by M A Comley
She set off and followed the inspector up the narrow winding road to the hotel. They all booked in and retired to their rooms. At the door to her room, Debs pleaded with Martin not to leave her.
“Okay, I won’t. But no funny business,” he warned, breaking into a rare smile.
“I promise. I don’t think I could stand being alone, not tonight.”
“Me neither.” He opened the door and motioned for her to step into the large bay-windowed room. There was a four-poster bed along one wall and a chaise longue along another. He stared at the chaise and mumbled, “I’ll take the couch.”
Debs laughed. “And have you waking me up when you fall off the edge during the night? No way, we’ll share the bed. I’m sure we’ll both do our best to resist the temptation to maul each other.”
“If you’re sure.”
“I am. Sleep with your clothes on, if you want to.”
“No, I’d rather not, they’re still damp. I think I’ll take a shower.”
“Good idea. Damn, I’ll have to rinse my undies out, I drove up here without packing a bag. My head was in such a spin before I got on the road.”
“Understandable. I’m sure they’ll dry on the heated towel rail or the radiator overnight.”
“You shower first and then I’ll rinse them out. I don’t suppose there are any shops around here anyway.”
“Nope, that’s a given, we’re out in the wilds out here. I think the nearest one is in Seascale.” He fell quiet, his train of thought swiftly diverting to that of Adele’s safety. “If she’s out there, I hope she’s all right. I feel guilty being here, tucked up in a cosy hotel room while the temperature outside drops overnight.” He sank onto the end of the bed, elbows on his knees, and he covered his head with his hands. “I feel so inadequate, no, worse than that, useless. If only…”
Debs rushed to stand by his side. She touched his hand gently. “You need to stop punishing yourself like this, Martin. It’ll soon be daylight again, hold on to that thought.”
He looked up at her and smiled. “I’m glad you’re here, you were always the one who talked a lot of sense and analysed things logically.”
“Ah, they’re great traits to have. Come on, it’s getting late, go take a shower and I’ll climb into bed while you’re gone.”
Rising from the bed, he paused in front of her and caught the faint smell of her perfume. It smelt comforting and took him back to days gone by, when they’d been together. She grabbed him by the shoulders, pointed him in the direction of the bathroom and patted him on the backside to get him moving.
“Go.”
He slipped into the bathroom and closed the door.
Whilst the shower was heating up, he studied his reflection in the mirror over the sink. His eyes were dark underneath and the whites were bloodshot. It’s to be expected, to look an utter mess when one’s child is missing, isn’t it? Please, please, Adele, be safe and out of harm’s way. We’ll begin searching again for you at first light and continue searching until we find you.
The steam hampered his vision, jolting him to strip off and hop in the shower. Tilting his head back, he welcomed the warm spray on his face. Five minutes later, he felt refreshed and invigorated. Maybe it hadn’t been the best idea to shower this evening, perhaps he would have been better off leaving it until the morning instead. He dried off and then wrapped the large towel around his middle and returned to the bedroom. Debs was scrolling through her phone.
“What are you doing?” The towel dropped to the floor and he eased into the bed beside her, feeling comfortable in her presence. Maybe if things were different, we… Debs’ voice brought him back to reality once more.
“I thought I’d check if there was any reaction to the police conference. Looking on Google, it appears to be hot news across all the media sites. If, and it’s a big if, she’s been abducted, maybe putting it out there was a good thing. At least people will be on the lookout for her.”
“Hmm… will they?”
“Of course they will. What makes you say that?”
“Oh, I don’t know, I have my doubts. Hey, did you supply the inspector with a photo of Adele?”
“No. I never thought. I presumed you had.”
“Nope. Is there a photo of her on the internet?”
Debs angled her phone in his direction. “Yes. How did they get hold of it?”
Martin groaned and banged his head several times against the pine headboard. “I bet Louise supplied it. Damn, I’ve been such a bastard to her.”
“Don’t blame yourself. I’m sure she’ll understand and you’ll be able to work things out with her when all this is over.”
“Not sure I want to. She probably gave them the photo out of guilt. She’s still at fault here, let’s not forget that, Debs.”
She got out of the bed naked and walked towards the bathroom, her undies in her right hand. “You’re a harsh man, Martin. Not forgiving her will eventually eat you up inside.”
The door closed behind her, leaving him to contemplate the truth behind her statement. He knew she was right, but refused to back down over such an important issue. Even if they got Adele back, could he ever trust Louise to look after his daughter in the future? He doubted it. As far as he was concerned, there was no way back for them, not in the immediate future, anyway.
He was scrolling through the media attention on Debs’ phone when she exited the bathroom. His gaze was drawn to her beautiful curves, the ones his hands used to trace before they split up. During the course of the day, or since her arrival at least, he’d found himself trying to remember how or why they had split up. It was funny how significant facts vanished while the body was under stress.
“Are you spying on me, Martin Jenkins?”
“No, I’m just admiring the perfect view.”
She chuckled and pointed at her phone. “I meant that.”
“Ugh… sorry, my bad.” His cheeks burned.
Debs trotted across the floor to the radiator under the window, spread her underwear out on it, then raced back to the bed and dived under the covers beside him. He was aware they were both naked beneath the duvet and fought hard to control the urge stirring in his groin. Now is neither the time nor the place, mate. Our kid is missing and all I can think about is…
Debs reached for the bedside light, turned it on and switched the overhead light off on the wall above the headboard. The intimate lighting only underlined his senses and his dick jumped to attention. He covered the proof by linking his hands together on top of the quilt. “I suppose we’d better try and get some sleep.”
Debs leaned over and kissed him on the cheek and then turned her back on him and switched the light off. “Goodnight.”
He hunkered down under the quilt, his erection already subsiding. “I hope you sleep well.”
“I will, with you beside me.”
He managed to drift off, only for a nearby scream to wake him a few hours later.
“Adele! Where are you?” He woke up, shouting.
Disorientated, it took a couple of seconds for him to figure out where he was and what he was doing there. Tearing out of the bed, he switched on the light to find Debs hugging the quilt to her, sobbing. Martin dived back into the bed and gathered her to him. She hesitated at first, went rigid in his arms, but then she quietly relented and allowed his arms to encircle her. Rocking her, he kissed her head over and over. She clung to him. “It’s okay. I’m here.”
Sniffling, Debs whispered, “Yes, but she’s still gone. My baby! My beautiful daughter is missing. I had a nightmare. If I close my eyes again, I know I’ll revisit it. I don’t want to go there again. Help me, Martin. How do we get over this?”
“There, there. It’s a good question, and believe me, I’ve lain awake most of the night trying to work out where we go from here, but our hands are tied. We need to be patient. We have each other, we’re stronger as a unit than we’ve ever been before. We’ll get through this.”
“How are we going to
do that? It’s the unknown that I’m afraid of. I keep putting myself in her position, at least I’m trying to; she must be petrified, scared shitless. I don’t know how much more of this I can handle. If we don’t find her soon, she could be lost to us forever.”
“Honestly, Debs, we truly mustn’t go down that route, I won’t allow us to write-off our chances of ever being reunited with her.”
“I’m sorry. I’m doing my best to remain positive, I promise, but that nightmare… if it comes true, it will completely destroy us.”
“You need to put it out of your mind. Nightmares are just the wrong side of your brain coming up with bad scenarios, that’s all, sweetheart. Please, don’t give it a second thought.” He really had no idea if what he was saying was the truth or not. Even to his ears, it sounded dubious, but at this point, he was willing to cling on to anything and everything just to get by.
Debs’ sobbing eventually subsided. With her head resting on his chest, she drifted off to sleep. He reached behind him, switched off the main light and laid there, his own mind flitting from one bad notion to another. Surely, nothing good could come out of a situation like this, where a five-year-old goes missing.
With every negative thought that flashed through his mind, his fighting spirit dwindled only for his anger towards Louise to re-emerge. He’d been right to send her packing; there was no way he could be with her, not now, not in the future. To look at her kids enjoying themselves in their rooms would have torn him apart in no time at all.
So why do I feel bad about the way things ended between us? How do I go on from this? Will I ever get my daughter back? Will I ever be able to lead a fulfilling life ever again?
The truth was, there was no way of knowing what lay ahead of them, either of them, or the obstacles they would need to surmount in the days or weeks ahead of them.
Adele, honey, come back to us!
6
The sensation of someone tugging at his arm made him sit bolt upright. “Adele, I’m coming baby. Daddy’s coming!”
“I’m sorry to wake you. You were dreaming, saying her name over and over. It was breaking my heart. Oh, Martin, what are we going to do?”
Debs broke down beside him. He gathered her in his arms and ran a soothing hand over her dyed burgundy hair, which was losing its colour at the sides, reverting back to her normal shade of brunette. “We won’t know that until we get out there and have a word with the inspector in charge, see if there have been any developments during the night. I’m going to get ready, I suggest you do the same. We’ll need to have something to eat before we tackle the day ahead.”
“I don’t think I could eat anything. My stomach is churning with waves of nausea every time her adorable face enters my mind. I want our daughter back. I can’t bear to consider life without her. I won’t be able to continue, not without her.”
Her despair and the thought of her ending her own life, which is how he’d interpreted what she’d said, knocked him sideways. He tried to remain upbeat when he spoke. “Now what have I told you about remaining positive? Negative thoughts will only have a detrimental effect on your mind and body, don’t fall for that trick, hon.”
Debs inhaled a shuddering breath and her shoulders shook from the effort. “This is all such a mess. A mess we can’t even begin to sift through to find a solution. Our backs are against the wall. It’s the inability to correct the issue that is going to eat away at me. I feel numb inside. How do we overcome the helplessness to change the situation?”
“I don’t have all the answers, hon. Come on, let’s get up and back out there.” He eased out from underneath her and threw back the quilt, thankful he hadn’t woken up with his usual proud erection.
She said nothing as she watched him cross the room and disappear into the bathroom. When he emerged ten minutes later, he found her glancing out of the window at the surrounding hills, the quilt wrapped around her.
“The bathroom is free, are you all right?”
“It’s a beautiful area. Enticing for a child to explore, if that’s what happened.”
“I’d rather think that than the alternative. I regret coming here, we should have gone to the beach instead. Had we done that yesterday morning, we wouldn’t be dealing with this situation right now.”
“There’s no point thinking like that, Martin, we have to accept it and move on. I’ll get dressed. If you want to go down for breakfast, I’ll catch up with you.”
“Are you going to eat something?”
She shrugged. “Maybe I’ll force a bowl of cereal down me, nothing more.”
She waddled across the room and dropped the quilt on the floor once she reached the bathroom door. He fetched it and threw it on the bed, then left the room. In the corridor, he found the sergeant about to knock on one of the bedroom doors. He turned to look at Martin and offered an awkward smile.
“Morning, how are things?”
Martin nodded. “I was about to ask the same. Any news?”
“I’m sorry, no.”
The door opened, and the inspector came out of the room. “Good morning, Martin. Did you sleep well?”
“What do you think?” he retorted harshly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean for it to come out like that. Off and on. You?”
“Yes and no. I spent most of the night checking the internet and ringing the station for updates. Nothing new to report. Are you going down for breakfast?”
“Yes, just on my way.” He jabbed a thumb behind him and said, “Debs is taking a shower. She’ll join me in a few minutes. I’ve persuaded her to have a bowl of cereal at least.”
“Very wise. Join us, we can discuss where we go from here, if you’re up for that first thing in the morning?”
“Yes, I’m eager to hear what your thoughts are.”
The three of them walked the length of the corridor and descended the stairs. A young blonde waitress was waiting at the entrance of the dining room. She smiled and said, “Good morning. I hope you slept well.” Not bothering to wait for a response, she went on, “Please help yourselves to cereal, continental breakfast and juice. I’ll be over shortly to take your order for a cooked breakfast, should you want one, and any drinks you require.”
“Thanks very much,” the inspector replied, speaking on behalf of all of them.
Cobbs and Jones made their way over to a table situated in the bay window while Martin made a detour and chose muesli, a pain au chocolat and a small glass of orange juice from the display on offer.
Uneasily, he sat down opposite the detectives. Guilt seeping through him, he offered, “Lack of food throughout the day yesterday, thought I’d make up for it today instead.”
“No need to explain. It’s a great idea to keep your strength up,” the inspector agreed as the waitress appeared beside her.
“What would you like? Tea or coffee?”
“Coffee for me,” Martin was the first to respond.
“Two coffees, thanks. Bob, what do you fancy?” the inspector asked her partner.
His reply was an awkward one. “Would a full-English be all right, boss?”
“Of course. Martin?”
“Yes, that’ll be great for me too.”
“What about Deborah, what do you think she’ll want when she joins us?”
“A bowl of cereal, that’s all.”
Cobbs nodded. “Okay, and I’ll have scrambled eggs on toast with some crispy bacon on the side, if that’s all right?”
“Okey dokey. I’ll be back shortly with your drinks and some toast.” The waitress dashed to the other side of the room and went into the kitchen.
“The staff are efficient, hopefully we won’t be kept waiting too long,” Cobbs announced.
Martin tucked into his cereal, his stomach growling in complaint at being forgotten about the previous day. He looked down at it. “It’s coming, be patient.”
The inspector smiled. “How’s Debs this morning?”
He paused before shovelling in another spoonful. “She seems okay, w
e both are. Are the Mountain Rescue Team going to join us again this morning? What’s the plan?”
“Yes, I’ve asked each of the teams to rejoin us, well, all except the dive team, that is. There’s no point in them coming all the way out here again.”
“It was a relief to see them draw a blank, even though it hasn’t solved the mystery of Adele’s disappearance as yet.”
“Agreed. They were relieved not to discover her body in the lake as well, from what I can gather.”
“You said you’d been in touch with the station during the night, anything from that?” Martin studied her as he sipped his orange juice.
“Nothing so far. With any case similar to this, we have to sift through the calls we receive; some are more valuable than others shall we say, especially when a child disappears.”
Martin glanced up from his breakfast and frowned. “Don’t tell me there are folks out there who deliberately try and put the police off the scent early on in the investigation.”
Cobbs smiled. “All right, I won’t, but the opposite is the truth. There are certain sectors of our society which tend to band together at moments like this and set out to cause mischief.”
Martin paused and thought the prospect over for a second or two before the penny finally dropped. “No, you’re talking about paedos, right?”
“Yes, unfortunately. Once word gets out, they’ll do anything and everything to get in our way.”
“Bloody hell, I’ve never even considered that possibility before.”
“It makes our job so much tougher, which is their intention.”
“Do you think they send messages to each other, to ensure everything goes according to plan? I can’t believe I’m thinking this deviously, let alone discussing it with you.”
“Yes, on the Dark Web, anything is possible to achieve. It drives an SIO, like me, crazy most of the time.”
“I can imagine. Makes your job a thousand times worse as well, right?”