She started the engine. The drive back to the A66 wasn’t far and she took Johnny to Callum’s house and left him there, watching him walk up to the door, his shoulders lower than usual. It pained her to leave but she was more useful trying to do her job. She carried on to Eden House, where a mountain rescue team had gathered, along with at least ten uniformed police. Lonscale Fell was a bleak younger brother of Skiddaw. The Jenkin Hill approach was about as dull a walk as could be found, but it was great for dogs and children.

The last element was spirit, if indeed the intended torture of Jock had been meant to be earth. He wasn’t strong enough to be interviewed, but the Penrith and Lakes was doing its best to care for him. The squad car that had disturbed the person about to crush him hadn’t got a good look at the person who ran away, but they did notice that he wore a baseball cap and was as fast as lightning. He was small and fit.

Rob and Kate were back from Borrowdale and they gathered in the incident room. Kelly took a deep breath and prepared to bring them up to date. It was as much for her benefit as theirs; her head was spinning with the events of the last couple of hours, and they still had a missing minor.

Searching Lonscale Fell was a hunch. They might find nothing, but it fitted the top of their pentagram model. It would have to be an extensive search. They’d start at the Ormathwaite car park and walk in a single row up the fell, looking for any sign of walkers or something out of the ordinary. There were no live cases of missing persons but she had an idea of what they were looking for. She brought up a picture of the girl.

‘This is Daphne Junker. She’s the daughter of who was our prime suspect, who is now dead, and has apparently been for over a week. Her life is in critical danger, and I have reason to suspect that she might have been brought here, to Lonscale Fell.’ She pointed to the map and superimposed the pentacle. The murmur around the room was incredulous and electric. She now had her five points.

No symbolism had been found yet at the Great Raven Farm, except the altar. There were no obvious signs of anything indicating an element or the Moon Goddess. There was also no symbol found at Threlkeld Quarry, where Jock Harris had been threatened with his end. But the perp was disturbed.

‘I’ve gone live again with the public appeal for the girl,’ Kelly said. ‘We need to get a move on before we run out of light.’

Chapter 59