The Sister(129)

She let him in. ‘Come right through.’ She steered him into the lounge. ‘Would you like some tea, Mr Miller?’

‘It’s just, Miller and yes, tea would be nice.’

She checked his card. Miller: Missing Persons Investigator. ‘What an unusual first name. Please call me, Eileen.’

She looked too young to have a daughter of Eilise’s age.

‘Sit down,’ she said.

‘Do you mind if I?’ He pointed at the collage of photographs that hung on the wall.

‘No, no, not at all, feel free.’ She left him alone while she fetched the tea.

The mirror above the fireplace opposite reflected the collage. Two images for the price of one. A family portrait took pride of place in the collection of photos. He recognised Eilise straight away; she was the older of the two girls. The photo looked recent. The girls stood in front. Mr Staples had a hand on the shoulder of each girl. A six-inch gap was apparent between him and Eileen. Only two family members had happy smiles on their faces, the father and the youngest girl. Miller leaned in for a closer look.

Eileen arrived with the tea. Seeing him looking at the picture, she volunteered, ‘That was taken the summer before last.’

‘It’s a nice photo,’ he said.

He sipped his tea, thinking. Eileen Staples and the older girl shared an uncomfortable body language. Their smiles didn’t extend beyond the lips, and the eyes of both looked haunted. Mrs Staples’ hand was on Eilise’s other shoulder. Family tensions.

‘The photograph was taken just before she ran away the first time,’ she explained. ‘My husband managed to find her quite quickly, and then for a while we all settled back to normal.’

‘Do you know why she ran away?’ Miller asked.

‘Well, you see,’ Eileen bit her lower lip thoughtfully, ‘Eilise found out she was adopted.’

‘So that was why she ran away?’

‘It’s more complicated than that.’

‘I thought it might be.’

‘How come?’

‘That photograph of you all reveals a lot of secrets.’

She became defensive. ‘Oh, really is that a fact?’ She was an attractive woman, but played it down. In the photograph, she wore no make up at all.

‘Eileen, I’m here to help, but to do that I need your co-operation.’

‘Mr Miller, I telephoned DCI Kennedy while I was making tea. He wasn’t there, but Inspector Tanner tells me you’ve quite a reputation in the private sector for finding missing people.’

‘That’s right, but what he couldn’t tell you – because I like to keep this side of things confidential – is that I wouldn’t be here if your daughter were dead. You will ask me how I know, and I’ll tell you I’m not sure, but the fact is I don’t look for dead people.’

She regarded him with suspicion, ‘Do you really think you can find her, Miller?’

‘I believe so, but first I’ll need some help from you, Eileen. You were telling me she ran away the first time because she found out she was adopted, and there was something else?’

‘No, she found out she was adopted, and that’s all.’

A period of silence ensued. She sat shoulders slumped, her eyes darting nervously about the room. Unable to look at him directly for more than a second, she fidgeted with her fingers, revealing a white ring of untanned skin where her wedding ring had once been.

‘Do you want to talk about it?’ Miller asked gently.

She’d only been waiting for the right person to come along, waiting for the right moment. The words spilled out of her in a torrent. It was an unburdening. Miller gently placed a hand on her forearm. ‘Whoa, slow down. Take your time.’

She paused and took a deep breath. ‘I started to notice things going missing. The things you don’t notice straight away, things that are out of everyday sight.’

He nodded. It was a familiar story. Taking a pen and pad from his pocket, he made notes.

‘She withdrew from us, gradually at first, spending more time alone in her room. She began skipping school. Then she started wanting to go out at odd hours. She always used to go out, but not at such completely random times. People were calling for her who I'd never seen before. In the end, I found out she’d been using drugs. I caught her with the stuff in her bag.’ She stopped suddenly as if she might have said too much, unsure if she should go on.

‘Does your husband – it’s Frank, isn’t it? Does he know about any of this?’

She shook her head. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. ‘Shall I tell you what I see in that photo? It might make it easier for you.’

Her head tipped forward looking at the floor. A single tear ran down her face and dripped from the end of her nose.

‘Eileen, the body language in the photo isn’t right. It shows sides, and it shows factions, tensions. In short, the family is divided.’

‘You can tell all that from a photograph?’ She looked bewildered. ‘I never knew people could do that just from looking at a photo.’

‘Eileen, there’s more; you have a reassuring hand placed on Eilise’s shoulder and both of you share the same haunted expression. Your husband and youngest daughter look happy. Neither of them knows what secret you and Eilise share.’