Page 9 of Maybe Tomorrow

‘Did you mention it to her, what you’d seen?’

‘No. I mentioned it to Geoff.’

‘And what did he say?’

‘He was fuming, naturally, but he said if we involved ourselves, we’d just make things worse. We’d have to wait for Alice to come to us and, in the meantime, make sure she had a happy home life.’

‘And she does?’

‘Of course. She’s very happy at home. When she’s not reading or making clothes, she’s watching game shows with her dad. They play this game where they try to give the funniest answers.’ She smiled at the memory. ‘It’s silly, I know, but the atmosphere in here is so light and full of fun. She can forget the cruelty out there.’

The front door opened and slammed closed. Judith jumped up from the sofa and ran out into the hallway.

Geoff looked as though all energy had been sapped out of him and he struggled to kick off his working boots. Behind him, two young men in uniforms and waterproof overcoats looked soaked to the skin, drained, and shattered. Judith didn’t need to ask; their impassive faces told her what she needed to know.

Geoff shook his head.

‘We’ve looked all over. There’s no sign of her anywhere. It’s like she’s just disappeared.’

Judith started to cry again. She held onto the doorframe, screwed up her face, and let the torrent of emotion pour out. Geoff leaped forward, grabbed his wife and wrapped his huge arms around her. He took her into the living room.

Freya stepped into the hallway to join her colleagues. ‘Nothing at all?’ she asked, lowering her voice.

‘There’s no one out there,’ PC Simms said. ‘It’s a ghost town. Sergeant Adams said they’ll start knocking on doors at first light if she’s not found.’

Freya looked over her shoulder into the living room and stepped closer to Simms. ‘Did Geoff say anything? Do you have any suspicions?’

‘He loves her. He’s worried about her. He said he thinks she’s being bullied at college.’

‘Judith said the same thing. We could go round there tomorrow and talk to the teachers as well.’

‘What about now, though?’ PC Lowe said. ‘I mean, the storm seems to be calming down, but we can’t just leave her out there, can we?’

‘We don’t know that she is out there,’ Simms said. ‘We don’t know anything.’

‘I’ve tried ringing Adams three times in the last hour, and it’s always been engaged,’ Freya said. ‘People must be calling about all kinds of things because of the storm.’

‘So, what do we do then? Do we go back out there or wait until first light?’ Lowe asked.

‘I don’t think we have any choice. We’ll wait,’ Freya said.

All three remained in silence in the hallway, listening to the backdrop of Judith crying her heart out.

ChapterFour

Tuesday 11th October 1983

Judith was in the kitchen making breakfast. Geoff was sitting at the table, struggling to keep his eyes open. There was a heavy knock at the front door. As Freya was coming out of the living room at the time, she was the closest so answered. She turned back to look at the expectant faces of Geoff and Judith in the doorway to the kitchen.

‘It’s my boss,’ she said. ‘I’ll be right back.’

She stepped out into the cold daylight and pulled her jacket around her to keep warm.

‘How are they?’ Detective Inspector Henry Bishop asked. He walked away from the house and expected Freya to follow him. He lit up a cigarette and took a long drag. He was in his late forties but looked much older due to his chain-smoking and heavy drinking. His unkempt hair was thinning, his waist was expanding, but he always smelled clean and fresh thanks to copious amounts of aftershave he sprayed on himself.

‘Not good, sir,’ Freya said, staying downwind of the cigarette smoke. ‘Judith managed to get a few hours’ sleep in the early hours. I think it was through exhaustion, mainly. Geoff’s been awake all night.’

He stopped and turned to face her. ‘We’ve had a call from our friend the dog walker. A body’s been found in woodland opposite Whitby Cemetery.’