Gone Astray

by Michelle Davies

  ‘I’m not trying to be difficult,’ she said, ‘but Emma’s not stopped crying since she heard about Rosie going missing.’

  ‘But this might help find her, Mrs Mitchell. Please, I’ll be quick, I promise. Ten minutes, that’s all I need.’

  She looked Maggie up and down.

  ‘You’ve got five. Wait here.’

  Emma showed herself to be just as suspicious as her mum. Poking her head around the front door, she barked, ‘What do you want?’

  If it wasn’t for the school uniform she wore, Emma would have passed for a girl much older than sixteen. Her skin was covered in a thick layer of foundation and her eyes heavily ringed with black kohl. Both ears were pierced multiple times and her hair, dyed almost black, was twisted into a side ponytail. She was the kind of scary-looking girl Maggie had gone out of her way to avoid when she was at school. But Emma’s made-up eyes were also red and puffy from crying and when Maggie explained why she was there, she blinked back fresh tears.

  ‘What do you want to know?’

  ‘Can I come inside?’

  Emma’s guard stayed up. ‘Here’s fine.’

  ‘If that’s what you’d prefer. I just wanted to check when you last spoke to Rosie?’

  ‘Ages ago.’

  ‘I think you’re lying, Emma. I think, like Cassie, you were in touch with Rosie as recently as last week,’ she said. It was a gamble, based on nothing but a hunch that Rosie might have reached out to more than one old friend because she was so upset at being bullied. Maggie’s legs were like jelly as she waited for Emma to answer.

  The girl’s eyes widened. ‘Who told you that?’

  ‘Well, did you speak to her last week?’

  ‘Fuck off and leave me alone.’

  ‘This isn’t a game, Emma,’ said Maggie, her voice hardening. ‘Do you want to help find Rosie or not?’

  Emma scowled as though readying herself to argue back. Then her face fell.

  ‘I’m sorry. I did talk to her.’

  Maggie wanted to punch the air but managed to keep her face straight. ‘When, exactly?’

  ‘Last Wednesday. She called me when I was on my way to school.’

  ‘From a mobile?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘You’re sure it wasn’t a landline?’

  ‘It came up as her number.’

  ‘My colleagues have traced all her last known calls and I’m pretty certain your name and number didn’t crop up.’

  Emma shrugged. ‘I don’t know why it didn’t. She called me, not the other way round.’

  ‘Why did she ring?’

  ‘She wanted advice.’

  Emma’s guard was rising again. She kept glancing over her shoulder and Maggie suspected her mum was hovering behind the door, listening to their conversation.

  ‘And?’ she prompted.

  ‘I can’t say.’

  ‘Come on, Emma, that’s not going to wash. Either you tell me what she said or we go down the station and continue the questions there.’

  The threat worked.

  ‘She was being hassled by some bloke and wanted me to tell her how to deal with it. She didn’t say who.’

  ‘Is that all she said?’

  ‘No. She said she didn’t like the guy but he kept on pestering her, going on and on about how much he wants to sleep with her and do other stuff.’

  Maggie didn’t want to think about what ‘other stuff’ involved.

  ‘She definitely didn’t mention his name?’

  ‘No. It was only a quick call because I had to go to registration.’

  ‘Do the initials GS mean anything to you?’

  ‘No, why?’

  Maggie explained what Cassie had said about her and Rosie making up names for people. Emma was scathing when Maggie asked if she’d done the same.

  ‘Yeah, maybe when I was ten,’ she said, pulling a face.

  ‘Okay, tell me what else Rosie said about this guy.’

  ‘Only that she met him at a party before Christmas.’

  ‘Where was that?’

  ‘She didn’t say. Like I said, it wasn’t a long call.’

  ‘Did she talk about her friends in Haxton?’

  Emma hesitated. ‘She did say some of them were giving her a hard time for being a virgin and were trying to get her to sleep with this guy as a favour. I told Rosie to tell them to fuck off. It’s a shitty thing to expect her to sleep with some bloke just because some friend owed him one.’

  ‘Has Rosie had much sexual experience as far as you know?’

  ‘Not really. She’s kissed a couple of guys but I don’t think she’s gone any further. That’s why I told her she should tell these friends to fuck off. She shouldn’t do anything she doesn’t want to.’

  ‘Did she name who’s been pressuring her?’

  ‘No, she didn’t.’

  ‘When was the last time you saw each other?’

  ‘On her birthday last August. Her mum and dad paid for a meal at Prezzo and me and Cassie went. But we fell out with her after that.’

  ‘How come?’

  ‘She didn’t want us there. I think it was her mum who said she had to invite us. There were all these girls she goes to school with and goes riding with and they were being total bitches. They talked to me and Cass like we were crap and Rosie never said anything. She just sat there while they were being horrible, like she was too scared to say anything in case they started on her. It was pathetic.’

  ‘Can you remember any of them?’

  ‘There was one with dark hair who lived next door to Rosie, she was the worst. She kept asking if our road was like the one on that programme, Benefits Street. I should’ve lamped her, thinking about it. A couple were okay though. Lily seemed all right, although I did overhear her being nasty about Cassie’s dress when I went to the loo. Anyway, after that we didn’t bother with Rosie. There was no point,’ said Emma sadly.

  ‘You’d say Rosie’s easily influenced by others then? She’ll just go along with something to fit in?’

  ‘I s’pose.’

  Was that how Rosie ended up being photographed sprawled on a bed in next to nothing? Peer pressure? Maggie thought about asking Emma if she was aware of the image but decided against it. That was Umpire’s call.

  ‘Is that it?’ said Emma, getting fidgety.

  ‘Not quite. In all the time you’ve known Rosie, have you ever known her to cut herself?’

  Emma looked shocked. ‘What, you mean like self-harm? No, I haven’t and I would be amazed if she had. That’s not like Rosie. She’s too straight to do anything like that.’

  ‘You should’ve mentioned the phone call from her to the officer who interviewed you yesterday,’ Maggie said sharply.

  Emma flushed beneath her thick foundation.

  ‘Look, me and Rosie hadn’t spoken since August. When she called I thought it was just an excuse to tell me some rich boy fancied her. If I’d thought for one minute she was really upset by him bothering her, I’d have gone round there and sorted him out myself.’

  42

  Lesley’s eyelids fluttered open as Mack woke her with a soft kiss on the lips.

  ‘Wake up, sweetheart,’ he whispered. ‘If you nap any longer you won’t be able to sleep later.’

  She lay still, not wanting to talk or move, as Mack traced his index finger down her cheek. Exhaustion had scored deep lines on both sides of his mouth, his eyes were bloodshot and his hair had aged overnight with the arrival of more grey flecks. The deterioration in his appearance alarmed her. Mack was meant to be the strong one, the one who held it together while she let the smallest worries swamp her. She couldn’t cope if he crumbled too.

  ‘I had Belmar get the papers for us. I thought you might want to see them,’ he said.

  The plush mattress impeded her effort to sit up but with one last push on her elbows she heaved herself upright and rested her shoulders against the headboard. Her gaze fell upon the newspapers fanned out across the foot of their bed.
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  ‘I don’t want to read them. Just tell me what they say.’ Her throat was scratchy, like she was coming down with something.

  ‘Most of them have led on the fact we’ve reduced the reward. It doesn’t look good,’ he admitted. ‘I’m sorry, love. I wish I’d never said it.’

  She took his hand and squeezed it.

  ‘Stop torturing yourself. It doesn’t matter what the press thinks. Let them write what they want.’

  ‘Oh, they already are,’ he said grimly. ‘A couple of the tabloids are insinuating we must be hiding something for going back on the reward.’

  She thought about Suzy Breed but said nothing.

  ‘We needed them on our side and I blew it,’ said Mack.

  ‘Let’s talk to Maggie about it. She might have an idea what to do.’

  ‘She’s already gone home for the evening. She didn’t want to wake you before she left.’

  ‘Okay, we’ll talk to Belmar then.’

  ‘Fine.’

  Lesley looked around on the bed but couldn’t see his phone anywhere.

  ‘Where’s your BlackBerry? I want another look at that picture from the garage. If I can remember where I’ve seen that man before, we can tell the papers and give them something else to write about.’

  The phone was on his bedside table and Mack moved off the bed to retrieve it. The loss of warmth as he withdrew his hand from hers made Lesley shiver as though gripped by a sudden chill and she tucked the duvet tightly round her.

  ‘Did you go through my messages?’ he suddenly asked.

  ‘Sorry?’

  ‘My text messages. Have you looked at them?’

  Lesley tried to keep her voice even.

  ‘Now why would I do that, Mack?’

  ‘I’m not saying you did, I’m just asking.’

  ‘It’s the same thing. Either you think I did or you don’t.’

  He looked at her sternly.

  ‘I don’t want you going through my phone.’

  Lesley sat back, eyes wide with surprise.

  ‘I beg your pardon?’

  ‘You heard me. You’ll just get the wrong end of the stick.’

  The way he spoke to her made her furious. ‘How is me reading a text from your ex saying you stayed with her in Scotland when you should’ve been in a hotel getting the wrong end of the stick exactly?’ she shot back.

  ‘See, you did read them!’

  ‘That’s beside the point!’ she shouted. ‘Why is Suzy Breed texting to say she won’t tell anyone you were with her?’

  ‘It’s not what you think. The woman’s stalking me.’

  His answer stunned her.

  ‘She’s what?’

  ‘Stalking me. She has been ever since we won the lottery. I didn’t want to tell you because I know how you feel about her and how upset you get when people ask us for money. But that’s why she’s texting me and trying to make it sound like I was with her.’

  ‘Why didn’t you say anything?’

  ‘I thought I could make it go away.’

  ‘How exactly?’

  As Mack floundered for an answer, Lesley tried to marshal her confused thoughts into some kind of order.

  ‘Right, start at the beginning,’ she said. ‘What exactly has been going on?’

  ‘About a month after we won, she emailed me out of the blue saying she was really pleased for us and how great it was we never had to worry about money again. I stupidly replied saying thanks and the next thing I know she’s saying that if I don’t give her some money she’ll tell you we’ve been having an affair.’

  ‘Well, have you?’

  ‘Had an affair? Oh, come on, sweetheart, I wouldn’t do that to you.’

  ‘No, I meant have you sent her any money.’

  He paused. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Oh, Mack—’

  ‘I know, I know. It was completely fucking stupid of me. I just thought that if I gave her something, she’d leave me alone. But she came back asking for more and more.’

  ‘How much have you given her?’

  He shook his head. ‘It doesn’t matter.’

  ‘Yes it does. How much?’

  He dropped his head into his hands. ‘I’ve been such an idiot.’

  ‘I shan’t argue with that,’ said Lesley, pulling back the covers and crawling over the mattress to reach him. She took his hand again. ‘How much, Mack?’

  ‘About fifty grand.’

  ‘How much! Are you mad?’

  ‘It wasn’t all at once. First it was just five thousand but she kept asking for more.’

  Lesley wasn’t convinced. ‘If she’s got nothing on you, why pay her?’

  ‘I knew how you felt about her and I was scared you’d believe her.’

  ‘Oh, so it’s all my fault, is it?’

  ‘I just wanted her to leave us alone. But now Rosie’s missing she’s making all sorts of threats.’

  ‘Like what?’

  He took a deep breath. ‘I did something stupid in Scotland.’

  Lesley went still. ‘Did you sleep with her?’

  ‘No, I went to see her on Sunday and I gave her another grand. Then I stayed in Falkirk.’

  ‘With her?’ Lesley hissed.

  ‘No, I checked into a hotel nearby. I didn’t want to go all the way back to St Andrews late at night.’

  ‘Mack, did you have sex with that woman in Scotland?’

  ‘No, I bloody well didn’t. I spent the whole time trying to reason with her. I was trying to get her to leave us alone.’

  ‘By screwing her?’ Lesley shook her head. ‘You must think I was born yesterday.’

  ‘It’s the truth. I haven’t laid a finger on her, not even a kiss on the cheek. But she won’t give up. She’s been sending me messages saying she’ll tell the police I hit Rosie and made her run away unless I give her more money. She wants half a million.’

  ‘That’s sick!’

  ‘The woman’s a nutcase.’ Mack looked so stricken and desperate that Lesley found herself believing him.

  ‘We should tell the police ourselves. They can arrest her—’

  ‘No!’ he shouted. ‘Let me handle this, love. I don’t want anyone else knowing. It’s our business.’

  ‘I can’t believe she could stoop so low,’ said Lesley, slumping back on the bed. She felt like the stuffing had been knocked out of her. ‘What if the police mention her to me again? What should I say?’

  ‘Don’t say anything.’

  ‘But if Suzy goes to them first . . .’

  ‘She won’t.’

  ‘How can you be so sure? She’s taken no notice of what you’ve said so far.’

  ‘She will when I’m done with her. That bitch has had her last penny out of me, don’t you worry.’

  43

  Maggie almost gave up waiting for Rob to answer the door. Twice she buzzed up to his flat and twice there was no response. After the third attempt she was about to walk back to her car when his voice echoed through the intercom and told her to come up. There was a click as the communal front door unlocked.

  She was surprised to be invited upstairs, having expected him to come down to her, and guessed it was because Lisa was not at home. No way would she, Lou’s sister, be allowed over the threshold otherwise.

  The flat was on the top floor of a block that used to be council-owned. The landlord had bought up a swathe of them around Mansell and Maggie knew of him because he’d been arrested on four occasions for threatening tenants. None of the cases ever made it to court, as the witnesses always proved too unreliable for the Crown Prosecution Service to risk proceeding. Intimidation was almost certainly a factor but could never be proved.

  Maggie waited on the landing outside Rob’s front door. When he didn’t appear, she knocked loudly.

  ‘Come in,’ he yelled from somewhere inside.

  Now she knew for certain Lisa wasn’t at home. Feeling curious, she stepped into a dingy, narrow hallway with grubby magnolia walls and a beige carpeted flo
or. So far, so average. The hall led to an open-plan lounge-diner, where she found Rob sitting at a small stripped-pine table counting out ten-pound notes into a neat pile. A quick glance around suggested he and Lisa had yet to make the flat a home – there were no pictures on the walls, no cushions on the dark blue futon sofa. A small table lamp sat forlornly on the floor, which was carpeted in the same beige as the hallway.

  ‘Hey,’ he said.

  Manners forced her to be polite. ‘Hi. How are you?’

  ‘Yeah, fine. I didn’t get the job I went for, but, well, you know.’

  Articulation had never been Rob’s strong point.

  ‘I’m sure you’ll find something else,’ she said. ‘Is that Lou’s money?’

  ‘Yeah. It’s all here. You can count it if you want.’

  ‘No, it’s fine.’ She glanced around. ‘No Lisa?’

  He shifted in his seat. ‘She’s gone to stay with a friend in Manchester.’

  ‘Nice for her. When’s she back?’

  ‘Tonight I think.’

  His reaction suggested he didn’t know for sure, and it occurred to Maggie that Lisa might be giving him the runaround already. It was no less than he deserved.

  ‘Right, I’d best get off,’ she said, taking the envelope of cash he held out to her and making for the door.

  ‘How are the boys?’ he suddenly asked.

  Maggie turned round. Rob shrugged sheepishly.

  ‘I know I don’t have the right to ask, not being their dad and all that. But, well, you know.’

  He looked so downbeat that Maggie found herself – against her better judgement – feeling sorry for him.

  ‘You’re their stepdad; it’s okay for you to miss them. And –’ she crossed her fingers behind her back, knowing Lou would hate her for saying it – ‘the boys miss you too.’

  He brightened. ‘Do they?’

  ‘Yes, a lot. It’d be good if you could make more time to see them.’

  ‘Lou won’t let me. Says I’m not their proper dad so I don’t get access.’

  Maggie was annoyed with her sister. However angry she was with Rob, not letting the boys see him wasn’t on. It wasn’t fair to punish them for his leaving her.