Lost Girls (32 page)

‘
C
-Come on
, Ames, you gotta s-stay with me. He'll be back in a m-minute.'

Amy held her right hand in her left. The tears coursed over her cheeks. ‘It hurts so bad.'

‘I know, Ames, b-but we gotta stay strong.'

Charlie knew Amy's little finger was broken. It looked the same as when she'd hurt her own in netball.

The pain coursed through her right foot where the man had stamped down on it. Amidst the pain she had heard bones crunch beneath his heavy boot but she had not cried, even though it was killing her to keep the tears at bay. It was hurting so bad now but she had to focus on the plan.

‘Ames, it's g-getting worse. We have to go th-through with it.'

Fresh tears sprung from Amy's eyes. ‘I can't, Charl, I can't …'

‘You c-can. I can't do it b-but you can.'

Charlie knew they had to try.

‘I know your hand is hurting b-but they're g-gonna hurt us some more.'

Amy cried harder and Charlie scooted closer.

‘Okay, listen. I'm g-going on a picnic and I'm t-taking an apple,' Charlie said. The game always calmed Amy down.

‘Banana.'

‘Ch-cherries.'

‘Doughnut.'

‘Eggs.'

‘Err … frankfurters,' Amy said.

‘G-Gingerbread.'

‘Hot dogs.'

The tears were slowing down. Charlie continued the game with one ear listening for the sound of footsteps.

‘Ice cream.'

‘Jelly.'

‘K-KitKat.'

‘Lemonade.'

‘Mars bars.'

‘Nuts.'

‘O-oranges.'

Amy's answers were coming much quicker.

‘Poppadums.'

‘Q … I always get Q,' Charlie said.

‘That's 'cos you always start the game, Dumbo,' Amy said, wincing.

Charlie tried to laugh and then stopped as she heard a door opening in the distance.

Amy heard it too. Her eyes widened. Her hand began to scratch skin.

Charlie put her hand on Amy's arm. They were out of time.

‘Ames, you gotta be b-brave and do wh-what I said.'

Amy shook her head and clutched Charlie's hand. ‘I can't …'

‘You m-must.' Charlie squeezed Amy's hand. ‘Promise me, Ames. P-Promise me you will.'

A tear fell from Amy's eye. ‘But you'll …'

‘I'll be right behind you b-but please just do what I say.'

Charlie fought to keep the lie out of her voice. If Amy knew she couldn't run she'd never do what she asked.

But this way, one of them would live.

K
im took a moment to think
. She trusted Emily's memory, but knew she was missing a crucial piece of the puzzle.

‘Of course,' she cried. She started the car and backed into the driveway she'd blocked.

‘What?' Bryant asked.

‘I've assumed Emily was facing the same way as the driver,' Kim said, beginning the journey back to the start point. ‘The poor kid had been thrown into the back of the van and was being tossed all over the place. That's why we're heading away. Emily was obviously facing the opposite direction.'

Bryant frowned as Dawson repeated what she'd just said to Stacey.

‘So, let me get this straight. We have to do the opposite of what we've just done because Emily's left is our right.'

‘Precisely,' Kim said, cursing herself for the wasted time.

Minutes later she was back at the start point. ‘Okay, same again,' Kim instructed.

She drove forward as Bryant called out what he saw.

‘Houses, houses, private drive, turn.'

Kim turned left.

The road had a pub on one corner and two terraced houses on the other corner. Beyond that, a hedge rose up on both sides.

Kim drove slowly as Bryant continued to call out.

‘Turn,' he shouted.

She took a sharp right and the road narrowed. She was now on a single track road. Hope began to build in her stomach. This was more like it.

‘Kev, you getting this?'

‘Yeah, Stacey said we're moving towards—'

‘Turn,' Bryant cried.

Kim took a left onto a single track road with tufts of grass breaking through the tarmac. She hit two potholes in a few seconds.

A branch caught the driver's side door.

‘Guv, I think we're getting close,' Bryant said.

Oh yes, she knew they were. According to Emily those potholes had been there thirteen months ago too.

‘Kev, how far away from the crash site?'

‘Just over half a mile.'

Kim continued to look for the next turn.

‘Guv,' Bryant shouted.

She followed his gaze and brought the car to a quick stop. A sawn-off log blocked the road.

Kim looked to Bryant.

‘Now, we're getting close.'

S
ymes didn't always take
such care before killing. But this was different. The week had been torture, picturing their pure little bodies bending to his violent will; but in some strange way he had enjoyed the painful anticipation. He'd only had one fear. That Will would back out of their deal.

But yesterday Will had given him the go-ahead to take his pay and he was enjoying the luxury of knowing that it was now within his control. A wash and shave had been the order of the day. Symes knew that once he entered the basement he would not return for some time.

He had spent hours imagining how it would feel to break their small bones with his bare hands. He imagined it would be like snapping a chicken wing.

Of course, there would be the violence he craved of kicking and punching but he knew he needed to exercise an element of control. After waiting so long it could not be over in minutes. He would take hours, possibly days. He knew how to take someone to the point of death before bringing them back again to prolong their agony and his pleasure. He would do this until he became bored.

Symes unlatched the door to the stairs that led to the basement.

He would walk into that room knowing he was the last person they would ever see.

‘
O
kay
, let's go.'

They all exited the vehicle.

One side of the road was hedged but flat.

‘Kev, you still got a signal?'

He nodded.

‘You take the field.'

He pushed himself through the hedge, leaving her and Bryant. The other side of the road was a different story. The grassy earth sloped down away from the road and then rose steeply into the hillside.

‘Jesus, Guv, Bear Grylls, I ain't,' Bryant said, trying to keep up with her.

Kim ignored him and focussed on her footing.

The grass was dense and slippery. The imminent darkness hovered behind a sun that was waiting to set.

Hang on girls, she silently prayed. Just a little bit longer.

C
harlie heard
the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs.

‘Ready, Ames?'

Her friend looked terrified but nodded.

Charlie heard the metal key slide into the lock. The door opened and Charlie felt her stomach flip. Amy was nestled behind her, waiting.

His right leg drew level with her body.

‘Hello again, my little—'

Charlie heard no more as she lunged forward, her mouth open wide.

She grabbed at his ankle with her hands and sunk her teeth into his calf.

‘What the fuck—'

She bit down as hard as she could. Through his jeans she could feel the mound of flesh in her mouth.

He cried out loud and raised his leg.

‘You fucking little bitch …'

Charlie could see from the corner of her eye that Amy was rooted to the spot. Please, Amy, do it, she willed silently.

The man shook his leg but Charlie wouldn't let go. He leaned down and grabbed her by the hair, prised her teeth off his leg. He swung her around so she was in front of him.

‘Run, Amy. Now,' she screamed.

Amy gave a little cry as she edged slowly past.

‘Go,' Charlie cried.

She bucked violently so that he had to use two hands to restrain her and could not reach for Amy.

Amy sobbed and edged closer to the door.

‘You fucking little—'

His words turned to a low growl as Charlie sunk her teeth into his left forearm. And this time she had flesh. She could taste the blood on her tongue.

‘Get off me you—'

He was screaming and trying to get a grip of her at the same time but she refused to let go. She closed her eyes to the pain and gave another burst of energy, felt her teeth driving further into his arm.

The man cried out again and punched her on the side of the face.

Agony coursed around her whole head but she saw the shadow of her friend edging out the room.

‘You're gonna fucking regret that, you rabid little dog.'

Charlie turned her face to the door and cried, ‘Run, Amy, run.'

K
im reached
the crest of the hill and swore. The muscles in her legs burned from trudging through the knee-length grass.

‘Oh, great,' she said, as Bryant puffed his way level with her.

She surveyed the landscape and saw what had been hidden by trees on the aerial view.

Buildings lay to the east, north and west of her view. Only the one straight ahead had shown up on the screen.

‘Jesus, which one, Guv?'

Kim shook her head. She only knew that as soon as they left the safety of the long grass they would be visible to all three properties.

‘Damn it, if we go for the wrong one …'

She didn't finish the sentence. Bryant knew that any stupid move at this point could get the girls killed or bundled into a van and taken to another location. If that were to happen the girls would be lost.

Bryant chewed his lip.

Kim felt her own heart rate increase. A simple mistake right now and two families could be destroyed forever.

She closed her eyes and utilised every sense she had.

The wind howled around her ears, carrying a light rain that landed on her cheek. She had only one chance to find the girls before time finally ran out. She'd made a call and she hoped to God it was the right one.

She focussed hard.
Come on, girls, send me something. Please help me to find you.

She opened her eyes, took two steps and stopped.

‘Bryant, what's that?'

Bryant followed her gaze. Three hundred metres away at the bottom of the hill, moving from the right, was a blob on the landscape. It was heading in their direction.

They both stared as hard as they could.

Two hundred and fifty metres away, and they looked at each other. Bryant spoke.

‘Guv, it looks like a kid.'

Kim's own thoughts exactly.

Bryant's legs began to move forward at the same time as Kim's. She managed to catch him before he left the safety of the long grass.

‘Get down,' she said, grabbing him by the arm.

‘Guv, what the hell—'

‘Sshh, buzz Dawson.'

Bryant took out his mobile phone and Kim raised her head to steal a quick look.

The figure was two hundred metres away and heading right for them.

‘What the hell are we doing, Guv? That's one of our girls.'

He looked at her as though she'd lost her mind.

Kim popped up her head. One hundred and fifty metres. She snatched her head back down. The long dark hair blowing in the wind told her it was Amy hurtling towards them in nothing more than a blue bathing costume.

‘Guv, let's go get her.'

‘Just wait a minute.' She looked up again. Seventy-five metres. And finally she saw what she'd been waiting for.

‘Go, when I say so,' she said to Bryant.

The sound of panting and sobbing reached their ears. Bryant crawled forward in the grass. She put a hand on his arm. ‘Wait.'

The sound of the child's exertion grew closer. Amy was tiring. The run had been all uphill.

‘Guv, I've gotta—'

‘Wait,' Kim hissed, attuning her ears.

She could now hear the sound of the grass being trodden underfoot.

‘Get the fuck back here, you little—'

‘Now,' Kim screamed and they both erupted from the long grass. Amy was twenty metres west of them. Her pursuer was just three metres behind.

Both stopped dead in surprise.

‘Get her, Bryant,' Kim shouted.

The man had already turned, but Kim lunged forward and tackled him to the ground.

He squirmed beneath her but she punched him in the right temple. He struggled, trying to shake her off, but she pulled on his hair like a horse's mane, arching his whole head backwards. Kim punched him again in the right jaw.

He bucked and she fell to the left. His desperation to escape added strength to his movements but her motivation was equally strong.

He turned on his side and she struck out with her foot and got a good firm kick in his groin.

‘Now stay down.'

Bryant appeared beside her. ‘Here, Guv, let me.'

Kim ignored him and rounded on her victim. She knew she was in the company of Subject One. His diminutive height and weedy torso told her she had just tackled the man who sent the texts. This man was not capable of inflicting such a level of violence on Brad and Inga.

That one still had a child.

‘Where the hell are they?' Kim screamed into his face.

‘Fuck off,' he spat.

Kim would have liked to hang around and invent new methods of torture to make him talk but she didn't have the time. Charlie was still down there somewhere.

She looked up the hill to see Amy standing alone, dwarfed by Bryant's overcoat.

‘Bryant. Don't let him get up.'

Kim sprinted back up the hill. She had known that if they made their move too soon, anyone pursuing the child would have turned back around. And she'd wanted them both.

She knelt before the girl who trembled uncontrollably.

‘Amy, it's okay, you're safe now. No one is going to hurt you again.'

Kim could see that at least one finger on her right hand had been broken.

‘Can you be brave for just a little bit longer?'

Amy nodded.

‘Okay, sweetie. I have to go and get Charlie and I need to know where she is.'

‘She bit the man. She waited for him to come and she bit into his leg. She told me that I had to be the one to run 'cos of her foot and I didn't want to but she made me promise.'

‘It's okay, Amy. Charlie was right. Did the man hurt her foot?'

Amy nodded. ‘Stamped on it.'

‘Okay, Amy. You're doing great. Where was she when you ran?'

‘Downstairs … there are rooms … the walls are cold.'

Kim looked down the hill. There were four separate buildings. ‘Amy, can you tell me which building you were in?'

Amy looked where Kim pointed and nodded towards the building to the far right. From the side view it looked like the farmhouse.

‘Okay, sweetie, can you tell me what the man looked like?'

‘Big,' she said, looking up. ‘Bigger than you. No hair, smooth face.'

Amy closed her eyes and trembled violently.

Kim placed a hand on her arm.

‘You've done great, Amy. You're a very brave girl.'

Dawson came sprinting over the brow of the hill.

‘Don't let Amy out of your sight,' she instructed as he got closer. ‘Get an ambulance en route and the fire service to move that log but no calls to the Timmins' house, got it? Not even to Stacey.'

Dawson nodded and knelt beside Amy.

‘Guv, you can't go down there alone,' Bryant said.

Dawson was needed to keep Amy safe and Bryant had to guard their kidnapper.

Charlie was on her own. There was no choice.

Kim turned away from Dawson. She didn't know how long back-up would be. She was unarmed and completely blind to the location.

But there was a psycho somewhere in that building with a nine-year-old girl.

Kim turned on her heel and ran.