Arthur reached out to keep him on the straight and narrow. He had spoken to Chandler already of his worry that his other boy shouldn’t have to do this, not at his age . . . not at any age. He had looked up to Martin since he was born and was struggling to understand why his brother had come out here alone. And stayed out here. And refused to be found. Arthur had admitted to Chandler that he didn’t have anything to tell him. What could he tell him that wasn’t a lie or as hard-edged as the truth? Chandler was ashamed that he had nothing to give the old man, nothing but choked words and a horrible, guilty relief that it wasn’t his own family.

39

Dividing the town into sections, Mitch sent crews out to hunt for Gabriel, not out of expectation of finding him, but more to provide a reassuring presence on the streets.

Orders were to stop and search with caution – ‘Free rein to detain’ – as Mitch put it. People were paired: Luka with Yohan; Tanya with Jim. Nick was again left stuck on the front desk, alongside a base crew of Roper, Flo, MacKenzie and Sun.

Minus a partner once again, Chandler left the station on the back of a promise to get Nick into the action before long. The look of disillusionment he received made him realize that he would have to make good on his promise soon.

First stop was to check in on his parents. As he strode up the baked but neat garden, his phone buzzed. A message from Teri stating that she was on her way, disregarding Chandler’s warning. He pressed the button to call her back even before he fully realized what he was doing. She answered immediately.

‘Teri, you can’t come here,’ he said though he knew she wouldn’t listen. She never had.

‘You don’t control me.’

‘No one’s ever controlled you. I’m just asking—’

‘I’m already on my way.’

‘The state police won’t let you past.’

‘You get me past them.’

‘I don’t want you past them. In fact, I’ll order them to detain you.’

‘I’ll get through.’

‘Talk to Mitch. He’ll tell you the same thing.’

‘Maybe,’ she said, her stubbornness shining through. ‘But you forget that I know my way around there. I’ll take a back road. You can’t cover them all.’

‘Teri—’

She gave a short, defiant chuckle. Giving up, he said, ‘Stay safe. And watch out.’ She had already hung up.

With the prospect of Teri bursting on to the scene, Chandler entered the house. Everyone was up, including the children.

‘Who were you arguing with?’ asked Sarah, eyes cast to the floor in a semi-stupor, awake and not happy about it. Jasper couldn’t speak, his incessant yawning blocking any attempt to communicate with words.

‘No one. Nothing important,’ he replied.