Cory saw the two officers out of the house. Nadia looked like she wanted to be left alone.
‘Did you mean that?’ Cory asked after the officers had gone.
‘Yes,’ she answered quietly. ‘Things haven't been right between us for some time. I've been thinking about it a lot recently. I think it may be time.’
‘Well, if my vote counts for anything, I'd really like to give it a second try. For Zach's sake more than anything. Things used to be good between us, Nadia. We could get back there again. Counseling would help.’
Nadia had been cold with him for so long that Cory wondered why he was even making the suggestion. But they had to try, didn't they? For Zach's sake, if nothing else.
‘I'm not sure I care enough anymore,’ Nadia answered. Cory struggled to remember the last time she'd shown any warmth toward him.
That hurt, but he decided to leave it. It had been a tense afternoon for everybody, and there was no point discussing the matter while emotions were running so high.
‘May I go upstairs to kiss Zach?’
Nadia nodded.
Zach was asleep, exhausted by all the drama, no doubt. Cory knelt down at his bedside and brushed his son’s hair away from his forehead. He kissed Zach gently, wondering if he would forget him if he and Nadia went their separate ways. Would he be able to remain a meaningful part of Zach's life? He’d already felt it slipping away from him in the months they'd been separated. He could only hope that Nadia would cool off after he'd gone and arrive at the same conclusion that he had.
‘I'll give you a call later on,’ he said as he came down the stairs. ‘Zach's fast asleep. I know you're angry with me, Nadia, but please think about Zach before you do anything hasty.’
She seemed unwilling to say anything more about the matter, so Cory let himself out of the house. At least the car was working properly now. Something was going according to plan in his life.
The officers had tuned off the engine, removed the keys, left them on the driver's seat and closed the door; he'd forgotten he had left it running out there. Strictly speaking, it was probably an offense to leave a car idling like that in the road, but the two officers probably didn't relish their chances of navigating the frosty situation they'd just escaped from back at the house.
Cory started up the car and made his way slowly toward the exit to Shallow Falls. Already it felt strange without Bianca in the passenger seat. He'd worked alone for some time, but he enjoyed her company. For such an unusual age pairing, it worked well.
As the car neared the You are now leaving Westview sign, Cory's phone buzzed. He pulled over at the side of the road, having learned his lesson from the near-miss earlier that day. It was from Bianca.
Things haven't gone well with Mom. She wants me to finish at the paper.
That wasn't a good start. Cory had hoped Paul Williams would be able to sway her. He'd seen for himself how protective Nadia was with Zach, so he could hardly blame Denise Williams. He hadn't exactly given her much basis for placing her trust in him.
I got a message from Xander. I told him to contact me if he needs me. He was in a panic. I'm walking over to his house if you want to pick me up.
A third message arrived on Cory's cell phone.
Damn! Mom won't let me leave the house!
Cory waited a few moments, but no more messages arrived. He was better off in Shallow Falls. From the tone of Bianca's messages, it sounded like a friendly house visit with a bunch of flowers and a box of chocolates might be timely.
Cory resisted the temptation to drive fast back to the falls. He noticed that the police presence had been substantially reduced since the morning, so he pulled over in the parking lot to take a look at the scene. There were no officers that he recognized there now, but he managed to establish that the body had been removed from the scene. That meant they'd get an official identification and formal announcement of the name very soon.
As Cory drove back past Reece's trailer, he felt a pang of guilt that he and Bianca hadn't stopped in on her: they'd been so busy and caught up in the day’s events. He didn't want her to feel like she'd been abandoned; he'd get over there as soon as possible.
Cory scanned the streets for Bianca as he drove carefully through the town, but he saw no sign of her. He'd half expected her to have managed to convince her mom to let her out, but it looked like the lockdown was being enforced.
He pulled off onto the main street to buy some flowers and chocolates at the grocery. As he handed over his change to the cashier, he wondered what Shallow Falls would be like with a huge store. It would certainly attract the folks from Westview. They had a supermarket, but it was a chain that had seen better days—and those better days had been way back in the seventies.
Cory peeled off the price stickers as he sat in the car, then circled round by Xander's house one more time, just to be sure Bianca hadn't managed to sweet talk her way out of her incarceration. There was no sign of her, so he headed back to her house, hopeful that a man bearing gifts might make Denise Williams reconsider her position.
Denise was quick to answer the door when he called. He could tell from her face that she wasn't going to go in for the kill, so he greeted her in as friendly a manner as he could muster.
‘Hello, Mrs. Williams, how are you? I just wanted to drop these flowers by for Bianca. I also bought these chocolates for you by way of apology for the panic I caused you today. I'm so sorry, I really am. I promise it won't happen again.’
‘Thank you, Cory; the gifts are very much appreciated. However, we still need to have a proper discussion about Bianca's future over the weekend. We'll let you know on Monday morning if she's continuing with her internship.’
‘May I speak briefly to Bianca, just to wish her well?’
‘Do you know she was trying to leave the house ten minutes ago to see that boy, Xander Griffen? She's not very happy with me, because I told her she had to stay at home and get some rest. I'll get her. Bianca? Bianca, it's Mr. Miles.’
There was no reply.
‘She's probably got headphones on.’ Cory smiled.
‘I'll go and get her—one moment.’
Denise Williams went up the stairs, returning seconds later wearing the same facial expression as she had when she'd been marching along the hospital corridor earlier.
‘The little devil, she climbed out her bedroom window and she’s gone!’
‘Oh—that doesn't sound like Bianca,’ Cory said, a little taken aback by the information. ‘That's more like something a fifteen-year-old might do. It sounds very out of character.’
‘I'm furious with her—I strictly forbade her to leave the house after her accident.’
‘Look, she won't have gone far. I'll drive over to Xander's and bring her back home. You stay here, in case she comes back. I know she was anxious about Xander when she texted me. I'll bring her back home, don't worry.’
Bianca was behaving like some petulant schoolkid, but this was the adult world of work; she couldn't go around behaving like that. He got in the car and retraced his steps. There was a chance she'd been walking along one of the cut-throughs, or he might have missed her while he was in the grocery store.
Cory drove along the route she was most likely to have taken. It wasn't too long before he saw her walking briskly along the street. He pulled into the curb, lowered his window, and called over to her.
‘Bianca—hey, Bianca.’
She was in a world of her own, taking a few moments to respond. She looked agitated when she came over, like something was bothering her.
‘You all right?’ he asked. ‘You look like you had a fright.’
‘Just that dick Dean Tarrant driving by and shouting abuse at me,’ she replied, her voice faltering as if she was holding back tears.
‘We're going to have to do something about him, Bianca. We can't let this go on.’
‘Yeah, I know. But I have to get over to Xander. He sounded like he was going crazy when he texted me.’
&
nbsp; ‘No, you're going home right now,’ Cory said. He felt like her dad when he said it.
‘I can't—Xander needs me.’
‘Bianca, you can't go climbing out of your bedroom window against your mom’s wishes. And particularly not when you're representing the newspaper. You need to go home, apologize to her, and do your best to convince her to allow you to carry on working with us at the newspaper.’
‘But Xander—I promised him--’
‘I'll go and see Xander now. Text him on your way home and tell him I'm coming. I'll sort it out for you, Bianca. Get yourself home to your mom—that's the best place you can be right now.’
Chapter Thirty-Six
Cory scanned the road for Dean Tarrant's car as he drove over to Xander's, but he hadn't a clue what the kid drove, so he may well have driven past him. He wanted to punch the jerk—he'd have grown up knowing that he was protected by his father. The idiot was all but untouchable.
He was still fuming with Bianca, too; is this what parenting a teenage Zach would be like, he wondered?
Cory didn't want to be wound up when he spoke to Xander; it wouldn't help. He took a couple of minutes to do some deep breathing before he walked up to the door. If it worked for the yoga gurus, why not for him?
The door knocker felt like it had rusted even more since their last visit. It would have been easier to use his fist. Xander opened up immediately, looking terrified, and checked that the coast was clear before he fully opened the door.
‘Hi, Xander, do you remember me? I'm Cory Miles, from the local newspaper. Did Bianca tell you I was on my way?’
Xander's blank expression gave him his answer.
‘That's unusual,’ Cory said, speaking to himself as much as anything. ‘She said she'd text you.’
‘Have they found Poppy yet?’ Xander asked.
‘Not yet, Xander, but I'm sure they will.’
Cory walked through into the main room. The takeout boxes and soda cans that they'd cleared up previously had been replaced by fresh rubbish. There was some paperwork laid out on the coffee table.
‘Bianca said you were scared,’ Cory said, trying to speak in a reassuring tone. ‘Is there anything I can do to help?’
‘Those men came again,’ Xander said.
‘Which men?’
‘They had suits on. They scared me—they say things I don't understand. Mr. Jones sent them.’
‘What did they say to you?’ Cory asked, trying to get a good look at the paperwork, which was upside down.
‘They wanted me to sign stuff.’
‘What stuff?’ Cory asked, concerned now.
Xander pointed to the paperwork.
‘Did you sign it?’ Cory asked, trying to conceal the worry in his voice.
Xander nodded.
‘May I?’ Cory asked, his hands poised to pick up the papers.
‘Yes.’
Cory scanned them quickly. It was legal documentation related to the land and house. Much of it was in legal jargon, but he got the gist of it. Xander had just agreed to sell his property and land for an amount which even Cory could tell was well below market value. And he had a damn good idea why the land had been bought.
‘What did the men tell you?’ Cory asked. ‘Did they say anything about the house?’
‘They said I had money to buy lots of pizzas now. They said they'll be in touch.’
Cory continued to scan the paperwork. They'd be in touch, all right. Xander was expected to vacate the property within one month or he'd be forcibly evicted.
In spite of the gravity of what had happened, Cory stayed calm. He didn't know much about the legal processes, but he was certain that he'd be able to get the contract rescinded on some basis or another. Surely there was no way a bunch of sharks could prey on a vulnerable guy like Xander Griffen and just help themselves to his house. The newspaper gave him access to legal support, and he'd use it on Xander's behalf.
The signatures of the purchasing party were made on behalf of a company which Cory had never heard of. It had an unusual, noncommittal name. Fenton-Aylesbury Associates. That made him smell a rat, for starters. Everything about this situation screamed double-dealing and corruption.
‘Mind if I take some photographs of the contract with my cell phone?’ Cory asked. ‘I'll just get this paperwork checked out for you. It'll help put your mind at rest.’
Xander gave him the go-ahead.
Attached to the legal paperwork was a boundary map which clearly showed the perimeter of Xander's and Reece's land. This was where the supermarket was going, only it would appear that Xander and Reece were being cut out of the negotiations. For a moment, Cory considered the possibility that Poppy's disappearance was somehow linked to the property situation. But he couldn't find the link. He had to accept that they were just two different things. Talk about unlucky; Reece was experiencing enough misfortune to last a lifetime.
‘Thanks for this, Xander. Do you mind if I take a look out the back and just walk the boundary of your property? It'll help me understand this paperwork a little better.’
‘Yes, no problem,’ Xander said. ‘And say hello to Bianca next time you see her.’
Cory let himself out the front door and gave Xander a wave as he passed the window just to be sure he'd grasped that he was going for a look around.
The entire house and outbuildings were in desperate need of some love. The woodwork was thirsty for paint, like a lost man might crave water in a scorching desert. The garden was overgrown, as if the apocalypse had used Xander's land as a tryout before it scorched the remainder of the planet. Weeds and grass grew waist-high, brambles pushed through where shrubs had once grown, and what was left of an old vegetable plot made a sickly protest about the carnage going on around it. It would soon become completely overrun and there would be no evidence left of it.
Cory stood at the boundary of the garden, which was marked only by the rotten remains of a decayed wooden fence, the slats from it crunching underfoot. He scanned the land at the back of the property. It went way back to the trees, a massive plot of a couple of field lengths. It was the perfect location for a modern supermarket.
It was tough walking through the weeds and high grass, but Cory was keen to see how the land bordered onto Reece's property. He could see her trailer in the distance, a police car still parked outside and her own car nearby. The trailer and playing area that the kids used took up very little of the space. Just like Xander’s, her land went right back. Plenty of room for a large supermarket, loading bays and a good deal of parking. Cory could see how that would be good for the town; but would it bring benefits to Reece and Xander? He thought not.
He looked over at Reece's land again, comparing the boundaries marked on the documentation shown on his phone to the real-life woods and land in front of him. They'd need Reece's land, too, for the supermarket plan to work. There was a natural space there, bounded by the trees. Xander's land alone wouldn’t be sufficient—the two plots had to come as a package. So, would they be applying the pressure to Reece, too? With a 24/7 police presence, that was going to be difficult. He'd need to get over to see Reece; the pieces were beginning to form a picture, but there were still some confusing gaps.
His phone buzzed. He navigated away from the image on his screen and checked the caller. The exchange was Shallow Falls, but he didn’t recognize the number. He answered.
‘Hi, Cory Miles? It's Bianca's mom, Denise. I got your phone number from the newspaper. Is she with you?’
‘No, why do you ask? I saw her a couple of minutes after we spoke and sent her back home. Is she not there?’
‘I've been waiting for her all this time. I've been getting angrier and angrier, thinking she probably went over to Xander's place anyway.’
‘I'm here right now,’ Cory replied, wondering what had happened. He replayed the sequence of events in his head. ‘She's definitely not here. Have you checked her room? If she climbed out of the house once, maybe she climbed back in to avoid mak
ing a scene?’
Cory could hear as Denise walked upstairs to check Bianca's room.
‘There's no sign of her, Mr. Miles. Where did you say you saw her?’
‘She was five minutes' walk from your house. She promised me she'd walk straight back. There was no argument—she didn't make me think that she would do anything but what we agreed. Have you tried her cell phone?’
‘Yes, she's not picking up. I'm feeling quite concerned. The nurse at the hospital said she might have a concussion. What if she's lying out there in the street?’
‘Why don't you walk up your road and check? Go as far as the corner where your cul-de-sac merges with the main road. If you don't see her there, she must have gone on somewhere else. Are you certain she's not in the house? It seems so unlike Bianca to behave like this.’
‘She's not here, Mr. Miles. I'm going to put my phone down and check along the street. If you're at Xander's, will you drive over here and watch out for her? I'll meet you back at the house.’
‘I'll be right there,’ said Cory, ending the call. He'd told a white lie—he wasn't going directly to the Williams' house. He had a stupid jerk to check in on first. He had a feeling that same jerk might have an idea where Bianca had gotten to.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
As a local reporter, Cory made it his business to know where the movers and shakers lived in Shallow Falls. So, after his call with Denise Williams, he knew exactly where he was heading.
If he'd been a powder keg about to go off when Bianca told him how Dean Tarrant had harangued her from his car, he was now that same powder keg exploding in slow motion, furious and ready to pick a fight, come what may. He slammed the car door shut, started the car, and over-revved the engine, then slammed it into gear and drove off down the road much more aggressively than he should have done in a residential area.
Chief Tarrant lived in the same part of town as Bianca, though it was in a completely different neighborhood, so in terms of approaching it by road, they were separated entirely. As Cory pulled out into the main road which connected the two residential areas, he ran through the possible scenarios in his mind.
Now You See Her Page 19
