Caught Out in Cornwall Read Free

less likely he or she would be found alive. It might have been a judgemental opinion, but from what Rose had seen of Sally Jones it seemed unlikely that she had the sort of money which would attract a kidnapper wishing to demand a ransom. She appeared malnourished and her clothes were threadbare and cheap.
    ‘I’d better go, Rose. Thanks for a lovely meal.My turn next time. I’m becoming a dab hand at stews and even your mother would be proud of my dumplings. And, look, try not to worry. The police will do all they can to find her.’
    But Rose was worried. Supposing Beth had been abandoned somewhere, what chance would she have of survival, especially in this weather? ‘Ring me tomorrow,’ she said as she handed him his coat. It had become a daily ritual since her mother’s death. It was reassuring for them both.
    She made tea and took it up to bed along with the novel she was reading. However hard she tried she could not get the picture of the pinched, forlorn face of Sally Jones, with her spiky fair hair, out of her mind.
    She looked like a victim. Perhaps that was why she had become one.
    Rose turned out the bedside lamp and pulled the duvet around her shoulders then lay listening to the storm until she finally fell asleep.

CHAPTER TWO
    Although the heating was on and the gas fire in the unused grate was lit, Sally Jones was shivering. Not so Janice Richards, the family liaison officer who had remained with her throughout the night. She was sweating beneath her uniform blouse. Neither of them had slept. For Janice, it was part of the job.
    The small lounge of the rented flat smelt stale, the air was thick with cigarette smoke. The previous evening Janice had thoughtfully closed the door of the bedroom where Beth normally slept. There was too much visible evidence of the child who was no longer there. ‘Shall we have some more tea?’
    Sally nodded. They hadn’t drunk half of the cups they had made through the long hours of the night, but it had given them something to do.
    On the three occasions that Janice had answered the telephone Sally’s hopes had been raised. But there had been no news. Beth had simply disappeared.
    ‘Are you certain her father couldn’t have taken her?’ Janice asked once more when she returned with the tea.
    ‘Positive. I know he thinks the world of her but he couldn’t possibly look after her. Besides, as I said, he doesn’t even know where we are.’
    Michael Poole, Beth’s father, was a sales representative and was therefore on the road all day. There were also occasions when he stayed away overnight. Janice had given his address to the officer in charge. Detective Inspector Jack Pearce was following this up. No matter what Sally believed, it was often a father, a mother or a near relative who snatched a child. The previous year Michael Poole had applied for custody, claiming that Sally was an unfit mother. As he had not seen either the mother or the child for a long time his reasons were unclear. However, Social Services reports proved otherwise.
    ‘What time is your sister arriving?’ It waseight o’clock and barely daylight. Janice pulled back the curtains and lowered the flame on the gas fire. Sally made no objection; she probably hadn’t noticed.
    ‘As soon as she’s spoken to the children. She said they wouldn’t be going to school today.’
    Janice nodded. Aged six and five they were old enough to understand what was happening.
    Carol, Sally’s sister, older by two years, had moved to Marazion after her marriage to John Harte. Janice was aware of this and that the family originated from Looe, on the north coast of Cornwall. John was a mining engineer and he, like so many others, had been forced to find work overseas. From tin mining he had changed to oil. He was extremely well paid but his work kept him away from home for long periods. As he was currently in Saudi, and this had been checked, he was not a suspect. Carol had not stayed overnight even though her