Twenty minutes later, Philip arrived at the hotel. Thinking on his feet, he pretended he was from the British Consulate in Palma and, luckily for him, the receptionist didn’t question it. Perhaps because, in his smart stone-coloured trousers and crisp white shirt, his Panama hat in hand, Philip looked as though he could be someone official, someone with gravitas. The receptionist told him the room number and directed him to the lift with a lipsticked smile.
Clive Reynolds was stunned when Philip explained who he was, while his wife, Mandy, burst into tears.
‘But Spanish police told us they don’t think Jade’s been taken like your daughter,’ said Clive. ‘They’re saying she got into some bloke’s car willingly.’ He paused for a moment and looked deep into Philip’s eyes. ‘You think she has been taken, don’t you.’ He said it as a statement, not a question. ‘You wouldn’t be here otherwise.’
‘I am fearful for your daughter’s safety, yes.’
Mandy choked down another sob.
‘I’m so sorry, Mrs Reynolds, I don’t mean to upset you. But when I look back at that period of time when Katy was first missing, there is so much I would have done differently. I allowed myself to become redundant in the process and let the police do my job for me.’
The young man who’d been introduced to him as Jade’s fiancé piped up. ‘Your job?’
‘My job as her father – I should’ve done more to find Katy myself and I will never forgive myself for not.’ He looked at Clive and was buoyed to see in his expression the realization that he should be doing the same now, for Jade. This was what fathers did: they rescued their children when they were in trouble. They didn’t sit on the sidelines watching other men take charge or letting their wives tell them what to do. ‘I’m here to help you. Please, let me help you.’
‘But you’re not the police, what can you do?’ asked Mandy doubtfully.
‘Plenty, actually. If this is a repeat of what happened to Katy, we can retrace the steps of what happened in the week between her going missing from the beach and –’ his voice caught in his throat – ‘her body being found. I know who the police questioned back then – some of them still live in the resort, so we can talk to them.’
‘The police won’t like that,’ said the fiancé.
‘They can’t stop you looking for Jade yourself – you don’t need to sit here doing nothing if you don’t want to,’ said Philip insistently. ‘You simply need a plan of action first.’ His eyes locked on Clive’s again. ‘So many times since Katy died I’ve thought about what more I could’ve done to find her. I was her father, the one who was meant to protect her, and I let her down. I wish with all my heart I could go back and change things.’
Clive Reynolds squared his shoulders, his expression blazing with determination.
‘Talk me through this plan of yours.’