Thomas nodded less than enthusiastically. ‘Any idea of how many nonces are on the list?’

‘We’re talking close to four hundred. That’s known and suspected abusers. If anyone can be ruled out for a good reason, do that, and then go through the rest of the list as quickly as you can. If any of them has any link to the Weller family, we need to look at them closely. The quicker we can check them out, the better.’

Thomas nodded for a second time. It was going to be a long day.

‘PC Rees, PC Evans and PC Price, you’ll be making house-to-house enquiries under the supervision of DS Lewis, starting in Picton Street and then moving on to the surrounding streets. Dale Weller made one hell of a racket in the time before the abduction, which was followed by the police siren. It’s usually a quiet residential area. A lot of people will have been woken. Someone may have seen something significant. It’s your job to find out if they did.’

Kesey turned and pointed to a map of the Picton Street area she’d prepared in advance of the meeting. It was a technique she’d learnt from her much-loved mentor, DI Gravel. She tapped a biro repeatedly on a large blue X marked close to the centre of the map. ‘This X indicates the location of the Wellers’ semi-detached Victorian home, the crime scene.’ She tapped the map again. ‘This first circle, the black one, indicates the area those of you not yet allocated a task will search first. I need you to search bins, outbuildings and the like, each and every location where a child could hide, or a body could be concealed. A dog handler will assist you. This work isn’t glamorous, it isn’t exciting, but it is crucial. Let’s get it done as quickly and efficiently as possible.’

Kesey turned her attention back to the map and continued. ‘This larger circle, the green one, marks the additional area that those of you allocated the task will search if nothing is found within the black area. So, to be clear, you’ll examine the area within the black circle first and then move on to area two once that’s completed to DS Lewis’s satisfaction. Please thoroughly familiarise yourselves with the geography before you leave the room. If we don’t find anything today, we will search again tomorrow and the day after that, and the day after that until we do. Lottie Weller has to be somewhere. Hopefully, she’s still alive. It’s our job to find her.’

10

Later that day, Dale was standing at the bar, sipping a glass of sparkling water less than enthusiastically, when Megan entered the quiet Caerystwyth Rugby Club. He turned as the busty bottle-blonde barmaid nodded at Megan, acknowledging his ex’s arrival with a wave. ‘All right, Meg, I’m glad you came. Thanks for agreeing to meet me, it’s appreciated. It’s fucking horrendous. We’ve got to stick together.’

Megan looked pale, tired, dejected. As if the stuffing had been knocked out of her. ‘Why here? Why a bar of all places?’