Chapter Forty-Seven
As soon as the last man jumped from the helicopter it rose again and headed for the quarry, hovering above it so the searchlight illuminated everything.
‘You’ll need to clear this area,’ one of the rescuers said. ‘We’ll need room to work.’
‘I’ll see to it.’
Sue turned to the nearest police officer. ‘Get several officers together and clear this area. Send the officers we don’t need back to the car park at the house to await further orders, and keep a core group here.’
‘Yes, ma’am.’ The officer started issuing orders to those nearest to him and gradually the searchers retreated to the wood.
Meanwhile the team of mountain rescuers were attaching ropes to trees, bringing them back like the strands of a spider’s web to join up with a curious metal plate with multiple holes. Once these multiple ropes were secured to the joining plate, two thick ropes were attached to feed out the other side. They did this all over again so they now had two sets of rescue ropes.
None of the men stopped working long enough to speak to Sue, and she stayed back, out of their way.
‘That’s it,’ the man in charge said, ‘we’re almost ready to go, but we’d better take a cradle down because we don’t know what kind of state she’ll be in.’
Two of the men who had been busy strapping harnesses to their bodies, fastened the ropes to it with massive metal clips, before striding to the edge of the quarry. They lowered themselves over the edge and started the descent, the rope gradually playing out as they went.
‘We’re on our way down, Megan,’ one of them said, ‘it won’t be long now until we get you out, hang on tight.’
* * * *
The first officer to emerge from the wood was the police dog handler, but the flickering lights among the trees indicated others following him.
May Fraser who had been on the point of stepping into the police car, turned to Kate. ‘They’re coming back, they must have got her.’
Before Kate could stop her the woman ran across the car park to the officers coming out of the wood.
‘Have you got her? Where is she?’ May Fraser’s voice shrieked at one officer.
Kate, who had been hurrying to catch up with the woman, could see the officer’s startled face.
‘It’s all right, Mrs Fraser. I’ll find out what’s happening,’ she said. ‘You go back to the car while I talk to the officers.’
‘I’m not going nowhere, until I see my Megan.’ The woman’s voice was obstinate.
Kate turned to the officer. ‘What’s happening. As you can see, Megan’s mother is desperate for news.’
‘The rescue team are there, ma’am. We were sent back here to give them more room to work.’
‘I want to go to her,’ May Fraser said. ‘She’ll be scared, and kids need their mums when they’re scared.’
‘It’s better if we wait here.’ Kate put an arm round the woman’s shoulder. ‘You heard the officer. The rescue team needs room to work.’ Kate led her back to the car. ‘I’ll wait here with you, and I’ll see you’re the first to know any developments.’
Kate would have preferred to go through the wood to the rescue site, but she daren’t leave Megan’s mother. She had no way of knowing what the woman would do if left to her own devices.
* * * *
The helicopter was back, its light shining into the depths of the quarry. Wind from the blades buffeted her and made the bush sway. Megan could no longer feel her hands or feet, and wasn’t sure how long she could remain clinging to the bush.
A man’s voice shouted, ‘We’re on our way down, it won’t be long now until we get you out, hang on tight.’
‘Please hurry,’ she whispered through chattering teeth.
She looked up and could see two shapes scaling down the wall of the cliff to her. One of them held something bulky, which clattered every now and again against the quarry wall.
The bush slid further down the cliff face, and she closed her eyes, praying it would hold until the men reached her.
‘You OK, love?’
The voice was next to her ear. She opened her eyes and found a man on either side of her.
She nodded. The bush slipped further, but an arm circled her waist. ‘My name’s Joe, and we’re not going to let you fall, love.’
She nodded again.
‘How are your feet and hands? Can you help us climb to the top?’
‘Can’t feel them,’ she whispered.
‘OK. I’ll tell you what we’re going to do. We’re going to get you into this cradle and winch you to the top, but you have to trust us, and don’t struggle.’
‘Yes,’ she whispered, anything was better than clinging onto this bush.
The cradle, which looked like a hospital stretcher was positioned between the two men. They carefully lifted her away from the cliff face, laid her in it, and fastened straps round her, so she couldn’t move.
‘You OK?’ Joe said.
She nodded.
‘When I give the signal they’ll start pulling you to the top. It’ll be bumpy but you’ll be safe. Try not to wriggle.’
‘OK,’ she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
‘You ready?’
She nodded.
‘OK,’ he shouted up the cliff face, ‘pull her up.’
Megan stifled the scream that bubbled up inside her. Joe had said the cradle was safe and she had to be brave. But each time the cradle banged against the quarry wall Megan imagined it tossing her out, into the depths below. She closed her eyes and prayed.
* * * *
The buzz of the helicopter reverberated through the wood, although Kate couldn’t see it. Then it appeared, rising in the air, shaking the trees. A whirlwind, whipping the leaves in its path, battered the officers standing in the car park as it passed overhead. Kate closed her eyes against the stinging bombardment of gravel.
May Fraser leaned out of the police car and looked up. ‘Where’s the helicopter going? Does that mean my Megan’s OK?’
‘Stay here. I’ll check,’ Kate said.
She strode to the edge of the wood, but there was nothing to be seen yet. Then she saw it, the flicker of a torch, followed by another and another. It wasn’t long before the searchers emerged from between the trees, most of them had a bedraggled appearance and seemed glad to have returned from their mission, although a few strode purposefully into the car parking area close to the house. Sue, deep in conversation with Inspector Mason, was one of them.
‘Well, did you find out what’s happening?’
Kate hadn’t heard May Fraser come up behind her.
‘I thought I told you to stay in the car.’
‘If you think I’m going to bleeding well stay there, you’ve another think coming,’ May Fraser snapped. ‘It’s my Megan they’ve been looking for, and I want to know what’s happening.’
The woman had a crazed look on her face, emphasized by her fiery hair whipping round her face and head in the wind. She looked like a medieval witch.
‘OK,’ Kate sighed. ‘We’ll check it out with my sergeant.’
‘Which one’s he?’
‘She’s the one who’s just come out of the wood.’
‘What you waiting for then?’
Kate sighed and walked over to Sue and Inspector Mason. ‘Mrs Fraser’s anxious to find out what’s happened with Megan.’
The inspector and Sue exchanged glances, obviously deciding who was going to speak. The inspector nodded his consent to Sue, saying, ‘I need to see to my officers, I’ll catch you in a minute.’
Sue turned to face May Fraser. ‘Megan is all right. She’d fallen over the edge of a quarry but the mountain rescue team soon got her out, and they’ve taken her to Ninewells Hospital to be checked.’
‘Is she OK? She’s not hurt, or anything?’ May Fraser pushed her hair back off her face.
‘She’s not hurt, although she’s very cold and needs to be checked at the hospital.’
‘I want to see her. You said I could go with her once she was found.’
Sue placed a restraining hand on the woman’s shoulder. ‘We thought it best if we got her to hospital quickly, that’s why we used the helicopter, but I’ll make sure one of the police cars takes you there.’
The police officers had started to disperse to their cars, and Sue beckoned one of them over.
‘Can you arrange for Mrs Fraser to be taken to Ninewells Hospital to be with her daughter?’
‘Yes, ma’am.’ The police officer turned to May Fraser. ‘If you come with me we’ll get you there right away.’
May Fraser walked off with him without a backward glance, or word of thanks, to Kate and Sue.
‘Thanks, Sue, you handled that well,’ Kate said. ‘I was getting to the end of my tether with that woman.’
‘I don’t suppose you can blame her,’ Sue said. ‘It is her daughter after all.’
Inspector Mason joined them. ‘Sue’s kept me up to speed on your investigation and I’ve left two men on guard at the hut. I’ll also leave a car here to keep an eye on Mrs Carnegie. I don’t trust that woman, and I think she played a part in what went on here.’
‘Thank you,’ Kate said. ‘Your help is most welcome.’
‘I’ve been in touch with SOCO, but they thought it would be best to wait for daylight to start investigating the hut and the surrounding area. In your absence, I agreed. I hope you don’t mind?’ There was an anxious look on Sue’s face.
‘No, I don’t mind,’ Kate said, ‘and now, I think you should go home and get some sleep. You’ve had a pretty exhaustive time here tonight, and there’s not much else we can do until morning.’
‘Yes, ma’am. I hope you’re going to do the same.’
‘I’ll do a phone check with Jenny first to make sure everything’s tied up at that end.’
‘Goodnight, ma’am.’
‘Team meeting at 9am,’ Kate said, and then dialled Jenny’s number on her phone.
Chapter Forty-Eight
Diane paced the floor, her hands picked at her skirt, and her hair flopped damply against her neck. Jade watched her with a worried frown on her face. Her mother seemed to be disintegrating in front of her eyes.
From the time the police had arrived at the house, Jade had remained in the shadows watching. Ryan seemed to have slid into a world of his own, sitting with a faraway look on his face, while Emma had simply been pathetic. She’d clung to her mother’s hand, supposedly to give her support, but it had seemed to Jade, that Emma needed more support for herself than she was able to give Diane.
Jade had itched to take over, but she’d waited her time until the detective with the owl-like specs had driven them to this bed and breakfast place. During the chaos of the move it had been easy to replace Emma, who seemed to have lapsed into an apathetic state. And now she was here, Jade wasn’t sure what to do for the best.
She’d thought she was helping Diane by disposing of the detective. What she hadn’t reckoned on was the depth of feeling her mother had for him, and watching her mother pace, she grew more and more disturbed. Maybe it would have been better to have allowed Emma to remain in charge, but now she was here she was unwilling to allow Emma back in.
‘Why don’t you get in the bed? You’ll feel better after a sleep.’
Diane stopped pacing momentarily. ‘I can’t sleep in that bed,’ she said. ‘Other people have slept there.’ She twisted her hands together in a washing motion. ‘There’s no way it can be clean.’
‘Of course it’s clean, mum. These places change the sheets daily.’
Diane made a snorting noise. ‘That’s what they say, but I don’t believe it.’
Jade stared out the window, watching the wind whip the trees in the garden, and the rain spatter off the patio.
‘So what are you going to do? You can’t pace the floor all night. You’ll be a wreck by morning, and that detective said they’ll want to question us again. You’ll be in no condition to be questioned.’
Diane gave no indication of hearing her, but she joined her daughter at the window. ‘Why would anyone want to harm Bill? He was a good man, and he was trying to help us. He said he’d find Jade and I believed him.’
Jade gripped her mother’s hand. She opened her mouth to tell Diane she was here, but choked the words back. It wasn’t the time. Diane wouldn’t understand and it was better to let her think it was Emma in the room with her.
‘I don’t think he was a good man. I think he was a risk to you. I could see him trying to weasel his way into your affections.’ Jade drew breath. ‘All he wanted was to get into your pants.’
‘Emma!’ Diane took a step backwards. ‘I’ve never heard you talk that way before.’ Both her tone of voice and the expression on her face indicated the level of shock she felt. ‘In any case I don’t believe it. He was a nice man.’
Jade clenched her teeth, she’d almost given herself away. She should have known that was something her sister would never say. It was going to be a long night.
* * * *
It was three in the morning before Kate staggered upstairs. She’d driven home in a trance-like state, it was as well the roads had been quiet. Gavin moved when she slid under the duvet.
‘You didn’t phone,’ he mumbled.
‘Sorry,’ she said.
She remembered when they were first married he used to wait up for her, worrying about her, and scolding her for not phoning. Over the years, though, he seemed to have grown accustomed to it, probably knowing that once engrossed in a case, nothing else impinged on her consciousness, and the last thing she ever thought about was phoning to let him know she would be late.
She pulled the pillow up round her ears and closed her eyes. But sleep evaded her and she lost count of the number of times she raised her head to look at the clock to find the hands had only moved five or ten minutes.
Outside the wind howled and the rain battered off the windows, and she played over and over in her mind, her vision of what Megan must have felt trapped in the quarry. She stumbled through the wood with her, felt her misery and fear, and wondered if the child’s experience would scar her for life.
It was a relief when the hands of the clock indicated seven, and she could throw back the duvet and slide her feet out of the bed. Her head felt woozy, but that would soon clear after she’d had a cup of coffee, and her usual slice of toast. It was all she would have time for if she was to be back in the office by half-past-eight.
* * * *
A hand gripped Bill’s wrist. ‘Ah, I see you’re awake,’ a voice said. ‘We’re going to take blood for testing.’
Bill turned his head in the direction of the voice, his eyes focusing on the needle and syringe, and he jerked away, trying to get out of Emma’s range. Her face loomed over him, familiar and yet not familiar.
‘It’s all right,’ the voice said, ‘a slight prick, and it’s over.’
‘I think he’s hallucinating,’ another voice said.
All Bill could see was the needle and syringe and Emma’s face, although he wasn’t sure it was Emma’s face. But he knew he couldn’t let her stick the needle into him.
‘Mr Murphy, you’re in hospital now. You’re safe. But we do need to take blood. It’s the only way we can be sure what else is in your system.’ It was a different voice, and Bill turned his head towards it.
When the sharp pain of the needle punctured his flesh, he screamed, ‘No!’
A hand grasped his. ‘There’s nothing to worry about,’ the voice said. ‘Go back to sleep now until the effects of the drugs wear off.’
Nightmares bedevilled Bill for the rest of the night, and a lot of the time he was unable to distinguish between dreams and reality. He kept seeing Emma slide the needle into his arm and, although he tried to fight it, he was unable to move. Gradually he regained a grip on his senses, but was unable to make his body do what he wanted.
The night seemed to last forever. But when daylight crept through the window at the end of the bed bay, his brain was becoming more functional. He tried to puzzle it out, coming to the conclusion he had been suffering the effects of whatever drug Emma had put in his tea, because heroin would not have had the paralysing effects he’d been experiencing. If it was rohypnol, as he suspected, it would take at least eight hours to wear off. He looked at the clock, but was unable to calculate whether or not the eight hours were up.
The man in the bed opposite was shouting and cursing, and Bill wasn’t sure whether he was awake or asleep. Further down, the curtains were drawn round another bed, and Bill could hear the murmur of voices. He lay watching the clock and listening to the curses, and wondering why he was still here. Surely the effects of whatever was in his system would have worn off by now.
He decided it was time he did something about it, so he wiggled his toes, moved his arms and then his legs. Everything seemed to be working. But now came the critical test. Would he be able to stand up? He looked round the ward, but couldn’t see any nurses, and guessed they were all busy behind the curtains further down the bed bay. He slid his legs out of the bed and stood, holding on to the side of it for a moment before letting go. So far so good. He took a few steps, swaying slightly, but although his balance wasn’t as good as it should be, it was OK.
Now where were his clothes? Locating them inside his bedside locker, he pulled them out and dressed.
At that moment a nurse appeared round the end of the bed bay. ‘What are you doing?’
‘I’m taking myself out of here.’ Bill stared her out.
‘But the doctor needs to see you before you can be discharged.’
‘Tough,’ Bill said, ‘because I’m discharging myself. I’m quite at liberty to do that, you know.’
The nurse looked flustered, and Bill felt sorry for her.
‘Look,’ he continued, ‘I don’t want to get you in trouble, but I’m going. If you have any papers I need to sign to say I’m discharging myself, get them for me.’
‘You shouldn’t, you know. You need to be seen first.’
‘Just get the papers for me to sign.’
She vanished round the corner of the bed bay, returning a moment later with a bundle of forms.
Bill scribbled his signature where she pointed out it should go, then strode towards the way out.
‘We can’t be held responsible for anything that happens to you.’ The nurse’s voice echoed up the ward after him.