Gina hated the woman. Stephanie was a witness and the last thing she needed was rumours going around that she was anything other than that. She’d seen a reporter hanging around when they’d left the station. No doubt he was in there now fishing for information and loitering so that he could harass Stephanie Baxter when she came out.
‘Well, is it true?’
‘Please step off the drive, you are hindering our enquiry.’ Jacob almost stepped on Lyndsey’s foot, forcing her back.
‘I’ll be waiting,’ she replied. A smug smile on her face.
Gina knocked again and then looked through the letterbox. ‘Mary, it’s DI Harte and DS Driscoll. Let me in.’
She watched as Mary scurried from behind the kitchen door. Harrison began to yell and kick out as his mother tried to drag him back. ‘They won’t go away.’
‘I’m sorry about that. We need to talk.’
As she opened the front door, Gina and Jacob squeezed into the hallway and followed Mary. Clare passed them in the hallway as she stared at a message on her phone, holding Harrison in her other arm as he squirmed. ‘I’m just going upstairs to calm him down.’ Mary snubbed her daughter as she continued up the stairs.
They hurried to the kitchen and Mary shut the door behind them. Kitchen blinds down, curtains drawn, the house was in darkness. ‘You’ve found her body, haven’t you? It’s not my granddaughter. Please, it can’t be Phoebe.’ Mary stared. ‘That’s why they’re all here. They already know. I called the station but no one said anything except that you were on your way. You come in person to deliver bad news. I don’t know what I’ll do if something has happened to Phoebe.’
Gina placed a friendly hand on Mary’s arm, taking in the warmth permeating through her jumper. For a moment, it was like she was touching her own mother. She watched as Mary wrinkled her nose when she sniffed back her tears, and the way her hair gently fell over her ear. She wanted nothing more than to feel close to her mother one more time, to tell her how much she loved her and how sorry she was, but Mary wasn’t her mother and she never would be.
‘Guv, you okay?’ Jacob waited for her answer.
She let go of Mary’s shoulder. ‘We haven’t found Susan or Phoebe yet but we’re doing everything we can to find them, I promise. Every person, every department we have is out there looking for them, right now. We’re following a new lead as we speak but in the meantime, I need to ask you where your husband is.’
‘Howard?’
‘Yes, Mary.’
What she was going to say next would break Mary’s heart and she knew it. She couldn’t keep what she knew to herself any longer. ‘We need to know where he is.’
‘But he hasn’t done anything. Not Howard, surely.’
‘Mary, where is he?’
‘What’s happened?’
‘We need to speak to Mr Hudson first, I’m so sorry. Where is he, Mary?’
‘He left early this morning, saying he had work to do. He snuck out the back when the journalists were taking a break and I haven’t seen him since. I’ve been calling him and he hasn’t answered. What’s happened? Has he hurt Susan?’
Gina cleared her throat and nodded to Jacob. He would send uniform a message, telling them that Howard wasn’t in the building and to put an alert out for him. ‘Do you know a Ronald Halshaw?’
‘What’s this got to do with him?’
‘You know him?’
‘Of course. He’s Howard’s cousin. Howard’s been fixing his laptop.’
They were getting somewhere. ‘Tell me a little about their relationship.’
‘Has this got anything to do with Susan and Phoebe?’
Gina unbuttoned her coat. ‘That’s what we’re trying to establish. It would really help if you told us everything you know about Ronald Halshaw.’
‘He moved away for years. His wife left him about twenty years ago, taking his daughter. He lost everything. He hasn’t seen his child since, she refused contact. Anyway, when he moved, they lost touch. A few months ago, Ron called to say he was moving back into the area and they’ve spent a lot of time together since. Has something happened to Ron?’
‘Did Ron have anything to do with Susan?’
‘No. Howard and I have only been together several years. I’d never heard of Ron until earlier this year and I only saw him when he came around to see Howard. Howard went to his mostly and I don’t think Susan has ever met him.’ Mary pulled at a strand of wool that hung from the cuff of her jumper.
