“Is it possible she could have left home of her own accord?”
“Why would she? She loves this restaurant, it was her dream, and she loves me. We’re very happy together. At least, I thought we were.”
He sank his head into his hands.
“Um, I don’t know if this is any help, but back in January, I saw Stephanie and George in our lane, about where we found George,” said Kenny.
Alex’s head shot up. “George? Who’s George? And why would Steph be meeting him?”
“You know George, Alex. He works for me. It was his lad who had the canoeing accident last year.”
“Oh yes, of course. But why would he and Stephanie be meeting? He was a stranger here.”
“He was indeed a stranger here,” murmured Kenny. “But they didn’t look like they were strangers.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, at one point, they embraced. However, it didn’t look like a lovers’ embrace, they didn’t kiss or anything. It looked, well, it looked like a ‘I haven’t seen you for a long time’ sort of embrace. I’ve thought about it a lot since then. I’ve never heard of them associating again since. George always leaves and goes home straight after work. He’s a straight up sort of guy, a family man. Not the sort to play around with other women.”
“What’s this about finding him in the lane?”
“Lucy and I found George lying in our lane when we were on our way to you just now,” explained Kenny. “He’d been shot and was in a bad way.”
“Maybe George was shot trying to help Stephanie…” said Dan, slowly.
“That makes sense, to some degree. Someone took Stephanie and George tried to stop them and was shot. It doesn’t explain why he was there.”
“Maybe he was the bait.”
“Do you think all this has something to do with the man who was at his house today, the one Harry called Luke?”
“Shouldn’t be surprised. It would explain quite a few things. Harry didn’t like him, nor did Netta. And Netta said George behaved as if he thought he wouldn’t see her again when he left. Yes,” Dan nodded, “That would explain a lot. Still more to explain. I’m sorry, MrTownsend, we need to search among Stephanie’s things. We might find a clue or two. But that can wait until tomorrow, I think. It’s very late now. Try not to worry, although I know you will. I am hopeful we will find your wife, we have some clues to go on. Right now, I need to get my wife home. Ken, are you coming back now?”
“I will stay with Alex, he should have someone with him. Would you let Lucy know, please?”
“Of course. Goodnight for now.”
Back at the farmhouse, Dan was welcomed by Linda and Lucy.
“Come, Linda, my love. Lucy, Ken is staying with Alex for the night. We have some clues and ideas to go on but I need to go home so I can get started on them early tomorrow.”
“Goodnight, Lucy. Thank you for letting me come here while I waited for Dan.” She hugged Lucy.
“You must come back when all this is over – during the day! We have each other’s phone numbers now. I’ll send you an invite. It’s been lovely to meet you, if under such horrible circumstances. How is Alex, Dan?”
“Not good, as you may imagine. But I have every confidence in Kenny. Come along, woman, I’m practically asleep on my feet.”
Dan got into the passenger seat, thankful to let Linda drive. He closed his eyes and started to think around the case. He also prayed that, wherever Stephanie was, that she was safe and wouldn’t be harmed. Dan couldn’t help wondering why, if this Luke person was the one behind it all, did he let George’s family see him? After all, they hadn’t known him before. Did he think it wouldn’t matter? He suddenly opened his eyes and sat up. “Where are we?”
“Just about to reach the Whitecross Roundabout. Why?”
“Go up the Three Elms Road! We have to get Harry and Netta out of that house!”
Chapter 30
Harry was startled when his phone rang. He’d just dozed off, after laying awake for a while, worrying about his sister and father. Groping blindly for it, he picked it up as it rang off in the annoying way that mobile phones have. As he squinted to see who it was, it started up again.
“Hello?”
“Harry, this is Dan Cooke. Get your mother up. You both have to leave your house. We will be there for you in less than five minutes.”
Thoroughly awake now, Harry reached for his stick and hobbled as quickly as he could to his mother’s room.
“Mum! Mum, wake up” He shook her hard. “Mum, you have to wake up!”
She stirred but then settled down again. Harry finished dressing and threw some clean clothes into a bag. His phone rang again.
“Harry! We are outside the door, we don’t want to make any noise. Come down and unlock it.”
Harry went down the stairs on his bottom, knowing there was no time to waste. He opened the door to admit Dan and Linda.
“Linda! What are you doing here?”
“Not time to explain now. Where’s your mum?”
“She wouldn’t wake up. You know she had those tablets.”
“Oh bother, yes!”
Dan took to the stairs, swiftly followed by Linda. Harry followed as fast as he could, cursing silently. Dan and Linda were trying to waken his mum. He went in to help them.
“Mum, get up!” He shouted. “The Inspector says we have to leave.”
That seemed to do the trick, for she opened her eyes. “Wha’?”
“Come on, Netta,” said Linda. “Let me help you get dressed, we have to go, quickly.”
The two men left the room.
“Who are you?” Netta slurred, peering at Linda with half-closed eyes. “I don’t know you.”
“Yes, you do. I’m Harry’s therapist. We’ve met, remember? Now come on, get these trousers on. That’s good. Now, drink this water, it will help you wake up.”
“Take her, Dan. I’m going to grab some clothes for her.”
Dan took Netta and helped her down the stairs and a short time later, Linda came out with a pile of clothes.
“Do you have a bag for these, Harry?”
“Yes, downstairs.”
Harry found a shopping bag the clothes.
“Lock the door, Harry,” said Dan and the lad obeyed and climbed into the car in the front because Linda was in the back supporting Netta, who was already dozing off again. Now fully awake, Dan drove off quickly towards the quiet city and their home.
“I’m glad the spare bed is made up,” remarked Linda as she helped Netta out of the car. They managed somehow to get Netta up the stairs and into the bed, Linda just slipping off her shoes, before the woman was once again sound asleep.
‘She won’t know where she is when she in the morning’, thought Harry.
“Sorry, Harry, but we only have the one spare bed but the sofa is quite comfortable.”
“Doesn’t matter, Sir, there’s not much of the night left now anyway.” Harry grinned. “I’ll be fine, don’t worry.”
“We’ll have to take you and your mum to a safe house until all this is over. No explanations now, Linda will fill you in tomorrow. Now, we must all get some sleep; I have a busy day ahead of me.”
Certain he and his mum were safe, in spite of being concerned about the other half of his family, Harry drew on that talent teenagers have and fell asleep almost as soon as the light went out.
**********
Stephanie was very frightened. When she heard George’s voice shouting to her to run, she turned immediately and ran. However, when the shot rang out, she hesitated and that was her undoing. Two men overpowered her. One of them knocked her senseless and when she came to, she was in a car, bound and gagged. Her fact hurt and she had no idea how long she had been out but it was still dark. As the car slowed. she tried to lift her head to try to see where they were but she saw nothing, only dark trees. The car stopped. The door opened and she was hauled out by a man wearing a black balaclava.
“Walk.”
Pushed from behind, she stumbled.
“Careful,” growled another voice. “She has to be unharmed.”
“Not much chance of that after that punch you gave her.”
“Quiet! Let’s get her in. I need some shut-eye.”
She was dragged by the two men towards what looked like a deserted mansion. Even in the dark she could see that windows were boarded and others were broken. They went in through a side door, which led into a plain hallway and shoved her into a room. They picked her up and laid her on a hospital-type bed against the wall. She started to scream and kick them. Someone else came in, a woman, who a mask on like a woman’s face. She stopped, surprised. The men held her down and the woman put something over her mouth and nose. Eyes wide, she tried to struggle but a moment later,she heard a door slam and closed them to the blackness.
**********
Rowena awoke with a jump. Was that a car and voices! Was she being rescued? Straining her ears, ready to scream and shout if necessary, she ran to the door and listened. Then she heard a scream and her heart sank. Surely they hadn’t taken another victim? The door that slammed was not far away, in fact, she could have sworn it was next to hers. Apart from the woman who came with her meals and the masked heavies standing on guard at the door, she never heard or saw anything. This was new. If it her meals were made in this building, it was quite a way from where she was because she never heard anything of life at all.
Convinced that they had another prisoner and she was not being rescued, with her hopes dashed, she crept back to her bed and pulled the covers up to her chin. Tears of despondency trickled down, landing on her pillow. She brushed them away angrily and lay there, determined to find a way to escape.
Chapter 30
In spite of his late night, Dan was at his desk early, having grabbed a cup of coffee on his way in.
A young constable came into the room. “Message for you, Sir.”
“Oh, thank you, erm, Constable Brown isn’t it?”
“Yes, Sir. The fire chief wants a word, Sir.”
“Is he here?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Ask him to come in, please.”
Dan stood up to wring the hand of the burly fireman who came in.
“Trevor! Good to see you, mate. Take a seat.”
“My department attended two fires last night. One was a burning car, or rather, it was pretty much burnt out when we got there and more importantly, a house in Bobblestock, where I believe a family called Thompson live?”
“Oh my! We got them out in time! Thank the Lord!”
“I understand you are investigating an incident involving the family?”
Dan gave the chief a quick run-down of the events of the previous night and he whistled.
“My word, Dan, you’ve got a job on!”
Dan nodded, grimly.
“I’m glad the boy and his mother are safe. And the father is in hospital, is he?”
“Yes. We’re worried about the girl but we have a lead now, thanks to Harry.”
“What if…?”
“What if what?”
“I was just thinking. If we put out a news bulletin about the fire and the shooting and give the impression that the three are dead, would that help to relieve the pressure on protecting them? If the perpetrators of these crimes think they’ve succeeded in their purpose to wipe out the family, they might well let down their guard.”
“Good thinking! We’ll do that. I’ll have a word with Superintendent Keating, get his approval, then we’ll get onto the local television right away.”
“I’ll be happy to add weight, let them interview me at the scene, so to speak.”
“Great! We’ll take the family to a safe place as soon as we’re able but if the gang, or whoever they are, are no longer watching for them, it will make moving them easier.”
“Do you know where you will send them?”
“I have an idea but I’ll have to arrange it.”
“Great. That’s a plan then.”
“Let me know what your investigators find at the fire.”
“That’s another thing. I don’t know if the house fire and car fire are connected but we are pretty certain, although we’ll have to investigate further, that both fires were set the same way, with a detonator of some sort. We’ll know more before long.”
“Keep me posted. I’ll get men out to the burnt-out car too, to have a look around.”
The others arrived as the Chief was leaving.
“Incident room, now,” he barked. “And I want Johnson and Tanner too – and WPC Griffin.”
Once in the Incident room and everyone assembled, Dan gave his team the low-down on the happenings of the night before. The board not only had the pictures of the six previously missing youngsters, it also held Harry’s drawings of Rowena and George.
“Right. This is what today is going to look like. Griffin, who is your partner?
“Symonds, Sir.”
“Right. I have permission from your CO to use uniformed officers. I want you and your partner to go to my house and escort Mrs Thompson to the hospital to see her husband. Not yet, though, not until I’ve heard from my wife. She has the unenviable task of telling young Harry and his mother what’s happened to George. I want a twenty-four-hour guard on George and I want to know the moment he comes to.”
“The picture of ‘Uncle Luke’ has already been sent to Thames Valley and Scotland Yard to see if they know him. It’s imperative that all this is kept under wraps; we don’t want any leaking to the press. The perpetrators of this set of crimes must not know we are onto them, nor that George and his family are alive. They think they’re dead so let them think that. In view of that, I want you and your partner to collect Mrs Thompson out of uniform. Does one of you have a car here?”
“Yes, Sir, we both have.”
“Use the one most inconspicuous.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“We have to find a safe house for Harry and his mother, and maybe George too, if he needs to leave hospital before this is done. In fact, the sooner we can get him out of the hospital, the better.”
“Do you think all these kidnappings are connected?” asked Tanner.
“I’m certain of it. I’m not sure why, it’s just a gut feeling. Johnson, I want you and Tanner to do a house to house around the Thompson house before eight. In fact, go now, so you can catch anyone going out around eight. Take a look at that alley-way that’s by their garden gate, it’s likely that’s where she was snatched. Also, talk to the person who called the fire brigade, um, a Mrs Broadgate, number 96, next door to the Thompson.”
“Sir.” Johnson and Tanner left the room swiftly.
“Grant, you’re with me, we’re going out to see Mr Townsend and do a search. Coombs, you come too.”
“Sir.”
Dan pressed a button on his desk. The voice of his civilian secretary came through. “Yes?”
“Babs, I am going out to Sutton-on-Wye. I need to know the minute we receive any information on that picture you sent over to London.”
“Right you are.”
“And, I need you to send a statement to the local television, stating it’s believed that two people died in a fire last night, just hours after the husband was found shot dead in a country lane. You know the sort of thing, you’re good at it. Let me know if they want to speak to me.”
“Yes Sir.”
“Let’s go! We’ll take your car, Grant. I’m still spaced out from last night.”
**********
Linda did not look forward to telling Netta and Harry about George. Normally, something like that would be done by a police officer or by a detective like Dan. For the first time, she had an idea how he and other officers might feel about such a task. At least she hadn’t to tell them he was dead, although apparently he had been pretty close to it last night.
Dan had hugged her and kissed her before he left, which was pretty unusual. He usually kissed her but it was often a
quick peck. She realised he was feeling the pressure. It had been bad enough before with those missing youngsters but this was worse. It involved a family they knew and a close friend of Lucy’s. Linda smiled for a moment at the thought of Lucy and their midnight visit. She and her husband Ken were obviously remarkable people who were friends indeed when others needed them. She hadn’t met Ken but she hoped she would before long.
Remembering her twinge of jealousy when she and Dan had been talking about Lucy that evening and she smiled again. She knew she had nothing to fear there and in fact, after all this was over, Linda could see her and Dan becoming good friends with Lucy and Kenny.
As she sat in the kitchen, hugging her morning mug of tea, trying to be quiet so as not to waken Harry who was still sleeping on the couch in the living room, she wondered where they would be sent for safety. She also prayed that George would recover. Making a sudden decision, she walked quietly out into the back garden and down to the end, where she could be sure her voice wouldn’t be heard, and called the hospital. She was well-known there and had no difficulty in obtaining the information she wanted. George was in Intensive Care and was very poorly but was still alive. Thank goodness! The last thing she wanted to do was send Netta off to discover her husband had died. She sent a text to Dan: ‘Called hosp. G in ICU, poorly but alive.’
She went back into the house and, checking the clock, filled the kettle and switched it on. As she did so, Harry appeared in the doorway, looking dishevelled and hardly awake.
“Good morning.”
“Yeah. Maybe.” He ran his fingers through his hair in a distracted manner. Linda’s heart went out to him. ‘Not for the first time,’ she thought, ruefully. This boy had always pulled at her heart strings but when he was in hospital, she never dreamed they would be involved in something like this.
“I’m just making some fresh tea, or would you like coffee?”
“Actually, I’d love some orange juice, do you have any?”
“I do indeed.” She opened the fridge and, taking out a carton, poured some in a glass for him.
Fear Has Long Fingers Page 15
