Farrell had driven to Kirkcudbright like a maniac, Mhairi, pale and quiet beside him. Stirling followed in another car behind, having scooped up DC Thomson. He had discharged himself from hospital and insisted on coming. DS Forsyth and his team were meeting them at the harbour.
It was already dark, and they slid like shadows through the still night, until they reached the studio where Halliday lived. Farrell felt sweaty and nauseous, the fear for his friend gnawing at his guts. The strain of the last few days was beginning to unravel his mind and he prayed silently for the strength to see him through the coming ordeal. He had to save Lind or die trying. Failure wasn’t an option.
The property was surrounded. Shrouded in darkness there was no sign of activity within. Janet Campbell had been evacuated out of harm’s way by PC McGhie. Bracing himself, Farrell gave the order to advance. The firearms team burst the door open, and Farrell and Mhairi ran in the door behind them.
It didn’t take long to establish that the flat was empty.
‘Shit!’ yelled Farrell, punching the wall in frustration.
DS Stirling and DC Thomson ran in a few moments later.
‘The shed and summerhouse are empty, boss,’ reported Stirling.
Farrell swayed on his feet, suddenly light-headed. He could see Mhairi staring at him anxiously. They were all waiting for him to direct them, and he had nothing. He sought divine inspiration, but the murderous rage he was feeling blocked that avenue. He examined the interior minutely looking for a wisp of a clue. Anything that might tell him where Halliday had gone. Nothing. There wasn’t even an unwashed coffee cup. How could the lair of a crazed psychopath look so unremarkable? His men had fallen silent. He could feel the heat of their suppressed impatience, like bloodhounds waiting to be unleashed. Taking one of the powerful torches, he went out into the yard. He stood there and slowly directed the torch in an arc, praying for something, anything, to leap out at him. It felt as though the world was holding its breath.
Suddenly, he had it. The last time he had swung by with Lind, there had been a boat and trailer in the yard. They had gone, along with Halliday’s black Land Rover.
‘He’s taken the boat,’ he yelled. ‘Down to the harbour.’
They ran straight there, and after a few minutes’ search they found the Land Rover, tucked down the side of a parked lorry. The harbour master’s office was closed, but there was an emergency contact number.
Farrell rang it at once.
‘DI Farrell, here. I need to know when Mike Halliday launched his boat tonight. He’s abducted one of our officers. That’s good to know … Do you know what kind of boat it is?’
Farrell hung up. ‘He couldn’t have launched before 6.15 p.m., because the tide was too low. His boat’s a twentysix-foot motor boat, painted blue and white. Stirling, can you liaise with the coastguard? We need a boat launched and standing by, as well as a search-and-rescue helicopter.’
‘On it, boss,’ said Stirling, tapping at his phone and turning away.
‘There’s a few large caves the other side of the Dundrennan Firing Range,’ said Mhairi. ‘Because of their location, no one ever goes there and they’re pretty much only accessible from the sea. As Ailish Kerrigan’s body was found within the range and he’s familiar with the area, perhaps he could have gone there?’
‘It’s worth a shot, Mhairi. Go and tell Stirling to pass that on to the coastguard.’
A few minutes later, Stirling and Mhairi returned to the group.
‘If there’s no other leads, it might be worth heading down that way ourselves, sir,’ said Stirling. ‘The farm Thomson and I were occupying is nearby and the caves might be accessible from the cliffs. We could use the farm as a base of operations meantime.’
‘Good idea,’ said Farrell. ‘Mhairi, can you contact the military, explain what’s happening and ask some of their men to rendezvous with us at the farm, bearing ropes and tackle for a possible cliff descent.’
Mhairi, too, busied herself on her phone.
Farrell wandered off to the water’s edge as everyone started getting in their vehicles. As he looked up at the enigmatic face of the moon turned towards him, he hoped and prayed that Lind was still alive and able to gaze upon it too.