Page 32 of The Girl in the Grave
Paton led him to an old caravan that was situated at the far end.
‘That one in the middle, the washed-out green one.’
‘What do you think? Can we get the door open?’
‘I don’t see why not; a few good kicks should do it.’
They walked towards it. Josh decided to try knocking on the front door to see for himself. He knocked; the second time he hammered on it. The old guy from the caravan next door stuck his head out.
‘I told your mate, it’s empty. Has been for ages.’
Josh smiled at him, then turned to Paton, who shrugged.
‘In for a penny.’ He launched his foot at the door several times, watching it bend under the pressure, but it didn’t give.
Paton shook his head. ‘Here, let me try.’
Josh stepped to one side.
Sam, who had decided to come and see what they were up to, rounded the corner just in time to see Paton running towards the door. He rammed it with his shoulder and the door buckled, sending him falling into the caravan.
Josh followed, shouting: ‘Police.’
The stifling heat inside the caravan was unbearable. It was dark inside and stuffy. The air smelled stale. The old guy was right, no one had been here for weeks. Holding out his hand, Josh pulled Paton to his feet and they searched each room. There was nothing, no missing girl, no occupant, not even a scrap of food in any of the cupboards.
No one spoke, all of them were too overcome with disappointment.
Forty-Six
Neither Sam nor Josh spoke on the way to the club; the weight of getting nowhere fast was pressing heavy on their shoulders. Josh pushed the door at the side of the hotel which led to the club, relieved it opened. He needed the camera footage right now, not in a week’s time. This was the most vital evidence they would have, and he just hoped they caught a break and Annie’s abductor showed his face on camera. He wanted to scrutinise it from the minute the club opened, to when Estelle and her friends entered, to the minutes after they left.
As he walked inside, followed by Sam, the smell of stale alcohol that lingered in the air made his stomach churn. He liked a drink but hated it the day after when the fumes and a pounding headache were all that was left of a good time. A huge guy walked towards them, his palms outstretched, signalling them to stop and turn around.
‘Sorry, bud, we’re not open until later. The cleaners haven’t been in yet.’
Josh pulled his warrant card from his pocket. ‘DS Josh Walker, this is my colleague DC Sam Thomas, can we have a word with you about an incident last night?’
‘It’s not my fault. I didn’t keep on selling them the alcohol. It’s the bar staff, they’re a bit scared of Estelle, so they just kept on serving her. Besides, she wasn’t that drunk. Anyway, why does it need CID? Don’t you have a licensing officer who deals with this sort of stuff?’
Josh was tired. He looked at Sam, who shrugged her shoulders.
‘Mate, I don’t care about how much alcohol was served. Has anyone spoken to you about the missing girl?’
The bouncer’s face visibly paled and he shook his head. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he looked down at the screen then showed it to Josh. There were an alarming number of missed calls.
‘Let’s start again. Last night Estelle Carter and a group of friends were in here drinking champagne like it was tap water, yes?’
The bouncer nodded and held out his hand. ‘I’m Pete.’
‘Right, Pete. Well, one in the group of Estelle’s friends was a bit worse for wear.’
‘Annie, yes she was. She was leathered; she couldn’t stand up and knocked the table and everything on it flying. I don’t like to interfere with Estelle and her business, but I had to do something; they could have hurt someone, and Annie had drunk more than enough. I told them to get her out of here and that they couldn’t have any more. Is she okay?’
Josh wondered if he was for real, then realised that it was more than likely if he’d been working until the early hours he wouldn’t know what had happened. It was clear he hadn’t answered any of his phone calls.
‘She’s missing.’
‘I don’t understand? Estelle and some guy carried her out of here. I assumed they took her back to her room in the basement. She couldn’t stand on her own two feet, so I find it hard to believe she wandered off anywhere.’
