‘I know,’ Lizzy said. ‘And, now that I know the truth, I’m not going to let him get away with it.’ Lizzy nodded to herself. She felt completely useless just sitting in Emma’s flat, knowing all the while that her best friend was out there somewhere, in all probability being held by that madman Peter Myers. It felt like there was nothing she could do – it was in the hands of Gasnier and his colleagues now. But then she realised: there
was
something she could do – something that would help make her feel very much better, and sort things out for Emma when she was back.
Because she is coming back
, Lizzy told herself firmly. She could stop the docudrama once and for all, by going to see Guy Roberts.
Dan stopped pacing. ‘What are you going to do?’
‘I’m going to pay Guy Roberts a little visit first thing tomorrow.’
Will looked uncomfortable. ‘Do you think that’s wise?’
‘Possibly not. But I’m not going to sit back and take this. I feel like that at this moment, it’s the one thing I can do for Emma.’
‘I’ll come too,’ Dan said. ‘I want to look that piece of dirt in the face and tell him some home truths.’
Chapter 33
Early the next morning, Will wandered aimlessly around Regent’s Park. There was something about that green oasis in the heart of the city that kept pulling him back. It now held so many memories: some good, some bad. There was the time, in late summer, when he had struggled to decide whether to tell Emma about his fear over the real reason for Dan’s disappearance. Then, just a few weeks ago, the girl whom he knew then as Amy had bounded over to him, all smiles and full of positive energy. He had fallen in love with her that day. But it seemed like a lifetime away now.
He made his way up to the far end of the park, squinting in the bright, wintry sunshine. A break in the wet and windy weather appeared to be holding, and it was a clear, if blustery and chilly morning outing.
Will sat down on a bench and scanned the area. He knew it wasn’t realistic, but part of him hoped that he might suddenly see Emma walking in the distance. He would call her over, and everything would be all right. He closed his eyes, feeling so tired. He hadn’t slept much at all in the night, his head was so crammed full of worries.
Will stayed like that for a few minutes, before opening his eyes again and pulling out his mobile. He had to call his dad – he had asked for an early morning update.
Edward was already at the hospital, at Miranda’s bedside.
Will was amazed.
Maybe baby Jack really will be Dad’s new start in life.
He waited as his dad moved out of the ward, to be able to talk properly. But in hushed tones.
‘Any news?’
‘I’m afraid not. We’ve not heard from the police since they left last night. Did you decide whether to tell Miranda?’
‘I haven’t said anything yet, but I’m going to have to tell her something. She’s wondering where Emma is, and is expecting her to come today. I can’t lie to her about this – it would be the final straw.’
‘And she hasn’t asked what our argument was about?’
‘No, but she probably will at some point.’
‘And are you going to tell her the truth?’
‘Not about that, no.’
Will looked around the park again. Suddenly he saw a figure off in the middle distance, jogging parallel to where he was sitting. From here, it looked spookily like Emma – the dark jogging attire, the peaked cap with dark hair tied back into a short ponytail – even the running style was reminiscent.
‘William, are you still there?’
‘Yes, yes, I’m still here,’ Will replied, transfixed by the jogger. He tried to turn his attention back to the call. ‘I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything.’
‘I’m sure she’ll be okay,’ Edward said.
‘I wish I felt so positive.’
The call now over, Will got to his feet. He traced his eyes across the horizon, but the figure had gone. His level of disappointment surprised him: it wasn’t likely that the person really was Emma.
And then, suddenly, emerging from the tree line, there they were again.
Will began to run towards them.
Lizzy entered the kitchen in her pyjamas. Dan was already up and dressed, making breakfast. She noted that he was wearing his wedding ring.
He looked up and smiled tiredly. ‘Morning.’
‘Morning.’ The absence of the word ‘good’ was obvious to them both.
Dan handed her a coffee. ‘How did you sleep?’
‘Not good,’ she replied. ‘I must have been awake more than half the night. Every time I woke up, I’d remember about Emma. And then I just couldn’t stop thinking about what’s happened to her.’ She sipped at the hot, strong drink: Dan knew she liked a coffee that packed a punch. ‘How about you?’ she asked, leaning against the breakfast bar.
‘I feel really guilty,’ he said, ‘but I didn’t wake up once. I think I must have been so tired from the stress that my body just shut down.’
‘That’s good. I wish I could have had the rest.’ The thought brought out a yawn. ‘We’re going to need all the energy we’ve got.’
‘I did dream of her, though,’ Dan continued. ‘It was a nice dream. We were walking along the sand in St Ives. We stopped and kissed. The sky was an amazing, vivid blue. And the sea was sparkling like crystal. She looked so beautiful. It felt so real.’ Dan stared off, lost in the image.
‘Everything will be all right,’ Lizzy found herself saying.
Dan went back to buttering the toast. ‘You don’t know that, Lizzy.’
Lizzy struggled for a justification of her statement. ‘You and Emma, you’ve got a future. You’ll have children. You’ll grow old together.’
‘Please, Lizzy,’ Dan said, suddenly dropping the knife with a clatter onto the plate, and desperately pinching his tears back. ‘I know you’re trying to make me feel better, but I can’t think about things like that. It hurts too much.’
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.’
‘I know you didn’t,’ he said, recovering. ‘You know, I’m so glad you’re here. I really need the support.’
‘Don’t mention it.’ Lizzy reached over and picked up a piece of toast, pulling the corner off it. Chewing was laborious. She didn’t have much of an appetite, but knew that she had to eat. ‘Is Will still asleep?’
‘He’s gone out. Said he needed a walk to clear his head. I think he’s heading up to Regent’s Park.’
‘How was he?’
Dan shrugged. ‘He was pretty quiet. But from what he said, I don’t think he slept very well, either. He’s taken it pretty hard – like us all.’ He gulped back some coffee. ‘Oh, Lizzy, I just feel so
helpless
. I know now what you all went through when I was missing. It’s the worst feeling in the world, when someone you love is gone and you don’t know what’s happened to them!’
‘I know,’ she agreed. ‘It’s like parents whose children go missing without any explanation. I don’t know how they cope.’
‘I guess there’s always the chance of a happy ending.’
‘Yes, there is. And we’ve got to hold on to that. We need to fight for that happy ending. Because I feel that if we don’t, and we just give up, then . . . then we might get an ending that we don’t want.’
‘You’re right,’ Dan said. He thought for a few seconds. ‘Are you still planning on going to speak to Guy Roberts?’ he asked.
‘Definitely. I know it’s not going to help us to get Emma back, but it’s something that I feel like I need to do. That man has to know that he can’t get away with treating people the way he does. He might be able to bribe or threaten other people, but I’m going to get him to stop this docudrama if it’s the last thing I do.’
‘But what are you going to do?’
‘I don’t know exactly. Just tell him that we know what he’s doing. Maybe that will be enough to sink the programme idea.’
Dan looked sceptical. ‘Do you really think so?’
‘Maybe, maybe not. But at least he’ll know his secret’s out. Are you still coming along?’
‘Of course,’ he said.
Lizzy had a thought. ‘What about if Emma or the police call here? We need someone to be here, in case, don’t we?’
‘I’ll ask Will.’ Will, like Dan, had taken time off work because of what was going on.
‘Good idea.’
‘So are you just going to turn up, and hope that he’s at home?’
‘I don’t have his phone number so, yes, I’m just going to take a chance. And if he isn’t there, then I’ll come back again and again until he is in.’
‘You’re extremely tenacious, aren’t you?’
Lizzy managed her first smile of the day. ‘You could say that, yes.’
Will returned half an hour later. ‘Hi,’ he said, entering the living room, where Dan and Lizzy were now sitting. In his absence, Lizzy had taken a shower, and Dan had cleaned up after breakfast. They’d also decided that as soon as Will got back, they were leaving for Guy’s house.
‘Where did you go?’ Lizzy asked.
Will looked bad. Heavy, dark lines under both eyes revealed his lack of sleep, and his skin was ashen. ‘I did a circuit of the park. And something really strange happened – it’s completely freaked me out.’
Lizzy sat up. ‘What?’
‘I saw someone jogging in the distance, and they looked like Emma. Same kind of clothes, same hairstyle, same running action. I went to speak to them, thinking how stupid it was of me to even consider it might be Em. But when I got close, the likeness was uncanny. The girl’s face, it was so like Emma’s.’
‘What did she say?’ Lizzy said.
‘Well, I was a bit stunned, really. I just said how much she reminded me of my sister. She seemed a little embarrassed, and then just jogged off. I think maybe she thought I was trying to chat her up.’ He sank down onto the sofa and exhaled. ‘I think I’m starting to go mad. I can’t take this, I really can’t. The thought of never seeing Emma again . . . I’ve been thinking. The person with the cap, they’re the key to this, aren’t they? If the police could find out who they are, then they have a much better chance of finding Emma. And they’d have a much better chance of finding out who they are if they had all the information.’
Lizzy knew where he was going with all this. ‘Will, I don’t think giving yourself up to the police would do any good. They know that whoever this person is has insider information that could only have come from Stuart Harris. Knowing about your role in disposing of Stephen Myers’ body probably also came from Stuart – he either told this person, or they found something. So I don’t think it would give the police any more clues.’
Will seemed unconvinced.
‘Lizzy’s right,’ Dan said. ‘
We
know that information, and it hasn’t helped us to identify the person. We still have only one suspect.’
‘But we haven’t given it much thought, have we?’ Lizzy said. ‘Who else do we know was close to Stuart? Someone who might have that information?’
‘What about Guy Roberts?’ Will offered. ‘Maybe Stuart told him about what he had done, and also that I’d been involved.’
‘But what about the photo of you and Stuart?’ Lizzy asked. ‘Do you think Roberts would have had access to that?’
‘I don’t know.’ Will clamped his hands around the back of his head, close to tears. ‘I just want Emma back safe.’
Lizzy moved over to him and placed an arm around his shoulders. ‘Dan and I have been talking. We need to stay positive, no matter how difficult it is.’
‘Yes,’ Dan said, ‘and very soon we should hear back from the police about the CCTV. That might help.’
‘We have to believe that it will be all right, for Emma’s sake,’ Lizzy said. ‘She wouldn’t want us to give up and assume the worst, would she?’
Lizzy’s comment seemed to resonate with Will. ‘You’re right,’ he said. They could see him steeling himself. ‘It’s going to be okay.’
The girl kept on running. She’d made a big mistake, letting him get so close. But, amazingly, he hadn’t recognised her. The hair extensions – a different colour from her natural shade – and the years between their last encounter probably accounted for that. She ran all the way down to the entrance of Paddington Station before stopping to make a call. It was a good ten-minute run, alongside busy traffic, and it gave her time to think how she was going to explain this turn of events to him.
He picked up after a few rings.
‘Something bad just happened . . . I’ve just been approached by Will . . . I was jogging in Regent’s Park . . . I didn’t see him! . . . No, I don’t think he recognised me . . . I can’t be sure, no . . . Okay, I’ll be there as soon as I can.’
She entered the station and paid to enter the public lavatory with what little small change she had on her. She took advantage of the deserted washroom to admire herself in the mirror. The sight lifted her spirits. She smiled and straightened her cap. ‘You’re looking good, Emma Holden.’
Part Four
Chapter 34
Will agreed with Dan and Lizzy that he should stay in the flat, just in case Emma or the police called, while they went to speak to Guy Roberts. Promising to check their mobile phones at regular intervals in case of missed calls, the pair headed off for Notting Hill.