by M A Comley
The car engine roared into life, and he put his foot down, constantly looking at the girl in his rear-view mirror as he drove. Her beautiful features sparked something in his groin that he’d believed had died when his wife passed. When one of them killed her. They’ll pay for that. It’s taken me a long time to get my revenge, but when it comes, it will be sweeter than a towering meringue.
He stopped off at the backstreet junk shop and left the car, locking it before he walked into the shop. After he explained to the old man behind the counter that he wanted a large wardrobe, the man pointed to the rickety stairs in the corner. “You’ll find what you want up there, son. Call me if you need a hand.”
Myers walked up the stairs, ignoring the creaks and groans in the wood, and proceeded to look around the Aladdin’s cave until he stumbled across the ideal tool for the job he had in mind. The old man whistled as he came up the stairs to find him.
“Any luck?”
“I think I’ll take this one. Any chance I can get it delivered? I have no means of transporting it myself.”
“A very good choice indeed. Of course. If you come downstairs again, I’ll sort out the paperwork and arrange the delivery. I might even be able to drop it by tonight on my way home, providing you don’t live too far.”
“That would be fantastic. It’ll be a wonderful surprise for my wife. We’re doing up an old place out in Pendlebury, just up the road.”
“No bother at all then.”
He paid for the wardrobe and left the directions to the house for the old man, then he left the shop with a satisfied grin etched on his face. Well, this should be fun. Only I have a totally different use for the item in mind. Myers fiddled around between the stations on the radio as the girl stirred in the backseat. Her head didn’t move. Only her eyes took in her surroundings. Her gaze met his a number of times in the mirror, and she swiftly looked away from him, but the temptation grew too strong to resist. Her eyes always drifted back to lock with his.
“Curious, are you?”
She ignored him.
“All will be revealed soon enough. A word of advice—if you’re compliant to my wishes, we’re going to get on really well. If you start kicking off, then you’ll end up dead like your mother.”
Her eyes widened before huge tears welled up and tumbled onto her cheeks. Her shoulders shook as she sobbed.
He loved seeing them suffer; it added a little more zest to the proceedings. “Aww…there’s no need to cry, little one. Providing you do as I say, you’ll live a long and happy life.”
He went all warm and fuzzy inside when her tears and sobs increased. He turned up the volume on the CD and tapped his fingers when Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive filled the car.
Not long after, he pulled the car into the driveway of his own house. “I’ll be two ticks. Now don’t you go anywhere.” He rushed into the house and was immediately greeted by his treasured cat. He lifted the animal up into his arms, and Tiger wriggled happily, purring like a pneumatic drill. “Have you missed me, boy? I’ll just clean your tray and top up your dishes. I shouldn’t be long now. I’ll get the kids working and then be back home with you as soon as I can, I promise.”
He cared for his beloved feline then scooped the cat up into his arms again, burying his forehead in Tiger’s fur. “Don’t miss me too much.”
Myers left the house. He peered in the back window of the car. Two terrified eyes stared back at him. His groin sprang to life when he recognised the fear the girl was feeling. In his grasp, he had two teenagers, one whose mother was dead, the other who thought her mother was. He would use that to manipulate them. He would use them to get what he wanted.
Twenty minutes later, he settled the girl in the spare bedroom of the house. She was still tied up and gagged, so she wouldn’t bother him. All he had to do was wait another hour for the delivery to show up.
Chapter 12
“Morning, Ray. Quiet night, was it?” Hero greeted the desk sergeant with a smile.
“Anything but, sir. I sent one of my lads up with a note for you that might be of interest.”
Hero frowned. “And? Don’t leave me dangling, man.”
“Strange thing happened to a member of the public, sir. I wouldn’t normally pass this sort of thing off to you—know how busy you are in MIT—however, the woman said the car involved was a white Avensis.”
Hero’s heart fluttered. “When you’ve finished talking in riddles, would you mind giving me the facts, before I spontaneously combust and make a mess in your nice clean reception area?”
“Sorry, sir. One of our patrol cars stumbled across a Merc sports last night. They thought it had been stolen and dumped at the side of the road, and were about to call for the tow truck when they heard a noise coming from inside the boot. When the boys opened it, they found a woman in her forties curled up inside. She was a bit confused, managed to mention the Avensis, and that piqued my interest.”
“Where is the woman now, Ray?”
“She’s at the Manchester Royal Infirmary, sir.”
“Thanks, give them a ring and see what ward she’s on. I’ll shoot over there now.” Hero ran up the stairs two at a time then pushed open the door to the incident room. He grunted a good morning to Sally and Julie, who were already at their desks, and continued into his office to retrieve the note from his desk.
He went straight to Julie’s desk. “Get your coat on, Julie. We’re off to the hospital. I’ll fill you in on the way. We’ll be back soon, Sally. Until then, you’re in charge. Make sure everyone knows what they’re doing regarding the case. I’ll call a meeting when we get back. Need to chase up this lead ASAP.”
He turned and rushed out of the room.
Julie’s heels clicked on the tiled floor as she tried to keep up with him. “What’s the rush, sir? Where are we going?” she asked breathlessly when they stepped outside the building.
“In the car, Julie. We’re going to the hospital—that’s all you need to know right now.”
She grumbled her dissatisfaction with being kept in the dark, and Hero and chuckled to himself.
Once the vehicle was pointing in the right direction and he’d eased into the morning traffic, Hero relayed the information to his partner.
“And you reckon the guy we’re after is involved in this?”
Hero turned to glance at her and frowned. “Don’t you, Shaw?” He tended to use her surname in their private discussions when she annoyed him. It was his way of ticking her off.
“Do you have any idea how many Avensises are in circulation nowadays, sir?”
“No. Do you?” Hero’s foot pressed down harder on the accelerator as the traffic cleared a little.
“All I’m saying is, why would he put a woman in the boot of her car and leave her there? What would he hope to gain from doing that, sir?” She turned to look out the window and mumbled under her breath.
“Maybe this is his way of playing with us. He’s trying to keep us on our toes. Maybe it’s amusing him. He’s got to be a twisted bastard for what he’s carried out on our patch already.”
“Hmm…I just think it’s more than that,” she said, her face still turned away from him.
“We’ll see when we arrive at the hospital and question the woman. Until then, let’s keep any speculation we may have under wraps, deal?”
“Whatever.”
Hero showed his ID to the girl on reception at the Accident and Emergency department. “Apparently, you have a Mrs. Michelle Baldwin here.”
“Ah, yes. If you wait over there, I’ll get a member of the nursing staff to see you.”
“Any chance they can make it snappy? Time is wasting for us on this case.”
The receptionist smiled and nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.” She rushed down the corridor to the ward at the end and emerged with a male nurse a few minutes later.
“Sorry to rush you, but it’s important that we get out there and find the man responsible. No need to tell you that, I’m sure. How
is she?”
“I completely understand. We kept her in for observation purposes last night as we had a quiet night, for a change. She’s sitting up in bed now, less traumatised than she was but still pretty shaken up.”
“Was she physically injured?”
The nurse shook his head. “Apart from a few bruises, she was fine. You’ll see how shaken up she is when I take you through. There’s no need for me to tell you to go easy on her, is there?”
“You have my word on that.”
Hero and Julie walked side by side with the nurse and entered the ward.
The nurse pulled back a curtain and stepped through the gap. Hero and Julie followed him. The woman had tear-stained cheeks where her mascara had run. She glanced up at them and hoisted the sheet under her chin.
“It’s all right, Michelle. These people are police officers. They’re here to help you, love.”
“Please, have you found Vicki…my daughter? I need to know she’s all right.”
“I’m sorry. I know nothing about your daughter.”
Fear widened her eyes. “What? You should be out there looking for her. He has her. God knows what he intends doing with her. Please, you have to find her.”
“Did you tell the officers who found you that your daughter had been abducted?”
Her brow knitted together. “Yes, at least I think I did.” Her hand covered her face, and tears sprang to her eyes.
Hero shook his head. “How old is your daughter?”
“She’s just turned twenty-one. Please, you need to find her. She’s not like other girls her age; she’s led a very sheltered life.”
“Do you have a photo of her? That would help to track her down quicker.”
Michelle searched in the locker beside her to locate her handbag and extracted a photo of her and her daughter at a funfair, smiling happily.
“Thanks, I’ll get this circulated right away. Umm…are you well enough to make a statement? I know this must be hard for you, but the quicker we assess the facts, the more likely we are to apprehend the suspect.”
Michelle reached for the glass of water sitting beside her, took a few sips, licked her lips, then looked down at her clenched hands in her lap. “We’d been out to the boutique, bought lots of outfits for our upcoming holiday on a Caribbean cruise. We were in the process of driving home when the car behind us started flashing its lights. I pulled over…why the hell I did that, I’ll never know. Anyway, this man approached my side of the car. He seemed genuine enough, had a handsome face and laughing eyes. He told me that something was poking out the boot of my car. Vicki and I both got out to check; that’s when he hit me. I was out cold before I had the chance to scream. I have no idea what went on after I passed out. When I woke up, I was inside the boot of my car. If his intention was to rob us, wouldn’t he have stolen my car? It’s worth forty-five thousand pounds, for God’s sake. Why take my daughter? If that’s what he’s done. Why?” Her hand swept over her face, and she sobbed.
Julie stepped forward to comfort the woman. “It’s okay. We’ll find her.”
Michelle lowered her hands and looked at Julie. “Will you? Do you know this man?”
“We think it might be the same man we’re searching for in relation to a few crimes in the area,” Hero replied when Julie glanced over at him for assistance.
“So why haven’t you caught him yet?”
Hero bowed his head in shame. “He’s canny, proving to be very elusive. We’re doing our best, I can assure you, Mrs. Baldwin.”
“What will it take for you to find him—them?”
“I’m not sure what you mean by that comment.”
“My husband and I are very wealthy. What if we offer some kind of reward? Could the abductor be about to approach us with a ransom demand? Is that how these things work?”
“There is no sign of this man asking for any ransom money.”
“What? How do you know that?”
Hero sighed heavily. “Because he abducted a young man a few days ago. He robbed a post office where the lad worked and killed the boy’s mother.”
Michelle gasped and placed a hand on her chest. “My God …why? Why did he spare me?”
“That’s another piece of the puzzle we have to figure out in this complex case. Would you be willing to work with a sketch artist to help ID the offender?”
“Of course. I’ll do anything necessary to bring my daughter home. My husband is in Dubai at the moment, away on business. He’s jumping on the first flight he can find to be with me. We can sort out a reward when he returns.”
“What line of business is your husband in?” Hero asked, wondering if that had any connection as to why the woman and her daughter had been targeted.
“The oil business. I can’t tell you any more than that. It’s far too complicated for me to understand.”
“Okay, I’ll speak to your husband when he returns, but I really do think it would be a waste of time offering the reward. All these things do is burden the police with hoax calls that will only distract us from the task of finding your daughter.”
“I understand. I doubt my husband will, though. He’s a determined bugger and doesn’t appreciate people being negative around him.”
“Thanks for the warning. I’ll be sure to be prepared when he discusses the subject with me.”
“He’ll more than likely jump right in and announce the reward under his own steam. He has close friends within the media.”
“Thank you again for the warning. When is he due to land?”
She shrugged. “I have no idea. You might want to check the flights. He’ll come directly here to see me.”
“I’ll get my team to look into that now. Do you know when they’ll be discharging you?”
“Once my husband gets here, although I feel well enough to go home now.”
“We could drop you back at your house if you want. Do you want me to check with the doctor first?”
“Thank you.”
Hero went in search of the duty doctor. He asked the receptionist to put a call out over the Tannoy. Within a few minutes, a female doctor arrived at reception to see him. He showed her his ID and introduced himself. “Hello, Doctor, I was wondering if Mrs. Baldwin is free to be discharged. We could drop her home. Apparently, her husband is on his way back from Dubai to be with her.”
“I was going to discharge her soon, so I have no objection to her leaving with you, Inspector. I’ll fill out the necessary paperwork.”
“You’re very kind.” Hero turned his back on the doctor as she spoke to the receptionist. He punched in a number on his mobile phone. “Sally, do me a favour. Ring Manchester Airport, see when the first flight from Dubai is going to land. If they land there, of course.”
“I’ll get back to you ASAP, sir.”
Hero strode back to the cubicle but stood outside for a few seconds when he heard Mrs. Baldwin sobbing on the other side of the curtain. He stepped through the curtain and said awkwardly, “The doctor is signing the discharge papers now. Will you be all right to dress alone? Or would you rather Julie stay here with you?”
“No. I’ll be fine. There’s a bathroom down the hallway. I’ll nip in there and be ready in ten minutes if that’s not holding you up too long?”
“Of course not. Take your time.” Hero’s mobile tinkled in his pocket, and he retrieved it to see the message Sally had sent. “According to my colleague, your husband’s flight is due to land at one-fifteen this afternoon. We could drop you off and return later. How’s that?”
“Thank you. Will you bring the sketch artist with you?”
“If she’s available, yes.”
Hero and Julie waited in the reception area for the woman to get changed.
The doctor marched towards them, with Mrs. Baldwin alongside her. “Any problems, please don’t hesitate to come back to us. I hope the police find your daughter soon.”
“Thank you, Doctor. Your staff have looked after me very well, which I really apprec
iate.”
Hero and Julie walked either side of Michelle as they made their way out to the car. She remained quiet in the backseat until they were close to her home, then she instructed them which roads to take for a shortcut to her Chorlton home. Hero’s eyes almost left his head when they arrived at the mansion. The place seemed bigger than Buckingham Palace. He’d never seen anything so grand in all his days. It even knocked spots off Rupert Hartley’s residence, which he had visited when the man’s wife and son had been mown down by a gang of thugs in the Manchester area. He had eventually solved that case which had a sad ending. That place came with acres of land, but there was no evidence of any extra land at the Baldwin house.
“You have a beautiful house, Mrs. Baldwin.”
“Do you think that’s why this man targeted Vicki and me? I’ve never had a problem before, and we’ve lived here for almost fifteen years.”
“I don’t think so. Let’s hope the culprit doesn’t find out, or if his intention was to ask for a ransom, the figure he had in mind might be inflated if he realises this is where you and your daughter live.” He winced once he’d spoken. Dumb idiot, what did I say that for?
They exited the car, and Michelle’s shoulders sagged with the weight of the situation as they strode across the gravel and up the steps to the front door. Michelle inserted her key.
Hero took it from her. “Maybe the two of you should have waited in the car. I should take a scout around the house first, as a precaution.”
“You think he could be inside, waiting for us, me?”
“The likelihood of that is zero; however, I’d rather err on the side of caution.”
“We’ll wait here. Leave the door open, sir, and shout if you need me to place a call for backup.”
“Thanks, Shaw, I’ll do that.” He pushed open the front door, tilted his head to listen, and entered the magnificent hallway, which had been furnished with black-and-white marble floors. The chandelier hanging over the grand sweeping staircase, Hero guessed must have cost over fifty thousand alone. As he travelled through the mansion, he resisted the urge to whistle at the grandeur bombarding his vision. Nothing appeared to be out of place, and there were no signs of tread marks on the carpets in any of the rooms downstairs. He ran up the staircase and opened every door in the long hallway. He lost count after opening the first ten. When he’d searched every room and come to the conclusion that the house was safe, he returned to the front door and gave Julie and Michelle the go-ahead to enter.