Chapter 76
SEVENTY-SIX
Quinn rested her head on Gabe’s shoulder and sighed heavily.
Another day had passed, and, even though they now knew Logan was still alive, they were no closer to figuring out where he’d gone or why.
After Jude and Max had returned from the park, it had been decided that they wouldn’t drive down to Cornwall.
It was a wild goose chase based on nothing but their mounting desperation.
And to take Max along would only give him false hope, which was sure to end in bitter disappointment.
“What will you do now?” Gabe asked once the silence had stretched on for too long.
“I don’t know, but Jude must return to base, and I suppose we have no choice but to carry on.” She sighed. “Jude found Max’s passport while he was at Logan’s. He offered to take him for a few weeks.”
“Will you let him?”
“I think Max will be safer in Germany. No one will be able to gain access to him on the base.”
“What a dreadful thing to happen to a small child. The not knowing will haunt him for the rest of his days if Logan doesn’t come back.
” Gabe paused, and Quinn thought she knew what he was about to ask.
“Quinn, is it possible that the man we saw following Logan had nothing to do with his disappearance? Could Logan have cracked under the strain and walked out of his life?”
Quinn lifted her head and looked at him.
With all her heart she wanted to say that no, Logan would never do that, but now she wasn’t certain.
Perhaps DI Malone was right and Logan had made the choice to leave.
He’d had some sort of breakdown, or maybe there was something he couldn’t face.
He’d gone knowing that Max would be safe with her and Gabe.
People walked out on their children every day, fathers and mothers, who, until that fateful date, had been loving parents.
“I don’t know,” she said at last. “I don’t want to believe it of Logan, but I have been let down before, so I have to question his motives.”
“What about the Bellamy case?”
“I now think the victim might be Honor, but I have yet to witness the moment of her death. I suppose once Jude and Max leave, I will be able to return to the story.”
“It seems odd—” Gabe began, but then the doorbell rang.
Some desperate part of Quinn’s heart leapt at the sound, thinking it was Logan come back to them, but when she opened the door, she found a dripping Drew on the doorstep.
“It’s really coming down,” he said as he stepped inside and shook his head like a dog. Droplets of water flew in all directions, and Quinn jumped back to avoid getting wet.
“Sorry about that,” Drew said and smiled contritely. “Can we talk?”
“Of course. Would you like some tea?”
“Yeah, that’d be grand.”
Drew set down his rucksack, shrugged off his coat, and followed Quinn into the kitchen. Gabe came to join them a moment later. Once the kettle had boiled and small talk was out of the way, Quinn and Gabe both turned to Drew, waiting for him to explain the reason for his visit.
“Is Max here?” Drew asked.
“He’s asleep.” Quinn experienced a sinking feeling. “Is it bad news?”
“No, but I don’t want to get Max’s hopes up. Not if my hunch proves wrong.”
“What hunch is that?” Gabe asked.
“I had some time to theorize on my flight back from Prague, and I kept coming back to the same thought. A person can’t disappear without either preparing in advance or having someone help them.
As far as I can tell, Logan hadn’t planned his escape, so there are only two possibilities left.
Either he’s—” Drew looked at Quinn apologetically.
“Please forgive my bluntness, but it needs to be said. Either he’s dead and his body is well hidden, or someone is aiding him. ”
“Jude thinks Logan was in a relationship with someone,” Quinn said.
Drew nodded. “I think Jude might be right.”
“But we don’t know who his partner might be.”
Drew took a sip of tea and set down the mug. “I asked a friend who shall remain nameless to hack into the NHS database.”
“Why?” Gabe asked.
“Something Chrissy’s mum said about her boyfriend got me thinking, so I decided to check if she had next of kin listed in her medical file.”
“How is this relevant?”
“At the very least it would help me find this Ronnie.”
“Do Chrissy’s parents know about Max?” Quinn asked.
“I saw a photo of him in their bedroom. Through the open door,” Drew hastened to add. “The photo looked fairly recent, taken in the past year.”
“Where did they get it?” Gabe asked.
“Presumably from Chrissy. She may have been spying on Logan and Max.”
“Do you think Chrissy’s parents want to take their grandson?” Gabe asked.
“That was my thought as well. As you know, your brother, God bless his trusting little heart, tried to cut too many corners when he decided to have a child of his own. He did not use a donor egg to ensure that maternal feelings did not get in the way of his path to parenthood, nor did he fork out for experienced legal counsel. If he had, his lawyer would have advised him that legally, Chrissy is Max’s primary parent unless a Parental Order that transfers legal parenthood to Logan was filed with Family Court.
Now, because Chrissy came here illegally, Logan probably assumed that she wouldn’t want to draw too much attention to herself or take him to court if she changed her mind.
And perhaps he was right. But if Chrissy’s parents decided to take legal action, they might have a chance of taking Max if Chrissy made a will and listed them as Max’s guardians. ”
“And are they? Taking legal action, I mean?” Quinn asked.
Drew shook his head. “I don’t believe so, but something caught my eye when I checked Chrissy’s file. Someone accessed her medical records three weeks ago.”
“Who?” Quinn and Gabe asked in unison.
“Colin Scott.”
“Colin?” Quinn gaped at Drew. “Why would he need to see Chrissy’s medical file?”
“Possibly for the same reason I did. Or maybe he was trying to verify the facts of her illness and treatment.”
“And the only reason Colin would need to know that was if Logan had come to him for help,” Quinn reasoned.
“Precisely.”
“Was there a next of kin listed?” Gabe inquired.
“There was—Ronald Stalk. And our Ronnie hasn’t been to work since Logan went missing.”
“Perhaps he fled after the altercation with Logan,” Quinn said.
“Perhaps,” Drew agreed.
“Unless Logan was killed by this man, which we don’t think he was,” Gabe added meaningfully, and looked to Quinn to check if she wanted to enlighten Drew, “he must be hiding somewhere. And someone is helping him.”
“And we now know who that someone is,” Drew announced.
“Let’s go,” Quinn said.
“Gabe, if you wouldn’t mind looking after Max,” Drew said. “Quinn will be safe with me.”
Gabe nodded. “Of course.”
Before Quinn left, he pulled her into his arms and held her tight.
She knew he understood how she was feeling.
On the one hand, she wanted to wring Logan’s neck for being so bloody stupid.
But on the other hand, all she wanted to do was to find him, and hold him, and reassure him that all would be well, and they would find a way to safeguard his family.
Quinn hardly noticed the rain. Her heart beat wildly, and she muttered a prayer under her breath as Drew’s Nissan pulled away from the curb. They were either about to get some answers or realize that they were wrong and lose any hope of ever finding Logan.