Page 74 of Then She Vanished

‘Do you mind if we call forensics to take a look?’ She had to rule them out, but she was almost certain that the vans she was looking at hadn’t been used by the kidnapper.

‘Do whatever you need to do.’

Gina nodded to Jacob to send the message. Within moments, PC Smith turned up to wait with the vans while they continued looking, and two more PCs came to assist. ‘Can you wait for someone in forensics to arrive?’

‘Yes, I’ll let you know when they do,’ PC Smith said as they left him with the vans.

‘Can you show me your outbuildings?’

Mrs Edmundson swallowed. ‘What are we looking for?’

‘We are hoping to find Mr Pritchard.’

‘He, err, he’s mostly been loitering around by the bunker. That’s where I always find him smoking and sitting.’

‘Do you use the bunker for anything?’

She shook her head. ‘Our kids used to use it as a den when they were little, but we have no reason to use it, really. We use the barn and other outbuildings for storage. We have another barn just for the horse stables and consumables. The factory is self-contained. That’s where we make the ice cream and butter. We don’t go to the bunker.’

‘What I haven’t told you is that Mrs Pritchard has also been taken, and we are worried for her safety. I’m going to make sure backup is in place. Could you keep everyone in the factory and stay there until I come back out.’

‘Yes, oh my goodness, poor Ruth. That’s awful. I’ll take you to the bunker.’ She pulled out a huge bunch of keys, removed one from the ring and passed it to Gina. ‘You’ll need this.’

‘Does Mr Pritchard have a copy of this key?’

‘Yes. He wanted to store some things in there years ago, so I gave him a copy and said he could use the space. It was to be used to store tools that he didn’t have room for in his shed, andhe didn’t want to sell them as they’d be useful in the future.’ As they walked across a small field, they reached the treelined edge of the land. ‘It’s there.’ She pointed.

Gina scrunched her brow. She couldn’t see anything and neither could Jacob or the three PCs by the looks on their faces.

‘Sorry, I forgot, it blends into the landscape. See the slight mound of grass, just before you reach the trees? If you walk around it, there’s a muddy dip. It’s steep and damp so be careful. Just unlock the metal door and enter.’

‘Thank you.’

‘I’ll head back to the factory, then.’

Gina nodded for one of the PCs to go with her.

‘If you need me or my husband, just come there and ring the bell. I best go and let him know what’s going on.’ The woman began clumsily jogging back in her wellies towards the main buildings. Gina glanced to the right and saw the paddock with a single horse running in it.

The two PCs remained poised, hands on truncheons, as one radioed their position back to the others. Gina peered at the road through the treeline and saw a police car. ‘We’re going in.’

The booming of her heart got louder and louder as she popped the key in the lock and opened the bunker, leading the way with her torch.

Was the girl in there, with Ruth?

‘Hello,’ she called out. There was a wall and another door ahead. A bench either side made the tubular structure feel tight as they all piled in, apart from one PC.

‘Ruth? Gary?’ She placed her almost-shaky hand on the door handle and it fought back with a spine-tingling creak.

Gina flashed her torch at bags of rubble stacked up at the far end.

‘Guv, look.’ Jacob flashed his torch at the wall to their left where a garden chair had been folded up and leaned against the wall.

Stepping in further, Gina could see the pile of empty cans of cider stacked up behind the door. She closed the door halfway and on the back was a wall of photos and notes stuck to it with tape.

There was a photo of Elissa, of Eric and of Ruth. Eric’s photo had one word written across his face:bastard. The one of Ruth almost took her breath away: devil horns had been drawn onto her head.

Gina almost felt her breath escape her as she read a name he’d written on the A3 sheet of paper: Marie Paulson. Next to her name, he’d writtenFantastic Snacktastic. Marie’s surname had changed, if it was the same Marie.

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