Mr Saunders stood, lifting his son up and giving him a huge hug before carrying him out into the corridor.
As they followed them out of the classroom, Karen quickly told DI Morgan what Danny had seen, before calling the station so DC Cooper could coordinate delivering the information to every officer involved in the search.
When she hung up, she turned to DI Morgan and said, ‘Rick has set up the incident room, and he’s getting background on both girls’ families.’
‘Good.’ Before DI Morgan could say anything else, they heard heels clicking on the floor, echoing along the corridor.
They turned in the direction of the noise. It sounded like someone running towards them. A tall, blonde woman came into view, closely followed by Jackie Lyons, who appeared out of breath.
Horror and anguish contorted the blonde woman’s face. ‘Have you found Sian?’
Her desperate question meant she needed no introduction, but the head teacher presented her anyway.
‘DI Morgan, DS Hart, this is Leanne Gibson. Sian’s mother.’
CHAPTER THREE
Leanne Gibson skidded to a halt in front of them. ‘Have you found her yet?’ she asked breathlessly.
Under normal circumstances, Leanne Gibson would be considered a very attractive woman, but with worry etched on her face and distress contorting her features, she looked haggard. Karen’s heart went out to her.
DI Morgan introduced himself and Karen.
‘Let’s go in here,’ he said, indicating the empty classroom. ‘We can tell you what we know and ask you some questions about Sian.’
Leanne nodded and her eyes filled with tears. ‘I can’t believe this is happening. I knew I shouldn’t have let her go home with Emily Dean. Why did I change my mind? What was I thinking?’
‘It’s not your fault,’ Karen said as she opened the door to the classroom.
Leanne had just walked ahead of them when they heard more footsteps.
‘Ah, this is Emily’s mother, Jenny Dean,’ the head teacher said, walking towards the tall, dark-haired woman.
Jenny Dean made a stark contrast to Leanne Gibson. Jenny wore dark skinny jeans tucked into black high-heeled boots and a red top that was so tight it fitted her like a second skin. Her dark hair fell in messy waves to her shoulders, and although she was heavily made up, most of the kohl had smudged beneath her eyes.
DI Morgan shot Karen a questioning look and she nodded. Karen recognised Jenny from her time in uniform. Emily was Dennis Dean’s daughter. It would make liaising with the family difficult because the Deans held such resentment towards the police.
‘He’s taken her, hasn’t he?’ Jenny snapped, shrugging off the head teacher’s attempt to put a comforting hand on her shoulder.
‘Do you mean you think Dennis has taken the girls?’ Jackie asked, tucking her hair behind her ears and taking a step back from Jenny.
Karen felt like taking a step back from Jenny too. The woman was filled with raw, unstable emotion. Her gut told her the sensible option would be to separate the two mothers and question them individually. She turned to DI Morgan and suggested she talk to Jenny in another classroom. DI Morgan nodded his assent, but before Karen could lead Jenny away, Leanne walked back out of the room.
‘Why didn’t you pick them up from school?’ she demanded, raising her voice. ‘They’re only ten. I can’t believe you’d just leave them to make their own way home.’
‘It’s not far,’ Jenny said defensively. ‘Besides, I’m sure they’re fine. My good-for-nothing ex has probably taken them for a pizza or something. He just wants to put the fear of God into me. That’s him all over.’
Leanne’s face crumpled. She was desperately trying not to cry. ‘Do you really think he’d do that?’
The anger in her voice had dropped and she almost sounded hopeful, as though she wanted to believe that was what had happened because that meant she’d get her daughter back safely. She shook her head. ‘Why would he have taken Sian too?’
‘I take it you’ve spoken to Emily’s father?’ DI Morgan asked Jenny.
Jenny hesitated and then bit down on her lower lip. ‘No, not yet. He’s not answering his phone, but that’s probably all part of his plan to wind me up.’
‘What sort of parents would use their daughter to get back at each other?’ Leanne asked, her voice trembling.
‘Oh, spare me the hoity-toity act,’ Jenny snapped.
Before it could escalate into a full-blown argument, DI Morgan intervened. ‘If you’ll come in here, please, Mrs Gibson.’
He led Leanne into the classroom and nodded, signalling Karen to take Jenny to another room.
‘Mrs Lyons, is there another classroom we could use so I can talk to Jenny in private?’ Karen asked.
‘Of course, although you’re welcome to use my office if you’d like? The chairs are probably a bit more comfortable.’
Karen nodded gratefully. ‘Thank you.’
As the head teacher led them to her office, Karen shot a sideways glance at Jenny. She was picking nervously at the stretchy material of her top, the words leaving her mouth in a jumble as she spoke. Karen guessed she didn’t want to stop talking because, if she did, then she’d be forced to consider the possibility that her husband hadn’t taken Emily and Sian, and what that might mean.
‘It’s gotta be him. It’s exactly the sorta thing Dennis would do. He’s angry with me, and he uses Emily as a way to get back at me. Last week, he arrived to pick Emily up, and I could smell alcohol on his breath, so of course I didn’t let him take her. I mean, what sort of mum would leave their child in the care of a drunk man?’ She narrowed her eyes and glared at Karen. ‘And I know what you’re thinking, looking down your nose at me like that. But I only live two minutes away. And Emily loves walking home on her own. I’d never have let her do that if I didn’t think she was safe. We live in Heighington. It’s hardly the same as living in the middle of Lincoln.’
Her words were prickly, driven by worry and guilt. Karen said nothing, waiting for her to say everything she needed to get off her chest.
They entered the office, and the head teacher left them. Karen sat down on one of the comfortable chairs and scooted around to face Jenny. She didn’t want to sit across from her with the desk a barrier between them. Trust was crucial in a situation like this.
‘We have officers trying to track down Dennis,’ Karen said. ‘If he has taken the girls, then we’ll know soon enough.’
She nodded for Jenny to sit down in the chair opposite hers.
Jenny sat and swallowed hard, rapidly blinking back tears. ‘You don’t believe Dennis took them, do you? You think someone else has taken them. You think they’ve been abducted by a . . .’ She broke off, unable to complete the sentence.
In a matter of seconds, Jenny’s mood had changed. The defensive, angry woman had dissolved into a trembling mother gripped by fear.
‘We’re keeping an open mind, Jenny,’ Karen said, keeping her voice soft. ‘We can’t afford to discount any possibilities at this stage. We just want to get the girls back as quickly as possible. Now, can you tell me why you think Dennis may have taken Emily and why he would have taken Sian as well?’