‘Well short.’ Martha pulled herself together enough to speak sharply to Richard, not caring what the detectives thought. ‘I’m going to ring Kathy to see exactly how much cash we can get from the company funds. I suggest you go back to your parents, cap in hand, to see if they can help us. We need to get this money from somewhere.’ She turned and went upstairs to make her call, hearing the front door bang as Richard went out. Heaven only knew what the police would think of the dynamics between the couple but Martha knew she must do everything possible to raise the money.

13

DAY 3

Serena Murphy checked her reflection in the mirror, pleased with what she saw. Spraying a little more perfume onto her neck, she sighed – Richard should be ringing any time. He generally rang most days but not always, so she wasn’t worried. He’d call soon – he always did, like a puppy that didn’t stray too far from its mother. Serena smiled to herself – she had Richard exactly where she wanted him and the man even believed he was the one calling all the shots – she could play him so effortlessly.

Serena’s greatest skill, yet hardly one to add to a CV, was getting her way with men, and there’d been several before Richard Stone. Keeping a man happy could be demanding, but Richard was a little different from the others. He was extraordinarily generous and showered her with expensive trinkets to impress, which she accepted with enthusiasm. Richard also enjoyed buying her expensive clothes – and then delighted in removing them.

Serena gazed around her new apartment – more tangible proof of Richard’s generosity, together with a nice little bank account he kept topped up for her. He’d bought the apartment outright, to be their own little love nest in Portishead, just half an hour’s drive from his chambers in Bristol. Richard made the purchase price of just over two hundred thousand pounds sound like pocket change once he’d decided to proceed with the purchase, and Serena loved her new home.

It might be a modest apartment to Richard but it was undoubtedly the best place she’d ever lived. Serena pushed the thought of some of the hovels she’d called home to the back of her mind – those days were gone – she preferred not to dwell on the past.

Buying the apartment in Serena’s name was a bonus she hadn’t expected to achieve. Richard agreed to it while trying particularly hard to impress her one evening. There were obvious advantages, one of which was it being a convenient way to avoid tax which helped to nudge his generosity along but she could tell he wanted to please her, and it did.

When Richard’s call eventually came, Serena turned on the charm, but he cut her short, his voice clipped, strained. ‘Danny’s been kidnapped.’