Nerves began to rise as she approached the front door of the house. She really hadn’t given much thought to what would happen next. All she had known was she needed to find him. The rest, she supposed, would take care of itself. There were no cars in the driveway now. Was nobody at home? She took a deep breath and knocked. There was no answer. She looked around for a doorbell and found it, camouflaged against the frame of the door. She pressed it once. Still nothing. What was she supposed to do now? There was little point in getting all this way and then turning back at the first hurdle, so she sat with her back to the garage door, her face to the sun, and waited.
After a while she became thirsty and drank some of her emergency bottle of water. Feeling bored, she put on her headphones and listened to some music, and after that, the next thing she knew, a car was pulling up in front of her and two feet were stepping out.
Pulling off her headphones, Jenny scrambled to her feet. She shoved everything back into her bag and then, searching rapidly for the right words, she looked at the woman beside the car. For a moment she considered running, but she couldn’t, not when she had come so far, so she forced herself to stay calm and started by apologising.
“I’m so sorry,” she said, taking a hesitant step forward. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep on your driveway. But I’m looking for Mr Florin. Have I got the right address?”
The woman kept her children safely inside the car, out of the way of the stranger invading their privacy. She had obviously found little reassurance in Jenny’s explanation thus far, so she added, “It’s about his brother. He’s gone missing.”
The woman’s face fell. Reaching back inside the car, she undid the children’s straps and herded them towards the front door. “You’d better come in.”
Inside, the little children kept close to their mother while they assessed the stranger trespassing in their lives. “I’m Jenny White,” she told them. “I’m trying to find Dr Peter Florin. I work with him.”
“How did you find us?” the woman asked.
“Dr Matthews, one of his colleagues at the hospital, told me he had a brother who looked out for him.”
The woman rolled her eyes. “For his sins.”
“And he remembered Pete had mentioned the name of the village where you lived.”
“Ah.” She held out her hand. “I’m Rachel Florin, Jamie’s wife, and these two horrors are Joshua and Annabel.” The children were still looking at her cautiously. “Please, take a seat. Can I get you a drink? You look a bit flushed. I think you might have caught the sun there.”
Jenny felt her face. It was tight and hot. “A glass of water would be lovely, thank you,” she said.
Rachel ran her a glass of water and dropped in a couple of ice cubes. She handed it over and led her children away to settle them down to play. Jenny looked around the room. It was a nice, ordinary kitchen in a nice, ordinary house. The garden was smallish and littered with children’s toys and the fridge was covered with paintings. It was a home, and for a minute, Jenny recalled a similar scene in her early childhood with affection.
Rachel returned with a bottle of moisturiser in hand. She offered it up and Jenny took it gratefully and smoothed some on.
“It’s a lovely spot you’ve got here,” she said.
Rachel smiled. She was busy searching in a cupboard for something. She stood up again, with a toy in her hand, obviously relieved. “If you don’t mind, I’ll just…”
Jenny was very aware she had intruded. “No. Please,” she said, and she kept her silence while Rachel sorted out her children, leaving her own mind space to think. How had she got here? What was she doing? Doubt was champing at the bit for free rein and she had to battle hard to remember the reason she was there.
Rachel was soon back and the two women sat down with a drink. “So how did you say you knew Pete?” Rachel asked.
“I work at St Steven’s. I’m a nurse.”
Rachel looked at her and nodded. “And… are you his girlfriend?”
“Heavens, no!”
Rachel smiled. “Good. At least you’re not so likely to attack him with a carving knife when we do find him, then.”
Jenny smiled at her and held up her hands. “I’m unarmed, I promise.”
“So, how long has he been missing this time?”
Jenny was a little surprised.
“It’s not the first time,” Rachel elaborated. “A couple of days? Three perhaps?”
“It’s been well over a week. Almost two, in fact.”
Rachel looked a little more concerned now.
“I was hoping he was here with you. You haven’t seen or heard from him, have you?”
“Not for a couple of weeks, no. Not since the last time.”
Jenny quickly joined the dots. “The Friday before?”
“Did he not go back to work after that?”
“Yes, he did. For one day, maybe two. I’m not sure. And then he was gone again.”
Rachel frowned. “I’d better ring Jamie.” She picked up the phone on the table near by and pressed a button. It rang several times and must have gone through to an answerphone. “Jamie, it’s Rachel, please ring home when you get this. Don’t worry, we’re all fine, it’s Pete. I think he needs you.” She put down the phone again and turned back to Jenny. She looked at her watch. “Have you eaten lunch? Can I get you anything?”
“No, I’m fine, thanks. I had a big breakfast in town.”
“You don’t mind if I get the children theirs?” Rachel asked, getting up to have a rummage about the kitchen for something to feed them.
“Of course not,” Jenny said. “Go ahead.”
Rachel pulled out some cheese and grapes from the fridge and reached for the bread on the side. “What made you think he’d come here?” she asked, continuing to make the sandwich. “He usually stays in Duxley.”
“Nobody’s seen him,” Jenny told her. “I’ve asked everyone I can think of.”
Rachel was quiet for a long while after that and Jenny wondered if she was going to say any more. She took the children their lunches and returned to the kitchen.
“He’s not really as bad as he makes out, you know,” she said, sitting back down at the table, opposite her. “Pete… He used to be such a sweet guy: a steady, good-tempered, respectful lad. This isn’t the real him… At least, I hope it’s not.”
Jenny looked at her, eager to learn more.
“He lost someone a few years ago and he blames himself. It’s changed him. And not for the better, I’m afraid.”
Rachel asked Jenny a little about herself and then they talked about the kids, and after Rachel had settled the children in front of the TV and cleared up the plates, she began to look pensive. “They had a tough childhood, you have to understand. It’s made them very close. James doesn’t talk much about it, but I’ve picked things up over the years. As a family it’s never discussed at all, but I know some of what went on and I think Peter took the brunt of it, being the eldest.”
Just then James walked in and strode straight up to his wife, he kissed her and then asked her what she had heard. Rachel introduced him to Jenny and he turned round and apologised for not having noticed her before. He was shorter and darker than his brother,