Deadly Lies by Ann Girdharry (book recommendations .TXT) 📗

and she wore a navy trouser suit. Delaney would have gone by her place to pick her up.

‘We need to get moving,’ Grant said. ‘Delaney, I want you to liaise with forensics and keep up to date with the scene as it unfolds. I’ll speak to the first witness. Oh yes, and we need to find out why the security alarm didn’t go off.’

The ground squelched underneath Grant’s shoes as he walked across the grass and he made a mental note – with soft ground like this they might get lucky with tyre marks or footprints.

‘Get an officer to cordon off the area by the gate,’ Grant shouted. ‘Once they’ve finished inside the house, ask the SOCOs to check the ground for prints. From now on, I want all coming in or out to happen from the side. Got it?’

A uniformed officer scuttled off to carry out Grant’s instructions.

The drive was full of flashing police lights. By the fence, neighbours clustered together, dressed in coats draped over their nightwear.

‘Diane, speak to that lot and find out if they saw anything. I’ve been told this is the grandparents’ house, so track down the parents and get them here.’

Ten minutes for the first responders to arrive, plus fifteen minutes for him to get here which meant the getaway vehicle could already be clear of the town. Grant hurried to speak to the grandmother.

She was hunched in the back of a police car. Clutching her mobile phone, Joan Hardman was staring straight ahead at the headrest and Grant introduced himself and slid in beside her.

She was slight and looked mid-sixties, and when she turned to face Grant, he could see she’d been crying.

‘My grandchildren have been taken,’ she said.

‘And it’s my job to find them. I need as much information as possible and as quickly as possible. Please tell me what happened.’

The authority in his voice calmed her which was exactly what he needed it to do. Though she was shaking, she nodded.

She told him she’d been woken by a noise. There were four of them in the house – Joan, her husband and the two grandchildren, Emily and Lisa, and it had sounded to her and her husband as if there was an intruder downstairs. Ronnie had gone to investigate. She had called the police and then crept onto the top landing where she heard Ronnie shouting. The intruder was already at the front door and he was dragging the children with him.

‘You say it was a man. Did you recognise him?’

‘He had something over his face and I couldn’t see properly.’

‘And then what happened, Mrs Hardman?’

‘Please c-call me Joan. There was a car outside. My husband chased after the kidnapper and Ronnie punched the man and then Ronnie suddenly collapsed and fell to the ground. It was dark. I grabbed hold of Emily‘s arm. There was a tussle and I had hold of her one minute and the next I let go. I’ll never forgive myself. I just wasn’t strong enough.’

Grant ticked off the details. One intruder and no accomplice present which, of course, didn’t mean one did not exist. The children did not seem to know their abductor. Joan and Ronnie appeared to have been taken by surprise though Grant knew from experience this could be an elaborate ploy because no one and nothing could be ruled out at this stage, not even an innocent-looking grandmother.

‘You tried to intervene, Mrs Hardman. This is not your fault. How old are your grandchildren?’

‘Emily is six, Lisa four. When I got there, Lisa had already been forced into the car.’

Joan described the vehicle as a family estate and a dark colour – possibly black or dark grey. She’d done well to get the details and Grant jotted it down. When Emily was wrenched away from her, Joan had lost her balance and fallen backwards. Then she ran after the car.

‘I know it was stupid trying to catch it. It was only once the car got away that I went back to Ronnie. He could hardly speak. Please find them. Please find my grandchildren.’

Her huge pleading eyes were fixed on him and Grant nodded. He needed to keep her focused for just a few moments more.

‘When it went out of the drive, which direction did the car take?’

‘It turned right.’

‘And at the end of the road?’

‘A right turn again.’

‘Did you get a look at the registration?’

Grant held his breath. If she’d got something it would be a miracle.

‘I tried but I can’t see as well as I used to.’

‘Like I said before, don’t be hard on yourself, you did well to notice the colour and type. If you think of any other details please let me or one of my detectives know straight away.’

‘Of course. Can I go to my husband now?’

‘I’ll get a patrol officer to take you there.’

As Joan Hardman went to open the door, she winced.

‘Is there something wrong with your arm?’ Grant asked.

She pulled up her sleeve. Underneath was a red and purple mark on her forearm, roundish in shape. It looked suspiciously like a bite mark.

‘When did you get this?’

‘It must have been in the scuffle with the intruder. With the children taken and then Ronnie collapsing I forgot about it.’

‘Did the person who took your grandchildren bite you?’

‘I don’t know. I remember we were both pulling at Emily and I was determined to keep hold of her but now I think about it, maybe you’re right and perhaps that’s why I let go of Emily’s arm. I felt a sharp pain and I lost my grip. It must have been because he bit me.’

Grant was careful not to touch her. Bite marks were discredited as evidence in a courtroom because experts couldn’t link them to dental records with any certainty. But it was possible traces of saliva might be present in the wound. And that was important because then they’d have a DNA sample from the abductor.

‘Did the ambulance crew disinfect the wound?’ he asked.

‘It went clear out