Free Lost Lives (Emily Swanson Mystery Thriller Series Book 1) by Malcolm Richards Page B

road.
    Emily froze.
    “That’s the place,” she said, pointing to a bus stop on the opposite side. “That’s where Alina called Karl before she disappeared.”
    Behind the bus stop and bordering the edges of the road was a long stretch of forest. Looking over her shoulder, Emily saw a plot of locked up warehouses. She imagined Alina waiting for the bus, illuminated in the darkness by the single street light.
    “Come on.”
    Emily and Jerome crossed the walkway, passed the bus stop, and located the entrance of the private road that led to the Ever After Care Foundation.
    “I’m not sure about this,” Jerome said, pausing to stamp his numbing feet against the ground.
    His apprehension was not unfounded. Yesterday’s phone call to the police had proven fruitless. The desk sergeant he’d spoken to knew nothing of Alina Engel and upon learning that Jerome was neither her friend nor her relative abruptly ended the conversation. His next call was to the Missing Persons Bureau. A beleaguered operator advised him that, due to the age and nature of the missing persons report, he would need to submit an email enquiry. Hopefully, someone would reply within five working days.
    Emily had taken an altogether different approach. She had called the Ever After Care Foundation and, rather than enquire about Alina Engel, she’d arranged an appointment to take a tour of their facilities. It was a slightly irrational move, she supposed, but now that they were here it seemed senseless to turn around.
    Hands dug into pockets, Emily and Jerome followed the winding road that split the forest in two. By the time the road had opened up to reveal acres of flat land with the Ever After Care Foundation rising like a monolith from its centre, Emily’s face was so cold she felt as if she had been slapped.
    Beside her, Jerome tugged the hood of his coat over his forehead. He grumbled to himself, occasionally glancing in Emily’s direction.
    As they came closer they saw topiary-lined gardens. Most of the plants had died back or fallen victim to frost. It was a very different picture to the vibrant images on the website. The manor house, however, was much more impressive. A series of turrets and chimneys adorned the sloping slate roofs of the c-shaped sandstone building. Nineteen windows watched the strangers draw near. Emily wondered what riches might have once been spied through them as lords and ladies met to discuss the dowries attached to their daughters’ impending, arranged marriages.
    In stark contrast, the one storey modern extensions attached to either side of the building were ugly and out of place.
    Apart from a handful of vehicles in the car park the place felt deserted.
    “I just don’t see why you couldn’t have asked about her over the phone, instead of dragging me out here to freeze my ass off,” Jerome said in a hushed voice. “And there are dying people in there. It just feels wrong.”
    Emily stepped up to the impressive oak front door and pressed the intercom button.
    “No one’s going to tell us anything over the phone,” she said. “We’re going to take a tour, that’s all. Hopefully, we’ll glean something while we’re here.”
    “Well, I don’t want any trouble. The only reason I came along is because this is a ridiculous idea and someone needs to watch your back.”
    “I appreciate it.”
    The door opened and a nurse in her mid-fifties, who was short but powerfully built and dressed in a blue and white uniform, greeted them.
    “Goodness, it’s icy out there!” A blast of frosty air extinguished her smile. “Come in, come in! Before we let the heat out.”
    They stepped into a grand hallway resplendent with wood-panelled walls and hanging chandeliers. A grand double staircase grew up from the centre. Nestled in between was the front desk, where a young woman sat at a computer. She looked up, noticing the visitors.
    The interior of the building had undergone some major transformations in order to