news, Ma’am.’
Helen turned, surprised by her sudden appearance.
‘Nathan Price is on the move.’
46
The van sped along the road, its tyres spitting rainwater up off the slick surface. It had been raining solidly for an hour now and the storm showed no sign of relenting. Normally Helen would have cursed such weather, but not today. It reduced driver visibility, making it easier to tail the van unnoticed.
The windscreen wipers swept back and forth, beating out the rhythm of Helen’s anxiety. Nathan Price had been driving for forty minutes with no sign of stopping. Where was he heading? He had done a couple of laps of the ring road, presumably to throw off anyone following him. If that was the purpose, he had signally failed. The three unmarked police cars were still on his tail, changing positions at intervals to avoid detection.
The van headed south now through Northam and Itchen, leaving behind prosperity and aspiration. The van was crawling along and Helen had to drop her speed to avoid giving herself away. They were in Woolston now. What had once been an affluent pre-war suburb was now a forgotten wasteland – never having recovered from the brutal bombing it sustained during theSecond World War. The rickety houses round here had been left to moulder and were inhabited now by squatters, illegal immigrants and petty criminals. It was a nasty, forgotten place.
Finally the van slowed to a stop. Helen glided past and parked up out of sight round the street corner. She was out of the car in seconds and rounded the top of the street just in time to see Price step inside a house not fifty yards away.
Helen, flanked now by DC McAndrew, hurried towards it. She could see DC Lucas and Lloyd Fortune approaching from the other direction and signalled them to hold back. She would take the lead on this one.
Gesturing to McAndrew to follow, she slipped round the side of the house, keeping below the line of the windows. The back door banged quietly in the wind. Helen hesitated, listening. Voices. She could definitely hear voices. Price’s was raised in anger, but who was the other person? Who was he talking to?
Teasing the door open, Helen slipped inside. Edging across the room to the open doorway, she could hear the voices more clearly now. Price and a young girl, who was crying and remonstrating. She seemed to have done something wrong, though Helen couldn’t tell what, as the voices had now gone quiet.
A nasty bang made Helen jump – the crying that followed making it clear that Price had struck the girl.Helen didn’t hesitate. Pushing the door open and raising her baton, she stepped inside.
It was time to bring this game of Hide and Seek to an end.
47
Ruby screamed for all she was worth. She shrieked, whooped, ranted and raved – anything to break the awful silence that filled the small room. Her captor had only been gone a few hours but it felt like an eternity. What was he doing? How long would he punish her for? How long would she be left alone down here?
She bitterly regretted her outburst now. She had no power here, no bargaining chip, so why had she pushed him away? As she’d lain alone in the half-darkness after his departure, the minutes crawling by, the worst kind of thoughts had seized her. Thoughts of herself slowly withering to dust in this dreadful place. So she screamed to distract herself, to keep herself company in her lonely cell.
Tiring of this, she now found herself stalking the room again. It was more in hope than expectation – she had already explored her confines several times – but she had to do something . Passive resignation would only lead to madness or worse. She had to think. To act. To find a way out.
Clambering on to the table, she ran her fingers over the ceiling. The floorboards were wooden and couldperhaps be prised apart … But, for all her probing, they refused to budge. They had been sealed with solid silicone mastic that stubbornly resisted her attempts to remove
Helen turned, surprised by her sudden appearance.
‘Nathan Price is on the move.’
46
The van sped along the road, its tyres spitting rainwater up off the slick surface. It had been raining solidly for an hour now and the storm showed no sign of relenting. Normally Helen would have cursed such weather, but not today. It reduced driver visibility, making it easier to tail the van unnoticed.
The windscreen wipers swept back and forth, beating out the rhythm of Helen’s anxiety. Nathan Price had been driving for forty minutes with no sign of stopping. Where was he heading? He had done a couple of laps of the ring road, presumably to throw off anyone following him. If that was the purpose, he had signally failed. The three unmarked police cars were still on his tail, changing positions at intervals to avoid detection.
The van headed south now through Northam and Itchen, leaving behind prosperity and aspiration. The van was crawling along and Helen had to drop her speed to avoid giving herself away. They were in Woolston now. What had once been an affluent pre-war suburb was now a forgotten wasteland – never having recovered from the brutal bombing it sustained during theSecond World War. The rickety houses round here had been left to moulder and were inhabited now by squatters, illegal immigrants and petty criminals. It was a nasty, forgotten place.
Finally the van slowed to a stop. Helen glided past and parked up out of sight round the street corner. She was out of the car in seconds and rounded the top of the street just in time to see Price step inside a house not fifty yards away.
Helen, flanked now by DC McAndrew, hurried towards it. She could see DC Lucas and Lloyd Fortune approaching from the other direction and signalled them to hold back. She would take the lead on this one.
Gesturing to McAndrew to follow, she slipped round the side of the house, keeping below the line of the windows. The back door banged quietly in the wind. Helen hesitated, listening. Voices. She could definitely hear voices. Price’s was raised in anger, but who was the other person? Who was he talking to?
Teasing the door open, Helen slipped inside. Edging across the room to the open doorway, she could hear the voices more clearly now. Price and a young girl, who was crying and remonstrating. She seemed to have done something wrong, though Helen couldn’t tell what, as the voices had now gone quiet.
A nasty bang made Helen jump – the crying that followed making it clear that Price had struck the girl.Helen didn’t hesitate. Pushing the door open and raising her baton, she stepped inside.
It was time to bring this game of Hide and Seek to an end.
47
Ruby screamed for all she was worth. She shrieked, whooped, ranted and raved – anything to break the awful silence that filled the small room. Her captor had only been gone a few hours but it felt like an eternity. What was he doing? How long would he punish her for? How long would she be left alone down here?
She bitterly regretted her outburst now. She had no power here, no bargaining chip, so why had she pushed him away? As she’d lain alone in the half-darkness after his departure, the minutes crawling by, the worst kind of thoughts had seized her. Thoughts of herself slowly withering to dust in this dreadful place. So she screamed to distract herself, to keep herself company in her lonely cell.
Tiring of this, she now found herself stalking the room again. It was more in hope than expectation – she had already explored her confines several times – but she had to do something . Passive resignation would only lead to madness or worse. She had to think. To act. To find a way out.
Clambering on to the table, she ran her fingers over the ceiling. The floorboards were wooden and couldperhaps be prised apart … But, for all her probing, they refused to budge. They had been sealed with solid silicone mastic that stubbornly resisted her attempts to remove
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