Holding her rage in check, Kim gathered all the parents in the lounge. Helen stood at the window. Matt leaned against the door frame. The rest of the team had remained in the incident room.
Her gaze passed over them all individually. She lingered on Elizabeth's lip for a few seconds. Elizabeth looked to the floor.
‘Who made contact with the kidnappers?’
The faces of Elizabeth and Stephen dropped. They looked at each other before turning their gaze accusingly on their friends.
‘I did,’ Robert said, calmly. There was no apology in his voice. He was just stating a fact.
‘How could you do that?’ Elizabeth cried.
He turned to her and met her gaze. ‘How could I not?’
Stephen crossed the space at speed but Matt inserted himself between them quicker.
Robert didn't flinch.
‘You devious bastard,’ Stephen spat over Matt's shoulder. ‘How the hell could you do that? You fucking know—’
‘Stephen, calm down,’ Robert said, cutting off his words.
Robert knew what? Kim wondered. Judging by the puzzled expression on Elizabeth's face, she was wondering the exact same thing.
Stephen allowed Matt to push him gently to the other side of the room and Karen turned to him, eyes blazing. ‘If you can't control your temper then please leave my home.’
Kim could see that Stephen’s rage was not yet spent, so quickly said, ‘If we can all calm down, the problem we now have is that the kidnappers won't deal with the negotiator. We have just received a text message stating they would prefer to respond to the parents’ request.’
Robert nodded his understanding. ‘I'm sorry but I just—’
Kim held up her hand. His apology was sincere but wouldn’t help. They could only move forward now with what they had. Kim's only surprise was that it was Robert and not Stephen who had broken first. Her gut told her there was a reason for that but she left it for now.
‘Have you received a text message back?’
Robert nodded. ‘Fifteen minutes ago.’
‘Which said?’
‘Not an option.’
Kim was confused. She assumed that Robert had offered a monetary value.
‘What did you ask?’
Robert met her gaze squarely. ‘I asked how much for both.’
A small sob escaped from Elizabeth's lips and Stephen's head snapped around. Karen stared forward with no reaction. She had known.
Everyone looked at each other for a moment.
‘Okay,’ Kim said. ‘Matt is going to work with you both on how to communicate with them. He'll be negotiating through the two of you.’
‘That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard,’ Stephen exploded.
An exasperated sigh travelled around the room.
‘Why is this all on us? What exactly are you doing to get our daughters back?’
Kim was now weary of his questions. She didn't get this much shit from Woody.
‘Mr Hanson, my team and I—’
‘I don't want to hear about how hard your team is working. I want to know where you are in the investigation. I want to know when you will concede defeat and go to the press. Will they have to come home in body bags before …?’
‘Outside, now,’ Kim snarled.
She almost felt the rush of air as every head whipped around towards her.
She stormed past Lucas and threw the door open. Stephen followed closely behind, matching her pace.
He started speaking before she'd stopped walking. She'd wanted more distance between the house and the sound of her voice but she stopped walking. Here would have to do.
‘Detective Inspector, I do not appreciate—’
‘I couldn't care less about what you appreciate but don't you ever speak about your daughter or theirs like that again.’
‘My thoughts are—’
‘Best left in your head. Now, listen to me carefully. I have had enough of you second-guessing my every move on this case. It is distracting and I will not be pushed around like some women, Mr Hanson. Do we understand each other?’
His look was defiant. ‘No, Inspector, we do not.’
She stepped closer, into his face. ‘Then let me spell it out for you. I am not your wife and I will not put up with your bullshit. If you do anything else to disrupt this investigation, including hitting your wife, Karen won't be the only one asking you to leave.’ Kim stepped even closer. ‘Only I'll be doing it with handcuffs and a police escort.’ She paused, her face an inch from his. ‘Now, do we understand each other?’
He stepped back, giving her his answer.
She had tried to be empathetic to his plight but Stephen’s constant badgering had pushed her one step too far.
‘Inspector, you should know that I don't think you're capable of running this investigation.’
Kim bit her tongue and followed him towards the front door.
Stephen disappeared back into the lounge. Bryant blocked her entry into the house.
‘Guv, a minute,’ he said, closing the door behind him and coming outside.
‘Bryant, whatever this is, it can wait.’
‘No, it really can’t.’
‘What?’ she snapped, eager to get back to the war room.
‘You’re losing it, Guv,’ he said, turning to face her.
‘Who the hell do you think—’
‘Okay, I’ll rephrase. You’re losing it, Kim. Because I’m telling you as a friend. You’re not eating, you’re not sleeping, you’re snapping at everyone and you just brought one of the girls’ fathers outside for a verbal kicking. Talk to me.’
She glared at him. ‘You do know there is a line and you are seriously close to overstepping it?’
Bryant shrugged. ‘Yeah, deal with me later but for now will you just bloody well let it out?’
‘There’s nothing to let out and you need to back the hell off. If you dare undermine me in front of—’
‘Never gonna happen and you know it – but if it helps to take it out on me, do it. I can take it. But you’ve got to release it somehow.’
‘There’s nothing—’
‘For fuck’s sake, Kim,’ he snarled.
Kim was stunned. Bryant rarely cursed and hardly ever shouted. And he’d never done either at her.
‘I know exactly what you’re doing. You’re taking everyone’s frustration and turning it on yourself. Every negative feeling is your responsibility because those little girls are still out there. You’re trying to shoulder the fears of a dozen people and, as strong as you are, you just can’t do it.’
Kim felt the familiar rage building. ‘Take your analysis and shove it up your arse. How dare you presume—’
‘I’ll dare because no one else will and you need to be told that it’s not your fault.’
Kim knew this was her opportunity to tell him how she was feeling. And Bryant would find some way to make her feel better. He always did.
But as well as being her friend, he was a member of her team. And she would not allow any of them to see her fear. Two people were dead and a third was fighting for her life. Charlie and Amy were still out there, frightened and at risk.
She couldn’t allow herself to feel better.
Not until she brought them home.