Chapter 67

Stacey took a deep breath before picking up the phone.

This one conversation had the power to start a journey that could lead to heartbreak or jubilation, and she had to force herself to tread carefully. The phone was answered on the second ring with a simple hello.

‘Mrs Anderson?'

‘Speaking…'

‘Hi, I'm Detective Constable Wood from the West Midlands Police.'

‘Okay,' she said in a voice that had turned wary.

‘Mrs Anderson, I understand that your daughter, Rebecca, has been missing for twenty-five years.'

‘Correct.'

‘Do you mind if I ask you some questions?'

‘Are you a reporter?'

‘No. I am who I say I am, and I'm happy for you to ring Halesowen police station and check before you speak to me.'

‘Okay, I believe you, but do you mind telling me where Halesowen is?'

‘We're a few miles south of Birmingham.'

‘How could you know anything about Rebecca?'

Stacey left the question unanswered and posed one of her own. ‘I understand Rebecca was just a few months old when she was abducted.'

‘That's correct. She was almost four months.'

Stacey heard the crack in her voice. This woman felt the pain as if it had happened yesterday.

Her heart ached.

‘And you've had no contact, no calls, no ransom demands in that time?'

‘Nothing. We don't know a thing about what happened to her.'

Stacey could tell that she was fighting back the tears and felt awful for resurrecting her pain, especially if it was for nothing.

‘Officer, please end my misery and tell me what's going on. There's no scenario you can give me that hasn't gone through my mind, and it would be a blessing just to know.'

‘We have an incident down here that might shed light on what happened to your daughter.'

The sharp intake of breath was followed by a sob. ‘Please, tell me anything. Whatever it is, tell me.'

‘Mrs Anderson, I have one final question. Did Rebecca have any distinguishing features on her body like a birthmark or something identifiable?' Stacey crossed her fingers and closed her eyes, praying for the right answer.

‘A mole,' the woman said, and Stacey almost gasped with relief, but she kept herself in check.

‘Where?'

‘Her left shoulder. I'd kiss it every time I bathed her.'

Stacey desperately wanted to blurt out the truth. She opened her mouth, but the woman beat her to it.

‘You've found her, haven't you? You've found my little girl. You're telling me she's dead. Just tell me.'

‘I don't want to say any more over the phone.'

‘Just tell me what happened to her. Did she suffer? Please, just give me that. I've waited twenty-five years.'

‘I think it's best if we speak in person. The situation isn't that simple. Is there anyone that can bring you here to see us?'

‘My son. He'll bring me. But can I ask one thing? Will we need to identify the body?'

‘That won't be necessary, Mrs Anderson.'

‘I'm going to get closure, aren't I? It's over.'

‘Yes, Mrs Anderson. The wait is definitely over,' Stacey said before ending the call.

She would have loved to say more, but right now they had no idea how Katie was going to react to the news.

Mrs Anderson would soon be on her way, and Stacey had no clue if they were giving her a daughter or a stranger who wanted nothing to do with her.

She took a moment to compose herself before making her next call.

Toyah answered the call on the second ring. Her voice was thick and gruff, as though she'd just finished having a good old cry. Stacey instantly felt guilty for her suspicions and would make this as painless as possible. The girl was barely two days into the loss of her mother.

‘Hi, Toyah, I'm DC Stacey Wood, a member of DI Stone's team. Have you got a minute to talk?'

‘Have you found him?' she asked hopefully. ‘Have you caught the murderer?'

‘Not yet, but we will. In the meantime, I'm just clarifying all the information we've gathered, and I just wanted to check a couple of details with you about Tuesday night.'

‘Of course,' she said, covering the microphone and saying something to the side.

‘You told my colleague that you were at the Fox and Hounds?'

‘Y-Yes, that's correct.'

‘And you left around eleven?'

‘I th-think so, but…'

The line went silent for a second before another voice sounded on the phone. A male voice.

‘Who the hell is this?'

Stacey reintroduced herself while wondering what was going on.

‘How dare you harass my sister in such a way. Do you have no sensitivity?'

Stacey felt the heat burn her cheeks. She would hate to think she'd upset the girl badly enough for her brother, Tony, to have to take the phone from her.

‘I just?—'

‘What exactly do you need to know?' he barked. ‘What could my sister possibly be able to tell you to help your investigation?'

Stacey was no longer stunned, and she still needed to ask the question. ‘If I can check the details of Tuesday night?—'

‘Are you kidding, or are you just a fucking moron? Why the hell would you need to check that? Is she a suspect? You think she butchered her own mother?'

‘Mr Shaw, if you could just hand me back to?—'

‘I absolutely will not. Her mother was savagely murdered barely more than forty-eight hours ago and you want to check where she was when it was happening. You are despicable, and you're not getting anywhere near my sister,' he shouted before ending the call.

Despite being stunned at the man's attitude, Stacey couldn't help but notice his odd turn of phrase. He'd referred to Andrea as ‘her' mother twice during the call. Shouldn't he have been saying ‘our' mother? Because Stacey was pretty sure that Andrea had been Tony's mother as well.