The Mushroom Man Read Online Free PDF Page A

members of the family; the burglars were apparently wearing gloves. We did find suitable smudge marks, and have lifted some glove prints. The most recent set of tyre tracks were made by Mr Dewhurst’s four-wheel-drive van. He says he uses the bridle path occasionally to get out onto the main road. The method of entry is interesting. The side door is a double-glazed, PVC effort. Most of our clients can jemmy one open in about three seconds. There are six different sets of marks on this door where the burglar had attempted to gain a purchase. It wasn’t a very determined attack. Inside, he had ransacked all the bedrooms. The contents of the drawers were strewn on the floor. I asked Mr Dewhurst to identify where stuff had come from. It appears that the top drawers were emptied first. This is the natural way you or I might act, but, as you all know, not the way a professional thief would do it, In short, gentlemen, we found nothing of any forensic value, but, for what it’s worth, I’dsay we are looking for an amateur.’ He sat down on his chair again.
    I stood up: Thanks, Paul. Has anyone any questions?’
    ‘Was there an alarm?’ someone asked.
    ‘No,’ I replied.
    ‘He might bean amateur in practical terms,’ someone else suggested, but he seems to be well genned-up on the theory if he’s got away without leaving a trace behind.’
    ‘Good point,’ I said. ‘I haven’t told you what he stole. It appears that the only thing missing is a small quantity of jewellery, sentimental value only.’ I knew what they were thinking, so I said it for them: ‘And one little girl,’ I added.
    Nigel was next in the limelight. He told us about the frantic efforts of the night before to get as many people as possible on the streets armed with photographs. We’d enquired in all the places where she might have been seen and all those where we hoped she hadn’t. Nothing.
    Acting Detective Sergeant Jeff Caton had supervised the raid on the bus station earlier this morning. Sparky and myself had been there, too. I invited Jeff to say his piece.
    ‘Morning,’ he began. ‘The KGP school bus is run by Carter’s Coaches. It arrives at Heckley bus station at about eight and leaves at eight fifteen, prompt. Yesterday was no exception. The missinggirl did not get on it. Her father dropped her off in Bridge Street, right outside the station. Sometimes, if there was a parking space, he would walk through the station to where the coach waited, a distance of approximately seventy-five metres. Yesterday he couldn’t find a vacant place, so he double-parked to drop her off. He nipped to the newsagent’s kiosk to buy a paper and then left. The proprietor of the kiosk recognised the photograph of Georgina and remembers exchanging pleasantries with her father. He sees them arrive most mornings. Georgina sometimes buys sweets in another shop, but didn’t yesterday. Fourteen other people who use the bus station every morning at that time recognised her face. Only two claimed they saw her yesterday. None of the other kids who use the bus saw her, nor did the driver. Somewhere between her dad’s car and the school bus she vanished without a trace.’ Like a snowflake that falls into the palm of your hand.
    Superintendent Wood read a press release he had prepared and told us that he was planning on recording an appeal on television tomorrow morning. None of us felt optimistic as we left the meeting to make our individual contributions to the search. The simple explanation had not been forthcoming; now we were contemplating the grotesque one.

CHAPTER THREE
    I went up to Gilbert’s office and had a coffee with him. ‘Strong, black and preferably with caffeine,’ I requested.
    ‘Coming up. Would you like a tot of something stronger in it?’
    ‘No thanks. Did you ring Annabelle?’
    He placed the coffees on two mats on his table. ‘Yes, she said she understood. She’ll realise what it’s all about when she reads the papers.’ He dunked