She nodded and went into the lounge.
The phone rang, and Cathy answered it in the kitchen. ‘Hello?’ She paused. ‘What?’ She paused again. ‘Maybe so, but this is just ridiculous.’ She looked down the hallway at Luke. ‘I’ll tell him.’ She placed the handset down.
‘What is it?’
‘The police. They want you to give them a DNA sample this morning. Asked if you could pop in as soon as possible.’
‘What the hell for?’
‘It’s just for elimination purposes, they said.’ She passed him his coffee from the worktop.
‘I bet they think I’ve done something to Debbie. Maybe they think I have her in the shed or something. Maybe they think I’m making all this up.’
He heard a thunderous stampede coming down the stairs. ‘We’re ready!’ shouted Max. The three children stood in the doorway of the kitchen.
‘What’s wrong, Dad?’ Heidi asked.
‘Nothing, sweetheart. I’ll see you after school.’
‘Come on then, you lot. Let’s get going,’ Cathy shouted. They ran to the door, laughing and shouting as they left the house. ‘See you in a bit,’ said Cathy, following them out.
Luke leaned against the countertop. They wanted him to go to the station and do a DNA test. It was just to eliminate him, he knew that, but he couldn’t help but feel like a suspect. He’d been questioned previously about the night Debbie disappeared, but he had an alibi. He’d been walking a client around a house several miles from where Debbie had vanished. So why were they putting him through this? Perhaps they thought he was in on her disappearance with someone else. His hands began to tremble the more he thought about all that was happening.
‘Luke? I don’t know what’s going on, but—’ Brooke crept through the door, startling him. He dropped the cup, spilling coffee all over the floor. ‘Oh God. What is it? Is it me?’
He shook his head. ‘No.’
‘The other day, I thought the time was right, but I’ve been thinking. Maybe you’re not ready to—’
‘It’s not just that,’ he said, as he began to shake and then burst into tears. She hurried over and hugged him.
‘What is it? I’m sure it can’t be that bad.’
‘I don’t know whether it’s bad or good, Brooke, I really don’t,’ he wailed as he stepped back onto the broken cup, cutting his heel. ‘Bloody hell. Can things get any more complicated?’ he said as he grabbed a tea towel. He stumbled back onto a kitchen chair and began to wipe the blood from his foot. ‘I can’t dress up what’s happened.’
‘Then don’t,’ she replied as she sat beside him.
‘You know the abandoned baby that they found? Did you read about it or hear anything?’
She nodded. ‘The one at the library?’
‘Yes. It’s Debbie’s. The police have confirmed it. She’s alive and she’s just given birth. I don’t know where that leaves us. I don’t know where that leaves me, and just to top it all off, the police investigating have called me in for a DNA test this morning.’
He watched as she looked away. Her lip quivered as she wiped a tear from her cheek. There was nothing he could do to quell her pain. He’d felt something with Brooke, a genuine connection.
‘Where does that leave us?’ she asked. ‘I mean, I know you weren’t ready, but I thought we had something.’
He sobbed and rubbed his foot. ‘I’m sorry. I’m just so confused.’
She leaned down and picked up the pieces of cup that were strewn on the floor. She grabbed the kitchen roll and began mopping up. ‘We’ve been friends for a long time now, haven’t we?’ He nodded. ‘I’m here for you. I’ll help you with the kids. If they want to come to mine to stay or for tea, like always, they’re still welcome. If you want to talk, that’s also fine.’ Brooke looked to one side and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. ‘What I’m trying to say, damn it, is that I don’t want to lose your friendship. Nothing really happened and I… I really like you.’
‘I’m sorry.’ He stood and hugged her. He had no idea what the future held, or if Debbie was going to be found, but he did know he needed time to digest all that was happening. ‘I have to go and get ready for this DNA test now,’ he said as he hobbled across the floor, hoping that she’d leave him to think. He’d get the DNA test done, the quicker the better, then they could start looking for real suspects – like the intruder in the hoodie, the man who’d been watching him.
‘Shall I come with you?’
‘No. I want to be alone.’
Brooke’s cheeks were soaked with tears. ‘Well, you know where I am.’ She snatched her bag off the table and left. He smacked the door with the flat of his hand and continued to hobble towards the stairs, wondering where his life was going.
Twenty-Seven
Gina crossed the car park and thought about the night before. Briggs was good company when he wanted to be. They’d laughed, chatted about the case, then they’d enjoyed each other’s bodies until they were spent. She inhaled the fresh smell of coconut conditioner coming from her hair. She certainly felt more human after popping home for a shower and a piece of toast. As she grabbed the door, Jacob stepped out, almost knocking her over.
‘In a hurry?’ she asked.
‘Thank you so much for my lovely cold,’ he said, sneezing a load of mucus into his hand. ‘Feeling well? You look well. In fact, you look better that you have done in days.’
‘I’m on top of the world,’ she replied with a smile. Jacob stuck his tongue out. ‘Bleugh, thanks for infecting me.’
Gina passed him a tissue and laughed at his sullen face, contorted intentionally into a grimace. ‘You know, Driscoll, you could win a gurning competition with that face.’
Briggs, who had just pulled into the car park, stepped out of his car. ‘Morning, sir,’ Jacob croaked as he wiped his red nose.
‘Sir,’ Gina muttered as she looked away.
He grabbed his briefcase from the passenger seat and stomped towards the pair. He glared at Jacob’s runny nose. ‘Not you too.’
‘Afraid so, sir.’
Briggs took three large steps back from Jacob. ‘See this distance. I want you to stay at least this far away from me all day. Do you hear?’
‘Yes, sir,’ Jacob replied.
Gina almost wanted to laugh. He hadn’t kept her at a distance, even though she was nursing the same cold.
‘He can be a tosser sometimes,’ Jacob said.
‘What? Because he doesn’t want your cold?’
‘I didn’t want your cold either, but shit happens.’ A couple of raindrops landed on Jacob’s face. ‘I’ll see you in there. I’m just going to grab some painkillers from my glovebox.’ Driscoll ran towards his car.
‘Morning,’ the desk sergeant, Nick, called as she entered the office. She smiled and checked her watch. It was almost nine. Luke would arrive at the station for the swab she’d ordered in about half an hour. She had just enough time to catch up. First, though, she needed approval to take the swab from Luke. Briggs was monitoring every cost that passed through the station. She raced to her office and booted her computer up. As soon as it came on, she printed out the paperwork pertaining to the sample. She passed the incident room, and saw that Jacob had updated the board with details of the attempted break-in from the notes that she’d uploaded. She knocked on Briggs’s door.
‘Come in,’ he called.
‘Are you okay? You look a little tired, if you don’t mind me saying.’
‘I got woken up abruptly in the night.’ She smiled at him, and he looked at his computer. ‘Right, why are you here? Have you solved the case? Got me some good news to report to the powers above?’
She shook her head and held out the paperwork. ‘I wish. As you know, we need to eliminate Luke Jenkins. We’ve asked him to come in for a DNA swab. He’s due in a few minutes.’
‘And you want me to sign off?’
‘Yes.’