Chapter 51

Nancy Chappell’s suspicions about Tim hang like a dead weight at the back of my mind. I’m miserable and it slows me down. Dropping off Sophia at Mrs Sims’ takes longer than on the previous days, because she wants to know about what’s being done to find Margie. I tell her that I know very little about the police investigation, but she obviously doesn’t believe me. She’s upset about Margie and I feel sorry for her. There’s someone else helping her today, a woman in her twenties who tries to take Sophia from me. Sophia shrinks away from her. The little boy called Thomas is subdued, too. Either they have already both come to love Margie, or they sense that something is wrong.

Eventually I manage to get away. I’m a bit late reaching the office, but I’m not expecting Fiona Vickers to turn up with her two protégées until around 10.00 am. As I let myself into the building, I see the light’s on in the office. It’s strange, as I’m sure I didn’t switch it on at all yesterday. I open the office door cautiously, ready to shout to the traffic team if there’s an intruder, and find Janey sitting at her desk staring into her computer. Her posture is oddly hunched. She looks diminished, somehow.

“Hello! This is a surprise. I thought you weren’t coming back until next week.”

“I wasn’t. Things didn’t go according to plan,” she says tautly.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” I say.

“Well, something’s happened, but I just don’t want to talk about it. No point in wasting a day’s holiday now that I’ve come home again.”

“I won’t ask, then.” I look at my watch. “I’m afraid I have some visitors coming here soon.”

“I can wait in Reception upstairs if I’m in the way,” she says huffily.

“Of course you’re not in the way. It’s lovely to see you. I was thinking more that they might disturb you.”

“Sorry, Katrin, I’m not myself, as you can see. I’m not doing anything except checking my e-mails, and I don’t need to concentrate very hard to do that. Besides, we’re both going to have to get used to working with each other’s visitors around. There’s no proper interview room here. I did point it out when they were redesigning the building.”

“I’m sure we’ll cope.”

“Who are the visitors? Anyone I know?”

“Not sure if you know Fiona Vickers? She works with women at risk in Peterborough.”

“Yes, I do know her,” Janey says slowly. “Who else is coming?”

“Two of the women she’s been helping. I’m trying to find out more about forced and arranged marriages and so-called honour killings.”

“Hefty subjects! Nothing like pitching yourself straight in when you come back to work, is there? Sounds as if you’re working on an interesting case.”

I see a glimmer of Janey’s usual wry humour and am relieved.

“You probably know about it. I’m helping Juliet Armstrong by doing some background research after the disappearance of an Indian girl. Ayesha Verma. I think she went missing before you left for your holiday.”

“Yes, she did. Poor kid. I hope you’re wrong about the honour killing. But isn’t it Tim’s case?”

“Partly. Tim’s gone to India to interview the girl’s fiancé. He’s really grabbed by the honour killing idea. Juliet’s asked me to look at it from a different angle, see if the circumstances really fit the pattern. And there’s been another development which hasn’t been made public yet. Another girl has disappeared now. I know her, as a matter of fact: she works for Sophia’s childminder.”

“Is she Indian, too?”

“No. A local girl. Parents are separated.”

“If the two cases are linked, it seems unlikely that Ayesha Verma was an honour killing victim.”

“I agree. But we don’t know yet if the other girl – her name’s Margie Pocklington – has disappeared, or is just visiting someone or has run away. Her home life is pretty bleak, by all accounts.”

“You don’t actually know that Ayesha Verma is dead, do you?”

“No. But finding out what happened to both of them is Juliet’s job. And Tim’s. Tim’s asked a DC from the Met who’s an expert in honour killings to help Juliet.”

“I bet that’s gone down well!”

“You’ve got it in one. Which reminds me, the DC in question’s offered to come to this meeting. I don’t know what’s happened to her. She stayed with us last night. She left for the station first thing but she should have been here by now. I’ll give her a call.”

“Tim been generous with your hospitality again, has he? You go ahead. I’m going to put the kettle on. It looks as if we’re going to be having a tea party very shortly.”

“Thanks!” I ignore the jibe at Tim. I really can’t be bothered to defend him at the moment, and, like Janey, I seem to have developed some no-go areas. I look at Janey as she gets up. She’s always been slender, but now she’s positively gaunt. I wonder what can have happened to upset her so much. It’s bound to be something to do with Gwillim – his father kicking up about custody again, perhaps. I know there’s no point in pressing Janey about it until she’s ready to tell me.

I can’t get a reply from Nancy Chappell’s mobile. I try calling Juliet’s extension at the station, but there’s no reply from that, either.