Chapter 21 Chapter 020

This was the tenth time Claire looked at her watch in ten minutes.Matt left at seven o'clock and still hasn't called.She knows he is busy.But right now, she needs him.He had warned her about Kellerman's scoop, but seeing it in person still felt like a punch in the stomach. The showers from the English Channel had just come down, and the West Cliff Promenade was still wet.Three children passed by her on bicycles, pedaling desperately against the strong sea wind.Claire stared at them blankly.Two boys and a girl, the girl was about Rebecca's age, perhaps with darker hair. As gut-wrenching as the scene was for her, it was a relief to see the kids moving around again.The last few weeks of the summer have not been a happy time for local children.The older ones were too scared to go out, while the younger ones were confused as to why they were locked up at home.Occasionally they can be seen coming out in groups, but rarely alone.

An air of nervousness and dread hangs over the community.It wasn't until the morning headlines that the atmosphere began to dissipate.She looked around, and sure enough, an adult was telling the children on bicycles to go back, scolding them for leaving the adult's sight.It will be a long time before this part of the Kent coast returns to normal. Rebecca was also riding a bicycle when she was kidnapped.She was on her way to Brownes, not far from where Clare was now standing.Her final trajectory remains unclear.Friends saw her leave the house, in uniform, on her way to a Boy Scout convention.As a result, she never made it to the end of the journey.

"What are you thinking about here?" The sound broke the spell at once.She turned and saw Matt standing behind her.Seeing her teary eyes, his smile disappeared. "Sorry." She wiped her eyes lightly with a tissue. "Nothing. I just..." Explanation is superfluous. Matt put an arm around her shoulders and she leaned against him, grateful for his company. "Looks like you need a cup of coffee." She smiled.This is Matt's trick to deal with any crisis. They went back to her home in silence.Matt has carefully arranged a variety of refreshments, coffee gurgling from the percolator coffee pot, and shortbread baked under the grill.Claire's eyes were still red, but she reapplied the mascara anyway.They sat for a while on two stools next to each other in the kitchen, thinking in silence.

Seeing Claire suddenly smile, he opened his mouth to break the silence. "What fun did you think of?" "Nothing. Just a thought. Would you like some more coffee?" While she went to change the filter cloth, Matt gave a brief account of the day's events.Telling how he found out the name of the native of Bristol, only to find, when the police went after him, that he had gone to London as usual.She listened thoughtfully, knowing that Matt was emphasizing that he was just another suspect, and that Pittman had already interviewed him, and she couldn't get her hopes up just yet.He just wanted her to know that someone was in charge and that Rebecca hadn't been forgotten.

"Anyway," he concluded, "Dave says they've programmed the computer to focus on his license plate so that a camera somewhere on the road can detect him." Claire sipped hot coffee and asked, "Will he be caught?" "Of course. I'll learn more soon." "What will happen to him?" Before answering, Matt thought carefully about what he was about to say. "He will eventually be handed over from here to Mount Fort. But I suspect the Met will want to have a little chat with him first." "What if he doesn't admit it?"

Matt laughed. "That's the Metropolitan Police, my dear. You can't get past it if you don't admit it."