She’d just lit a cigarette when she saw car headlights approaching fast in her rear-view mirror. She kept her speed at a steady fifty, and when the car got to about twenty yards behind her, its flashing blue lights started. And then, as she rounded the corner, she saw two more police cars with flashing lights blocking the road.
Tensing, she slammed on the brakes and brought the car to a halt, just as black-clad armed officers appeared on both sides of her, screaming at her to turn off the engine.
It struck her then, in one of those rare moments of epiphany, how hollow, lonely and disjointed her life had become. Here she was, a decorated former police officer, alone in the middle of nowhere on a Saturday night, being nicked at gunpoint like the worst kind of thug.
She switched off the engine as the driver’s side door was yanked open by one of the armed officers and she was dragged from the car and forced to kneel in the road with her hands clasped behind her head. ‘It’s all right, I know the drill,’ she snapped as one of the cops continued to bark orders, the barrel of his gun only inches from her face. Behind her she could hear other officers searching her car. It didn’t take them long to discover it was empty.
The officer who looked to be in charge walked over to her, standing a few feet away with his MP5 pointed straight at her.
‘Where the hell’s Ray Mason?’ he demanded.
Tina managed a shrug. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ she said.
31
‘We’re here,’ said Steve Brennan, opening the boot of the car.
I emerged from where I’d spent the journey, under a thick blanket behind a box of painting equipment.
‘Thanks, Steve,’ I said, climbing out with my backpack and stretching. ‘I’m sorry about earlier. Are you OK?’
Brennan didn’t look OK. He looked badly shaken, and every inch of his sixty-five years plus at least five extra. He’d hardly spoken on the journey down here.
‘I’m fine,’ he said. ‘But I wasn’t expecting that.’
‘Neither was I. If I’d known I was at risk like that, I’d never have involved you.’
I gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, trying to calm him. He was obviously shocked by what had just happened. Like most people, he’d probably never encountered violence like that first hand.
‘It’s probably best not to mention what happened to Karen,’ he said, leading me up the driveway to the pretty cottage where he and his wife had lived since long before their daughter Dana had been abducted. Dana had grown up here, and I wondered how different all their lives would have been had she not been snatched that sunny summer’s day all those years ago.
‘My lips are sealed,’ I told him, following him inside, through a narrow hallway with low-hanging beams and into a cosy living room where Karen Brennan sat with a book. The TV was on in the background with the volume turned low, playing a nature documentary.
As I came into the room she got to her feet and shook my hand but her demeanour was less than welcoming. ‘Hello, Mr Mason,’ she said, not looking me in the eye.
‘Call me Ray, please,’ I said.
She nodded tightly and looked past me towards her husband. ‘Are you OK, love? You shouldn’t be out doing all of this.’
‘I’m fine, don’t worry about me,’ said Brennan, giving her a tender kiss.
She held him for a long moment, and I found myself feeling jealous for what they had, even though their closeness had been cemented by tragedy. They clearly adored each other, and their love simply served to amplify my solitude.
‘Please sit down, Ray,’ said Brennan. ‘Can I get you a drink of something?’
I sank into one of the armchairs, still stiff from the hour-long journey down here in the boot of the Audi. I felt like I was intruding on them but the desire to relax with some company trumped the feeling, as did the idea of a drink. I hadn’t had alcohol in over a year, but I wasn’t going to turn it down now. ‘Yes please. Have you got a brandy?’
Brennan said he had and went to get it while I faced Karen Brennan across the room.
‘They’re saying on the news you killed three people last night,’ she said, finally meeting my eye. ‘Did you?’
I’d never given either of them the full details of the Bone Field case or told them who the suspects were. In the run-up to my arrest I’d done my utmost to keep them abreast of developments, but that had been more to show them that I was working on their behalf. All they knew was that their daughter’s killers had yet to be brought to justice.
Brennan returned with two glasses of brandy while I was still working out how much to tell her. ‘Don’t question him too much, Karen, please,’ he said, handing me one of the glasses.
I took a big sip, reeling at the burning sensation as it ran down my throat. I’d never really been a spirit drinker, preferring good red wine, but the brandy had a soothing effect and I took another sip before speaking. ‘It’s OK,’ I said. ‘I’ve asked you for help so I owe you a full explanation.’ I looked at them both in turn. ‘I believe – in fact, I know – that there were three men involved in Dana’s abduction and murder, and they’re the same people I
