Page 15

CHAPTER 15

SALLY – D AY T WO

Sally is sitting on a green sofa in an office next to the press room. Through the wall, she can hear the rumble of conversation and occasional metallic clunks as if chairs or equipment are being moved.

‘You don’t have to do this.’ Matthew takes her left hand, her right still clutching Amelie’s rabbit. ‘I’ve told you. Right until the last moment, you can change your mind. Isn’t that right, Melanie?’

Melanie forces a small smile but she doesn’t say anything.

Sally meets her gaze and understands. Yes – she’s been assured she can bail but the bottom line is they need her to do this. They need the publicity and they need the media on their side. They don’t want Matthew up there on the microphone in case Dawn Meadows really is involved. In case seeing Matthew upsets her even more. Or upsets whoever else might have their Amelie.

This public appeal cannot be about the police. Or grudges. Or anything linked to the force. This needs to be about Amelie and Amelie alone. A little girl. An innocent little girl.

‘Should I take the rabbit in or—?’

‘Whatever you’re comfortable with, Sally.’ Melanie’s voice is almost a whisper. ‘You want me to go over the format with you again?’

‘Yes please.’ Sally realises Melanie has been over this twice already but she’s struggling to hold information in her brain. It’s the not sleeping.

‘Up on the platform there will be me and you and the head of the police communications unit. Lisa. You met her earlier over coffee.’

‘Right. Yes. Lisa.’

‘I will speak first and do an update on the inquiry. Explain we now have two live investigations. I’ll recap all we know about Amelie’s disappearance. Our appeal for witnesses and photos. Anyone who might have taken selfies or photos in Freda’s Fashions and the surrounding area. And then I’ll do an update on the body of the man we found in the canal. After all of that, I’ll say that you have something you wish to say yourself.’ Melanie pauses. ‘You have your piece of paper?’

Sally is suddenly panic stricken. She looks down at the sofa. Feels about. No paper. ‘I don’t know. I don’t remember.’ She went through it all earlier with Matthew. Wrote it down. The right things to say about their beautiful girl. Not too much. Not too little. But where the hell did she put it?

‘It’s OK. It’s OK. It’s in your pocket. Remember? Your jacket pocket.’ Matthew’s eyes are wide as he speaks.

Sally feels in her pocket and sure enough there it is. The single sheet of A4 paper printed off at home earlier and folded ever so carefully into four. She opens it out slowly and reads it silently.

All we want is for our beautiful girl to be home with us. She has a ballet exam coming up and she needs to practise for that. She has new shoes – pink satin – and I’ve sewn on the ribbons for her. Put the shoes ready on her bed.

Amelie is the sweetest little girl. She’s like a ray of sunshine in the world and without her, our life is very dark right now. Please. Please help us to get her home. If you know anything or saw anything at all, however small or however inconsequential it may seem to you, please contact the police. And if anyone watching this knows where Amelie is, I’m asking you as a mother. Begging you as a mother. Please send her home to me.

Suddenly the door opens just a little and Lisa, the tall communications woman with a short pixie cut, leans into the room. ‘How are you all doing? No hurry but we’re ready if you are?’

Melanie looks at Sally, eyebrows high, and everyone waits.

‘Like I said before – if it’s too much.’ Matthew’s voice breaks as he speaks.

‘It’s fine. I’m nearly ready.’

‘Matthew will watch on the screen in here. Like we agreed. Is that OK, Sally? I’ll be with you with the media the whole time. Right next to you. We won’t allow questions. Not to you directly. After you’ve read out what you want to say, Lisa will lead you out and I’ll take questions after you’ve left the room. You can watch that with Matthew back in here.’

Sally nods. ‘Sure. Just one minute, please.’ She feels in her pocket again to source the wrapped biscuit. Pink foil. She unpeels the biscuit – chocolate coating with shortbread and caramel – and takes tiny bites, chewing slowly. It’s a small biscuit but seems to stick in her throat. Takes an age.

‘The sugar,’ Matthew says, glancing at Melanie. ‘We thought it would be a good idea. A sugar hit before she goes through.’ He’s watching Sally as she chews, eyes heavy with worry.

‘Yes. Good thinking.’ Melanie smiles and waits until Sally finally clears her throat and sips from the water on the table next to the sofa. ‘There’s more water where we’ll be sitting. Ready?’

Sally takes a deep breath. ‘Ready.’ She stands as Matthew steps forward to hug her close, kissing her forehead and squeezing her free hand. ‘This is so brave, Sally. I’ll be watching. Right here, waiting for you.’

Lisa leads the way with Melanie walking alongside Sally, who clutches the pink rabbit ever more tightly as they enter the press room.

Sally has seen this kind of thing on the news and Matthew warned her it would seem quite noisy. And chaotic. The photographers and the TV crews. She thought she had understood all of this but still the clicking of all the cameras is a shock. It doesn’t stop. A constant roll of clicking as they take up their seats. She was shown the room earlier but it’s so different now with all these people. Every seat taken and some people standing at the back. It’s much brighter too with the glare from lights alongside the TV cameras.

At last they’re all seated and Melanie follows her plan, thanking everyone for attending, introducing herself, Sally and Lisa and then moving on to the update. She explains there are now two inquiries. Amelie’s disappearance and the body in the canal. There’s no evidence to link them but they’re appealing today for information for both investigations. Sally finds that it’s difficult to listen. There is still so much clicking, some of the photographers moving to get pictures from different angles.

She glances down at her sheet of paper, practising the words in her head. Melanie’s voice seems distant for a while and then there is a pause. Sally senses everyone looking at her. Melanie and Lisa too.

‘I was just explaining that you have something you want to say.’ Melanie’s voice is gentle and encouraging, obviously repeating herself.

‘Oh yes. Right.’ Back in the room now. ‘Yes, I do.’ Sally clears her throat and reads carefully from her paper. ‘All we want is for our beautiful girl to be home with us ...’ As she talks, she thinks of the pain on Matthew’s face as he watched her stitching the ribbons to the new ballet shoes in the early hours.

Why are you doing that now? There’s no need to do that now ...

At last she finishes reading out her statement. There’s a lot more clicking and Sally clears her throat, refolding the paper ever so carefully and waiting for Melanie’s cue to be led from the room, but suddenly there’s a man standing in the third row.

‘So do you think this may have anything to do with your husband’s work? The coverage recently of his return to the force ?’

‘ Please .’ Melanie’s tone is firm. ‘We’ll open the floor to questions in a moment. But Amelie’s mother needs a break. I’m sure you understand. Lisa?’

Lisa stands and moves along the platform to wait for Sally to stand also before steering her from the room. Sally feels flustered, conscious that the TV cameras are moving, the lenses following her, but tries very hard to walk slowly. Worried about tripping.

She manages to fight back the tears until she is in the small office next door. Where she collapses into Matthew’s arms.

‘Bloody media.’ He holds her tight. ‘ Bastards .’