by Deborah Lucy
‘Smart kid.’ Mendoza said he would arrange a video interview for Prayer in the morning, but Temple cut in.
‘I’ll take the statement from her.’
‘Not wishing to state the bleeding obvious, but you’re suspended from duty. I know I said I’d help you with Sloper, but I had no idea it would lead to all this and nicking people for human trafficking. I’ve got three slimy bastards on their way to custody when all I came out to do was sit in a pub to give you some cover. What’s going on with Sloper?’
‘Sloper’s caught up in all this. I found drugs and money at his home that he’d robbed from dealers when he found it in his flat. Gemma Harker lives in Sloper’s flat. The girl we’ve rescued just got caught in the crossfire of him trying to give these bastards a lesson. Sloper’s up to his neck in all this. I’d let you have him to take into custody but there are two other girls that he might be able to help us find. The guy with us in the pub is a father desperate to find his daughter and Sloper might just be useful. I’ve told Sloper that you’re part of the job we’re doing on him but he’s going to suss us pretty soon, if he hasn’t already, so I haven’t got long, an hour tops, probably less.’
‘Where’s the drugs and money?’ Mendoza asked.
Temple was grateful for his colleague’s help but he couldn’t allow himself to trust Mendoza, even though he wanted to. He wanted to hand Sloper over to Mendoza, along with the money he had hidden in his coat and the photos he had taken of the drugs and money in situ at Sloper’s house. He could hand it all over and drive off and help Paul find Megon. But what if it all went missing? What if Sloper made some phone calls when he got to custody and it all suddenly somehow disappeared? He couldn’t risk it. Along with Gemma, he had all the evidence that he needed to ensure that there was no way out for Sloper.
Rumours had always circulated about Sloper, about him being bent, but with the help of Clive Harker, he had always managed to shrug them off. There’d always been a bad smell about him, but because of his association with Harker, and because Harker had always been held in high regard, the rot never seemed to be exposed. With Harker as top cover and with Sloper deceiving him with regards to Gemma, Sloper had enjoyed carte blanche in Swindon. Even with everything he had, Temple couldn’t risk that happening again.
With Gemma on her way back to the cottage with Prayer, he knew he needed to keep everything close, he knew he had to keep control of it all. If he could only find China Lewis and Megon to confirm Gemma’s side of the story, he could wrap it up.
Temple knew he owed Mendoza an explanation. ‘I know where it is and I’ll keep it that way until I can find these two girls. Then I’ll bring Sloper in. I’ve got everything recorded on this.’ He held up his phone.
At that moment, Temple’s phone signalled an incoming text. He looked at it. It was from Amy Davidson. ‘I’ve found China.’
Chapter 40
Locked arm in arm, Amy and China turned in to the road where she lived. They were keeping each other warm against the cold of the night. Amy was glad to have her friend back and had been telling China of her encounters with the police. In the end, she had been the one that had found China, not the police with all their interview suites and partnerships with social workers and protocols for this and that.
She had had to go out onto the streets and do what she had asked to be done when she reported China missing. She went out looking for her and she’d found her. That’s all she had asked of the police, and yet it had taken her to do their work for them. Pleased with herself, Amy had sent a text to Temple. She didn’t need his help anymore.
As they walked back to Amy’s, the friends vowed to each other never to break contact again. China said that she would always let her friend know where she was in future. It was because they were talking they didn’t see the car in the darkness.
As he watched them approach, Gary Lewis sprang out of the driver’s seat and appeared in front of them. They both stopped when they saw him but it was too late. He had the back door of the car open.
‘Get in,’ he ordered, his voice with its usual menacing tone.
‘Fuck off,’ Amy instinctively replied, her shrill voice ringing out in the quietness of the night. She was nearest to him, her arm locked tightly with China’s. They were a hundred yards away from her front door and she was determined to get there.
‘Shut your fucking mouth, bitch, and get in the car,’ he hissed as he put his face against hers, their cheeks touching. She went to pull her head away in disgust but he clamped his hand around the back of her neck. Her arm tightened around China’s. ‘Now, get in.’ His voice was loaded with threat. China had already started to push Amy towards the open door of the car.
‘No, we’re nearly home, we’ll get my dad.’ Amy was resisting the push from China to get into the car.
‘I know where your family live, Amy. If you don’t get in this car now I will set fire to your house. I’ll set fire to it with your mum and dad asleep in it. They won’t get out and it’ll be all because you didn’t do as you were told. I’ll do that to teach you a lesson. Now, get in the car.’
China pushed her from behind and they both fell into the back of the car. Lewis shut the door behind them and got into the driver’s seat.
* * *
Megon shivered against the cold. She didn’t want to walk around in the dark in case the dealers were out looking for her, but she was cold to her bones just sitting in the recess where she had sat with China just half an hour before. It didn’t take long for the cold to take hold; never mind the wind and rain, the cold crept up through the ground. She knew she’d be warmer walking, but sitting here, she remained out of sight. She was hidden here. A few more hours and she could walk in the light and find her dad.
There weren’t many people in this part of town at this time of night. A group that had been not far from here when they arrived had dissipated. When she peeked out of the recess she could see someone tucked into a doorway further away, their heaped blankets shrouding them. She was also trying hard to stay awake. She was finding it hard to battle the cold when she felt so tired. She knew that she should just give in and sleep. If she could just sleep, before she knew it, it would be morning and she could move more easily.
She wondered if she should have gone with China and Amy. She’d be in the warm now, lying on the floor in Amy’s bedroom, on carpet, with a pillow perhaps, cosy. It had started to rain and she wished she’d gone with them. It was very fine rain but dense and despite being in the recess, the rain still found its way in and soon her clothes were wet. It wouldn’t take long before they were saturated. She kept vigilant; vigilant against the cold, the wet, against falling asleep and against anyone approaching her and attacking her. It was exhausting.
A man had walked slowly past a few minutes ago and spotted her but he’d moved through without bothering her. From what she could see of him, he was older, not young like the dealers who were after her.
Brian Porten was taking his time. There were hours before daybreak and he wasn’t going to take any chances. He was keeping his coat collar up and his hat on and although many parts of the town centre were heavily regulated by CCTV, he still managed to avoid it and get round in the few pockets it didn’t cover.
He had passed what looked like a young girl sitting in a recess of a utility doorway. She was small but still in the way. Still part of the growing problem. Fitting into ever smaller gaps and nooks and crannies, soon there would be a build-up, like he’d seen with the shop doorways. He could nip this one in the bud. Wipe it out. Get rid. As he’d walked around the area that night, the wind had blown in all manner of litter. It was too much for him to tackle on his own; the problem was becoming out of control. He’d ended up trying to chase loose newspaper sheets and discarded paper bags. It was winding him up.
He wondered how much trouble it would be to take the girl off the streets. His mind worked quickly; his car wasn’t far from the spot where she was. All he had to do was get her to the car. O
nce inside he would be able to contain her. If she became troublesome to him on the journey, he could control her easily enough. It might just be better to incapacitate her as soon as she got in the car. Then he’d have no concern. He quickly flipped the ideas around in his head, looking for the pitfalls, anything he’d failed to consider. Planning was everything; it was the secret to his success.
Yes, he’d try it. It was dark enough around there for her not to be able to identify him if it went wrong, if she wouldn’t go with him, if she put up a fight. He would make sure he changed his voice for the short exchange they would have. Disguise himself as best he could, just in case. Stoop a little more. Draw his scarf up to his chin, pull his hat down to shadow his eyes, ensure that all she would see was the middle section of his face. Make it as difficult for her as possible to identify him. He started to walk back, to see if she was still there. Yes, he could see her.
Chapter 41
Temple sent a text back to Amy asking where she was and if Megon was with them. He then went back out to the car where Paul Wallace was waiting with Sloper. Since receiving Amy’s text, he was feeling more upbeat. As soon as Amy told him that they were safe, he would hand over Sloper into custody. When he knew where Amy was, he could reunite Paul with his daughter Megon and see and speak to China for the first time since she was reported missing. He was now just one text away from wrapping the whole thing up. Then he’d go after Gary Lewis.
Sloper had watched as marked police cars stacked up down the road. Not quite able to see what was happening, Sloper knew he should have paid more attention to what Gemma was up to; he hadn’t anticipated her turning the flat into some sort of refuge for young girls. He had no idea why the girl Prayer in particular was so important to her, but it had certainly got Temple exercised. Sloper could see him walking back to the car.
Now, his survival instincts were kicking in. Self-preservation was what it was all about now and he knew he had to avoid custody at all costs if he was going to have any chance of getting himself out of this. He needed to get out of the car, out of the grip of Temple and this DI Paul Wallace from the Met. Away from any surveillance team. He had yet to spot the surveillance team, which meant they were either extremely good and a notch up from any other squad he’d known or they were actually alone and not being followed.
He’d done as asked and helped them to find one of the girls. He’d taken them directly to the premises and helped them detain individuals. He had no doubt now that Temple would want to take him to Swindon police station and book him in. He was going to avoid that at all costs. Temple sat in the driver’s seat of his car.
‘All good in here?’
Paul Wallace answered him. ‘Yup. Just waiting for you to return.’
‘I’m just waiting for a text and we’ll be off.’ At that moment, his phone rang. He could see it was from Gary Lewis.
‘You’re supposed to be meeting me in Tesco’s car park. I’ve got the girls – have you got the money?’
‘Who do you think you’ve got with you then, Gary?’
‘I’ve got my sister and Amy Davidson. It’s going to cost you.’
‘I need proof first. If you’ve got Amy Davidson let me speak to her.’ Temple hoped to catch Lewis out, knowing he’d received a text from Amy just minutes earlier, but the next voice he heard was definitely her. How the fuck had that happened?
‘Amy, you texted me to say you had found China?’
‘I did, I found her in town. On our way back home Gary Lewis stopped us and forced us into his car.’
‘Where’s Megon? Is she with you?’
‘No, she wouldn’t come. She stayed behind.’
‘Where is she?’
With that Gary Lewis resumed his call.
‘I told you I had them. Now you’ve got ten minutes to get here.’
‘Put Amy back on the phone, Gary, I need to speak to her.’
‘You’d better be here in ten minutes with your money, then you can talk to her all night if you like.’ Lewis terminated the call.
In the car, Paul Wallace had just heard a one-sided conversation. ‘What was that about Megon?’
‘We need to go to the Tesco car park.’ Temple started the engine.
‘Was there any news on Megon?’
‘Yes, we have to go and pick up the girls she was with.’
‘So where is she?’
Temple was keen to stop the questioning that he knew Sloper would be listening to. He wanted to get him into custody but now he didn’t have time if he was going to meet with Gary Lewis to get the girls back. And he was conscious of the fact that he only had Paul Wallace’s support on the premise that he would find Megon. Now it seemed she was lost again and he wanted an explanation. The sooner he got to Gary Lewis the better.
Temple gestured to Paul Wallace that Sloper was still sitting in the back of the car and was listening to their every word. Temple reckoned he could be with Gary Lewis in minutes and that there was nothing to be gained from any other action in that time. The sooner he could question Amy and China as to Megon’s whereabouts, the sooner they could find her. At least they would have a location to go to next. Temple looked forward out of the windscreen and drove at speed to meet Lewis.
Chapter 42
With his coat collar pulled up, Porten started to approach the girl sitting in the dark. She had her back to him as he was walking towards her. She was sitting on the ground leant up against the wall, with her legs outstretched and her feet on the other side of the recess. It was such a small space, like a small cupboard without a door. And it was so dark. He passed no one and he knew there was no CCTV in this particular spot. In his mind he had plotted their course back to the car to remain invisible. The only thing he had to do was persuade the girl to go with him.
They were more difficult, the young girls. But it wasn’t impossible. He’d done it before, but with men it was easier. They weren’t as suspicious of him. He had to be a bit more sophisticated with the girls. A bit more contriving. He knew what he could do. Yes, it just might work again.
Megon’s whole body was shaking with the cold so much that it was becoming difficult to control. She knew she only had a few more hours to daylight and then she could move in relative safety. At least there would be safety in numbers as more people were about and she could more easily avoid being spotted by the dealers. She figured they wouldn’t dare take her off the street in broad daylight, not when she could scream for help.
Despite her coldness, her senses were acute. She instinctively felt someone coming towards her. Her ears strained for the sound of their feet against the cold, wet ground. Yes, there they were. Footsteps. Coming her way. Someone would pass her any minute now. She sat and waited for a figure to go by.
She felt the shadow of their presence loom over her, and instead of them moving on as she expected them to do, the footsteps stopped. She turned quickly and looked up, suddenly aware of her vulnerability and her disadvantage as she sat on the floor.
Looking down on her was a man. He was wrapped up against the cold and wet and she could barely see his face. He was standing so close to her that she had to strain her neck to look at him. Once she’d established his presence, she locked her eyes on her feet against the wall opposite her, hoping that by ignoring him he would go away. She was suddenly aware that she was backed into the recess with no point of escape, should she need it. Almost tearfully, she acknowledged that she might again need to fight and scream.
Instead of going away as she’d hoped, he started to speak to her. His voice was soft and the accent was from somewhere up north.
‘I’ve been speaking to a man and a woman who approached me. I think they were looking for you. The man said they were looking for a young girl with dark hair. I can’t remember what they said your name was now as I wasn’t paying enough attention. Are they your parents?’
Megon knew she had seen her dad searching for her; perhaps he was there with her mum too. But they wouldn’t be out this time of
night surely? Or would they be thinking this is exactly the time they might find her? They could be close by, in the next street.
‘They showed me a photo. Let me see . . . yes. It looked like you. I can see the likeness.’
The man still peered down at her and Megon’s curiosity was sufficiently roused to look up at him.
‘When did you see them?’ she asked, blinking up at him, feeling the rain on her face.
‘Less than an hour ago. They were in the main concourse, talking to people out walking by, mainly the drinkers at this time of night.’
He was well spoken and from what she could see of him, he didn’t look like a tramp or a nutter. Her eyes skimmed over his clean white trainers.
‘I heard them say they would be moving on to another part of town, to see if they could find you. Do you want your parents to find you? Do you want me to go and tell them where you are? They showed me the picture of you.’
Megon desperately wanted to see her mum and dad. The thought of her mum coming out to find her too made her heart break. She had been so ill, she had never meant to cause her any worry. She thought she was earning money, good money, to help with their situation.
In two weeks she had earned £400. She hadn’t had a chance to spend it; she had hidden it in a zip-up pocket of her jacket. But that was lost to her now. It had been taken from her when she lost the drugs and money. When she had been stripped of all her clothes. That’s why she was so cold; all she had on was a thin cotton tracksuit and a scruffy pair of cheap pumps that she’d found at the last house.
‘Have you really seen them?’ she asked, blinking at the raindrops.
‘I think I have, yes. Shall I take you to where they are?’
‘Yes, please.’
‘Of course. Come on, up you get. Come with me.’
Megon was so stiff from the cold that she found it hard to move. As much as she wanted to get up quickly, she found it hard to bend her stiff limbs. Slowly, she stood up. Her sodden clothes clung to her. She was wet through. Her hair hung down and stuck to her face. She was so cold she could barely walk.
