you.”
A few more journalists raised their hands to ask the obscurest of questions, which Sara batted away. She drew the conference to a close and left the room with Jane.
Outside, before the journalists came out, Sara let out the breath she’d been holding in. “Gosh, I hate dealing with the press regardin
g missing person cases.”
“I know what you mean. The journos definitely act differently.”
“Yeah, glad I’m not the only one who thinks that. Right, I’m going to shoot upstairs and wait for all the dozens of calls to come in.”
Jane held up her crossed fingers. “Here’s hoping. Can you let me know what happens with the girl? This one has really hit a nerve for some reason.”
“Probably because you’ve got a teenage daughter of your own, Jane.”
“You’re right. I intend to sit her down tonight, force her to listen to the plea and have a chat with her about her own safety. There are far too many cases of this nature hitting the headlines at present. The last thing I want is for her to become a statistic.”
“Try not to worry unduly. If you’ve never needed to be concerned about your daughter before, scare tactics might have the reverse effect. Maybe watch the plea with her and ask her what she thinks and go from there.”
“You’re a wise woman, Sara Ramsey. Why didn’t I think of that?”
Sara grinned. “Not bad for a novice who doesn’t have kids, right?” Sara laughed and ran up the stairs, into the incident room. “I’m in dire need of a caffeine fix.”
Jill beat her to it and leapt out of her chair and rushed towards the vending machine. “Don’t say I never put my hand in my pocket.” She laughed and handed Sara the cup of coffee.
“I wouldn’t dream of it. How are things looking?”
“Slow and laborious. How did the conference go?”
Sara shrugged. “It was okay. We’ll see where it leads.”
“Are you hopeful? What if nothing comes of it?”
“Don’t say that, and no, I’m not hopeful. However, I think we should remain positive, don’t you? I’m not willing to give up on Amber just yet.”
“Nor should we. I just wondered what our chances were of finding this girl alive. There, I’ve said it.”
“It’s a tough call, Jill. But we must remain upbeat about things otherwise, you know as well as I do, where a slippery slope can lead us. Now, what have you found out?”
Jill tumbled into her chair and held up a few pieces of paper. “I’m in the process of checking out several aspects at the same time. Unfortunately, nothing has come back on anything yet. Sorry to disappoint you.”
Sara picked up a pen and tapped it thoughtfully. “You haven’t. I appreciate it’s early days, even if I am getting antsy about things. All I want to know is whether Amber is safe and well somewhere. That’s not much to ask, is it?”
“No, not at all. After speaking with her boyfriend and parents, what is the likelihood of her just taking off?”
She dropped her pen and shook her head. “Not on the agenda, not for me. Surely, if her intention was to take off, she’d be in a better state financially and would have packed a bag, wouldn’t she?”
“Possibly. What if she met another fella who has promised her the earth and told her to leave everything behind and go away with him?”
Sara laughed. “There’s a possibility, but highly unlikely. That type of thing only ever happens in the pages of a romance novel, doesn’t it? I’m going to touch base with Carla and Will, see if they’ve got any news for us yet.” She went into her office and picked up the phone. “Carla, any news?”
“Nothing so far. We’re parked up outside the rear entrance of New Look, no one has come or gone since we arrived. How did the conference go?”
“It went. Not sure how fruitful it’s going to prove to be, I don’t suppose we’ll know until later.” Sara glanced at her watch. “It’s almost four-thirty now, I’m presuming New Look closes its doors around five-thirty. Therefore, kicking out time should happen not long after. Let me know when she leaves, if you would?”
“Sure thing. What about manning the phones tonight?”
“I’m going to do that myself. Just going to ring Mark to warn him I’ll be late.”
“Okay. I’ll be in touch soon, I hope.”
Sara pressed the End Call button and immediately rang her husband. She trawled her mind, trying to recall if he’d mentioned whether he had any operations on today or not. She couldn’t think of any such conversation. “Hi, am I disturbing you?”
“You never disturb me. What’s up?”
“Apart from wanting to hear your voice, nothing much… except that I might be working late tonight.”
“That’s a shame. I’d planned something special for dinner, nothing that can’t wait though, before your guilt gene starts spiking.”
“You really do know me so well. Sorry, love, we’re dealing with an important case, and I’ve put out a call through the media today for the public’s help.”
“I trust you, Sara, you don’t have to make excuses.”
“I wasn’t, I promise.”
“Any leads on the case?”
“Nothing much so far. We’ve got a nineteen-year-old girl who has been reported missing by her parents.”
“Oh, Christ, when?”
“On Monday.”
“Ugh… is there a reason for the delay? If my daughter went missing, I’d be down the cop shop the very next day.”
“I hear you. The parents work opposite shifts and neither of them realised she’d gone. That’s it in a nutshell, but I think there’s more to it than that, judging by the conversation I had with the girl’s best friend.”
“Sounds ominous.”
“Maybe. I’ve got the friend under surveillance, just in case. Anyway, how are things there? Any new wee or pooh stains on your uniform today?”
He snorted. “Every single day. Luckily, they’re from a litter of puppies this time.”
“Oh, don’t tell me they were dumped.”
“No, it was a caesarean birth. They’re adorable. All the nurses are going gaga over them.”
“So cute. Okay, I must fly. Sending my love, I’ll keep you up to date about when to expect me.”
“Don’t work too hard. Not that you’re likely to listen to me.”
“I always listen to you, my darling husband.”
“Can you say that with less sarcasm next time?”
Sara laughed. “You’re nuts. I’m going now. Love you.”
“Ditto. See you later.”
The rest of the team drifted off at around sixish, leaving Sara to man the phones. The first thing she did was contact Carla and Will. “Any news yet?”
“Yes, sorry, she left work at five-forty-five. We’ve followed her at a snail’s pace. She jumped on a bus and is now on foot; I’m guessing she’s on her way home.”
“What’s her demeanour like?”
“When her head isn’t down, she’s mostly looking over her shoulder, acting suspicious.”
“Suspicious or nervous?” Sara asked.
“Maybe the latter. You think she’s worried she’s going to be abducted?”
“Possibly, it would make sense. We got the phone records back. Amber rang a regular number, I’m taking a punt she was calling Sasha. We’ll go over it properly, matching times et cetera with Sasha’s statement and yank her in, if we have to, for more questioning.”
“Sounds like a plan. What do you want us to do tonight?”
“See if she goes home, or ends up somewhere else and then call it a day. I think her mannerisms are speaking volumes at this moment.”
“Are you still at work?”
“Yep, manning the phones. I’m hopeful we’ll get a response, we’ll see.”
“I’ll drop in and see you before heading home.”
“Okay, see you later.”
The local evening news aired at six. Sara watched the conference go out at around six-twenty and sat by the phone, willing it to ring. Twenty minutes later, two phone calls came in within minutes of each other. One was an obvious time-waster, a young bloke who gave her false information who then laughed and hung up, leaving her seething. The second call was from a gentleman which sparked her interest.
“Hello, sir, can I take your name for our
records?”
“Yes, it’s Alan Baldwin.”
“And why are you calling this evening, sir?” Sara poised her pen ready to take down what he had to tell her, if anything.
“I saw her. The girl you’re searching for.”
“You did? When? Where?”
“She was on the bus, she got off near the precinct.”
“Can you recall what time this was?”
“Around ten-thirty, Monday morning. I was sat behind her on the bus. She was on the phone, I overheard parts of her conversation, she mentioned being nervous.”
Sara scribbled down the information, her scrawl in a race with the adrenaline that was pumping around her system. “Nervous? Any idea why?”
“I wasn’t eavesdropping, I promise. She was talking loudly, the bus was noisy, you see, she was trying to be heard above the din. Anyway, from what I could tell, she was on her way to an interview. That’s all I managed to pick up.”
“That’s brilliant, no need to apologise, I’m glad you called us this evening. This will give us a new lead to chase up. Going back to the phone call, do you know who it was to? Did you hear any names mentioned?”
“Let me think, I’m not usually good with names. I think she did mention one… now then, what was it?” he paused to think and sighed. “No, it’s escaped my mind. Now I feel like I’ve let you down.”
“You mustn’t think like that. You’ve given us something new to sink our teeth into. Did you get the impression she was speaking to someone she knew well?”
“Oh, yes, I would say someone like a best friend, something along those lines. I don’t think it sounded as though she was talking to a parent. Don’t ask how I know that.”
“I understand. Are you telling me her tone was more natural than stilted, perhaps?”
“Yes, yes. That’s it.”
“And you say she got off at the precinct?”
“That’s right. She was also dressed smartly, if that helps?”
“It does. Did you notice which direction she went in?”
“Towards the main shopping area. She seemed in a hurry.”
“Hmm… so the interview would have likely taken place in the centre of the city, then.” Sara muttered the assumption more to herself than to Mr Baldwin.
