Her Missing Daughter: A Gripping Psychological Thriller

by D. S. Butler

  Behind me, Toby and Jason entered the room.

  Toby held the gun against Jason’s ribs.

  “Stop that, Abbie, unless you want me to shoot Jason.” His voice mocked me. He was enjoying this.

  Sienna let out a muffled sob, and I stopped trying to undo the string, and instead, put my arm around her shoulders.

  “It’s okay,” I muttered. “Everything is going to be okay. I promise.”

  “You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep,” Toby said dryly, indicating with the rifle that Jason should move closer to us. “Pick up the chair and carry her into the kitchen. I want everything contained in one room.”

  Contained? What did he mean by that?

  Jason’s face was tense, his jaw clenched as he lifted the large wooden chair and Sienna. As Jason struggled towards the kitchen, I noticed the empty spot on the wall where the antique rifle had been displayed. Its partner was still on the wall. Maybe if I could just grab it…

  “I’d shoot you before you crossed the room,” Toby said, with a huff of impatience. “Now move.”

  I followed Jason into the kitchen, acutely aware of the rifle Toby kept trained on us.

  Toby pulled out a chair and sat down beside the kitchen table. He smiled at me again as though we were all just having a polite chat in a friend’s kitchen.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I demanded. “Put down that gun and untie Sienna right now. You’re going to be in so much trouble.”

  Toby said nothing, and maddeningly, just smiled. I’d had this all wrong. I’d put two and two together and come up with five.

  What I couldn’t figure out was why Toby was in Jason’s house. The police were looking for him. Why was he here?

  “You’ve given me an idea, Abbie, so I have to thank you for that. Unfortunately, there’s no way I can let any of you get out of this alive.”

  Sienna began to cry loudly.

  “You’re crazy if you think you’re going to get away with this,” I said. “The police are looking for you. They know you committed fraud. There’s no way you’ll get out of the country.”

  He grinned. “The police aren’t quite as smart as you think. I arranged for a boat to go missing and now they think I’ve run off to the continent. They’re looking in the wrong place.”

  “Not all of them,” I said. “I just spoke to Jessica Richardson, and she’s going to tell Janet and the family liaison officer at Yew Tree House. So you should stop looking so smug, Toby, because the police will be here at any moment.”

  The smile dropping from Toby’s face gave me a brief moment of satisfaction. But it didn’t last long. A second later, Toby began to laugh. The sound echoed through the kitchen, and I felt Sienna’s body tremble beneath my arms.

  I turned to Jason for help, but he seemed distracted.

  “You’re not going to be laughing when the police get here,” I said, hoping that Jessica had gone straight to Yew Tree House as I’d asked.

  “I’ll be long gone by the time they arrive,” he said. “And thanks to you, I now have a scapegoat. I have to give you credit for that brilliant idea. Of course, everyone will assume the teacher was overcome with guilt and turned the gun on himself after killing you and Sienna.” He turned to smile at Jason. “It’s perfect.”

  Toby turned, walked over to the draining board and picked up a red plastic container.

  I knew what it was even before he unscrewed the cap, but when the smell of petrol filled the small kitchen, I thought I was going to throw up.

  I needed to keep him talking until the police got here. That was our only chance. Toby was obviously crazy. He’d stolen money from Steve’s company and thought somehow he was above the law.

  “So I take it you were the one who took advantage of Sienna and not Jason?” I said scornfully.

  Toby walked towards me, holding the petrol. I breathed shallowly so I didn’t inhale the fumes.

  “You’ve got no proof,” he said.

  “She’s fifteen. That’s sick.”

  “It only happened a couple of times,” Toby said, shrugging as though it were no big deal.

  I swallowed my anger. I needed to keep calm and make him see reason. “This is totally over the top, Toby. Yes, the police will charge you for the fraud and your relationship with an underage girl, but murder is on another level. You’ll probably be in prison for the rest of your life. That doesn’t have to happen. Just let us go.”

  “It’s gone too far.”

  “It hasn’t. Not yet. You haven’t killed anyone. Hand yourself in, get a good lawyer and you could be out starting a new life in a few years.” I had no idea if that was true, but I tried to sound convincing.

  “I wish that were the case, Abbie. But sadly it’s no longer an option for me. It’s not my fault. It’s hers.” He waved the gun in Sienna’s direction. “The stupid girl couldn’t keep her mouth shut and told her mother.”

  Sienna shook her head vigorously from side to side.

  “Nicole knew?”

  The pieces of the puzzle slid into place. How could I have missed it? Nicole would have been furious when she’d found out Toby had been taking advantage of her daughter like this. She would have confronted him.

  It wasn’t just about the money and his predatory relationship with Sienna. The man had murdered my friend.

  I shook my head, not wanting to believe it. “Did you kill Nicole?”

  Toby glared at me. “I warned her. She said she was going to tell Steve. She knew what would happen if she did. I told her all she had to do was keep her mouth shut, but it was like she was on some sort of crusade. The stupid woman. I told her it wasn’t me. It was Sienna. She was always coming on to me, throwing herself at me like some tart, and I’m only human.”

  I couldn’t reply, I could barely even draw another breath into my lungs. The man standing in front of me had abused Sienna and murdered her mother.

  “I didn’t intend to kill her,” Toby said, frowning at the petrol container. “I took the shotgun along to frighten her. It was her fault. If she’d just agreed to keep quiet, I wouldn’t have had to do it.”

  My breathing was ragged, and my skin was sweaty and cold. I wanted to scratch his eyes out. I wanted to see him suffer a slow, torturous death.

  I looked around the kitchen for a weapon. There were no knives on view. The only thing that looked like it could be used as some kind of weapon was the bright orange cast iron pan sitting on the stovetop, but it was too far away.

  He began to splash petrol around Sienna’s feet. She wriggled in the chair trying to get away from him.

  Think, Abbie. Think.

  If I didn’t keep him talking, it was going to be all over before the police got here.

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Jessica Richardson knocked on the door. She did it tentatively, hoping no one would hear her, she’d be able to run off home and lick her wounds. But within seconds, the door was yanked open and she was face-to-face with Sienna’s aunt.

  “Jess? Is Sienna with you?” She stuck her head out the door and looked around at the driveway as though Sienna might be hiding behind one of the cars.

  Jessica took a step back. Sienna’s aunt was very odd.

  Jessica shook her head. “No, she’s not with me. Abbie asked me to come.” She linked her fingers and cringed. It was so humiliating.

  “Well, what is it? Abbie’s not here,” Janet said, irritably, preparing to shut the door.

  “I went to Mr Owens’s house earlier, and he sent me away.” She shrugged. “It’s not a big deal, but Abbie was going to go to his house, and she asked me to tell you that is where she was going.”

  “Why on earth has she gone there?” Janet said, huffing and tugging at the sleeves of her green jumper. “She told me she was looking for Sienna. For goodness sake, if she’s been distracted by some man candy when she is supposed to be looking for my niece, then I won’t be responsible for my actions.”

  Jessica opened her mouth to say som
ething else, but Janet closed the front door, and she was left staring at the polished oak.

  “Why did you do it?” I asked. It wasn’t the most inventive question, but it was all I had.

  My pulse raced, and my mouth was so dry I could barely talk.

  “Quite simply because she wouldn’t keep her mouth shut. Much like her daughter,” Toby said.

  “But what I don’t understand is why you’re in Jason’s house.” I shot a glance at Jason, who was staring at the gun in Toby’s hand. “What’s Jason got to do with all this?”

  Toby shrugged. “You’re not very bright, are you? He doesn’t have anything to do with it. I followed Sienna. I couldn’t leave any loose ends. Eventually she’d tell someone else. When I saw she was coming here, I knew she was about to confide in her favourite teacher, weren’t you?” Toby turned to look at Sienna.

  Her tear-stained face crumpled.

  There was a sudden movement to my left as Jason pushed himself off the kitchen counter and launched himself at Toby, making a grab for the gun. The petrol can went flying, hitting the edge of the table and then righting itself.

  I used my body to try and protect Sienna, bracing myself for the gun to go off at any moment.

  Then there was a sickening crunch. I turned. The base of the shotgun was bloody and Jason was lying motionless on the floor.

  Rather than shoot him, Toby had knocked him unconscious. “That’s your fault,” Toby snarled at Sienna.

  I wanted to shout back and tell him a few home truths but silence was a better option now that our lives were hanging in the balance.

  He took a menacing step closer to us, but I didn’t move. If he was going to kill Sienna, he needed to go through me first.

  “You can’t kill us both,” I said. “You’re not evil. You should just make a run for it. The police are going to be here at any moment. If you leave now, you still have a chance to get away.”

  I tried to sound confident, but I had to admit I was getting more and more frantic by the second. Surely Jessica must have told Janet and Lizzie by now. Why weren’t they here yet? Why weren’t they banging down the door?

  Toby narrowed his eyes and slowly lowered the shotgun until it was pointing at my chest. Then he inched forward until the barrel was pressed against my breastbone.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  I’d always assumed describing knees knocking together was an inaccurate cliché, but at that moment, I understood how the phrase had originated. My legs were shaking so badly, I wasn’t sure I’d remain upright for much longer.

  Don’t panic, Abbie. What were the chances he just took the gun from Jason’s wall and hadn’t loaded it with bullets? I hung onto that thought as my only hope to get us out of this alive.

  Jason hadn’t moved, and I was starting to think maybe the blow to his head had killed him. His face was covered with dark red blood.

  I licked my lips and shook my head. “You haven’t thought this through, Toby. Things will be so much worse if you kill us.”

  “But I have to kill you, don’t you see? I have to make it look like this was all down to Jason,” Toby said, jerking his chin toward poor Jason who was sprawled across the kitchen tiles.

  I wanted to check his pulse and move him into the recovery position but the gun was digging into my chest, reminding me any sudden movements were a very bad idea.

  “Why did you kill Nicole? She’d never done anything to hurt you.” I wasn’t thinking logically now and was just saying the first thing that came into my mind. Anything to stretch out the time we had left before he shot me.

  “But she was about to hurt me, Abbie. I couldn’t let that happen. I don’t want to do this. I’m not a monster. There really is no other way.”

  He smiled at me, and I realised then he was quite mad. I had zero chance of reasoning with him or making him see sense. I closed my eyes and took a shallow breath.

  Why hadn’t I given more details on the voicemail message I’d left Steve? If Toby killed us here no one would know who really committed the murders.

  But surely the police would work out Toby was behind this. They wouldn’t pin it on Jason, would they? I’d been stupid enough to jump to the wrong conclusion, but the police were trained to handle this. They were professionals. Forensic officers must be able to prove Toby had been in this house… He wouldn’t get away with this. I had to believe that.

  There was a muffled sound in the hallway, the creaking of old floorboards, and I saw a flash of green in the dim hall beyond the kitchen.

  Toby, who had his back to the hall, turned quickly, lowering the gun so it was no longer pressing into my flesh. “What was that noise?”

  “I didn’t hear anything.”

  Toby turned back to me and raised the gun. I could push the barrel away and run, but even if I did, he would overpower me within seconds.

  And Sienna couldn’t run. I wouldn’t leave her.

  Again a flash of green crossed the hallway. There was someone else in the house. I forced myself to look away, only because I didn’t want to alert Toby. I hoped it was the police. I hadn’t heard any sirens, but maybe they didn’t want to signal their arrival. Maybe they had a SWAT team and a gun trained on Toby right now.

  God, I hoped so.

  I wondered if these were the same thoughts that flooded Nicole’s brain in the moments before she died.

  The flash of green came again, this time closer, and for a fraction of a second Janet’s face appeared in the doorway.

  My body tensed. What was she doing in the house? Surely she hadn’t come alone?

  Toby put the antique rifle on the kitchen counter, and pulled a box of matches out of his pocket. Sienna began to sob again.

  He smiled as he struck a match and then threw it on the floor. The effect was instantaneous. With a whoosh, the petrol ignited and flames rushed along the rug before catching the kitchen counter.

  The petrol around our feet hadn’t yet caught light, but it would soon. I could already feel the heat of the fire, and the air was thick with fumes.

  “Would you rather be shot? Burning to death won’t be a pleasant way to go.” He smiled at me as he picked up the gun again. In his sick mind he really thought I should be grateful for him giving me a choice.

  I swore at him, and his smile turned into a snarl as he reached up and slapped me across the face with the back of his hand.

  It was just the distraction Janet needed. She stealthily crept into the kitchen. I held my breath.

  She grabbed the cast-iron pan from the stove, but it scraped against the hob.

  At the sound, Toby quickly turned, but he was too late. With a shrill scream, Janet smashed the cast-iron pan against the side of Toby’s temple.

  He stumbled then fell hard, landing beside Jason Owens on the floor.

  Frozen, I stared down at him, watching his blood ooze out onto the floor.

  “Well, don’t just stand there,” Janet snapped. “Help me get Sienna out of here.”

  Her words spurred me into action, and I pulled the gag free from Sienna’s mouth, and then began to work at loosening the string around her wrists.

  “There’s no time for that, Abbie. Help me lift her.” Janet strained as she yanked up one arm of the chair, and I understood what she was trying to do.

  I slid my hands under the other arm and between us we shuffled out of the kitchen carrying Sienna on the chair, staying as far from the flames as possible. The bottoms of her legs were saturated with petrol.

  I hit my elbow and knee on the walls as we passed but we kept heading for the front door.

  Janet pulled open the door. The bright sunlight was a welcome sight. We dragged the chair along the garden path, only stopping when we reached the pavement at the front of the house.

  Sirens sounded in the distance.

  “Finally,” Janet said.

  “Untie her,” I said and jogged back towards the front door.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Janet shouted.

&nb
sp; “Jason is still in there.”

  “For goodness sake, Abbie. Don’t be such an idiot,” Janet said, but I was already inside.

  It shocked me how quickly the fire had taken hold. The hall was rapidly filling with smoke. Fortunately, I could still see, though the smoke stung my eyes and made me cough. I reached down to pull my T-shirt over my mouth, but it hardly made a difference.

  Tears streaming from my eyes, I held up my hands in front of me and felt my way along the hall towards the kitchen. The smoke was stronger there, so I dropped to my hands and knees, crawling forward. It was impossible to keep my eyes open for longer than a second before being forced to shut them again by the stinging smoke.

  More by feel than sight, I located the bodies on the floor and unless one of them had moved, I knew Jason was the body closest to me. I gripped his ankles, and with all my strength, I pulled.

  It was slow work. He was a big man and I only managed to pull a few inches at a time.

  I tried to hold my breath as the smoke was travelling upwards, thick and dark above my head, and it was difficult to breathe without choking. I grunted with the effort of pulling him along the hallway.

  By the time, I reached the front door, the air was clearer. I’d left it open behind me, which was a stupid mistake. I remembered reading that oxygen fuelled the fire and that doors should always be shut to slow the hungry flames.

  It was too late to worry about that. I took a full breath for the first time since entering the house again and then began to splutter and cough as I pulled Jason through the door.

  Above me, the thatch had already caught and smoke was streaming into the sky. There were no flames yet, but it wouldn’t be long before they consumed the cottage.

  I felt hands, pulling me to my feet. “Is there anyone else inside?”

  I turned. Through stinging eyes, I saw a fireman looking intently at me as he repeated his question.

  It was tempting to say no one else was inside, very tempting to let that man burn, but unlike him I wasn’t a cold-blooded killer.