Daddy's Girls by Sarah Flint

Author:Sarah Flint [Flint, Sarah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781788547949
Publisher: Head of Zeus

20

The news that they had a second suspect identified for Maryanne’s attack but they had lost him went down as badly as expected. Charlie watched as Maryanne Hepworth threw her hands up over her face and shook her head, mutely. She watched as their victim closed her eyes, before opening them again just as fast. It wasn’t hard to imagine her disbelief.

‘I can’t believe you let him get away!’ Her sister Danielle was more forthright.

‘I’m so sorry,’ Charlie said, biting her lip. She and Hunter had thought it best to pass on news of the failed operation to catch Thomas Houghton in person. The regret was genuine. Any loss of a suspect was taken personally and Charlie particularly was feeling responsible. ‘Sometimes things don’t go to plan however good the preparations. Last night it was the weather that caused the problem.’

‘Like leaves on the line, or the wrong type of snow?’ Danielle snorted, clearly determined to make them squirm still further.

The surveillance team was still on the plot, and would remain so at least for the time being, but they were well aware the chances of catching Houghton were remote. If he hadn’t already slipped out from one of the many rear windows or doors with limited view, it was obvious to them all he would remain hidden. The person giving him sanctuary would be on the lookout for police and, with the best will in the world, keeping even the savviest surveillance team concealed for any length of time, in a tightly knit community, without showing out, would be almost impossible. And there wasn’t a magistrate in the whole of England who would agree to authorise search warrants for every individual bedsit.

‘We’ve already started paying a visit to all his known associates, and we’ll be there if and when he signs on.’ Hunter didn’t like having to apologise; far better to offer something even vaguely positive instead. ‘I’m sure we’ll track him down soon.’

What Charlie noted, as Hunter spoke however, was that he seemed quite happy to omit the details. In a frenetic morning of enquiries, the team had already established that Houghton’s dole money was paid remotely into his account, so he could therefore access it through any cashpoint in London – and most of the enquiries with friends and family had proved negative. He no longer worked, so he had no employer, or place of employment, and his family, what was left of it, had pretty much disowned him in the last year. Every knock on the door had so far provided nothing further of use. What little information anybody had was old news.

All anybody could say was that Emma was with her father, and her father, though rumoured now to be a petty criminal, was not deemed to be dangerous. He took drugs, but then so did many other people.

No, as far as all their enquiries that morning were concerned, Thomas and Emma Houghton had pretty much disappeared into the ether, and since Emma had turned eighteen, the authorities no longer cared.

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