Heartlands

by Kerry Watts

  ‘I’ll take her home, detective.’

  ‘Thanks, Rob. I’ll get back to the station to trawl through any new leads the appeal has generated.’

  Rob kissed Louise on the head and held her close to his chest. Eventually she looked up at him with fear in her eyes, unable to speak.

  ‘It’s OK, I’ll take care of you.’

  Louise allowed him to lead her away from the station and the hustle and bustle of the main street. The pair walked in silence for half an hour, Louise holding onto him.

  Then she noticed the silence. The scent of the Scots pine forest woke Louise from her fog. Memories of walks with Shannon as a toddler when they still had Max, Louise’s old Labrador, slammed into her. Shannon would hold onto his lead, and although he could easily have pulled the tiny little girl off her feet, he never did. He was so patient with Shannon, even when she took his biscuits or his favourite toy. Shannon’s heart was broken when Max had to be put to sleep when she was seven. She was adamant she didn’t want another dog. So they didn’t get one.

  Louise reached out and ran her fingers over a damp tree trunk, snagging her thumb on a sharp piece of loose bark. She lifted her thumb to her lips and sucked the blood, then turned to face Rob, her eyes searching his for comfort.

  ‘Where is she, Rob?’ she whispered.

  Rob would have done anything to take Louise’s pain away.

  ‘I don’t know. But you need to be strong, Lou.’ The temperature dropped as a black cloud threatened overhead. ‘Come on, we’ll shelter in here for a bit.’ He led Louise into The Shieling, the abandoned cottage that had been empty for as long as Rob had lived there. Legend had it that it was old Morag McIver’s cottage, where she fled the day the townsfolk chased her. Maggie Malcolm swore blind she had seen Morag herself around the crumbling property.

  ‘Maybe auld Morag knows where she is,’ Louise told him. ‘Because nobody else does.’

  Not that he believed in ghosts, but Rob quickly closed the door after them, just in case. The darkness of the woods cast shadows that played tricks on the eyes in this light.

  ‘Hey, come here.’ Rob held out his arms to her.

  Louise snuggled her face close to his chest and inhaled his fresh sandalwood scent.

  Rob was so different to Jason. He was gentle where Jason could be brash and clumsy. Rob soothed her when Jason added to her pain right now. They hadn’t planned to have an affair. Louise had fallen for him in a moment of weakness. A drunken moment of weakness, to be more precise. Jason had passed out, he’d been so drunk, and Cassie had left the new year party early saying she had a headache. They got caught up in the moment, the celebration. A new year’s kiss turned into something more passionate, which then morphed into secret, stolen moments that neither of them had planned. She knew Jason loved her, but Rob was different. She couldn’t explain it.

  She clung on, revelling in the warmth of his arms around her in the silence. Not that this was the first time they had snuck out to The Shieling, but that wasn’t what Louise was searching for today. They both knew it was over. He was about to become a father.

  Blair began to regret his decision to take a walk in Inver Wood alone. Why did every tree look exactly the same, and why would his mind not allow him to forget the painting of Morag McIvor and her shadowy figure creeping between them? He couldn’t help feeling small in the middle of such a vast, dense patch of woodland. The case was preying on his mind, too; Shannon’s likeness to Sophie Nicoll was uncanny. He had never forgotten Sophie Nicoll’s heartbroken family. Probably because it had been his first big case; but still, she was so like Shannon Ross. The sight of a small cottage tucked at the centre of the trees intrigued him as he got closer.

  His phone buzzing in his pocket drifted into his thoughts.

  ‘Hello, Blair Crawford.’ He frowned. ‘Hello, who is this? You’ll have to speak up, I can’t hear you.’

  He gave up on the caller when it was clear he had a very poor signal and walked on, looking for anything that might tell him what had happened to Shannon. Maybe something the search team had missed. The cottage up ahead drew him until the heavens opened again, forcing another deluge on him. He turned back towards the pub, his search merely postponed for now.

  Tom Nicoll dropped the glass he was drying, and it smashed into pieces all over his kitchen floor. Seeing that press conference was like a kick in the gut. His heart raced at a million miles an hour. He had to leave. He could be in Inverlochty by morning. Shannon’s parents needed all the support they could get, and if anyone knew what they were going through, Tom did.

  Jessie wasn’t sure why, but she had to call. It seemed irrational, but she couldn’t rest until she had. Talking to Carol had shaken her to the core. Her instinct was to run. To hide from whatever was coming; but she couldn’t. Jessie had responsibilities, not least to Shannon. She was relying on her. She couldn’t rush home to reassure herself that everything was OK.

  ‘Hey, Jess, how is it all going up there?’ Dave asked.

  ‘Yeah, fine, well, not fine, but you know… Listen, I just wondered. Is Smokey OK?’

  Jessie listened to the pause until her neighbour’s answer soothed her racing heart.

  ‘Of course he’s OK. Listen.’

  Jessie heaved a huge sigh of relief when she heard soft purring down the line. She squeezed her eyes tight shut and savoured every sound.

  ‘He’s been staying in my flat at night. I hope that’s OK,’ Dave told her. ‘Has done since that first night. Must be missing you, Jess.’

  ‘Thanks, Dave. You’re a good friend.’

  Dave’s booming laugh rippled into Jessie’s ear.

  ‘You soppy article,’ he teased. ‘Smokey’s no trouble. He’s good company. When he’s not nicking my ice cream, that is.’

  Jessie stopped short of telling Dave to keep Smokey indoors. That wouldn’t be fair on either of them. Not until she knew for sure what Dan’s plans were. Until then Jessie would have to do whatever she could to stop the fear overwhelming her. But it wasn’t the first time she’d had to do that, was it?

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  1998

  ‘Simpson, come on, move yourself.’

  The officer’s words drifted through Daniel, but he wasn’t listening. Instead he tugged his duvet further around his head and turned to face the wall, wincing from the pain in his wrists.

  ‘Simpson, I’ll remove you from the bed if I have to,’ the officer repeated as he pulled back his duvet. ‘Come on, Dr Hudson is waiting for you.’

  ‘All right, I’m coming,’ Daniel snapped. ‘You don’t have to keep on at me about it. I’m coming.’

  ‘Do you need help?’

  ‘No, fuck off, I can manage,’ Daniel spat as the officer got closer.

  ‘Watch your lip, boy. I’ll be outside. Get dressed.’

  Julia Hudson was shocked by the black circles around his eyes and the bandages on his wrists.

  ‘Come in, Daniel. Sit down. Thank you.’ She nodded to the officer, who closed the door.

  Daniel slumped down on the chair and dropped his eyes to the floor. Julia took her own seat opposite him.

  ‘Would you like a glass of water?’

  Daniel answered with a short shake of his head as she rested her elbows on her desk, cupping her chin.

  ‘Does it hurt badly?’ she began. ‘I can get you some painkillers if you need them.’

  Daniel shook his head. Julia waited and watched, then wrote something in her notebook.

  ‘Can you tell me why you did it?’

  Daniel again answered with a short shake of his head.

  Julia sighed.

  ‘I can’t help you unless you tell me what’s wrong, can I?’

  ‘Look, I’ve got nothing to say. I don’t know why I’m here.’ Daniel’s eyes held hers briefly until he dropped his gaze again.

  ‘I’m concerned that you’re going to attempt to take your life again.’ Julia explained. ‘You must know that.’

  Daniel shrug
ged.

  ‘I thought things were going well for you. Before she left, Gail Robertson said she was so pleased with your progress.’

  The mention of Gail Robertson’s name caused Daniel to shift in his chair.

  Julia observed the change in his body language.

  ‘You were sad to see Gail leave, weren’t you?’

  Daniel shuffled himself further up the chair and sniffed. Julia was sure his eyes were moist.

  ‘You miss her?’ she continued as she rubbed her bottom lip with her thumb.

  The whisper of a smile grew then fell away, and Daniel swallowed down his feelings. He didn’t want Dr Hudson to know.

  ‘Daniel?’ Julia repeated. This wasn’t the first time in her career Julia had witnessed an infatuation, but she hadn’t seen this one coming. Daniel had kept it very quiet.

  Daniel shrugged. ‘I guess.’

  ‘I think it’s a little more than that, isn’t it?’

  It didn’t seem to matter, Daniel thought, that he might not want to open up about something so private. Dr Hudson appeared to want to know everything about him. His whole life was under the microscope, it seemed.

  ‘Do you want to talk about it?’ she added.

  Daniel scoffed. ‘Would it matter if I said no?’

  ‘I think it would help if you did. There’s obviously something upsetting you very much. So deeply, that you tried to end your life.’

  Daniel considered her words. End your life. What life, he thought. Without Gail, it didn’t seem there was any point to it. How could she leave like that, without even saying goodbye to him? He’d been told something about her husband being ill, and her wanting to spend time with him. Where did that leave him? He needed her. Didn’t she realise how much he depended on her? She was just another woman who had let him down.

  ‘Daniel?’

  Daniel sighed and stood slowly from the chair. ‘Can I go now? There’s really nothing to say.’

  ‘Sit down.’ Julia’s tone changed, which shocked Daniel into doing as he was told. ‘You have to understand something. While you’re here, under my care, I am responsible for you. I need to know everything, however painful or uncomfortable that might be for you. It’s my job to help you.’

  Daniel dropped his chin to his chest. ‘I’m sorry, Dr Hudson.’

  Julia scribbled something into her notebook.

  ‘So, let’s start again, shall we?’

  Daniel nodded. ‘I do miss her.’

  ‘You should have spoken to someone instead of—’

  ‘I know. It all just got a bit much, then I wasn’t thinking straight. I just did it without really thinking.’

  Julia stared at Daniel. He looked so sad. Like Cam said, he was making such good progress. His fragile emotional attachments were difficult for him, as they were for so many of the boys in Carseview. Gail Robertson’s sudden departure had had a huge impact on him. Paul Reekie, his new mentor, was clearly nothing like Gail. Gail’s motherly aura worked with Daniel, and Julia understood completely why that was the case. She should have anticipated what had happened, and was so grateful Daniel was found in time.

  ‘Thank you for sharing that with me.’ She smiled. ‘Eventually.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ he whispered as his eyes filled with tears. ‘I know it sounds stupid, but I loved her. Not in a creepy way, though.’ He sniffed and rubbed his nose with the bandage on his wrist. ‘I’m not a stalker.’ He tried to laugh through his tears.

  ‘I know,’ Julia reassured him. ‘It’s normal for a boy your age to have feelings like that, and I’m sorry her departure wasn’t better planned. I didn’t realise the extent of your attachment, and that’s down to me. I’m sorry, Daniel.’

  Daniel shrugged. ‘It’s OK.’

  ‘How do you feel now that you’ve opened up?’

  He laid his elbows on Julia’s desk and rested his head in his hands, then rubbed at his cropped blond hair. He shook his head.

  ‘Empty,’ he answered.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Thoughts of Louise and Rob’s affair drifted into Jessie’s mind. She knew more than anyone the pain of infidelity in a marriage. Dan wasn’t only violent and controlling. He was a serial cheat on top of that. Perhaps if she’d been stronger, sooner, Ryan would still be alive. She couldn’t help but think about Jason. He didn’t seem particularly strong emotionally as it was. He also had a history of violence. She wondered if he had ever been violent to Louise – or Shannon. Has he done something unthinkable to his own daughter? The niggling feeling in her gut was growing, but she had no evidence of guilt. She questioned how she would behave if her child was missing. But she would never know; not really.

  A loud knock tore into her thoughts. She looked up and was surprised to see Dylan standing next to Calum Bailey. Jessie stood to greet her unexpected visitor. Dylan nodded once with a small smile and turned to leave.

  ‘Thanks,’ she called after him. ‘Please take a seat, Calum. What can I do for you?’

  The beads of sweat on Calum’s brow piqued her interest.

  ‘Can I get you a glass of water?’

  ‘No. I’m fine, thanks.’ Calum sat down. ‘I have something to tell you. Something I should have said from the start.’

  He wiped his forehead and Jessie reached for a bottle of water from behind her. She handed it to Calum with a reassuring smile. Calum gulped at it.

  ‘OK, I’m listening,’ she said.

  ‘Shannon was writing a book. Did you know that?’

  Jessie frowned in response. ‘Why do you say “was”? We don’t know what’s happened to her yet, do we?’

  Calum squirmed in his seat with his cheeks aflame. ‘I meant is, I’m sorry. It’s just got me so rattled, you know?’

  ‘I understand. Take your time.’

  Jessie recalled a brief reference to a novel from her chat with Eric, and wondered what this had to do with her disappearance.

  ‘Eric Baldwin, Shannon’s friend, mentioned it.’

  Calum’s breath exited in short, sharp bursts as he reached into his trouser pocket and slid a memory stick across the table to Jessie. This was not what she expected at all. She would have put money on Calum’s confession of an affair with Shannon instead.

  ‘What’s on this?’ She picked up the stick and examined it.

  ‘I didn’t know what she was writing until I agreed to read it for her. Once I’d read it, there was no way I could let her publish it.’

  Rather than feeling relieved that he had shared his secret, Calum’s anxiety soared, but it was too late now; he was committed.

  ‘Shannon was talking to someone online, I don’t know his name. She told me he was legit, and that the information he gave her was a hundred per cent accurate. He said he was taking a huge risk in telling her what he knew. She said it explained a lot about the way her father is.’

  Jessie stared at the innocent-looking memory stick in the palm of her hand. ‘I’ve been through Shannon’s laptop and there’s nothing to suggest what you’ve just told me.’

  ‘Have you sent it to your tech support team? I bet they will be able to find Shannon’s secret email account. There was no way she was talking about that in the open.’ Calum nodded at the memory stick.

  ‘What is this book about?’

  ‘Look for yourself. I don’t want to see that ever again.’ Calum stood up to leave.

  ‘Thanks for bringing this to me. Goodbye.’

  Calum only had time to nod before he fled.

  He barely made it outside before he vomited.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  The sign for Inverlochty couldn’t come soon enough for Tom Nicoll. The stunning Scottish Borders landscape did little to soothe his nerves. How could something so dark and ugly be here? When the rolling Perthshire hills came into view, Tom was struck by the sheer isolation in contrast to the hustle and the bustle of North East England. He also spotted the reason people called it big tree country; the orange and red leaves were stunning. The change of se
ason from summer to autumn was something Sophie had loved.

  He pulled up outside The Black Witch pub and switched the engine off. He sat back, stretched his arms out in front of him and yawned. He was exhausted. A nervous anticipation ran through his whole body. What would he find in this small town?

  Maggie Malcolm wiped the puddles of spilled lager off the bar. She couldn’t fathom how a man can’t lift a glass the small distance between the bar top and his mouth without spilling it.

  ‘Can I help you?’ She flicked her tea towel over her shoulder. ‘We don’t open until four, I’m afraid.’

  ‘Would there be a room I could have for a couple of days, perhaps more?’ Tom asked her.

  ‘I’m sorry, we’re completely full. I’ve only the two rooms, and they’re both taken.’

  When Maggie saw the crestfallen look on his face and the dark rings under his eyes, she took pity on him.

  ‘Have you eaten breakfast?’ she asked.

  ‘No, I haven’t. I’m starving.’ Tom realised he hadn’t eaten since eight o’clock the night before. He’d survived the long drive on coffee alone.

  ‘Sit down and I’ll get you a cooked breakfast. Then I’ll see if a friend of mine has a room going. It’s a wee bit out of the town, but he might have a vacancy. Help yourself to coffee. I’ll not be long.’

  She smiled at Tom, then disappeared behind the bar. Tom picked up his rucksack and moved over to one of the dining tables, away from the bar. He wasn’t sure he could stomach more coffee, so he helped himself to orange juice instead. He spotted a copy of the local morning paper and grabbed that as he sat down. Shannon’s smiling face stared back at him and Tom felt like he’d been kicked in the stomach. It felt like his little sister all over again. Sophie had been missing for almost a week before her body was discovered in a shallow grave. She’d been uncovered by two curious cocker spaniels and their horrified owner called the police. Shannon even looked like her. Same age. Same hair colour.