PLEASE!
A man s voice boomed out from the other end of the balcony. Officer Henderson! Didn t need to look to know it was Dickie. Ash: put him down.
I stayed where I was. Should ve said, Let him go. Would ve been funnier.
DON T LET HIM KILL ME!
Dickie walked towards us, hands up, as if I had a gun on him.
Ash, this isn t helping.
Behind Dickie, DS Gillis puffed and panted to a halt, leaning on the handrail and wheezing. Christ on a bike
Ash, I need you to put Mr McCarthy down.
No chance. How d you find me?
Katie s friends. Come on, Ash, it s over, you can t do this.
He s been fucking my little girl.
We ll do him for it: we ll lock him up with the other dirty kiddie fiddlers. Now haul him in.
No.
Ash, please. We need to talk about Katie.
He knows where she is! I gave Noah another shake.
I don t! I don t know anything!
Dickie put his hands down. Michelle called the station. She got a card from the Birthday Boy.
You re a lying bastard: I checked the mail before we left.
He reached into his jacket and pulled out a smart phone, pressed a couple of buttons and held it out. A snapshot filled the shiny screen a homemade birthday card with a photo of Katie on it. Tied to a chair. A gag over her mouth, eyes wide, cheeks streaked with mascara.
I let go of Noah.
I m sorry. Dickie leaned on the windowsill, looking out into the rain.
The lounge stank of cannabis, cigarettes, and armpits. Noah was sobbing in the kitchen the sound seeping through the paper-thin walls as DS Gillis tried to patch the dirty little fucker up before the ambulance got here.
Dr McDonald lowered herself onto the couch next to me, put a hand on my knee. We ll find her.
I ran a thumb over the smartphone s screen, bringing it back to life before it went into sleep mode. Staring into Katie s eyes You can t tell anyone about this.
Ash, it s not
They ll take me off the case. You know that.
Silence.
Dickie sighed. Ash, we can t. She s still alive; it s not her birthday till Monday, there s still time. We need to throw everything we have at finding her.
I can t sit at home and do nothing!
He ran a hand across his face, his back to the room. We can t. You could ve killed that boy
He was screwing my twelve-year-old daughter!
Dr McDonald squeezed my knee, brought her chin up, and stared at Dickie. I was with Detective Constable Henderson the whole time. When we arrived Noah McCarthy had clearly been taking drugs. Ash asked him about Katie and McCarthy flew into a rage. He attacked me. Ash had to intervene.
Dickie shook his head. And the balcony?
McCarthy was obviously confused. He ran out of the flat and tripped. Ash caught him and saved his life. He was pulling him to safety when you arrived.
The only sound was Noah crying in the other room.
Dickie nodded. Stick to your story. No deviation when Professional Standards come asking questions. He turned and perched a buttock on the window ledge. My team s speaking to all of Katie s friends. Then we ll start on her teachers and classmates.
Katie stared at me from the phone s screen. Pleading. Terrified.
I couldn t look any more. We pull Steven Wallace in, and we tear his house apart till we find her.
Dickie glanced at Dr McDonald for a moment. Would you excuse us, Doctor, I need to speak to DC Henderson in private.
She gave my knee another squeeze, then left the room. Closed the door behind her.
He folded his arms. We ve got nothing on Steven Wallace; we need probable cause before we can
Fuck probable cause. He s got Katie.
Ash, I understand: you re hurt, you re upset, you re
You understand? What? What exactly do you understand? On my feet now, trembling. How many daughters have you lost to a serial killer?
She s not He closed his eyes for a moment. Ash, go home: Michelle needs you. Be there for her.
I m not
And stay away from Steven Wallace, he s he s not the only suspect, OK?
I stared back. Who else? Who s a suspect?
Ash, we can t
Who s a fucking suspect? I took a step closer.
You nearly killed Noah McCarthy. What are you going to do if I give you a list of names and addresses: go round and make them a nice cup of tea?
She s my daughter!
Ash, we ll find her. You have to let us do our jobs.
Pretty much the same bollocks I d told Lauren Burges s dad in Shetland. The same bollocks I d been telling myself since Rebecca s first Birthday Boy card slithered through the letterbox four years ago.
I put Dickie s phone down next to the heaped ashtray.
Right. Like you found Lauren Burges, and Amber O Neil, and Hannah Kelly, and
We ll find her. He ran a hand through his greying ginger hair. Trust me on that, Ash. Hell or high water, we ll find her.
Detective Constable Gillis hauled on the handbrake and turned off the engine. The Renault groaned and pinged, rain thudding into the roof, drumming on the bonnet. Pfffff His breath reeked of old cigarettes. The smell got worse when he scratched at his beard. No offence, but your car s a piece of shit.
I held out my hand. Give me the keys.
Dickie s only trying to look out for you.
