On A Dark Sea (The DCI Dani Bevan Detective Novels Book 2) (21 page)

Chapter Forty Five

R
eturning to the flat was hard. Dani had spent most of the day holed up with DCS Nicholson and Phil Boag, discussing the latter’s future in the police force. Nicholson knew what a talented officer Phil was, he’d worked with him for many years. The DCS seemed convinced that Dani’s DS was going through some kind of mid-life crisis. Phil kept quiet throughout much of the debate, which appeared to confirm Nicholson’s theory of a breakdown.

              In the end, they decided upon a phased return to work and the instigation of three months of intensive therapy, to be paid for by the division. Phil wouldn’t be losing his rank. For this, Dani was hugely grateful. She couldn’t have borne having to say goodbye to such a good colleague and friend, on top of everything else.

              She pushed the front door open tentatively, as if expecting a menacing figure to be lurking inside. Instead, it was as quiet and still as the grave, which, of course, was what she was dreading most. Dani had always been someone who enjoyed living alone. She worked long hours and valued the peace and seclusion that her home provided. The idea Dieter might have taken this away from her really hurt. But she supposed it was her own fault, for letting the man in here. 

              Dani deposited her coat and bag and strode into the kitchen, throwing on every light switch to inject some cheer. She knew that with time she’d get over it. Her sense of peace and contentment would return. Perhaps a week or two on Colonsay with her father would help to speed up the process. Dani smiled at the thought of this. As she opened a cupboard to fix herself some food, the smile died on her lips. She was confronted by shelves filled with the stuff Dieter had bought for her. There were packets of flour and baking products, jars of interesting jams and pickles. The types of goods she would never have sought out for herself.

              The DCI had been holding back the emotions she felt for days, but now the tears fell. She sat at the table with her head in her hands. The anguish lasted for about half an hour and then it stopped, as abruptly as it had begun. Dani lifted her head and found she was feeling hungry.

              As she made a move back towards the kitchen, the doorbell rang. Dani dabbed at her face with a tissue and walked carefully along the corridor. She opened up to find Andy standing on the step, cradling a bottle of wine. Behind him was Carol, holding onto the handles of Amy’s pink pram.

              Dani beamed with genuine pleasure and stood back to allow them to enter. Within minutes, the flat was filled with noise and laughter. Bevan brought down some glasses and fixed them all a drink. She checked out one of the lower cupboards and discovered packets of gourmet crisps and nuts, which she shook out into bowls. There was even fresh orange juice in the fridge for Amy.

              ‘Were you expecting visitors?’ Andy asked in surprise, not used to his boss’s kitchen being quite so well stocked.

              ‘No, I just like to have a few things in, just in case.’

              Carol wanted to know all about Norway and they chatted for as long as Amy was prepared to play quietly with the dolls she had brought with her.

              Dani glanced down at the little girl, with her golden curls and contented expression. ‘I should really get some toys in for Amy to play with when you come over again,’ she said distractedly.

              Andy nearly choked on his Merlot. ‘Dani Bevan shopping in Mothercare! I’d pay good money to see that one!’

              Dani turned to her colleague and laughed good-naturedly, leaning over to pour more wine into their glasses.

              ‘Come on, Andy, I’m sure Dani buys a lot of things for her friends’ children.’ Not for the first time Carol was worried her husband may have overstepped the mark.

              ‘You wouldn’t be so keen to leap to Dani’s defence if you knew what she said about the jumpers you bought me for Christmas,’ Andy retorted with a wink.

              Dani stood with her mouth open, entirely lost for words, until Carol started to giggle. Amy looked up at her mum and started to laugh too and soon they were all in a fit of hysterics, with nobody being quite sure what had set them off in the first place.

Chapter Forty Six

A
fter several days of interminably wet weather, the skies over Stavanger had begun to clear. Charles Riddell was tidying up the toys in his son’s bedroom. For the time being, Gabriel was at his grandmother’s house with Kristin but soon they would start the process of deciding upon access arrangements and other such technicalities. About which, he actually had a great deal of knowledge, having gone through the whole thing five years before.

              Charles knew that the collapse of a second marriage was a badge of personal failure. No longer could one blame the poor decisions and inexperience of youth. But he was quite sure that Kristin’s deception was something he could not forgive. The knowledge that half the city was aware of her involvement with this environmental group was more than his pride could bear. Even if that wasn’t true, he’d always suspect it.

              The house would be sold and the profits split between them. Kristin would be well taken care of. Charles was happy for his wife to have custody of Gabriel. As long as he retained his visitation rights, which he was sure wouldn’t be a problem.

              Charles padded around the vast kitchen-diner. What had once been a dream home for him and his young family, now felt cold and empty, the fixtures and fittings seemed stark and minimalist, which was a look that had never previously been his style. It was amazing how living within a new culture could so quickly and subtly change your tastes and habits.

              The sun was now strong enough for Charles to turn the lock on the large patio doors and slide them open to let in the spring-like air. He could smell the pine trees, their natural scent stimulated by the continuous rain of the previous week. He walked back towards the kitchen stove, filling a kettle with water and placing it on the light. He sensed a shadow falling onto the work top in front of him and decided the clouds must have blown over once more. Thinking he’d need to pull the door shut again, he turned around.

              A figure was standing perfectly still on the garden patio, although he’d heard no one approach. At first, Charles thought he was dreaming; that the trauma of the past few weeks had sent him quite mad. He decided to enjoy the vision, to revel in it. He stared at her silky black hair and rejoiced in the paleness of her skin and those watery green eyes. When the vision broke into a smile and walked towards him he thought his legs might buckle. It was she who held him strongly and kept the man upright. Once his daughter was in his arms, Charles knew for certain she was real and he let out a cry of pure joy.

Charles insisted that Maisie have a bath. He selected some of Kristin’s jogging pants and a sweatshirt and they seemed to fit her rather well. Charles made them both a hot chocolate and lit the wood-burning stove. He sat next to her on the sofa and held her hand. ‘Please tell me where you’ve been. We thought you were dead.’

              Maisie touched her father’s face. ‘Of course I’ll tell you. I never expected to be hiding for so long.’

              ‘I want to know everything, right from when you were back home in Glasgow.’

              Maisie sighed. ‘I wasn’t getting on well with Mum. Now I’ve had time to think I can see her side of it more. But back then I was desperate to get away. I went to a club in the city one night and got talking to this guy. He was a DJ and I told him I wanted to sing professionally. He asked me to perform for him and he was really impressed. Ray set up some gigs where I could do the backing vocals. I didn’t get paid at first, but later on, one of the bands needed a lead singer and Ray recommended me. After that, I started earning decent money.’

              Charles tried hard not to show his anger. ‘How come your mother allowed you to go out and do all this?’

              ‘She didn’t know, Dad. I slipped out of the house after Mum was in bed, or sometimes I got friends to say I was at a sleepover with them.’

              Her father nodded, he was trying desperately to understand.

              ‘Some of the men in those clubs were really sleazy, but Ray was actually an okay bloke. I pretended to be with him and that kept the creeps at bay. By the start of this year, I’d saved a few hundred quid.’

              ‘I would have given you that money if you’d asked, Maisie.’

              ‘I’m aware of that, Dad. But, I enjoyed the gigs and it’s good to earn your own cash. It made me independent of Mum. I could buy clothes and stuff without running it by her.’

              Charles could appreciate that concept. He’d been earning his own money since he was a teenager and worked his way through university.

              ‘I don’t think I had any sort of clear idea about what I was going to do with it, there was no plan. I was just enjoying the freedom it gave me.’ She looked sheepish. ‘On Wednesday afternoons, when we had this dickhead of a teacher for activities who never took the register, I used to walk out of the school gates and get a bus into town. I would go to the shops, have a coffee, whatever I liked. But one day, it turned a bit sour. I saw Mum with this guy. I knew she’d been seeing somebody because she was being all secretive about text messages and stuff. Then she went to a really posh hairdressers in town and got a proper, expensive style. It was pretty obvious she had a new boyfriend. But what I didn’t know was that Mum was seeing Georgie’s dad – the married father of my
best friend
.’

              ‘Your mother is entitled to a private life,’ Charles ventured, realising that to say otherwise would make him a hypocrite.

              ‘I think I can understand that now. But I was really angry back then. When I saw them together it was the last straw. I knew I didn’t want to live with Mum anymore.’

              ‘Why didn’t you come straight to
me
,’ he implored.

              ‘Come on, you know that Kristin and I don’t like each other. That was another part of the issue, actually. I found out about Kristin being a member of an ecological group. I thought she’d only married you to get information about your company. I really hated her then and sort of wanted to split you both up.’

              ‘Kristin has moved out. We’re going to get a divorce.’

              ‘I figured that out when I saw her and Gabriel leaving with their suitcases and bags the other day.’

              ‘Have you been watching the house?’

              Maisie nodded. ‘Yeah, sorry.’

              Realisation seemed to dawn on Charles. ‘So Kristin
did
see you at Gabriel’s window. She didn’t imagine it.’

              ‘That’s right. Can I explain everything from the beginning, Dad? I think it might make more sense that way.’

              Charles felt dizzy with confusion but he allowed her to continue.

              ‘It only took a few days to organise my trip. I’d heard rumours about some guys at the clubs who brought girls into the country who were illegal, so they could work cheaply behind the bar and in the kitchens. I knew they got taken to other places too, like Amsterdam and Stockholm. I thought that with enough money, I’d be able to get myself here to Norway. Then I could gather evidence against Kristin and blow her secret sky high.’

              ‘You could have just told me, sweetheart.’

              Maisie raised her eyebrows. ‘Come on, you were infatuated with her. When we were all together in a room, you didn’t look at anyone but Kristin.’

              Charles was silenced by this, but he could accept that she was probably right. Up until his daughter’s disappearance that was, when Kristin’s spell had been well and truly broken.

              ‘It turned out that I didn’t actually need all that much money to get myself smuggled out of the country, just a few hundred pounds. I’d arranged to meet these two guys at junction 20 of the M8. I left school and walked to the rendezvous point. I didn’t want to get spotted travelling on a bus. When I arrived, the two men had a van. It was quite big and there were other people in the back, men and women, a few of them were really young. They looked scared and I felt bad for them. We had to squeeze in really tightly and the journey was uncomfortable. They were taking us down to Newcastle, which is where the men said I’d be getting on a boat.’

              ‘The police traced you there. Somebody on the docks recognised you from your missing posters.’

              ‘The two men kept arguing, not always in English either, so I didn’t really know what was going on. They made us sleep the night in the back of the van. I think the boat they were expecting hadn’t docked yet. It was bloody uncomfortable and I was really starting to regret the whole thing. The following day, they kept us in the van until it started to get dark, then the guys marched us around the port, trying to get someone to smuggle us onto a ship. I realised then that their plan must have gone wrong. The boat they’d been expecting hadn’t turned up. I’d not paid them the rest of the money yet so I made a decision. I saw the huge ferry port and reckoned I’d have better luck trying to sneak on board one of those ships than staying with the group. I was much less conspicuous than them, if you know what I mean. We parted ways at the docks, with no hard feelings.’

              Charles leant forward. ‘The group you were with travelled up the coast to Blyth, they found a fisherman willing to take them across the sea in his trawler. But there was a terrible storm. The boat was lost and they were all drowned.’

              Maisie put a hand up to her mouth. ‘Oh my God! Those poor people! There were girls in the gang who were younger than me.’ She began to cry.

              ‘The police have started the task of trying to find out who was on board, other than the crew. They believed you were one of them. The rest were illegal immigrants, about to be deported from Britain. I expect they’ll be able to put names to them in the end.’

              ‘It’s so unfair,’ she sobbed. ‘They were totally harmless.’

              ‘So, how did you eventually get here?’ he prompted, when she’d recovered her composure sufficiently.

              ‘I headed up towards the ferry terminal. I noticed that some of the ships were travelling to Kristiansand. I hung around the waiting room for a while and this group of student types came in. They’d been in the pub and were really jolly. I think they were actually stoned. I joined them and pretended I was a student from Glasgow University. They were going on a back-packing trip for the Easter break. When it was time for the ferry to board, I put my arm around one of the guys and kind of blended into the crowd. The steward looked at all the tickets, which were attached in a long strip, but it was cursory really. I don’t think they pay much attention on these overnight ferries.’

              Charles thought she was probably right. ‘Did you stay with the students?’

              ‘Yeah, I sat with them for the voyage,’ her face became grave. ‘Dad, it was awful. It rained the whole way and the ship was tossed about by the waves. We were all being sick into the litter bins. It wasn’t at all like going to Arran. I’m
never
taking that route again.’

              Her father couldn’t help but smile.

              ‘It was mid-morning when we docked. I was so relieved to be back on dry land. I strolled off the boat with my student friends and there were no problems at Customs. I reckon that if you’re female, white and middle class, you can probably move about the world as freely as you choose.’

              Charles thought this was an exaggeration, but he could certainly see her point.

              ‘The students were going to Oslo, so I tagged along. We took a coach and this time I had a proper ticket. When we reached the capital, I parted ways with them. They’re probably still back-packing round Europe somewhere, permanently stoned.’

              ‘Which is why they never realised the police were looking for you.’

              Maisie shrugged her shoulders. ‘I don’t think they’d have ratted on me even if they had. Anyway, while I was in Oslo, I bought a load of outdoor equipment, like a sleeping bag, a proper rucksack and really warm clothes. I thought the local police might be looking for me so I hitch-hiked to the outskirts of Stavanger.’

              Charles looked shocked.

              ‘Despite all the Scandi-noir on T.V, I know that Norway is a really safe and friendly place. Besides, I had a plan. I headed towards the forest. I remembered the old cabin we used to walk to, before you and Kristin bought this place, when I came on holiday to Norway and it was just the two of us, do you remember?’

              Charles nodded. ‘It’s about two miles from here. The place is practically derelict. Don’t tell me you’ve been staying in there?’

              ‘It’s only really been a few days. I fixed the cabin up a bit and made it as watertight as I could. It’s right in the heart of the forest. I’ve been really well protected from the rain. My plan was to try and gather some evidence on Kristin. I went into town a few times when I first arrived and hung about the university, but I didn’t know where to start, especially without my laptop. So I changed my strategy a bit.’ Maisie looked guilty. ‘Dad, I’ve got a confession to make.’