Sam Deerbon was in the porch of the farmhouse, his small figure lit by the overhead lantern, as Simon drove up. As he opened the car door, his nephew ran up and stood in the way.
‘Have you found David Angus yet?’
Simon looked at the little boy’s earnest face with its strangely upward-sprouting hair and his mother’s eyes.
‘You haven’t found him, have you? Are you looking hard enough? A lot of people at school say you aren’t looking properly. A lot of boys at school say he’s dead but I don’t think he is, I think a gang has got him somewhere, in a loft or in a cave and they’ll ask for money to let him go. It’s called a ransom demand.’
‘It is, yes. But what makes you think that might have happened to David?’
‘Well, I should think his dad’s quite rich. Well, a bit rich anyway. He could pay a ransom, couldn’t he?’
‘That would depend.’
‘Why?’
‘On all sorts of things.’
‘Like on how much money the gang wanted?’
‘Sort of.’
‘Not millions and billions, I don’t mean, but he could pay quite a lot I should think, wouldn’t you?’
‘I don’t know. Sam, can we go inside please.’
Sam hesitated then slowly opened the door wider. ‘Don’t forget to lock it. People steal cars from places in broad daylight, you know.’
‘Thanks for reminding me.’ Simon zapped the remote button and the doors clunked shut.
‘Good,’ Sam said. ‘Rivers’s mother’s car got stolen from their garage and it was even locked with a warning alarm set but they got in and stole it.’
‘Where does Rivers live?’
‘Yoxley Crescent. I should think they would have kidnapped Rivers, his father has a mega big factory, they’d pay loads and loads.’
‘I don’t think anyone should be kidnapping anyone at all, do you?’
‘Not really, but if people needed money to buy food for their children they might.’
‘I think that’s what’s called a false argument. Robin Hood, you know?’
Sam looked puzzled.
‘Never mind.’
Simon stepped into the kitchen and wanted to freeze the moment. He was tired and irritable and cold. The kitchen was warm and smelled of baked potatoes and a bottle of red wine stood on the worktop. Beside it sat the huge ginger cat Mephisto, his tail curled round his body, green eyes blinking at Simon. In a corner of the sofa, Cat was curled up in old tracksuit bottoms and a T-shirt, which was lifted for her to give the breast to Felix, who was pressed close to her, one hand curled to touch Cat’s pale skin with its blue veins running towards the nipple.
‘What a picture.’
‘Fat woman with infant.’
‘Maternal, not fat.’
‘Thanks, bro, just what I need.’
Sam had wormed his way into the crook of her arm and was trying to get as close to her as the baby was. Simon raised an eyebrow but Cat shook her head.
‘You could open that bottle now. God knows when Chris will be back, the locum’s called in sick again. I don’t know how much longer he can cope with this.’
‘No good?’
‘OK … when she’s there. Patients don’t like her much, she’s too sharp – tells everyone to stop smoking, lose a couple of stone and go to the gym before they’ve got in through the door and hasn’t been known to prescribe an antibiotic in her entire career. Tough cookie. But then always ringing in that she’s not well.’
‘Can I have a gin before the wine?’
‘You staying the night then?’
‘Yup. OK?’ Simon threw his car keys on to the table.
‘Sure. You know where the bottles are.’
When he returned with his drink, Cat had shifted Felix on to the other breast and Sam had vanished back to the playroom.
Simon went to sit beside his sister. ‘He was waiting for me … he’s worrying about David Angus, isn’t he?’
‘Of course he is. ‘
‘Told me he thought David was being held to ransom.’
‘And is he?’
Simon avoided his sister’s eye. ‘I doubt it.’
‘He’s dead.’
‘You don’t want to have this conversation.’
‘Not really. How do you think your new nephew is looking?’
‘Bigger. Sort of – smoother.’
‘So he was small and wizened and you didn’t even mention it.’
‘What’s to eat?’
‘Mary put a lamb thing in a casserole. She’s here every day all day for the next two weeks.’
‘Has Ma talked to you today?’
‘Yes. Didn’t sound good.’
‘Karin was at the funeral.’
‘I know, Ma said.’
‘It was pretty meaningless. I wish it hadn’t been up at Farnley Wood. I hate that place. I hate crematoriums, period.’
‘How do you feel now?’
Simon shrugged. ‘Don’t say it’s for the best, that’s all … I’ll miss going to see her. I always felt so peaceful with her, you know.’
‘Ma says you did a drawing of her.’
‘When she was in BG, yes.’
Simon drank, then got up and went to the cupboard in search of crisps. Mephisto gave him a glare. ‘Hello, evil one.’ Simon stroked his ears but the cat twitched away and jumped down.
‘Diana came to the flat,’ Simon said, his back to Cat. He heard the baby making small snuffling sounds.
Cat said nothing.
‘It was very late.’
Still nothing.
He turned. Felix was over her shoulder having his back rubbed. His head was bright pink and had a small bald patch in the middle of the fluff of dark hair. Cat looked at Simon.
‘I was bloody furious.’
‘Why?’
‘I don’t like people turning up unannounced, uninvited.’
‘You only like people on your terms.’
‘That isn’t true.’
‘Not us. People as in “women”.’
‘Is that so terrible?’
‘Have you asked yourself what she felt?’
‘She was taking things for granted.’
‘That isn’t what I said. What did you do anyway? Let me bet you didn’t open your arms wide to embrace her.’
Simon flushed.
‘No, I thought not. Maybe it took a lot for her to beard you in your den … maybe she felt desperate. How long is it since you were in touch?’
‘I don’t have to be in touch.’
‘Did you ever tell her you weren’t going to be? She probably left your flat feeling humiliated and crushed and very, very hurt.’
‘It’s her own fault. She shouldn’t have come at all. We had a perfectly good understanding, I didn’t owe her anything … nor she me.’
‘Right.’
‘Bloody hell.’
‘Get me a glass of water, would you – big glass?’
‘I thought you’d be sympathetic,’ Simon said, taking out the spring water.
‘I’m a woman.’
‘So? I’m your brother.’
‘I love you, Si, but I have to say so far as women are concerned, you are bad news. Harsh, I know.’
‘Indeed.’
‘So let’s talk about something else.’
‘Just not work.’
‘The economic state of the nation? The Booker Prize? ‘
‘Do you think I’m too comfortable?’
‘As in …?’
‘The flat … the job … just in general.’
‘I don’t know that I’ve thought about it. What’s wrong with comfort?’
‘Quite.’
‘Dad been getting at you?’
‘No, the Chief Constable.’
‘Does she want to move you?’
‘She muttered something. New units, new challenges. It’d be in the county … and promotion.’
‘Don’t move far,’ Cat said, and her eyes filled with tears. Easy, easy to cry, she knew, just now after the birth of Felix, too easy, but she could not have borne her brother to go away. ‘I didn’t mean what I said just now.’
‘I know.’
‘I did feel a pang for Diana though.’
‘Save it. Diana’s a tough cookie.’
‘Hm.’
‘Uncle Simon, what would be the most money a kidnapper would ever get? What would a nine-year-old boy be worth, would he be worth hundreds of pounds to be kidnapped or thousands of pounds?’
Cat and her brother exchanged appalled looks and Simon stood at once, picked Sam up, threw him over his shoulder and whirled him round. Sam began to laugh.
‘Tell you what, Samuel Christopher Deerbon …’
‘What? What?’
‘I’m going to throw you in the bath …’
‘And me, and me, and me.’ Hannah came racing in and threw herself at Simon’s legs. Cat sat holding the sleeping baby as the three of them ran for the stairs.
He had handled it as Chris usually did, by diverting Sam and causing an uproar, but she knew that the disappearance of David Angus was inside her son’s head night and day and could never now not be there. The boy’s disappearance had changed every thing. Every child, every parent. Everyone.
At half past eight the children were asleep; they decided to eat.
‘Lay the table, Si – the casserole will keep warm in the bottom oven. I’ve fed Felix twice since I ate last and I’m beginning to feel faint.’
‘Are you worried?’
‘About Chris? No … he doesn’t always call in … there’ll be some emergency he’s in the thick of.’
‘Exhausting.’
Simon fetched wine glasses and took the bottle to the table.
‘None for me, I’ll have water. How did you think the folks were yesterday?’
‘Hard to say. Buttoning a lot up … maybe grief, more likely relief. Dad was more upset than I’d expected.’
‘He often went to see her. Sat for hours. So the Ivy Lodge girls said.’
Simon poured out a large glass of red wine and took a swig. ‘She was no threat of course. Couldn’t disappoint him any more than she had at the start, unlike me.’
‘Oh, get over it, Si.’
Simon shrugged.
They were eating when Chris walked in ten minutes later, grey-faced. He went straight to the table, poured a glass of wine and drank half of it before he said, ‘I’ve put calls on to the agency for the rest of the night, I’m bushed.’ He turned to Simon. ‘Have you heard?’
‘What?’
‘Alan Angus tried to commit suicide.’
‘Jesus.’
‘By some miracle his registrar went to his office to pick up a file and found him just as he’d slashed both wrists. He knew which way to do it too, of course, he wouldn’t have had long. But they think he’ll be OK.’
Cat pushed her plate away but Chris filled up his glass and went across to get food.
‘I’d better call in.’ Simon was going to the house phone when his own mobile rang.
‘Nathan? … I’ve just this minute heard.’
‘Mike Batty’s there, guv … he and I had been in to see Angus earlier. Went through everything again. I told him he wasn’t suspected, I said we was just taking it from the beginning again, no way could he have thought we was questioning his story. I never went for him, guv, no way.’
‘No one’s going to think you’re to blame.’
‘He was soddin’ lucky, I tell you, someone was lookin’ after him, no one’s around them offices at that hour, not normally.’
‘I know. Where are you?’
‘Wherever you want me to be, guv.’
‘Right, go check out Marilyn Angus.’
‘Nah, she’s at the hospital, I’m outside there now. Want me to talk to her?’
‘No, in that case leave her for tonight. She’s had enough. You go home.’
‘Guv, just before I got called about Angus I was looking back over everything. I come up with that silver Jag again. Thought it’d be worth checking out.’
‘Hasn’t it been done?’
‘We just did Lafferton and Bevham … maybe we could go nationwide?’
‘Too many. You can’t start on that tonight.’
‘Guv.’
‘I’ll go into the hospital first thing, then see Mrs Angus. Knock off now, Nathan.’
‘OK. Guv, that was really appreciated, the Chief coming in, everyone was saying full marks to her.’
Simon smiled. ‘I’ll pass it on. Goodnight, Nathan.’
‘Cheers, guv.’
*
They finished the lamb casserole and opened a second bottle of wine, but they scarcely talked. Deaths and near-deaths hung over them.
Cat went up to bed before ten carrying the sleeping baby.
Chris held up the bottle.
‘No thanks.’
‘No. God, what a week. I’ve never felt more like packing up and joining Ivo in Australia. We talked about it, you know, Cat and I.’
Simon looked at his brother-in-law, trying to assess whether he was even halfway serious. Simon would never be able to bear it. How could he remain here, with their parents growing older and his father more morose and bad-tempered with age, and everyone he loved either dead or thousands of miles off? Yet he had once been to visit Ivo in Melbourne and hated the place – the only person, his brother had said with amusement, who ever had. Following the others there would never be an option for him. His life, designed so carefully and exactly as he loved it, suddenly seemed in danger of caving in on him.