‘What are we going to tell the press, boss?’
A good question and one Helen had been chewing on since she left Jim Grieves. Emilia Garanita wasn’t going to go away and there would be others behind her. A young girl had shot her boyfriend in a deserted location. It was horrific and thus good copy.
‘As little as possible. Until we’re in control of this, we can’t let out there’s a third party involved. So we call it a domestic but go gently on the detail. The press will infer all sorts of things about Sam and why Amy killed him…’
‘But we don’t want to blacken his name unnecessarily.’
‘Exactly. He and his mum deserve better than that.’
‘Ok, let’s play it tight for now.’
He headed back to work. He was unquestionably rough around the edges – rangy, unshaven, rugged – but on form Mark was a good copper to have on your team. Helen hoped it would last.
Satisfied everything was in hand, she allowed herself five minutes for a cup of tea. She was tired – the interview with Amy had been gruelling and the visit to the mortuary even worse. She wanted to tune out for a moment, but her brain wouldn’t let her. Sam’s awful death had got to her and she couldn’t shake the image of his lifeless, twisted face. What a thing for his mother to have to see.
She was so deep in thought that she didn’t notice Charlie until she was virtually on top of her.
‘Boss. You’ll want to see this.’
The day had already been full of nasty surprises, but Helen sensed she was about to get another.
Charlie handed her a pair of photos – two smartly dressed business types, one in his thirties, one a fair bit older.
‘Ben Holland and Peter Brightston. Reported missing three days ago. They were travelling back from a legal pow-wow in Bournemouth. Never made it home.’
A sickening feeling was creeping over Helen.
‘Their car was found in the New Forest. Local plod and the park rangers have scoured every inch of the forest. No sign.’
‘And?’ Helen sensed there was more.
‘Coats, bags and wallets still in the car. Their mobiles were found near by – the SIM cards have been deliberately destroyed.’
Another abduction then. And this one even stranger than the first. Two grown men, smart, strong and able to take care of themselves, had vanished into thin air.