by Carla Kovach
Mary now hated the man even more. His wife had vanished. Something terrible could have happened and he was using this to point-score with their children. Unreasonable behaviour, that was true. Susan’s solicitor had cited this on the letter that she had in her bag, and that wasn’t all. ‘Your mother is doing her best, you know that, don’t you? And she does want you. She loves you very much. Now, poppets, you need to both go to school and work really hard today. That’s what Mummy wants you to do. I know it’s difficult but it’s all going to be fine. I promise.’
‘But where is she?’ Jasmine asked. ‘I want to call her. Daddy said I couldn’t call and he took my phone off me for going on about it.’
‘Mummy just needs a little space. She’s a bit stressed at the moment.’
‘Is that why she was crying before she took us to school on Tuesday?’ Jasmine waited for her to answer.
‘Was she crying?’ Something had happened. Mary thought back to when the detective asked if Susan had been unhappy. Maybe she’d got it all wrong. It looked and sounded like her daughter was depressed.
‘She said she wasn’t, but we heard her, didn’t we?’
Phoebe nodded as she played with her phone.
‘Do you know why she was upset?’
Jasmine shook her head.
‘Oh look, it’s gone eight thirty and you young ladies need to get to school. Can you both wait in the car?’ Mary kissed them both on the cheek and smiled.
Phoebe nodded and held her hand out for Jasmine as they reluctantly left. ‘Come on, squirt.’ At age ten and eleven, they knew something was wrong. Mary didn’t appreciate Ryan telling the girls that their mother had abandoned them to go to the pub.
Ryan hurried down the stairs, loaded up with bags and clothes. ‘I thought I’d take a few things for later, just in case she still hasn’t come home.’
‘You’d like that, wouldn’t you?’
He moved to her side and placed one hand on the door. ‘What?’
‘You’d like her to not come home, to fail. I saw the divorce papers.’
Ryan moved in a little closer, his nose almost touching hers. ‘You really think you know her, don’t you?’ He let out a snort and burst into laughter.
‘You told the girls that she’d abandoned them to go to the pub and that they were better off with you.’
He held up his calloused hands, chapped and hardened from his gardening contract work. His fair hair had been almost shaved to the skin and looked prickly on the top of his head. ‘I told them the truth. Just before she threw me out, she was out with friends all the time, leaving me here with the kids and there was a man. She’d come home half-cut without any explanation. I’m the one who covered for her, telling them that Mummy had work to do, and that when Mummy was in bed nursing a hangover, she was poorly. I covered for her all the time. It’s about time they know the truth, which is more than I can say for Susan. She doesn’t know the meaning of the word truth. I bet she never told you she’d roll in in the middle if the night and ignore me when I asked where she’d been.’
Mary swallowed the lump that had formed at the back of her throat. She felt a tear slipping down her cheek.
‘Mary, I’m sorry to have to be the one to tell you all this. Susan filed for divorce. Susan changed over the past few months. Susan chucked me out. I was happy. I love my family and I never wanted us to all split up. Susan was secretive, not telling me anything. What wasn’t she telling us? That’s what you should be concentrating on if you want to find out where she is. For now, I have to keep things as normal as possible for Phoebe and Jasmine.’
‘And what about a fight you were in? I saw it in the divorce papers. You punched one of her friends.’
‘It was nothing. She blew that one up too. Just something silly in a pub. I would never hurt her or my family. I don’t know how many times I have to tell you. I didn’t want our marriage to end. I love Susan and I always will.’
‘It’s a mess in here, Mum,’ Clare interrupted, breaking up the tension that was hanging between them. ‘What’s going on?’
Shoulder dropping, Mary shrugged. ‘Nothing, love. I know it’s a mess, I’m coming to help.’
‘Is Rory ready to go?’ Ryan asked.
‘I can look after him. I know you have a lot on with the girls.’ She needed Susan’s son close. He reminded her of Susan and she wanted his smiley face to be the first thing that Susan saw when she came back home.
Ryan backed off a little and let out a deep breath. ‘That would be much appreciated. Thank you.’
It was as if angry Ryan had suddenly vanished, only to be replaced by the son-in-law she’d always known. The living room door burst open and the boys ran around the adults in the hall. ‘Oi, little man!’
Rory ran across to Ryan and hugged him. ‘Daddy.’
‘Daddy’s got work but you’ll be staying with Nanny for a while. Are you going to be okay?’
The little boy nodded. Harrison began pretending to be a bear and chased Rory back into the living room. ‘I think that’s a yes,’ Mary said. For once the boys were playing nicely, albeit loudly. At least they weren’t fighting or having tantrums.
‘I’ll call you later.’ Ryan opened the door and waved at the girls who were patiently waiting to be dropped off at school. Phoebe held her watch up, signalling that they were going to be late. Wind whistled through the door, instantly chilling the hallway even more.
‘Wait. Jasmine said that Susan was crying Tuesday morning. Did she say anything to you?’
Ryan shook his head as he stepped outside. ‘Not a word. Susan was always crying so nothing’s new there. She wasn’t upset all the time, just angry, frustrated. She’d been struggling to cope and as usual she wouldn’t let me take the kids off her hands.’
‘You haven’t made it easy for her.’ Shivering, Mary maintained eye contact with him, waiting for him to give something away, anything. Was he right about Susan or had Susan lied to her solicitor? Who was telling the truth? Were they both telling the truth as they saw it or was one of them playing games?
‘I wasn’t the one who was cheating in our relationship. Goodbye, Mary.’ He hurried towards the car, slammed the door and drove off without looking back.
‘What the hell was that about? Did you have to have a go at him? Haven’t we all got enough on our plates?’ Clare crossed her arms and her cheeks began to flush.
Mary pulled out the notepad and the solicitor’s letter from her bag. She thrust the letter into Clare’s hand. ‘Read that.’
As Clare went quiet, Mary continued flicking through Susan’s pad. Various notes and to-do lists were scribbled amongst the doodles. Appointments were noted down, then scribbled out or crossed with the word ‘done’.
A torn piece of paper fell out, containing two addresses local to the area and a note to grab some more bread from the shops. Just on the rip line, there was a postcode of a third address. Mary recognised the grey lines on the page: it was from Susan’s diary. ‘She hasn’t crossed anything on this page out. These appointments must have been outstanding. This might be what she was doing on Tuesday.’
Hands shaking and mouth dry, Mary pulled her phone out.
Twelve
I can’t help but smirk as I stand against the wall, peering around. I love watching you, lovely Stephanie, as you come out of work most break times. The others smoke and you always look like you’re suffocating – you delicate little passive aggressive. You can’t come out to the smoking area and then scowl at everyone who smokes. Don’t worry, they’ll all soon be rid of you.
The sun has cleared up most of the frost but not in this alleyway, the sun never reaches these parts.
She shivers with her hands in her pockets. The stubby-fingered bald man with the bulbous nose comes up behind her and places a hand on her shoulder as he pops his vape in his pocket. She flinches. I know she hates him being anywhere near her but as always, I revel in her misery. ‘Coffee?’ he asks. I know he just wanted to touch her and she knows
too.
I creep forward, watching from the gap between the industrial bin and the wall as she turns away, both of them facing the door at the back of the building. ‘Get your hands off me.’ She shoves him hard, almost knocking him off balance.
Feisty! I do enjoy a challenge.
‘Don’t lose your shit. I was just asking if you wanted a drink,’ Bulbous nose shouts. He holds his hands up, waving them, jazz hands style.
‘You were at my house last night. Stay away or I’ll report you to HR, I mean it.’
I let out a smirk and step back behind the wall as I carry on listening. It was me at your house, Stephanie, me! I love that chubby red nose is getting the blame.
‘Stupid mental bitch, you’re batshit crazy. I was only offering to get you a drink. I’ll go and get everyone else’s and you can just go ahead and get your own. You need to see a shrink or something. I was not at your house.’ The man kicks the door before heading back in to work.
‘I could smell you and your revolting vape,’ she yells as she kicks the air, her long black hair swishing as she moves.
I peer around one more time and you’re weeping. Pulling my vape from my pocket, I inhale deeply and blow out a plume of vanilla-scented vapour in your direction before scurrying off between the terraced houses that back on to the main road. I know that will have messed with your head, Stephanie; you were always so easy to mess with.
I don’t need to stay and watch, I’ve seen enough to know that you’ll be hyperventilating as you fight to control one of your stupid panic attacks. The right time will come soon and I’ll be there, lurking in the wings waiting to pounce. Now, I have work to do, people to see, and the others won’t look after themselves. A vengeful person’s work is never done.
Thirteen
Gina made a note of the addresses Mary had just given her and headed to the main office. O’Connor and Wyre were sitting at their desks, facing each other. Jacob had his own booth at the end and there were a handful of spare desks for other officers that joined them in their investigations.
‘He’s here,’ Kapoor said as she ran into their office, grinning excitedly.
‘Welcome back,’ Jacob shouted as he let a party popper off over PC Smith’s head, the little streamers settling on the shoulder of his pristine uniform. He winced as he hunched his shoulders.
After being stabbed on their last big case, PC Smith had recovered enough to be allowed back on desk duty only, and Gina was thrilled that he had been assigned to back up their department, along with Kapoor. He hobbled towards one of the spare desks, flinching as he turned, a bead of sweat dripping down his face until it reached the tiny piece of tissue that he’d stuck to a shaving cut. Gina rubbed her chin and caught his eye. Covering his embarrassment with a smile, he wiped the tissue away. ‘Grab us a chair will you.’ Jacob wheeled one across the room and placed it beside Smith. ‘I can’t tell you how glad I am to be back even though I do feel as though my shoulder is frozen. If I sit around eating any more biscuits in front of the TV, I won’t fit out of the house.’ He chuckled, putting everyone at ease.
‘We are so glad to have you back.’ Gina hurried to the kitchenette with Jacob. She grabbed the cake that Detective Constable Harry O’Connor’s wife had made, while he carried the coffee pot and cups on the tray. ‘Welcome back!’
‘Look at this timber.’ He grabbed a chunk of his stomach over his shirt. ‘Between you lot and my wife, dieting is going to be hard.’ He laughed as he cut into the cake. ‘You only live once and all that.’ He took a bite and smiled. ‘Mmm.’
‘Mrs O sends her love.’ O’Connor pointed to the cake.
Gina smiled. ‘It goes without saying that we’ve deeply missed you and we’re all thrilled to have you back. It definitely hasn’t been the same. Right, I’d love to sit here all day and have a tea party with you all, but we have work to do. I know it’s early days for our missing woman, Susan Wheeler, but it’s a huge concern that she hasn’t returned home yet. Smith, did you read the file I sent you?’
He nodded as he swallowed the sponge cake. ‘I think you’ve all read the notes, but just to summarise, Susan was reported missing yesterday after failing to pick her son up from nursery on Tuesday. Susan’s mother, Mary Hudson, picked the little boy up and he has been with her since. Susan was also meant to pick her two daughters up from their father’s flat at eight on Tuesday evening. Again, she didn’t turn up. In the meantime, there’s an ANPR on her car and we haven’t located her phone’s current position as yet as it’s switched off or lost its charge. Did I do good?’
‘A-plus,’ Gina replied. ‘That is the sum of what we have. We’re waiting for a more detailed report of what was on her phone before and that may tell us where she’s been and who she’s messaged and called.’
‘Is that all we have to go on at the minute?’ O’Connor asked as he wiped cake from the side of his mouth and licked his lips. The strip light reflected off his bald head as he leaned forward.
Gina forced a smile as O’Connor chewed on the cake, the noise grating on her. ‘Up until a few minutes ago, yes. As you know, Jacob and I went to Susan’s house this morning with Mary. We were rudely ushered out after a quick look. I know something is going on with this family, the way they act, the way they pushed us out, and I intend to find out what they are hiding. Mary called after we left as she found a few notes on Susan’s desk. These notes included two addresses and a postcode.’
‘Local?’ Wyre leaned back, her chair creaking.
‘Yes. I’ll come onto those in a moment. Going back to Mary. When I spoke to her last night, she seemed to say that things were fine in her daughter’s life, which made us rule out that she may have hurt herself. After visiting Susan’s house this morning, it looked to me like Susan wasn’t coping at all given the state and smell of the place. Going back to the addresses in the torn-out page of her notebook, I want them followed up on ASAP. If these people were the last to see Susan on Tuesday, they may be able to tell us how she seemed or if she said she was heading somewhere. Are we all clear on what we’re doing next?’
Detective Constable Paula Wyre nodded. O’Connor passed her a piece of cake. ‘No thanks,’ she replied.
‘I wish I had your willpower.’ Smith finished off his slice and spun in his chair, ready to turn the computer on. ‘I’m totally at your disposal, guv. What should I get going on?’
‘Look into the two addresses for me and let me know what you come up with. We need to know who lives at them. As well as those, we have a postcode. I need to know which streets this covers. Also, see if we have any records on Susan’s family. O’Connor?’
‘Yes, guv.’
‘If you could work closely with Smith that would be great. Since visiting Susan’s house and meeting her family, I feel we know a little more about her life and circumstances, and I am worried for her safety and state of mind so we need to crack on. I want her found.’
‘On it, guv,’ O’Connor replied.
Gina cleared her throat. ‘I hate to say this but now we know that things were getting on top of her, I’d like the suicide hotspots checked. Not the nicest of jobs, I know, but it’s something we have to do.’ An image interrupted Gina’s thoughts. That of a woman lying under a bridge or in the river. ‘Oh, and check her social media. Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, even Google. Find out all you can about her.’
‘I heard there was cake,’ Kapoor said as she hurried over and cut a huge slice.
‘Jacob, we’ll head over to the first address that we have. Kapoor, I need you to get out there and check out a few of the suicide hotspots. The reservoir, the woods, etcetera. Wyre will fill you in and you can work on this together.’ She turned and smiled at Jacob as he was doing up his overcoat and wrapping a scarf around his neck. ‘Let’s go.’ Gina shivered, not envying Wyre and Kapoor. She just hoped that they wouldn’t find a body today. Mother goes missing, messy divorce, drinking a lot more, not turning up to pick up her children and family definitely hiding something. Get th
at thought out of your head. Gina pulled her gloves on. She was adding two to two and coming up with five already. Susan probably hadn’t killed herself. But why would she not pick up her children or call anyone? She swallowed and wiped the sweat beads from her brow.
Fourteen
Mary leaned over the breakfast bar, gripping her cup. She took another sip of green tea, brow furrowed as she stared at the garden fence. The house was in silence while Harrison was having a rare lunchtime nap. She listened as Clare hurried into the living room and answered a phone call.
‘Hello. Ryan?’
Her daughter spoke in hushed tones. Mary crept across the room and placed her ear against the door.
‘I know I can’t say anything. Okay, okay!’
What couldn’t Clare say? If they were holding something back and knew of Susan’s whereabouts, she needed to know. Bursting through the door, she stood behind the coffee table, arms folded, her most serious expression pasted across her face.
‘I’ve got to go.’ Clare paused. ‘Look, I can’t talk now. I’ll call you back.’ She ended the call and placed her phone back in her pocket.
‘What can’t you talk about?’
Clare looked away and shook her head. ‘Not now, Mum.’
‘Yes now! Your sister is missing and you’re hiding something from me and worst of all, Ryan knows. You saw what was in those divorce papers and now you two are colluding on something.’
‘Colluding? What planet are you on? The only things you’re seeing in those papers are Susan’s side of the story. Did you ever stop and think that it may not all be his fault?’
Mary grabbed the sides of her hair, then dropped her hands in frustration as she let go. ‘He was calling her names, not letting her go out and controlling her. You read it and you know something, now I think back, I saw it. She didn’t visit all that often and he’d be calling her up every five minutes. Why are you even talking to him? Susan is your sister.’