Free Twisted by Lynda La Plante Page A

an Inspector Reid who was the detective in charge. He’s starting house-to-house enquiries and was very positive about finding Amy.’
    Marcus gave a cursory look around as he followed Lena up the stairs and onto the first-floor landing. The house looked more or less the same as he had left it. Always the fresh flowers in large bowls, a profusion of plants, and the pictures that they had bought together over the years. The fitted carpet was new, but in the same deep moss-green as it had always been, but there were new brass stair rods, and walking along the landing he also saw there was a new chandelier.
    ‘You’ve done some redecorating,’ he said quietly.
    ‘Yes, mostly to freshen up the place. I have a decorator that comes in over the holidays.’
    She opened Amy’s bedroom door, and he walked past her. ‘Did you tidy it up?’
    ‘No, this is how she left it. The locked drawer is the smaller one, top right.’
    As Marcus crossed the bedroom, he stared at himself in the wide mirror. ‘Christ, I look a wreck, but I didn’t have the time to shave this morning and I had a fair bit to drink yesterday after the divorce meeting.’
    She turned towards him, and suggested that the less they discussed the meeting with their lawyers the better it would appear to the police. ‘I have said we have an amicable separation, and to be honest I almost believed we had, until you appeared with that despicable toad of a man, but I won’t discuss it until we know about Amy.’
    ‘Whatever,’ he said as he bent down to try and open the drawer.
    ‘I should have brought a screwdriver up. I mean, under the circumstances we should just break the lock open.’
    ‘Do you want me to go down and fetch one?’ he asked impatiently and she sighed, nodding her head. He paused at the door. ‘It’s strange coming back here – I’d forgotten how big the place is. Do you know how long it’s been?’
    ‘Yes, I am aware,’ she snapped and he looked at her and then walked out.
    The gates to the large house had been left open and DI Reid was able to pass straight through to the wide drive before parking between Lena’s Lexus and a convertible Mini. The Lexus was highly polished, but the Mini was mud-splattered and looked as if it had not been cleaned for some time. He peered inside it, noticing old parking tickets, newspapers and a pair of jogging shoes, and jumped in surprise when Harry Dunn, Lena’s driver, asked what he was doing. He explained who he was and Harry apologized, and said he was just about to give a quick dust to the Lexus.
    Reid went up the three pristine white steps, past two huge pillars, to the blue-painted front door with its magnificent carved brass lion’s head on a big looped knocker. Noticing there was also a doorbell, he pressed that. From his former career as an estate agent, he appreciated the value of upmarket property, and this one he reckoned was worth at least four million pounds. It was truly impressive.
    Agnes introduced herself as she led Reid into a sitting room. If he had been impressed with the exterior of the property this vast room was stunning. It had huge white sofas with decorative cushions placed in front of a stone fireplace, wooden logs stacked in the grate. The many windows looked out over a spacious manicured garden; on the York stone paved terrace stood carved tables and chairs. He took off his raincoat and folded it over the side of the sofa arm, but did not sit down; instead he walked around, gazing at all the many collectible items – snuffboxes and a profusion of scented candles which were grouped on side tables; over the mantel there were silver-framed photographs. He was about to take a closer look at these when Marcus walked in.
    ‘I’m Marcus Fulford, Amy’s father,’ he said, and indicated the screwdriver in his hand. ‘I was about to try and unlock a drawer in my daughter’s dressing table – Lena thinks her diary might be inside.’
    DI Reid handed him his card and was