Elea wasn’t finished. “We need ground rules. You can’t just walk in here whenever you like. And I’m allowed guests...After all, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.” Elea had a whole plethora of English sayings that she had picked up from her father.
“Yes, of course,” Swann agreed, not wanting to think about Elea with anyone else. “Anyway, I’m glad you like the sauna. The place is yours for as long as you need it.”
Elea arched an eyebrow. “No matter what? You won’t kick me out if I put a foot wrong? Because I can’t have that hanging over my head.”
“It’s yours. No matter how many times you piss me off.”
“Good.” A slow smile spread across her face. “Because I’ve made a deal with Sienna Thompson. She’s going to tell us everything.”
“You what?” Swann couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “After everything I said in the briefing. The warnings not to interfere...Jesus, Elea, are you desperate to get me the sack?”
“Did you not hear me? She knows where Chelsea is.” She laid her hand on his arm. Drew him so close that he could smell her perfume. She was intoxicating. “Liisa’s alive. Sienna knows where she is.”
Swann looked away. He couldn’t bear to see the hope in her eyes. Because he knew people like Sienna Thompson. They did favours for no one. “How much?” he asked, stepping around her emotions, which were still so raw.
“For what?” But Elea’s eyes betrayed her. She knew exactly what he meant.
“How much money does she want?” He waited for her answer. Watched a shadow of doubt cross her face. He folded his arms.
Elea sighed. “One hundred thousand pounds.”
Chapter 34
The day had been so perfect. Another breakthrough. Real progress. The old camaraderie between her and Swann that she would never get enough of. His Brayford flat had immediately felt like home. She’d inhaled the scent of fir cones and pine needles, her eyes alighting on the Scandinavian reed diffusers that he’d bought for her. She melted a little inside at his subtle welcome to his old home. The place came fully furnished and was exactly her style: Scandi comfort with a modern twist. The books on Swann’s bookshelf were just what she wanted to read. Then there were the pictures of Lincoln Cathedral that immediately drew her in. It was the blend of England and Finland that she didn’t know she’d needed until now. She even gave it a name: “Finglish.”
Then, in the midst of all that happy perfection, she’d dropped her bombshell. She had to. “Donating” £100,000 to a criminal could end up with her being prosecuted and Elea would find herself on the wrong side of the thin blue line. There was also the small matter of getting her hands on so much money. She’d accumulated savings over the years—enough to help Liisa piece her life back together again. But she had to find her daughter first. She could remortgage her house in Finland, but Sienna had demanded untraceable cash. Not an easy task these days. She needed Swann’s help. Of course she’d had doubts, but her maternal instinct was a force in itself. It spoke with the regularity of a heartbeat, repeating the same three words: “Get Liisa back.”
“There’s no way...” Swann’s muscles were taut as he disengaged himself from her grip. “No way in hell that you’re giving that woman a penny.” Now he was looking at Elea as if she’d lost her mind. “Do you know what they’ve done? They’ve been supplying people to order. Homeless people promised a job and ending up as modern-day slaves. Runaway kids taken off the streets. They’re sold to people, Elea.Sold. Left to live in a cupboard under the stairs. But this isn’t a fucking Harry Potter fairytale. The house is stuffed to the rafters with cannabis plants, and God help them if they let one die.”
Elea rolled her eyes as he ranted, gesticulating one hand in the air. When Swann got like this, she had two choices: have a blazing row or wait until he ran out of steam. In the olden days, such rows usually ended up with them having sex. But there were no consolation prizes today. Judging by how the atmosphere was crackling between them, it was safer to wait it out. She would defend her decision when he was done. She stood barefoot on the deep-pile living-room carpet, trying to find the words she needed to get him onside.
“Sienna’s in over her head.” She looked up at him. “I know she’s no angel. But now she wants out.” Elea told him about their meeting, and the potential pregnancy—because she wasn’t gullible enough to believe every word that Sienna said.
“So Sienna gives you Liisa, then walks off into the sunset with one hundred grand?” Swann tutted as if she were four years old. “I thought you had more sense than that.”
“Sense?” Elea retorted, hating the words leaving his mouth. “What sense would you have, if it were your boys’ lives on the line?”
“Elea.” Swann sighed. “I’d give Sienna the money myself if I thought it would bring Liisa back. But she’s scamming you. They both are.” He swore beneath his breath, low rumblings of discontent.
“Don’t say that. Don’t say any of it.” Her shoulders slumped. Because she didn’t want to hear what she already knew in her heart. Nothing in life was that easy, and the Sienna Thompsons of the world could not be trusted to help. She turned away from the window. Away from the sight of other people without a care.
“I’m not saying that we can’t do something. We’ll explore other avenues.”
Elea’s throat constricted as the small doorway to finding her daughter slammed shut. It had been a fairy tale to think that she could buy her return. “I need more time with Sienna. I know I can get her to talk.”
“We’ve had this conversation. How many times must I say it? You’re no good to Liisa in jail.”
Elea shook her head. Swann only discussed the potential of Liisa being alive as a tool of manipulation. “OK,” she continued. “Not me, then. There are other people. People who are good at finding things out.”
Swann gave her a pitiful look. “You know my answer to that.” He closed the gap between them. He smelled good. Familiar. Like home. She could feel his warm breath on her hair. “We’re close. Just a few more days. We can’t do anything to compromise the ongoing investigation.”
Elea turned to face him. “You think so?”
“I know so.” He placed his hands on her forearms. “Can you handle it? Because whatever happens, I’ll always be here for you. You know that, don’t you?”
She nodded tightly, unable to speak. Because she had felt it, too—and as much as she wanted the truth, she was scared of what was coming her way.
Chapter 35
