Silent Child(63)

“Well, apparently they’re searching the surrounding area for any suspicious outbuildings or old shelters that could have been converted into a prison. But DCI Stevenson told me that there aren’t always records for some of these old buildings, and the woods are really dense so it’s hard going. Most of their resources have been taken up looking into the duke. It took them ages to search Wetherington and they’re going through all the images on his computer.” What I didn’t say was that they were looking for images of Aiden on his computer. I didn’t say it because it made me feel ill.

“They’ll find him, Emma. I know they will.” Josie reached across and took hold of my hand. She squeezed my hand and then leaned away, frowning. “Is there something else wrong? You seem a bit peaky.”

“It’s going to sound really stupid.”

She laughed. “I bet it won’t. Remember that time I thought Argentina was in Europe?”

“Oh yeah, that was pretty stupid.”

“Can’t be worse than that, can it?” she offered.

“It’s Aiden. He’s been acting really strangely recently and I’m worried.”

“How do you mean?”

I settled into the stool at Josie’s breakfast bar. “Well, I never expected him to be fine after everything he’s been through. Of course he will have been affected by the trauma of what he’s been through, but I’m starting to wonder whether I’m going to need help with him. Whether I can’t cope. His behaviour has gotten a little… out of hand. First he decided to cut up the curtains with scissors. Then he cut up the mobile for the new baby and threw red paint into the crib.”

“Oh shit, Emma. That’s scary.”

“I know. Jake thinks it isn’t safe to bring a newborn home with Aiden here, but I just can’t bring myself to send him away.”

“Well, that’s understandable. He was taken away from you.”

“But I’m beginning to think that maybe Jake is right. Maybe I can’t cope with Aiden and maybe I’m being selfish by pretending I can.”

“Being selfish about what? Emma, you are the least selfish person I know.”

“If I’m putting Jake and my unborn child in danger because I can’t let go of my son, then that’s selfish, isn’t it?”

Josie swallowed another mouthful of wine. “I wouldn’t say it’s selfish. But if you’re afraid of Aiden, you need to get some help. Jake might be right about it not being safe for your newborn with Aiden around. It isn’t Aiden’s fault and it isn’t your fault. It’s the bastard who took him’s fault.”

“Do you remember him having behavioural problems when he was little? I can only remember the good things, but maybe that’s because of what happened to him. I think I’m blanking on anything bad because I can’t stand to think about it.”

Josie sighed. “Honestly? Hugh had more patience with him than I did. Don’t get me wrong, he was a lot of fun, but he was a bit… tiring.”

“And?” I prompted, sensing that there was something she wasn’t saying.

“He was a bit moody, Em. He used to have tantrums quite a bit.”

I frowned. I remembered him throwing a wobbly in a supermarket once but he was never that bad. I was getting to the point where I couldn’t trust my own mind. Why did I keep pruning away the bad times?

An hour later I left Josie’s house and made my way down the gravel drive to my car. The wind had whipped up, and it howled through the Rough Valley Forest below. I turned my head towards the second hill overlooking Bishoptown. There it was: Wetherington House, standing tall and proud above the village. At one time the village was owned by the Duke of Hardwick, though the family had sold much of the land since those days. The house had been closed to the public since the police inquiry, but I knew there was a good entrance at the rear of the property because I’d once snuck in with Rob. It was a dare we’d had while drinking Lambrini on the grounds of the house.

I got in the car and started the ignition. Butterflies tickled at my stomach, but I knew I needed to get some answers. Though I was filled with nerves, I tried my best to back out of Josie’s drive carefully, and warned myself not to let my adrenaline take over like it had the day I went to the GP surgery. No, I needed to keep a cool head.

It was a short drive to Wetherington. The scene of Bishoptown spread beneath the hill in a patchwork of green fields and forest dotted with small cottages and local pubs. Who would think that a monster lived in this beautiful place? No one had suspected a thing, and that was the most dangerous aspect of this entire sorry story. No one had even an inkling until the day Aiden stumbled out of the woods. He had brought his own abuse to our attention, but he held the full story locked up tight inside.

If Aiden wouldn’t tell me what had happened, maybe someone else would.

I navigated the twists and turns down the driveway towards the stately home. In order for this to work, I needed to make sure I knocked on the door of the private wing of Wetherington. I had no idea if the duke and duchess were even living in the mansion at the moment. Perhaps they had nipped up to a private residence in the Highlands, or a summer cottage in Devon. DCI Stevenson hadn’t gone into much detail about the conditions of his bail.

I hesitated for a moment after lifting the handbrake. What was I doing? What if I was arrested? I scratched at the angry red rash between my thumb and forefinger as I worked up enough courage to open the door. This was for Aiden, but it was also for me. I needed to talk to someone who might have some answers.