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  Peach sounded annoyed. “Bugger off! I’ve got a business to run. The punters will be along shortly. Don’t want to disappoint them, do we?”

  Imogen pointed to the sign painted across the window. “You own this place? It says Johnson’s.”

  Peach gave her an oily smile. “Got himself into a bit of a mess, did Jonny. So I helped him out, and we did a deal. This place belongs to me now.”

  “You’ve done well. Jonny’s been here for years. It must have been some mess,” Rocco said.

  “Nice try, copper, but I’m not saying ’owt. What went on between Jonny and me is private.”

  Liam Peach was looking smarter than he had in years. He wore a sharp suit, his hair was neat. The car parked outside the bookies was new too. Imogen was impressed by the turnaround. It wasn’t so long ago that he was rumoured to be living rough.

  “Where are you living?” she asked.

  Peach coughed, dug a packet of cigarettes out of his pocket and lit one. “None of your bloody business. I need to get this place open. What d’you want?”

  Rocco came back with, “Craig Donnelly. Have you seen him since he got out?”

  Peach paled visibly. “That waste of space. No. Better things to do.” He nodded at the shop.

  “You used to be friends. I would have thought he’d have looked you up,” Rocco continued.

  Peach’s eyes darted up and down the street. “Once maybe, but not now.”

  “Had a fall out?”

  “He’s done time. He’s a killer. I run a respectable business now. I don’t want my name tarnished by the likes of him. This is a new start for me.”

  He had spoken with conviction. Imogen nodded. “Come with us. A quick chat and we’ll bring you back. A couple of hours, tops.”

  A young woman arrived. “Mr Peach, what’s going on?”

  Peach handed her a set of keys and smiled at her. “Nothing, Alison. Open up and hold the fort until I get back. These people want me to help them with something.”

  The girl smiled and opened the shop door. Imogen noted that she was young. No more than twenty. Liam Peach evidently still had a thing for young girls.

  “Do you know Elsa Ramsden or Megan Heywood?” Imogen asked.

  “Yeah, stupid slags the pair of them. What’ve they been up to now? Is that what this is all about? Dragged my name into something, have they?”

  Rocco gestured towards their car. “Our car is over there, Liam. A quick chat, nothing heavy. We might even manage some breakfast.”

  Liam Peach chucked the fag end into the gutter and followed them to the car.

  They drove back in silence.

  Joyce looked up when they entered the incident room. “Ramsden is in room seven.”

  “Good. We’ve put Peach in twelve. We’ll speak to Ramsden first. Peachy’s having breakfast. Boss in?”

  “He’s downstairs with Birch. Don’t know what’s going on, but he wasn’t telling Ruth anything.”

  “We’ll wait until he gets back before we start the interviews.”

  * * *

  DS Don Thorpe was speaking to Shez Mortimer. “When was the last time you saw Miss Reynolds?”

  Calladine, Birch, Thorpe and Shez were in one of the soft interview rooms. Calladine was pleased to see that Thorpe had a pen handy and, for once, was taking notes.

  “I saw her Friday lunchtime. She’d finished a photo shoot and was off home for the weekend.”

  “Did she arrive home?” asked Birch.

  “No. I checked with her dad. He didn’t get unduly worried over the weekend. He presumed that Kate was working. I rang him this morning when I got the note.”

  “Kate lives in Leesdon,” Calladine told Thorpe. “Her dad used to work here. He was my DI before he retired and I got made up to inspector.”

  Thorpe noted it down, and grinned. “I’ll have to watch myself in that case. Does she drive home?”

  Shez shook her head. “Kate took the train. My office is on the outskirts of Manchester — Droylsden.”

  “So we don’t know where she disappeared,” Birch added.

  “We do,” said Shez. “Kate rang me from Leesdon station. She’d left her make-up bag in the office and she asked me to keep it safe for her.”

  Calladine frowned. “So, somewhere between the railway station and her home. Where exactly does she live, Shez?”

  “Her dad lives in one of those cottages down by the canal, Tom.” Shez wrote down the address for Thorpe.

  “And no one else has rung you during these last few days, asking about her?” Birch said.

  Shez turned to her. “No. She has no boyfriend, there’s just her dad. When I got the note I rang him and said that she’d gone away for a few days on a job. I didn’t want to worry him. This is his phone number.”

  “The kidnapper is using your office phone. We’ll put a tap on it. We’ll record all calls from now on,” said Birch.

  Calladine was puzzled. “Why not ask her dad for the money? It would make more sense.”

  Shez shrugged. “I’ve no idea. Perhaps he imagines I’m good for it. But there is no way I can find that amount of money.” Shez turned to Birch. “What happens when I get instructions for dropping it off? He’ll know straight away.”

  “Let us worry about that,” said Birch.

  “This is a recent photo of Kate.” Shez handed Thorpe a photo of a young woman with dark shoulder length hair and deep blue eyes.

  “Have you been aware of anyone hanging around recently? Paying any unusual attention to Kate?” Thorpe asked.

  “Nothing obvious. We all simply get on with the job. The girls go to the various shoots in taxis and we keep in touch by mobile.”

  Birch spoke with certainty. “This will be someone who has been watching you. You may even know him. The kidnapper knows how you work, and what buttons to press to get the results he wants. Hard as it is, you have to keep it together. When he rings you, which he will, I want you to keep him talking for as long as you can. This is vital if we’re to trace him. Do anything you have to. Play the upset female card. Beg him to let her go. Promise him anything, whatever it takes to keep him on the line. We will be listening and doing our best to discover where he’s calling from.”

  “If he’s watching me, he’ll know I’ve come here today. He’ll know I’ve spoken to you. I could be signing Kate’s death warrant right now!”

  “If he’s done his homework, he’ll know about your relationship with Calladine. The two of you will leave together. Appear happy, laugh a little,” Birch said.

  “That is a point, ma’am. He is taking a risk with the no police thing. If he does know about me and Shez.”

  “Could be he’s rubbing our noses in it. Getting his hands on the money might only be part of what he’s after.”

  Calladine hadn’t considered that. Birch was a shrewd one.

  “Our people will be at your office within the hour. No one need know what they’re up to. As far as anyone is concerned, you have a network problem and they are IT technicians come to fix it.”

  Shez looked at Calladine. “Will it work? I have to get Kate back. I’ll never forgive myself if anything happens to her.”

  Birch was firm. “We’ll get her back. All you have to do, Miss Mortimer, is exactly what you’re told. No heroics, no taking off on your own with the inspector here. You keep DS Thorpe up to speed with every event. Any contact with the kidnapper at all, you let us know.”

  Calladine took Shez’s hand. “He may phone, but he might also leave you another note. Or even send an email. Despite all our preparations, contact won’t necessarily be by phone.”

  Thorpe picked up the evidence bag containing the envelope. “The hair. We should have it tested. Make sure it does belong to Kate.”

  Birch nodded. “Arrange what you need with the Duggan.”

  “I’ll get you something of Kate’s to match the DNA with. Will a toothbrush do?”

  Thorpe nodded.

  Shez was still looking at Calladine. “
I’m scared. Nothing like this has ever happened before. This monster could do anything to Kate. You have to find her! Bring her back.”

  “Could you or someone else who works in your business have upset anyone? Kate’s kidnap may have been opportunist, you see. It could be that any one of you would have done. He could be getting revenge for something,” Thorpe asked.

  Shez gave a small smile. “In the course of an average week I upset no end of people, Sergeant. It comes with the job. Particularly the escort side of it. Some of my customers can be reluctant to pay. Or they can be very demanding. Usually it works out fine. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of anyone I’ve upset so much that they’d resort to kidnap!”

  Birch got to her feet. “We’ll get started. Thorpe — background on the missing girl. With the best will in the world, Miss Mortimer will not know everything that’s going on in Kate Reynolds’s life. And keep me posted.”

  Thorpe nodded. “I’ll get the technical people organised. You two go play nice, but don’t draw attention to yourselves. There’s nothing wrong — remember?”

  * * *

  Jake Ireson stood with Ruth in his office. “Do you want to speak to them both together or one at a time?”

  “One at a time, I think. They won’t be so guarded. I’ll see Rachel first.”

  “Is that okay? Don’t you need an adult present?”

  “They are both eighteen, Jake. Do they know about Elsa now?”

  “Yes, I had a word with them this morning. They’ve been as quiet as mice since. Most of them found out last night. No doubt Megan told them. She hasn’t come in today.”

  “That’s understandable. She’ll be upset.”

  “I’ll go and sort the girls. I can’t stay, I’m afraid. Robert hasn’t turned up either, so I’m covering his class this afternoon. And not a word, not so much as a phone call or text.”

  “Thrown in the towel, has he?”

  Jake shook his head. “He needs to get a grip.”

  Jake disappeared, returning moments later with Rachel Hayes.

  Ruth smiled at her. “Sorry to drag you away. Given what’s happened, I’m after some background on Elsa. You know the sort of thing — boyfriends, particularly those she kept secret from her brothers. We all know that teenage girls have secrets. That’s normal. But this is no time to hold back. We have to find who killed Elsa.”

  Rachel’s face fell. “She didn’t have anyone. At least, not at the moment.”

  “So who was her last boyfriend?”

  Rachel gazed at the floor. “I’m not sure.”

  “Did she go out with Liam Peach?”

  Rachel nodded. “But it wasn’t what everyone thought. Peachy was soft on her, so she used him, took him for a mug. He sold her drugs — practically gave them to her. Elsa passed the stuff on to her brother Danny and he sold it on. They made a packet. But then Peachy got wind of what was going on and cut Elsa out. He was really angry. Said he’d fix Danny for doing him out of his share.”

  “Was Peachy angry with Elsa?”

  “Yes. At first he was raging, but then he and Danny struck up some sort of deal and everything settled down.”

  “Has anyone else been hanging round? Making a nuisance of themselves with Elsa?”

  Rachel shook her head.

  Ruth persisted. “She was a pretty girl. I can’t believe she didn’t have a boyfriend.”

  Rachel’s cheeks were reddening. “Perhaps she did. But he wasn’t anyone local. She’s never actually met up with him. None of us have. Not even Megan. It’s an online thing.”

  Warning bells were ringing in Ruth’s head. “What do you mean, Rachel? Who are you talking about?”

  “Aiden. The guy who runs the chat room. We all like him. But at first he was only interested in Elsa.”

  “At first?”

  “They fell out after a few weeks. She didn’t visit the chat room after that. Then he moved onto Megan. He told her she was special and that he liked her better. He likes blondes with long hair.” Rachel was really blushing now.

  Ruth looked at her. “Girls like you and Megan?”

  “Megan reckons she’ll be going down to Exeter during the next holidays, to see him.”

  “So Aiden was using the chat room as a sort of dating site? He went after you one at a time?”

  Rachel shrugged. “Yes, you could put it like that.”

  Ruth was amazed that the girl saw nothing wrong in that. “What about helping with your coursework?”

  “That was a sort of cover. If you weren’t one of his special girls, he wasn’t interested. So the others kept away.”

  “He didn’t help with schoolwork, then?”

  “No, not really. To be honest, I don’t think he’s even done his A levels. But in the beginning we all thought that’s what we were joining. We didn’t see any harm. Nothing could happen. It was just banter, flirting. You see, he lives too far away.”

  Surely the girl wasn’t that naïve? “I must insist that you and your friends give the chat room, or whatever it is, a rest until we’ve checked it out. Alright, Rachel?”

  Chapter 10

  Back from Leesdon Comp, Ruth Bayliss went in search of Calladine. “I think we could have a problem, guv. Speaking to Rachel Hayes on her own paid dividends. She told me that Liam Peach supplied drugs to Elsa, which in turn she passed onto her brother, Danny. Peachy liked her, so he gave her what she wanted. When he found out Danny was selling it on for a tidy profit, he got angry. Wanted his share.”

  “Sounds about right. What you’re saying is that Elsa used him.”

  “Too right she did. If Peachy was that bothered, she must have been making a packet. And — that chat room is not so innocent either. In fact it’s not even a chat room. Elsa and the others used that as a cover. They were actually talking online to a bloke called Aiden. He did the rounds, kept each of the girls dangling. When he dumped Elsa, he moved onto Megan. Now he’s making a move on Rachel. She doesn’t see the harm. She believes what he tells her, that he lives miles away in Exeter. Whereas we know he could be just down the road. Megan kept that little nugget quiet when we spoke to her.”

  Calladine groaned. “The day just gets better! Don’t they realise the danger? This person they’re talking to could be anyone. He could be the nutter we’re looking for!”

  “I would have spoken to Megan but she’s not in school today. Robert Clarke isn’t in either, and he didn’t ring in sick or anything. Jake puts it down to the way the kids have been behaving with him. Reckons he’s done a runner.”

  “Ring Megan’s mother. See how she is. If the girl is up to it, we need to talk to her about this bloody Aiden. How about the other girl, Sophie Griggs?”

  Ruth was already picking up the phone. “She’s had no part in it. She has dark hair. Apparently this freak, Aiden, likes them blonde.”

  Rocco called over, “Your office phone is ringing, guv.”

  Calladine listened to the familiar voice. “Julian! What have you got for us?”

  “I’m working on the Elsa Ramsden case with Doctor Barrington. I’ve done some initial work on Elsa’s burnt hand. The method used is very different to what was done to Annabelle Roper. If you remember, Donnelly dunked her right hand into a pan of boiling chip fat. Not so with Elsa. Whoever did it soaked a cloth in petrol, wrapped it around Elsa’s hand, then set it alight.”

  Yet another difference to add to Ruth’s list. “Copycat? Someone who got hold of half the story and is trying to make it look like Donnelly is to blame?”

  “I can’t say, Tom. I just look after the science.”

  “Anything else?”

  “Not yet. Some of the tests are taking longer. Worth doing, though. The girl had allergic reactions to all sorts of stuff. The glue on the tape used to bind her limbs, for example. The inside of her throat, nose and lungs was inflamed from something she inhaled. That happens when a person suffers with hay fever. I would say it was a violent reaction that would have come on quick. I’m trying to iden
tify the trigger. It might lead us somewhere.”

  “Thanks, Julian. I’ll speak to her mother about that.”

  Ruth called him as he walked back into the incident room. She looked worried. “Problem. Megan’s mum says she went to school this morning. My phone call has got her terrified. She didn’t want to let Megan out of her sight, but says that she must have sneaked out when she left for work. When her mum got home after lunch she presumed Megan had gone to school.”

  “Ring round, see if she’s at one of her friends’ places.”

  “Unlikely. I’ve just come from school, remember? They’re all there.”

  “In that case, we need to speak to Rachel Hayes again. Imogen, contact the school. Ask them to get hold of Rachel’s mother. Arrange for a car to bring them both in.”

  Ruth frowned. “I don’t think Rachel was holding back. She told me about the drugs. And she was very candid about the so-called chat room and the lad who runs it.”

  “Another little talk won’t hurt. Where are IT with Elsa’s laptop?”

  Imogen told him. “We passed it over to the Duggan, sir. The guy who’s having a look is Matt Hewson. He’s good. If there’s anything to find, then he’s the one to do it.”

  “Get him on the phone. We need an update urgently.”

  “Danny Ramsden and Liam Peach are still waiting downstairs, sir,” Rocco reminded Calladine.

  “Okay. Ruth, you and Rocco take Ramsden and Imogen and I will talk to Peach.”

  Calladine waited while Imogen finished the phone calls.

  “Mrs Hayes has picked Rachel up already. They’ve gone to a university open day in Manchester, so it will have to be tomorrow, guv. Matt is emailing an interim report. But it was definitely not a bona fide chat room the girls were visiting. For starters, it was located on the dark web.”

  * * *

  Liam Peach was looking impatient. “You lot must think I’ve nothing better to do. Any more tea going? I’m parched sitting here.”

  Calladine nodded at the uniform, who went off to get him another mug.

  Calladine quickly read through the notes Imogen had made. “You’ve come up in the world. Taken over the bookies, I see. Turned your life around, Peachy. Tell me how it happened. Where did you get the money from for a start?”