Page 42 of Then She Vanished

She slammed the door closed and kicked it before adjusting the framed photo of her beautiful daughter, Elissa.

Her mind went back to the woman staring at her from outside the leisure centre. Had that been Eric’s wife, sussing her out? Had the woman wanted to march in and have it outwith Ruth for stealing her husband? Maybe she had held back because she had a child with her.

Then her phone beeped with a message from a withheld number. She read it and screamed. ‘I hate you, Gary.’ He really had sunk low with his mind games this time.

She misses you. Are you ready for the truth? I know where Elissa is.

TWENTY-SIX

Gina hated having to leave Colson Ferguson in a cell, especially as he’d looked so shifty after she’d mentioned Keeley Moore, but they had so much to do and he was enforcing his right to silence. ‘Did you tell Orla, the FLO, what was said in Colson’s interview?’

Jacob pulled over outside the caretaker’s office. ‘Yes, Keeley Moore and her family have arrived at her husband’s parents’ house now and she is staying with them. I said we’d go and talk to Keeley later, like you suggested. If she finds anything out, she’ll let us know straight away.’

‘Great, when we’ve finished with the caretaker, we’ll head over. What’s the caretaker called again?’ Gina asked.

Jacob began searching on his phone. ‘Xavier Whitmore. From the statements we took, we know he’s a bit of a prankster, that’s why Keeley Moore thought the van pulling up with the stuffed legs sticking out of it was a joke, not a ploy to try and kidnap her.’ He turned the ignition off.

‘Who’s looking into Marie?’

‘O’Connor has organised to go with a PC to check out the houses opposite the Cleevesford Cleaver, to try to find out if Marie still lives there, or if anyone can remember her.’

‘Let’s hope they do.’ Gina felt her stomach churning a little. A second day had almost passed and they still had no idea who the girl in the photo was. ‘I hate to say this, but Keeley’s attempted kidnap makes me slightly relieved. If the girl in the photo is trapped somewhere, there is another person who will feed her and…’ She took a couple of breaths and closed her eyes for a moment as she tried to digest what she was thinking.

‘And what? I think you’re thinking what I’m thinking.’

She nodded. ‘Or she might be too much trouble and he might just kill her. If so, why did he try to take someone else? Is the girl already dead? Was he going to replace her? We have nothing here. I don’t know where we’re going with this one, and all I can think about is that girl.’

She thought of all the emails she’d received. Those were the types of men this girl was probably up against. She was nothing to them. She was something to own, control and keep for whatever sick games they had planned, looking at the state she was in in the photo.

Her mind wandered to Pete Bloxwich and she shivered. The last thing she needed was him coming back to the area and testing whether she’d out him or not, at the risk of being outed herself. That threat had kept them both out of trouble, but was he prepared to go down to take her with him?

She almost choked on the lump in her throat as she swallowed. Between Pete, possibly Stephen, and the hideous mystery emailers, her past was closing in on her faster than ever.

‘Don’t worry, guv. We’ll catch a break. Let’s just get on with the policing. We have Colson Ferguson in custody for now, and the press release has taken place. By this evening, the drawing of John Doe and a picture of the scarf will be out there.’

‘On the other hand, if it is Colson and the girl is still alive somewhere, she’s on her own. We can’t think for one minute that she doesn’t need us right now. You saw how bad she looked inthose photos.’ Gina felt her hands tremble. ‘We need to let him out by morning and keep a tail on him.’

Jacob sighed. ‘We’ll check with the team later, see if they’ve found and taken his van in for a search. I hope they hurry. For her sake.’

The floppy-haired caretaker ran across the road in almost darkness, holding a huge bunch of keys. They stepped out of the car. ‘Mr Whitmore?’ Gina held her identification up. ‘We saw you earlier in the sports hall, following the incident. Can we go inside and speak?’

‘I told you all everything I knew: I was in bed at the time. One of the cleaners came over to tell me what happened and woke me up.’

‘I know, but we need to follow up on that. It’s just routine.’

He popped his key in the lock and turned it until it clicked. ‘Come in.’ He pushed the door open and a musty smell escaped.

Gina stepped in first and Xavier turned the main light on in the hall, then led them to the kitchen. The worktop was covered in laundry, pairs of his jeans twisted in a bundle and crumpled T-shirts. ‘Sorry about the mess, I wasn’t expecting visitors. Take a seat at the breakfast bar.’

Gina glanced at the small, round kitchen table that was topped with car magazines. Her gaze reached the patio doors and the small, slabbed garden covered in mulched up leaves.

‘What do you need from me?’

Jacob sat and took a notebook from his satchel. He nudged the houseplant out of the way and water sloshed over the top of the overwatered plant. He soaked up the spilled water with the sleeve of his jacket before placing the book on the surface.

Gina leaned against the breakfast bar, knowing that if she sat she might not want to get up. ‘Were you on your own this morning between five and six fifteen?’

‘I live here alone, and before you ask, I’m single, so I was on my own. I did unlock the school at five-twenty so the others could get in.’

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