Richard raised an eyebrow; there must be dozens of white vans in the area, it seemed a long shot but he was glad they were pulling out all the stops.

After the DI finished his call, the tension in the room was palpable. All eyes focussed on Radford who drew in a deep breath. ‘We’re doing everything humanly possible, but a few prayers wouldn’t come amiss. The helicopter will be mobilised immediately and several cars are going to the area where the van was last spotted. As soon as the helicopter pinpoints a location, there’ll be someone on the ground within minutes.’

‘What are the chances of them finding the right van?’ Elaine asked.

‘They’re starting at the point the cameras lost track of them. The area isn’t a heavily populated one, there are only a few scattered farmhouses and one or two villages in the vicinity which will help our cause. With its bird’s-eye view the helicopter can cover a much greater area than the cars. I think the kidnappers will have parked up somewhere by now and probably not too far from where they left the motorway. If the van’s out in the open, we’ll find it.’ This appeared to be as much as the DI was prepared to speculate.

During the next hour the detective’s phone rang several times. The first call confirmed the helicopter had been deployed and was within fifteen minutes of the point where the van left the road.

The news frustrated Richard. ‘But they could be miles away by now.’

‘I shouldn’t think so. They must be hiding your son somewhere within a reasonable proximity to Bristol, and they won’t want to risk too much driving on the open roads. Let’s just wait and see shall we?’ Radford advised.

Richard nodded. He feared the worst but hoped there was some truth in the detective’s reasoning.

Another call confirmed that the search of the area had commenced. Much of the land was given over to farming but the majority was woodland.

The next call appeared to be the breakthrough they’d hoped for. The helicopter had spotted a white van parked beside farm buildings in a somewhat isolated spot. Richard ran up to tell Martha while Radford kept his phone open for a real-time commentary from the helicopter.

‘Don’t, Richard... don’t give me false hope. Danny’s dead, I know it.’ Martha turned away from her husband.

‘At least come downstairs,’ Richard pleaded. Martha wearily dragged herself to her feet and allowed him to lead her back to the others.

Richard looked expectantly at Foster for an update.

‘The helicopter’s guiding two of our cars in now. It’s less than a couple of miles from the main road and seems likely to be our crew.’