Due Process Read Free

him?”
    The Detective shook his head.
    “No, I’m sorry we haven’t..  There’s been a 999 call from one of your neighbours. It seems there is a fire at your cottage.”
     
    *   *   *
     
    Amanda felt numb as the acrid smoke filled the air, piercing the back of her throat and making her cough.  Flames rose high above the rooftop and the wail of sirens mixed with the crackle and thunder of the fire.  The firemen did their best, shouting to one another to redirect the hoses, and she felt the spray of the water on her face and tasted the sooty air.  Crowds milled around her, exclaiming as the beams and roof exploded and lit up the night sky like November the fifth.
    A house fire was big news in a little town, and as well as the police and firefighters and reporters and even a TV crew, she noticed that the townspeople had arrived in droves.  Young people had left the youth clubs, single men had left the pubs, and mothers had brought their children.  She gripped Jenny’s hand tightly, wondering what else was going to happen on this day that had changed her life so dramatically. 
                  The headlines tomorrow would say that her traditional Norfolk cottage had been destroyed by a fire. Cause unknown. This news would keep the town busy for many days, if not longer.
    Black tendrils of smoke hovered above the onlookers, like a giant octopus stalking its prey. She felt a surge of anger at the spectators chatting to one another as her lovely home began to creak and collapse.  Was it only six years ago, just before Jennifer was born, when they had first seen the house and fallen in love with it?  She loved the character of the pristine white cottage, with its lattice windows and pillar box red front door.  All the lovely roses around the front of the house were now blackened ashes.  Laughter and love had filled this home, and now all those memories were destroyed in an instant, carried away in the devilish breath of the fire. 
    She thought back to that morning. How quickly life can change.
    But her anger evaporated with the smoke as one person after another came to console her.  There were hugs, and offers of help, and condolences. Someone brought her a mug of tea. These people shared her pain.
      Just a few hours ago she had a husband she loved, a daughter she adored, a beautiful home, and an exciting future ahead.  Now her husband was missing, her home was destroyed, and all she owned was the clothes she stood up in and the contents of her handbag.  She looked down at her daughter, who had only her crumpled pink flowered dress , and a pair of grubby sandals. Jenny’s hand grew rigid as the fire crackled and burned.
    “I want my daddy,” she whispered, tears falling down her face. 
    “The police will find him,” said Amanda, pulling Jenny close, “I promise. If they don’t, then I’ll find him myself.”

CHAPTER THREE
     
    It was difficult living on a thirty foot boat, but it was the only place she could think of to go. And the only possession they had left. At least it was familiar to Jenny.  They’d never been on the boat without Tony, though. Somehow the movement of the cabin, the whoosh of the water as it caressed the sides, the pounding of the rain on the roof – it all sounded exaggerated.  Tony would have laughed at her.
    She thought of him again, now.  The hundredth time that day because he was constantly in her mind, tapping at her brain and trying to tell her something.  What was going on?  Where was he and what had happened?  So many questions but nowhere to find answers.  All his personal things, his briefcase, the files he kept at home, everything that might have explained his disappearance were now ashes.
    Living on the boat was temporary, she hoped. But things were getting more complicated.  Investigations were going on regarding the house fire, so any insurance claim was on hold.  And with Tony still missing she could not have access to his bank account.