CALL MAMA Read Free Page A

very strange. Her phone had been working earlier in the day.”
    Detective Carr left Gina’s Floral Boutique and returned to HQ to follow up what she had learned. The appointment at the optician had been cancelled, the message purporting to come from a male member of the Mears household. This led Carr to enquire about the other supposed appointment, that of Nora’s emergency dental visit. Nora had indeed visited the dentist, the appointment having been arranged by Brenda Mears who had requested George collect Lucy from school.
    â€œNora had been miserable for days,” said Brenda. “I made the appointment myself.”
    She assured the detective that it was not unusual for her to arrange such things.
    â€œI look after my staff,” she retorted sharply.
    ***
    Weather at the lakeside had eased enough for the trio to take short strolls to stretch their legs, giving Lucy her first whiff of fresh air. Too weak to walk unaided, she was escorted along on the arms of her minders, dragging her feet and stumbling as she went, mumbling incoherently. The only recognizable
sound appeared to be her plaintive cry of ‘“Call Mama”. For several more days, they continued these walks, which always finished with mild sedation for Lucy on return to her warm detention. Rested and revitalized, the minders decided to set off on the next stage of their journey, crossing into yet another state.
    ***
    Detective Harvey called the team together for a brainstorming session, which resulted in more questions than answers.
    â€œWhy has a ransom demand not been made?”
    â€œDid the kid go off with a boyfriend?”
    â€œDid she meet someone on the internet perhaps?”
    â€œWhere is George North?”
    â€œWhat happened after that car was left in the car park?”
    It was time to call in the media. They already had a whiff of a missing kid but as yet had few details.
    â€œThe kid’s mother is reluctant to go public, but we have to overrule that.”
    Harvey called a press conference and related as much as he felt necessary. A quick result from the TV appeal brought a member of the public to the door of 1st District Central, where Harvey worked, to report a sighting of a Cadillac as it entered the car park.
    â€œI thought it strange for a posh car to be in that rundown car park. I was exiting the place and had to break sharply or I’d have been in a head-on when it raced towards me. I didn’t give any more thought to it until I saw the appeal on TV for information.”
    When questioned further, the witness recalled seeing a speeding green or blue car leave the place shortly afterwards. Officers were instructed to locate the car ASAP, if for nothing more than to eliminate it from enquiries.
    A few crank calls from overly unhelpful members of the public delayed the important work of the team. Eventually, a woman called to say she had reported such a car to her local police. It had been parked in a manner making it difficult for her to manoeuvre her car from her driveway. The car appeared abandoned from about the time of Lucy Mears’ disappearance. Forensics pulled some prints from it. They belonged to Lucy Mears and an unknown person. The car was found near an alley leading to a dilapidated bus station in Halsted.
    Brenda was more hopeful that her daughter would be found on hearing that some progress had been made from the media appeal. She still waited for a ransom demand to be made. Lucy’s computer showed no worrying internet activity, as she expected, stating Lucy’s passion was her cello.
    â€œI could not imagine Lucy being interested in internet activities like social networking sites. She allowed nothing to distract from her music.”
    Enquiries were made to bus companies about the evening the child vanished. Very few vehicles were at the bus depot around the time in question. One driver did not continue his journey beyond there, as his vehicle developed a