His words are interrupted by another incoming call. He looks at the screen and sees it’s Liam. He taps the buttons to switch the call. ‘I can’t talk now, I’ll call you back,’ he says, intending to hang up immediately and return to the search.
‘Stop – Cal, listen!’ Liam is shouting. ‘I’m driving to your house – Sophia’s just been on the phone to Georgia. We think Georgia’s had a run-in with the woman we’re after.’
Callum’s surroundings drop away as his mind grapples with this new information. ‘You mean she’s at home?’
‘She was heading there, but we don’t think she got inside. Sophia was talking to her when it happened. Apparently Georgia was nearly home when a woman got out of a car and approached her. Sophia said it sounded like Georgia ran, there was lots of scuffling and then she got cut off.’
Callum is already sprinting back to the field, phone still to his ear.
‘You’re sure about this?’
‘Cal, Sophia was hysterical. I’m running red lights. Get home now.’
‘Where are you?’
‘Only ten minutes from Lancaster, but I’m moving fast and I’ll call a squaddie too. How soon can you get there?’
‘I’m on my way.’
As he speeds down the hill, Anya sees him coming. Her steps quicken as she senses his urgency. ‘She’s at home,’ he calls as he gets closer, unwilling to stop. ‘She’s spoken to Sophia, but she may have met our trespasser. She could be on her way back here now.’ He sees her jaw drop but he can’t stop. ‘Stay put in case she turns up this end. I’ll call you when I find her.’
He is sucking air noisily by the time he reaches the vehicle. He slams it into gear and takes the most direct route out, reversing over the grass. The tyres squeal as the car swings around and he floors the accelerator. Liam is too far away, and god knows how long the squad car will take. This is all on Callum.
There is only one road up to Fellmere, and he tackles it like a rally race, the back end of the car swinging wildly round the corners. As he turns into the quiet lane he sees a white car parked just beyond his house, but there is no one around. He pulls onto the driveway and jogs to the front door, fumbling with the key. Door open, he runs into the hallway, shouting ‘Georgia! Georgia!’ as he goes. There is no energy to the house, he’s sure she isn’t here, but he dashes upstairs and checks all the bedrooms anyway.
He is inspecting his own room when he glances through the window, as a woman with long, dark hair emerges from the woods, hugging herself, hurrying back towards the parked white car.
In seconds he is back down the stairs and out onto the path, fresh adrenalin pumping through his arms and legs. ‘Hey!’ he shouts as she passes by the front garden.
Her expression transforms as she sees him. She throws him a look of terror before she sprints to her car.
Callum rushes down the driveway, catching up with her as she reaches for the door handle. He launches himself at her, the force of his tackle knocking her over. They hit the ground hard, his body crushing hers, winding him. At the same time he hears a crack and she screams, and when he moves off her she gets to her hands and knees, dabbing at her bloody nose.
‘Where the hell is my daughter?’ he roars, as she scrabbles backwards away from him. He gets to his feet, towering over her. ‘Hey!’ he yells. ‘Answer me.’
Her back meets the low stone wall of their front garden. She stares at him, breathing fast, her body trembling. ‘She ran into the woods. I only wanted to talk to her, but she disappeared.’
‘What the hell have you done?’ Callum lunges forward, intending to pull her up. Somehow he will force her to tell him the full truth, but before he can get any further he is grabbed from behind and hauled away.
‘Step back, sir, or I’ll have to cuff you,’ a voice says, so close to his ear that warm breath prickles his skin.
He is still being held as another uniformed officer stalks in front of him and offers a hand to the girl, pulling her up. The middle-aged policeman looks between them. ‘Who’s going to explain what is going on here?’
‘My daughter is missing,’ Callum pants. ‘I think she’s lost in the woods. Please, let go of me, I need to find her. Where the hell is she?’ he bellows at the woman once again.
She’s changing in front of him, her confidence returning now his arms are pinioned behind him and she has the upper hand. She marches up until her face is right next to his.