Page 102 of Stolen Ones

‘Go ahead, Stace,’ she said, covering her other ear against the sound of voices and machinery.

Other than the odd word, she was struggling to hear. She ended the call and travelled towards the car, grabbing Bryant en route.

‘What?’ he said after excusing himself.

‘Need to get somewhere quiet to call Stacey back.’

‘Why, what did she want?’ he asked, opening the car doors.

They both got in, closed the doors and blocked out the noise around them.

‘Dunno – couldn’t hear a bloody word,’ she said, scrolling to the last caller. ‘But I think she was trying to say something about finding another one.’

Sixty-Two

‘Are you kidding me?’ Kim asked as they drove through the Nimmings car park entrance to the Clent Hills.

‘As I wasn’t the one to give you the information, I’m guessing that’s aimed at Stacey, and I suspect she wasn’t kidding.’

‘Do you know how many times I’ve bought coffee from here?’

‘If you seriously want me to have a guess I will, but I’d say we’re talking in the hundreds when you’ve brought the prince for a walk.’

Bryant always used her pet name for Barney because of her treatment of her four-legged friend.

Awful to think she could have been standing on remains every time she’d done so.

‘So what did Stacey say?’ Bryant asked, making no move to get out the car.

The café was standing room only, filled with dog walkers, ramblers and families. The queue stretched for twenty metres.

‘Stacey said a seven-year-old girl went missing in 2002. She was named Helen Blunt, and she was taken from a summer fayre in Shrewsbury.’

‘Why this particular girl?’ Bryant asked.

‘The news reports stated that the girl’s mother had shouted at her for dawdling, and that little Helen had stormed off in a mood. The mother admitted to being quite worked up herself, with a toddler and a young baby and seven-year-old Helen, so she didn’t calm down and go looking for her for a good twenty minutes.’

‘What? In twenty minutes Harte could have travelled at least ten miles in any direction before the alarm was even raised.’

‘It gets worse. Eyewitnesses say it was more than a good telling off. They saw the mother give Helen a good shaking and a slap around the face.’

‘Oh, Jesus,’ Bryant said.

‘No leads. Never been found. In 2003, Harte funds the refurbishment of this place, and guess who he employs to do the work?’

‘His mate Jenson Butler.’

‘Correct.’

‘Guv, you know this is problematic, don’t you?’

‘Nah, Bryant, I’m thinking they’re just gonna let me tear their coffee shop down with my bare hands.’

‘You know, sometimes you could just answer a question without hostility and sarcasm,’ Bryant said as they approached the cabin.

‘And where’s the fun in that?’

The queue had reduced to no more than a handful of people as they approached the front of the line.