‘Proper little detective, aren’t we?’ Suzie said, rolling her eyes. ‘Oh, well, seeing as you’ve figured it out for yourself, you might as well know we’ve decided to give it another go. Don’t look so worried,’ she added when she saw Holly’s frown. ‘He has changed. In fact, he’s like he used to be when I first got with him, and I think you’d like him if you gave him a chance.’
Holly nodded, but Suzie could tell she wasn’t convinced. Sighing, she said, ‘So what do you want to do? You’re welcome to come with me, but I’ll understand if you’d rather stay here.’
Holly looked around. This was her home and she’d spent more time alone there than she had ever spent with her mum. But her mum’s weird warnings about people coming to kill them were fresh in her mind, and she didn’t think she’d feel safe on her own.
‘I’ll come back to yours,’ she said, placing her cup next to Suzie’s.
Rob was up, dressed, and making a brew when Suzie and Holly arrived back at the house, and he raised an eyebrow at Suzie when the girl scuttled up the stairs at the sight of him.
‘I take it there’s no sign of her mum yet?’
‘Nope,’ Suzie said, resting her head on his chest when he pulled her into his arms. ‘Hey, pack it in,’ she giggled, squirming out of his grasp when he nuzzled her neck. ‘Holly might see us.’
‘So?’ Rob placed his hands around her waist and pulled her towards him.
‘Stop it,’ Suzie chided playfully, grinning as she pushed him away.
‘What’s the plan?’ Rob asked, folding his arms and leaning back against the counter when she sat down and lit a cigarette.
‘Same as before – waiting for Josie to come back,’ Suzie said, opening her laptop. ‘Oh, have you been using this?’ she asked when she saw that it was already switched on.
‘Yeah, I was checking the job centre website to see if there was anything worth applying for,’ Rob said. ‘Don’t mind, do you?’
‘No, of course not,’ Suzie said, clicking into the local news sites.
‘Looking for something?’ Rob glanced at the screen.
‘I rang the hospitals again and Josie hasn’t been admitted,’ Suzie told him quietly, looking out into the hallway to make sure Holly hadn’t come down the stairs. ‘Then I rang the agency she works for and spoke to one of her colleagues. She told me Josie turned up at hers last night asking for booze and painkillers. It seems she sold her some, but she doesn’t know where Josie went from there, so I’m checking to see if there are any reports of women getting arrested for drunken behaviour.’
‘Wouldn’t it be quicker to call the police?’ Rob suggested, turning to finish making the brews.
‘I don’t really want to talk to them until it’s absolutely necessary,’ Suzie said, speed-reading the news articles. ‘If I tell them Josie’s missing and we’re worried about her, they’ll start sniffing round Holly again.’
Before Rob could respond to that, the doorbell rang. ‘Want me to get it?’ he offered, putting the spoon down.
‘No, I’ll get it.’ Suzie leapt up. ‘If it’s Josie, she might get spooked if she sees you, and I don’t want her running away again.’
She went out into the hall, pulling the door shut behind her, and then quickly opened the front door.
‘Morning.’ PC Spencer smiled at her from the step. ‘I don’t suppose you’ve seen Ms Evans yet, have you? Only she hasn’t called, and she’s not answering the door.’
‘Ah . . . yeah, I saw her last night,’ Suzie lied, thinking on her feet. ‘She popped over to tell me she was taking Holly to stay with a friend for a couple of days.’
‘I see.’ Spencer looked disappointed. ‘You wouldn’t happen to know where this friend lives, would you?’
‘Sorry, I don’t,’ Suzie said, folding her arms when she noticed Bennett watching her from the car again. There was something about the way he looked at her that made her nervous.
‘Never mind,’ Spencer said. ‘Thanks, anyway. I’ll try her again in a few days.’
‘To be honest, I’m not sure she’s going to tell you anything even if you do catch up with her,’ Suzie said. ‘She told me she doesn’t remember anything and pretty much wants to forget about it.’
‘Can’t say I blame her,’ said Spencer. ‘But we need something or the guy we picked up is going to walk.’
‘Oh, I see,’ Suzie murmured, feeling guilty for trying to throw him off the scent if it meant the attacker got away with it. But Josie was so secretive, Suzie genuinely doubted she would tell Spencer anything even if she had perfect recall of the attack.
‘OK, I’ll get off, then,’ Spencer said. ‘But when you see her, could you tell her I’d still like to speak to her?’
‘Of course.’ Suzie smiled.
When she’d seen him off, Suzie went back to the kitchen. The door was ajar, and she guessed Rob had been eavesdropping when he asked who she’d been talking to.
‘It was one of the cops who came round to tell Holly her mum was in hospital that night,’ she told him as she sat down. ‘They’ve been trying to get hold of her because they want her to look at some mugshots, so I told him they’d gone to stay with friends for a couple of days.’
‘A couple of days?’ Rob frowned. ‘I thought you said she’d been seen and she was OK?’
‘Yeah, but we don’t know where she is, or what her plans are, so I thought I’d best buy some time – just in case,’ said Suzie. ‘She stayed out last night, and there’s no guarantee she won’t do the same again tonight.’
‘And if she does?’
‘I don’t know.’ Suzie shrugged. ‘I suppose Holly will have to stay here again.’ Giving him a sheepish look when she saw the
