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29 DAVID

Grateful for something to do, David had decided to make himself in charge of the control centre. They rushed back to Savage Lilies and made sure Rod would ring them if she showed up at the pub. Hannah had run to see if she’d gone home and, finding nothing, was back at the shop. They had all tried calling her, but she still wasn’t answering. David wondered if her phone was off, and he thought it best if someone stayed in case she showed up and he immediately began to allocate jobs to the others.

‘Right, Hannah, you don’t really know the area, so why don’t you team up with Mark and go on foot,’ he said. ‘Mark, you know Woburn, and can go down alleyways and things. Here, take this umbrella; the rain’s picking up.’

‘We’ll call you if we find her,’ Mark said. ‘Love you.’

‘I love you too,’ he said. ‘Gus, stay here a minute, maybe we should take my van …’

‘Whatever you think, David,’ Gus said.

David looked around at the shop, assessing. ‘But I do think someone should be here.’

‘Yeah, probably.’

‘I know,’ he continued. ‘I’ll use the business network to ask people to keep a lookout, then we’ve got eyes all down this street and beyond.’

‘Good idea,’ Gus said, as Mark and Hannah ran out into the rain.

‘Hey, bye, hey, bye.’

There was a new voice coming from the door he couldn’t even recognize, until he saw it was Ramon from the taco truck.

‘I just parked in the agreed spot for the pub,’ he said. ‘Rod told me to come here. Is everything okay?’

‘Meg’s missing,’ Gus said.

‘Oh no,’ Ramon said. ‘Can I help?’

‘Why don’t you go together?’ David said. ‘We’ve got others on foot. Why don’t you two go in the van, drive around, tell me if you see her. That sound okay?’

The pair looked nervous but David didn’t have time for nerves. If this was going to be their first date, then so be it.

‘Now?’ Ramon asked. ‘Okay.’

At the door, Ramon paused to let Gus out first.

‘A gentleman,’ Gus said.

‘No, it’s just so you’re in the rain for longer.’

With that, they were gone and David was alone. He wanted to cry. He felt responsible and he could taste acid in his throat, the stress of worry. He stood at the door, and took his phone out of his pocket. He sent a message to the Work with Pride group, which now had a WhatsApp group for more immediate issues. He wrote: Hey, hope everyone’s okay. My friend Meg – she’s short, dark hair, wearing a vest and cardigan and jeans – has gone missing. Will you all keep an eye out? Thanks.

He received a text from Mark, saying: No luck at the church, the tennis courts, or Gerrit Lane. Keep you posted.

David looked out. The sun had nearly set. Where could she be? It would be harder to find her in the dark. The bright shop lights, strip lighting and spotlights, illuminated him like a ghost against the blackness of outside. He appeared bathed in light. His face looked lined and sad. There was real worry in his eyes and he hoped he hadn’t made anybody more stressed than they already were. Was his plan going to work? Should he call the police? He knew they normally needed somebody to be missing for longer. What was it, a day? Twelve hours? It had maybe been fifty minutes. What was it on that police drama – people were nearly always somewhere they wanted to be found, somewhere that meant something to them?

He quickly formulated a message and sent it to everyone out searching, asking if they could think of anywhere with an emotional connection Meg might have chosen. After a couple of minutes, Gus called his phone.

‘Gus?’

‘ASDA.’

‘What?’ David said. He wasn’t sure if he’d heard correctly. ‘Gus, I—’

‘The ASDA,’ he said. ‘There’s a trolley park with a roof, to the side. No one ever uses it for trolleys; it’s in a weird place. Anyway, we used to drive there when I got my car in Sixth Form. God, I should have thought of this earlier. I used to smoke there, or we used to go there if she was upset. From here it should be, like, fifteen minutes?’

‘I’ll send Hannah,’ David said. ‘I’ll head there too. Thanks, Gus.’