By the time she got to Paul and Amelia’s, in the new development on the Abingdon Road, it was getting dark. Her nephew Will opened the door. Now almost nine, he’d shot up again in the last few months, and was looking more like her brother Paul than ever. He had a pair of oversized headphones on his skinny shoulders.
‘Shouldn’t you be in bed?’ she said, readjusting her face to a smile.
‘It’s only eight o’clock,’ he replied. There were no hugs any more, and he peeled away, calling out to his mum.
Amelia came down the stairs, finger to her lips. ‘I told you to keep it down!’ she said to Will, who was putting headphones back on anyway.
‘I’m so sorry!’ said Jo. ‘Emergency at work.’ She didn’t have the energy to tell them it was actually a friend of hers.
‘It’s not a problem,’ said Amelia, warmly. ‘I’ve put him down on a rug in Emma’s bedroom. Forgotten how nice it is to have kids who can’t speak.’
‘You don’t mean that!’ said Jo. ‘Will’s a little gentleman!’
‘Something like that,’ said Amelia. ‘You want a drink?’
‘Actually, I’d better get home,’ said Jo. ‘But thanks. Another busy one tomorrow.’
Amelia frowned in concern. ‘They’re throwing you back in the deep end?’
‘I’m not sure there’s a shallow end in my line of work,’ said Jo. She didn’t really want to talk about what had happened – not until she’d had more time to process it herself. Amelia hadn’t known Harry Ferman at all, so it wouldn’t mean much to her anyway. She would no doubt read about it in the local paper within a few days.
Her sister-in-law looked like she wanted to say more, but Jo made her way towards the stairs. ‘Do you mind if I get him?’
‘Go ahead.’
Amelia followed her up. Jo found Theo looking angelic on an improvised bed in the middle of her niece’s bedroom floor. She wondered if she’d be able to get him to the car without waking him.
‘I’ll ask Paul to get the old cot out of the attic,’ whispered Amelia. ‘Just in case.’
‘I won’t dump him on you again,’ said Jo. ‘It was just a funny day.’
‘Honestly, it’s fine,’ said Amelia.
Jo knelt at Theo’s side, and for a moment was reminded of earlier that day, crouching on Harry’s floor. At both times, over someone completely helpless. She resisted asking if he’d missed her and kissed his cheek, then eased her hands under his warm body to lift him up. He was a dead weight, arms flopping.
‘Emma not in?’ she asked.
‘At her boyfriend’s,’ said Amelia. ‘We barely see her unless she wants a lift somewhere. Paul will be back from work soon though. You sure you don’t want to stick around?’
‘Better not,’ said Jo. Now that she had Theo in her arms again, her energy drained. She just wanted to curl up and sleep herself.
With the sunset, the temperature had dipped outside. As she settled Theo into his car seat, he stirred only a little. Amelia followed Jo out, hugging herself against the cooling evening air. ‘You know, Jo, I think it’s amazing what you’re doing. Going back to work so soon, especially as you’re on your own.’
‘Don’t be daft,’ said Jo. ‘Loads of people do the same.’
‘They don’t have jobs like yours,’ said Amelia. ‘Dealing with criminals all day.’
Jo thought back to the incident with the motorbike earlier. ‘I’m careful.’
‘I’m sure you are …’ Amelia wanted to say something else, Jo could see.
‘Go on.’
Her sister-in-law smiled. ‘Lucas was here, yesterday.’
Jo’s hackles rose. ‘Here? At your house?’
‘I wasn’t sure whether I should say anything.’
‘He’s got no right. What did he say?’
‘He wanted to know how Theo was.’
‘And what did you tell him?’
‘Paul dealt with it. Sent him on his way. He’d been drinking.’
‘Oh, Christ. I’m sorry,’ said Jo. And she really was. Her brother’s family didn’t need her problems on their doorstep.
‘It’s not your fault,’ said Amelia. ‘I just thought you should know.’
‘Well, thanks,’ said Jo. ‘I’ll speak with the solicitor.’
‘If you think that’s best,’ said Amelia. She sounded unsure though.
‘He’s got to get the message,’ said Jo. She kissed Amelia on the cheek. ‘And thanks again for stepping in today.’
They said farewell and Jo headed home. On the way, she called into the station. Reeves answered.
‘Anything else on the girl?’
‘A couple of the other neighbours thought they remembered her,’ said Reeves. ‘Nothing more concrete that a short blonde-haired girl between sixteen and twenty-five. Big coat. She’d been seen coming and going over the last two weeks, but always on her own.’
‘Nationality?’
‘No one ever spoke to her.’
It might be worth getting a composite drawn up, Jo thought, while memories were relatively fresh.
‘We’ve managed to get in touch with Jessica Granger,’ Alice Reeves continued. ‘She’s going to head over first thing tomorrow.’
‘How did she take it?’
‘Shocked, of course. She’s not had any contact with Mr Ferman for years, but said she’d be happy to take care of arrangements.’
‘That’s something. You should finish up. Get some rest.’
‘That’s the plan,’ said Reeves. ‘See you tomorrow.’
Jo wished her a good night. Harry had spoken about his ex-wife a number of times, always fondly, if with a degree of wry detachment. From what she’d gathered, they’d separated on amicable enough terms, after soldiering on for a few years after Lindsay’s death. By his own admission, Harry had coped badly, and sunken into a depression that made him hard to live with. She gripped the steering wheel tighter as she remembered the lines of grief etched on his face, sitting opposite her in the Three Crowns. To have overcome that, only for this, seemed so grossly unjust. His life had been a simple one, with few friends, and few comforts. Whoever had taken it from him was going to pay – she’d make sure of it.
Theo woke on the way inside, springing to sudden liveliness, all giggles and thrashing limbs. She’d been joking to the health visitors about claws and teeth, but there was something strange about the burst of energy just as the rest of the world was winding down. She gave him a bath, cupping water over his squirming pink body as he squealed. By the time he was wrapped in a towel, he was rubbing his eyes again. He lazily took a little milk, before settling into the cot beside her own bed. She lay down, watching him through the bars, as she sang a song of which she only half remembered the words.
Lucas returned to her thoughts unbidden as Theo dropped off, and she wandered downstairs, vaguely considering making a call. He no longer had her number, but she’d kept his just so she was forewarned if he called from that phone. In the end, she decided against speaking with him, just as the solicitor had recommended. If he was in bad patch, it was likely he’d have been drinking again today, so it would be pointless having a conversation anyway.