Lost Girls (34 page)

K
im waited
for her eyes to adjust to the darkness and approached the shape in the corner.

Her heart stopped for the briefest of seconds.

‘No fucking way, Guv,' Bryant whispered behind her.

Yes, she had seen it too. The figure in the corner had moved.

Kim stepped forward slowly, her eyes refusing to blink.

‘It's okay, Suzie, you're safe,' Kim murmured.

The tiny form forced herself further into the corner, her head turned into the wall.

Kim pushed at Bryant's torch so that it was aimed in Suzie's general direction but not shining directly upon her.

Although a year older than Amy and Charlie, this huddled shape looked so much younger.

She wore a pair of black leggings and an oversize shirt that dwarfed her upper half. Her light brown hair had been cut short, hacked close to her head.

Like the room next door, a bucket was placed in the corner. The floor was littered with drinks cartons and wrappers.

Kim felt the tears sting her eyes. The child had been down here for thirteen months.

She swallowed the emotion in her throat.

‘Suzie, the bad men have gone. They've been taken away. They are never going to hurt you again.'

No response.

Kim felt Bryant step into the room behind her but she waved him back out.

She moved a couple of inches closer.

‘There's no need to be frightened any more. I promise you're safe.'

No response.

Kim's heart ached for the terror this child had experienced. She had to give her something familiar.

She moved closer again. ‘I met your mum, Suzie. She misses you so much.'

Suzie shook her head into the wall.

‘Are you angry with your mum, Suzie?'

Another shake of the head.

Kim took another few inches. She had to make the child look at her, to let her know she was safe. But Suzie hadn't budged from the safety of the corner.

Kim cursed her own stupidity. How many times had the child imagined that door opening, praying for her release?

‘Are you scared to look at me?'

Kim took the lack of response as a yes.

‘Do you think I'll disappear?'

No response.

Kim realised the child thought she was imagining the intrusion and if she opened her eyes it would disappear. Kim bit her own lip to fight back the tears. She wanted to run to the corner and gather the child in her arms but she couldn't risk adding to her terror.

‘Suzie, I'm going to reach out and touch your right foot. If you feel the weight of my hand you'll know that I'm not in your imagination and I'm real, okay?'

No response.

Kim touched the girl on the ankle. The contact acted as a catapult, as Suzie launched herself from the corner and into Kim's arms.

Kim closed her arms around the small, fragile body and closed her eyes.

The tears were loud and wracking but Kim was pleased there were tears.

‘It's okay, sweetheart. Those men are never going to hurt you again. I promise you.'

Suzie nestled further and Kim stroked her hair.

The rage was burning inside her.

Kim rocked the child back and forth and whispered reassurance into her ear.

The tears began to slow.

‘Suzie, are you hurt?' Kim asked, gently.

Suzie shook her head no but Kim could feel the bones of the painfully thin body in her arms.

The child had been given enough to survive and, to judge from the facilities available in the house, that had not included one proper meal.

‘Okay, sweetie, we need to get you out of here.'

Suzie huddled closer.

Kim took her gently by the arms and prised her away.

‘Don't be scared. I promise everything is going to be okay, Suzie, but I need to get back up those stairs and I could do with some help.'

Suzie nodded slightly so Kim moved gently away.

‘Okay, if you hold my hand I think I can make it.'

Again the child nodded and Kim realised that she hadn't spoken once.

That was not something to be tackled here and now. She was alive and the rest could come later.

Bryant mounted the stairs ahead of them.

The staircase was narrow so Kim climbed it sideways, not letting go of Suzie's hand.

‘Well done, Suzie. You're doing great. Now when we get outside there will be a lot of people, but don't worry about it. None of them are going to bother you.'

She felt the hand tighten within her grip. She kept talking to give the child something to hang on to.

She remembered the sirens and noise herself when she was six years old and being removed from their flat. She had wanted Mikey's hand to hold. But she couldn't because he was dead.

She pushed the thought away and focussed on easing Suzie's fear.

‘Almost there, sweetie,' Kim said, as they walked through the house.

Voices were coming from the control room. The evidence collection was already in progress.

Kim gripped the girl's hand tightly. ‘Remember what I said. No one is going to bother you, okay?'

Suzie nodded as they stepped out into the cold.

The darkened sky was ablaze with flashing blue lights.

Suzie's eyes widened as she looked at the activity; two ambulances and three squad cars produced quite a display.

Kim turned to Suzie and used her hand to tip the girl's chin to look into her face.

‘Suzie, this man here is my friend and I would trust him with my life. He's going to take you straight to your mum.'

The girl clutched her hand even tighter and Kim's bandaged hand instinctively stroked the top of her head.

‘I promise you'll be fine, sweetie, but we need to get you home.'

The child would need to be checked over soon. She was severely undernourished. They would also need to question her at some stage but nothing trumped seeing her mother. Bryant was taking her home.

Reluctantly, Suzie allowed Bryant to take her hand and guide her up the hill to where Kim had parked the car what seemed like three days ago.

Dawson materialised beside her and followed her gaze.

His head snapped around. ‘No way, Guv. That is not Suzie Cotton.'

Kim allowed herself a smile. ‘Yes, Kev. It is.'

Their gaze met and held for a moment. He began to shake his head. ‘Guv, I …' He rubbed at his chin. ‘I mean … how the hell did you know?'

‘I didn't; but I couldn't just leave her here anyway.'

His smile widened. ‘You really …'

‘Where are we?' she asked, glancing around.

He turned towards the vehicles. ‘Our kidnappers have been read their rights. Will Carter has already been taken to the station. Symes is in the first ambulance with three constables for company. And the girls are with a WPC in the second ambulance just about to leave.'

She watched as Bryant and Suzie crested the hill and disappeared from view.

She thought of Jennifer Cotton who was soon to receive a gift. The woman's life had ended with Suzie's disappearance but now it was going to re-start. Kim marvelled that they had both managed to hold on, such was the bond between mother and daughter.

Kim was jolted by the notion. Suddenly everything fell into place.

‘Dawson, go nick a squad car, now,' she said.

Finally, it was time to get Subject Number Three.

T
he squad car
pulled up on the Timmins' drive. Kim hadn't spoken during the journey as she pulled together every last strand.

‘Boss, do you want to tell me what's going on?' Dawson said

She shook her head. ‘You'll be busy.'

She stepped out of the car and the front door opened. They had not returned in the manner they'd left; rushed, panicky and full of fear.

Four anxious parents stepped out of the house. Karen and Robert were clutching each other's hands. Elizabeth was a step behind hugging Nicholas closely. Stephen walked to the far left holding his phone, alone. Their expressions were united in a mixture of both fear and hope.

Kim allowed the smile to form on her face.

‘We have them both.'

Her statement was followed by a collection of screams and cries. Kim wasn't sure what came from whom.

‘Amy has a broken finger and Charlie has an injury to her foot and face, but other than that they're alive and well and incredibly brave.'

Kim made eye contact with Karen as she said those last words.

‘They're on their way to Russells Hall for treatment so I suggest you get on your way.' She turned to Dawson. ‘My colleague will escort you on the blues.'

‘Everyone in mine,' Stephen said, pointing to a black Range Rover. In the throes of their euphoria the fractures in their relationships would pale. For now.

As they filed past her, Kim couldn't help addressing one last issue.

‘Hey, Stephen,' she said, smiling. ‘Do you like me now?'

He paused and looked at her. Gone was the aggression and hostility, now replaced by relief and joy.

‘Oh yes, Inspector, I like you very much.'

Kim watched as they huddled into the car. Stephen and Robert took the front seats, while Elizabeth put Nicholas into the baby seat.

At the last second, Karen hesitated before climbing in beside Elizabeth.

She ran back and threw her arms around Kim, pulling her close.

‘Thank you for everything, Kim. I owe you my life.'

Kim returned the hug briefly and then pushed the woman away.

‘Just go and be with your daughter.'

Karen didn't need to be told twice.

Dawson stood beside her. ‘Boss, I've got the answer. I know who ratted on Dewain.'

The sadness in his face told her he'd arrived at the same conclusion as her.

‘I knew you would. Get these parents to the hospital and then go and make the arrest. It's all yours.'

‘Thanks, boss,' he said, heading towards the squad car.

‘Oh, and Kev,' she called, as he opened the car door.

He turned.

‘I don't know what you did back then, but you're in a crew now, okay?'

His smile widened as he offered Kim a mock salute.

She waited until both vehicles had disappeared before she entered the house.

Matt stepped out of the kitchen.

Alison stood at the bottom of the stairs.

Helen stepped out of the lounge.

Kim turned and closed the front door.

There was one more loose end to tie up.

S
tacey appeared
in the hallway and looked her up and down. ‘Bloody hell, boss, are you okay?'

Kim held up her good hand and smiled. ‘I'm fine, Stace.'

The detective constable stepped forward. ‘I found Karen but she'd already sent the …'

‘Stace, it's fine. We got them all.'

Kim turned left into the lounge.

Helen followed with her hand at her throat. ‘You said the girls are okay? Oh, my goodness, I'm so relieved.'

‘Of course you are,' Kim said, tipping her head. ‘It's what you wanted all along.'

Helen frowned and Kim itched to smack the pleasant, homely face.

‘You've failed, Helen. I know exactly what you wanted and you are not going to get away with it.'

Matt now stood in the doorway. Alison and Stacey were right behind. Their confusion was obvious.

Helen looked from one to the other.

‘Kim, what on earth are you talking about?'

‘That'll be Marm to you, Helen – and it's time to drop the act.'

Helen shook her head dumbly but Kim could see the workings behind her eyes. She was trying to fathom where it had all gone wrong.

And Kim was happy to share.

‘It was clear to me early on that your boys were not working alone. Their personalities were too extreme to function without an overruling authority – and what better than a maternal figure to keep the boys in check?

‘The first kidnapping case was devised by Will on his own. It was his plan but it all went wrong because of the road traffic accident. A couple of months after that you were informed that you would be forcibly retired. You appealed and failed. Now, empty your pockets.'

Helen's eyes darted from her to the spectators in the doorway.

Kim took a step that caused pain to echo all around her body. She didn't feel like wrestling the phone from her grip but she would if she had to.

‘Kim, have you lost your mind? I'm a family liaison officer,' Helen protested.

‘Helen, I will empty them for you.'

Helen dug into her back pockets and pulled out an iPhone.

‘The front ones,' Kim said, wearily.

Helen slowly put her hand into her right pocket and brought out a second phone. A Nokia.

‘I keep two phones …'

‘It's not your phone. It belongs to Julia Trueman, aka Julia Billingham and you stole it from the evidence room.' She looked behind her. ‘Stacey, take the phone.'

Stacey strode across the room and snatched the phone from Helen's hands. She pressed a few keys and then nodded.

‘You contacted Will on the phone he'd used to try and extort money from their family. I'm betting you told him you could make sure it went right this time. That you would be in place to make sure nothing went wrong. And then I played right into your hands by requesting your involvement on this new kidnapping. You knew that anyone leading this case would have asked for the same thing.

‘I wondered why that second message was so long in coming. The girls had been gone for almost twelve hours but it was to give you time to get here and assess the situation.'

‘Kim, you're mistaken. I haven't done anything. I haven't hurt—'

‘What about Inga Bauer? You know, I couldn't work out what could have happened to persuade Inga to turn on these girls. At first I thought it was love – and in a way it was, wasn't it, Helen? But not from the men. You were the one who courted her for months, found out that she'd been abandoned as a child and that she craved maternal love, and that's exactly what you gave her. You manipulated her need for a mother; her desire to be loved unconditionally. You gave her that love and then took away her life.'

The expression on Helen's face didn't change. There was no sliver of remorse for what she had done.

‘And even Eloise had you running scared. You were terrified that she might say something to incriminate you. Once she hinted that there was bitterness close to the investigation you couldn't escort her from the property quickly enough.

‘You knew she'd let you into her home if you offered to listen to her, so you did your own dirty work and tried to make it look as though she'd died in her sleep.'

Helen stepped back and visibly paled.

‘Well, she didn't die, Helen,' Kim spat. ‘And she will identify you.'

Helen's head began to shake slowly, as though her brain couldn't compute the complexity of just how badly she'd miscalculated.

‘And the clothes had to get here somehow, didn't they?' Kim fought down her rage. ‘You walked around this property placing those items for the parents to find. How the hell could you do that?'

Kim was in no mood to give her the time to answer.

‘But the final clue. The nail in your coffin was your timely mention of a forgotten memory. And that was your intention all along, wasn't it? It was your plan that you would save the day. Your sudden memory would be the key to unlocking the location of the girls. And then you'd be the hero, wouldn't you, Helen? What police force could retire an officer so instrumental in the safe return of two young girls?

‘You subjected Charlie and Amy to a week of the most horrendous terror, just so you could be the hero and keep your bloody job. Did you think your co-conspirators would just walk away from the farmhouse when you told them to? Were they supposed to leave the girls there alive so they wouldn't be caught and identify you?' Kim asked incredulously. ‘You really thought that's what they would do?'

Finally the mask of bewilderment dropped to reveal a genuine expression of disbelief.

‘The girls were never in any danger,' Helen protested.

‘Jesus, you just don't get it, do you?' Kim stormed. ‘They were going to
kill
the girls. Will's only motivation was money and Symes had been promised their lives.'

Now she frowned. More miscalculations. What had she expected from Will; loyalty, trust?

‘No … no … no …'

‘Why, Helen?' Kim said, taking a step towards her. ‘Were you really so badly affected by your retirement that you resorted to this?'

‘You should know, Kim,' Helen said, quietly.

‘Know what?'

Helen finally met her gaze. Her eyes were cold and hard.

‘I gave everything to this job. I gave it my life. I devoted every waking hour to the police force. I did whatever I was asked.

‘I have no husband, no family; only this job – and I was about to lose that. I was owed. I asked to stay on and I was refused, yet they advertise for new officers every year.

‘I've been discarded at the point where I can have nothing else. I'm too old for children. My looks are gone. In two months' time I'll be a nothing. I'll be the woman wandering around the supermarket eager to strike up conversation with anyone who'll listen.

‘You asked for proof of life for those girls, but where's the proof of mine?'

A half-smile played on Helen's mouth.

‘You'll see, Kim. You're so much like me. You've given every ounce of yourself to this case. Do you even remember where you live? Do you have a loved one, a child, even a pet? I'm betting not, because you're allowing yourself to be swallowed by the job and in twenty years' time when you're the same age …'

Kim stepped right into her face. ‘I will never feel bitter and twisted for the choices I make and I would never endanger the life of young girls or torture families because I didn't get my own way, you evil, psychotic bitch. And, I have a dog.'

Helen's rage showed on her face. She lunged forward, hands outstretched, aiming for Kim's throat.

Kim sidestepped the attack easily and Helen fell to the ground.

Kim looked down at the pathetic figure who had almost cost two girls their lives.

‘Better practise that before you get to prison 'cos they're gonna love you in there.'