Long Gone

by Paul Pilkington

  ‘Thank you,’ said Jack, who was in the kitchen with his back turned to them. ‘Just renting, but I try to add my own personal touches as I can. Can I make you both a drink?’

  ‘I’m fine,’ Cullen replied.

  Amy shook her head. ‘It’s okay, thanks.’

  Jack poured himself a filter coffee that was already in the pot and slipped into the chair opposite them. He looked at them both in turn.

  ‘So, Detective Cullen, how can I help?’

  11

  ‘I’m investigating the whereabouts of Natalie Long. I was hoping you could shed some light on her movements. I understand that until recently you and Natalie were an item?’

  Jack flashed a look at Amy before turning his attention back to Cullen. ‘We dated, yes.’

  ‘And you split up two weeks ago?’

  Again he looked at Amy. ‘Yes, we did.’

  Amy held his stare.

  ‘Natalie has gone missing,’ Cullen explained. ‘She was supposed to board the train back from London last night, but didn’t arrive home.’

  ‘I know,’ he said. ‘Amy told me this morning.’

  ‘There was a text message, purporting to be from her, this morning,’ Cullen revealed. ‘But there is reason to believe that the message might have been sent by someone else. And we’ve been unable to make contact with Natalie, either before or since that message was sent.’

  ‘I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about,’ Jack replied.

  ‘That’s not what Amy thinks.’

  ‘Well, she doesn’t know…’ Jack pulled back from releasing the whole of the sentence.

  ‘Doesn’t know what?’

  Jack hesitated.

  ‘Jack, if you’ve got any information that might be useful for this case…’

  ‘Amy doesn’t know what I know,’ he said finally.

  ‘Doesn’t know what?’

  ‘Doesn’t know about Natalie’s state of mind,’ he revealed. He fixed Amy with a stare but he continued to address Cullen. ‘She thinks she knows Natalie, but she really doesn’t.’

  ‘I know she was suffering from your relationship,’ Amy blurted out, unable to keep quiet any longer. ‘And I know how happy she seemed when she ended it.’

  Cullen put up a hand to quieten her. His daughter reddened, clearly knowing she shouldn’t have raised the tension. The more personal this got, the less good would come out of it.

  Jack shook his head. ‘I’m afraid Natalie wasn’t straight with you. I was going to tell you this morning.’

  ‘Tell her what?’ Cullen asked.

  ‘Natalie didn’t break up with me. I ended the relationship.’

  Amy shook her head.

  ‘I did,’ he continued, calmly. ‘I had to end it, because it was best for the both of us. I tried to make it work, I really did. But ultimately, I decided that ending it was the only way.’

  ‘The only way of what?’

  ‘The only way of trying to get through to Natalie that she needed help.’

  ‘You’re lying,’ Amy shot back.

  ‘Amy,’ Cullen intervened. ‘Please.’

  Again, she conceded.

  ‘Needed help with what?’ Cullen directed at Jack.

  ‘With her obsessive behaviour,’ he replied. ‘With her paranoia. Things were okay at first. They were better than okay – they were amazing. I really thought we had a future. But things started to feel wrong.’

  ‘Like what?’

  ‘She started questioning me about where I’d been, who I’d seen. One afternoon, I’d had a tutorial with a female student, and Natalie was waiting for me afterwards. She’d been hanging around the department, had seen the student go into my room, and had waited for an hour to challenge me. She started shouting at me in the corridor. I had to take her into my office, try to calm her down.’

  Amy shook her head.

  ‘There were plenty of witnesses,’ he responded. ‘They saw what happened. It was really quite embarrassing.’

  Cullen processed what Jack had just said, all the time scrutinising the guy for any ticks that might give away whether what he was saying was fact or fiction.

  ‘Tell me more about your relationship – the difficulties with Natalie.’

  Cullen saw Amy flash him a look, as if surprised that he was seemingly going along with Jack’s side of the story. But she should have known him better than that.

  ‘Well,’ Jack replied. ‘Like I said, things were good at first. We were really happy. There were no signs of what it would turn into.’

  ‘So apart from the happening at the university, what else gave you concern about Natalie’s behaviour?’

  Jack dragged a hand across his face, before shaking his head. ‘I feel bad about telling you this, I really do.’

  ‘Just tell us.’

  ‘Okay. After what happened outside my office, we argued. I said she couldn’t do that – that it might cost me my job. She seemed to understand, said she knew she was being silly, and that it would be different from now on.’

  ‘But it wasn’t?’

  ‘For a week or so, it was. I thought maybe we’d turned a corner. But one night she came around to the apartment, accusing me of all kinds of things – sleeping with other students, other staff members. I tried to talk things through with her, tried to get her to face up to her mental health issues. I begged her to book an appointment at the health centre, see a GP or one of the student counsellors, but she just couldn’t be calmed. So I ended it there and then. Told her to leave. I feel bad, but I just couldn’t take it anymore. I thought maybe the shock of the breakup might be enough to push her into taking action to help herself.’

  ‘And did it?’

  ‘I don’t know. Maybe it did. I hope so.’

  ‘I’m sorry, but what you’ve just said about Natalie, I don’t recognise any of it.’ Amy looked at Cullen now. ‘That isn’t the Natalie that I know.’

  ‘She’s very good at putting on a front,’ Jack said. ‘I don’t mean that in a bad way. I just mean that outwardly, to people other than me, she’s fine. Absolutely fine. I’ve seen the way she is with others, and to be honest, it amazed me how different she was, how different she is. It’s how she was with me in the early days of our relationship, and maybe that’s the real Natalie, the person she is meant to be – if it weren’t for her illness.’

  ‘Did you not think of telling her friends? Of talking to Amy about it, trying to get support?’

  ‘I did. But… to be honest, I wasn’t sure how you’d react, Amy. I know you weren’t too keen on me, didn’t think we were a good fit. Natalie told me as much. And as Natalie seemed so fine outwardly, I thought you’d probably just speak to her about it and that would then make things worse. It could have just pushed her away from others.’

  Amy listened in silence.

  Jack looked back at Cullen. ‘Look, maybe in hindsight I should have spoken to Amy. Or another of her friends. Even tried to get in touch with her brother. Especially with what’s happened now.’

  ‘With what’s happened now?’

  ‘Well, with her going missing.’

  Cullen nodded. ‘Do you think Natalie is in danger?’

  ‘Maybe from herself, yes.’

  ‘Did she give any indication to you that she was at risk of harming herself?’

  There was a pregnant pause. ‘No.’

  Cullen held his stare.

  ‘Well, that night, in our apartment, when I said I was ending it, she said something like, “I’ll disappear off the face of the earth, and then you’ll be sorry”.’

  ‘And you took that to mean…’

  ‘Well, at first I thought she meant she’d move away, disappear, but later that evening I did wonder whether she meant something else.’

  ‘That she’d take her own life?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘But you still didn’t tell anyone.’

  ‘No.’

  ‘What about the bruising?’ Amy said. ‘The bruising on her arm?’


  ‘The bruises? Natalie told me she took a heavy fall at badminton. Wait a minute, you’re not suggesting…’

  ‘Amy isn’t suggesting anything,’ Cullen cut in, ‘but if you feel that the bruising is something of interest to the investigation…’

  Jack looked aghast. ‘You think I did it?’

  Cullen waited for him to say more, giving him enough rope.

  ‘You think I’m some kind of violent woman beater?’ He laughed bitterly. ‘Man, you couldn’t be more wrong. I would never do anything to hurt Natalie, or any other human being. If you really doubt how she got those bruises, then I’m sure any one of her badminton teammates can give you your answer.’

  ‘I’m just exploring all possibilities,’ Cullen replied calmly.

  Jack shook his head, obviously still smarting from the accusation.

  ‘My priority,’ Cullen continued, ‘is to make sure Natalie comes back safe and well. I have to ask these questions. We owe it to Natalie.’

  Jack nodded.

  ‘Where do you think Natalie is?’ Cullen asked.

  ‘I really have no idea. I told Amy that this morning.’

  ‘Are you worried about her?’

  ‘Yes, of course I am. Despite how things ended, I still care about her. And I really hope she’s okay.’

  Cullen made to stand. ‘Well, if you think of anything else that might be of interest to our investigation, then do please give me a call, however insignificant it might be.’ He passed Jack his contact card.

  ‘Thanks, I will.’

  ‘WHAT DO YOU THINK?’ Cullen asked Amy as they walked back down the road.

  ‘I really don’t know,’ she said. ‘Everything he said about Natalie, like I said, it wasn’t the person I knew. Or thought I knew. Now I’m really confused, and I don’t know what to believe. Maybe I got Jack wrong. How about you? Do you believe him?’

  Cullen stopped. He turned back to look at Jack’s apartment. ‘I’m not sure if he’s telling the truth or not about his relationship with Natalie. But there is something.’

  ‘Something?’

  ‘Did you not hear it?’ he asked cryptically.

  ‘Hear what?’

  ‘The noise from upstairs.’

  ‘No.’

  ‘It was just the once. Hardly audible. But I’m pretty sure there was someone else in there. And in five minutes we’re going to come back and pay them a visit.’

  12

  Previous Friday evening

  ‘WHAT? YOU’RE JOKING.’

  This time it was Russell’s turn to glance across at Tabitha. Satisfied she was still in deep in conversation with Samantha and Penny, he continued. ‘Deadly serious. I’d invite you to check the facts now on Wikipedia, if we hadn’t had all of our phones taken away from us by the Gestapo.’ He smiled mischievously.

  ‘So what happened?’

  ‘Thomas Sinclair was an up-and-coming politician, just entered the Cabinet, and tipped as a future Prime Minister. Very ambitious and power hungry. He was also fabulously wealthy, inherited the family tea company, which went back to the height of the Empire. Friend of the Royal Family, too. Anyway, rumours began to circulate that he’d been seeing other women. He denied it, saying that it was the opposition running a smear campaign. But the rumours didn’t go away. And then the press got the evidence that they’d been hoping for – two of the women came forward with a tell-all story, to be published the following day. When he got the call that evening, Sinclair knew the game was up. He called the police just half an hour after hearing about the breaking story, admitting to what he’d done.’

  ‘Which was?’

  ‘Systematically and coldly annihilating his whole family, one by one. His wife and two daughters, aged five and eight. All shot with the same hunting rifle. The children killed while they were sleeping. His wife had put up a fight, but she never had a chance. The police found him with a fatal gunshot wound in the room that we’ve just had drinks in.’

  Natalie’s skin prickled at the thought.

  ‘He was sitting at the piano. On the stand, instead of music, he’d left a suicide note. In it, he refused to accept blame. He said that he held the press, and those working with them, accountable for what had happened. He was a really nasty piece of work.’

  ‘Oh my goodness,’ Natalie said, trying to come to terms with what she’d just heard. ‘What a horrible story.’

  Russell nodded solemnly. ‘You can see why Sir Kenneth renamed this place, and why he doesn’t talk about the house’s history in the welcome pack.’

  ‘Definitely.’

  ‘But no doubt he got a bargain on this place. I’m sure it was a great piece of business.’

  FOR THE REST of the evening, Natalie couldn’t quite shake off thoughts about the grim tale that Russell had recounted. After the meal, which was wonderful, the group retreated to the bar, where free drinks flowed. But it was noticeable that all of them remained restrained in their consumption of alcohol, most likely mindful of the need to have a clear head in the morning for the first task.

  Natalie had a good chat with Penny, who seemed lovely and down to earth. She had dreamt up the idea of naming Chinese babies as part of a school project, and things had just taken off almost from day one. She said modestly that it was a case of being in the right place at the right time, but just as with Samantha, Ben and even the annoying Krishna, Natalie couldn’t help but marvel at their exploits.

  ‘So what do you do, Natalie?’

  ‘I’m at uni, in Bristol. Studying marketing.’

  ‘Cool.’

  As with the others, Natalie knew she was waiting for more of a story, but Penny was too polite to press.

  Natalie looked across at the others. ‘I wonder why some of the people here want a job at Brand New. They all seem to be doing so well on their own. You included.’

  Penny took a sip of her non-alcoholic lemon drink before answering. ‘It’s strategic,’ she said candidly. ‘Something to take me to the next level, a training ground for a few years, before I set off on my own again. I don’t want to work for the company for the rest of my life, or even more than a few years.’

  ‘So it’s a means to an end?’

  ‘Exactly. A strategic business decision. I imagine it’s the same for everyone else here. How about you?’

  ‘I went to a talk by Sir Kenneth at a book festival a few months ago,’ Natalie replied. ‘The place was packed, there were hundreds there. Sir Kenneth had everyone in the palm of his hand. He was just so inspiring – everything he’s done in his career, and the way he thinks about branding, it just made the subject seem so exciting. He’s worked all over the world, helped to build the biggest brands on the planet. But he’s ethical with it, like how he’s transformed the way politicians view green energy with his campaigns for environmental charities. I know he’s over sixty, but his enthusiasm, the brightness in his eyes, he seems so young with it.’

  ‘Sounds like you have a crush,’ Penny teased.

  Natalie blushed. ‘Purely professional! To be honest, I’d been getting a bit disillusioned about my degree, wondering if I’d made a mistake. But sitting there listening to him, it reignited my passion for pursuing a career in the field. Afterwards, he was signing copies of his new book. I had a quick chat, and he mentioned about this opportunity – told me to keep my eyes open for the advert.’

  ‘Wow, you were personally invited to apply!’

  ‘Well, it wasn’t quite like…’

  ‘What’s that?’

  Samantha had overheard and joined them.

  ‘Natalie got a personal initiation to apply from Sir Kenneth himself!’ Penny said.

  ‘Oh?’ Samantha replied. ‘How so?’

  Natalie detected a coolness of expression that hadn’t been there before.

  ‘I just spoke to him at a book signing,’ she explained, trying not to sound defensive. ‘All he did was mention the opportunity was coming up.’

  ‘So he asked you to apply?’ Samantha said.
>
  ‘Well, he said I should really consider it. I… I can’t quite remember how he phrased it. I only spoke to him for less than a minute.’

  Samantha nodded. ‘Well, less than a minute or not, it’s still a good thing. Well done you.’ She seemed to thaw as she looked across to where most of the group had gathered. ‘Just don’t let Krishna know you’ve got a personal relationship with Sir Kenneth. I think he’ll have a panic attack.’

  ‘I wouldn’t say I’ve got a…’

  ‘It’s okay,’ Samantha said, touching her arm. ‘I was only teasing.’

  Natalie wanted to change the subject.

  ‘What do you know about this place?’ she asked the two.

  ‘What? This house?’ Samantha said.

  ‘Yes. Do you know anything about the history of it?’

  Both Samantha and Penny shook their heads.

  Natalie hesitated.

  Should she spread gossip, especially a story that had unsettled her and would no doubt have the same effect on others?

  ‘C’mon, Natalie, don’t hold us in suspense,’ Samantha prodded. ‘Spit it out.’

  ‘Is this something Sir Kenneth mentioned?’ Penny added.

  ‘No,’ she replied, ‘no. You haven’t heard about the murders here, involving the Sinclair family?’

  ‘Murders?’ Penny was aghast.

  ‘It was a long time ago. Well, in the nineteen eighties.’ Natalie recounted the story.

  ‘How do you know this?’ Samantha said, as Natalie finished with the revelation of the note left on the piano.

  Penny looked spooked, standing there silently, cradling her glass.

  Natalie wished she hadn’t said anything. ‘Russell told me, during dinner.’

  They all looked across at him, just as he broke into a laugh whilst chatting with Ben.

  ‘He’s trying to freak you out,’ Samantha said, ‘to knock you off your stride. Maybe even to get you to leave the house completely. Watch out for him.’

  ‘Do you think it’s true, though?’ Penny asked, still looking shaken. ‘I mean, if that had happened, wouldn’t we have heard about it? Wouldn’t they say something to us?’