nods. ‘I think there might of been someone parked there. Meeting her, I mean. We kept asking where she was going and she just kept smiling and saying we’d find out soon enough.’
‘But you didn’t see anyone when she got off the bus?’
She shakes her head. ‘I just saw her running up the road and looking, just like, really really happy.’ Her eyes fill with tears. ‘She will be OK, won’t she? I know I should have said something but I promised –’
Her mother rushes to her and wraps her arms about her, stroking her hair. ‘It’s all right, darling, you weren’t to know.’
I wait a while, and then a little longer, and when Isabel finally seems calmer, I ask her if she still has the bus ticket.
She sniffs a little. ‘I think I chucked it.’
Her mother touches her gently on the shoulder. ‘Why don’t you go upstairs and see if you can find it? It might still be in your bag.’
‘But I already told him what time it was –’
‘It’s not that,’ I say. ‘The ticket will have other information on it as well as the time. Who the driver was – stuff like that.’
She flicks her pink-tipped fringe out of her eyes. ‘OK,’ she says eventually. ‘I’ll have a look.’
When she comes down five minutes later she hands me a shred of paper.
‘This is all I could find.’
It’s crumpled and the ink has run but it’s still legible.
‘That’s great, Isabel. That’s exactly what we need.’
* * *
When the lights change, Gislingham signals left and pulls up behind a squad car at the bottom of Windermere Avenue. He’s on his way to meet Ev at Summertown High but he thought he ought to drop in and see how the house-to-house is going. He’s not expecting much – he’s not expecting anything, frankly, because if there’d been any news on Sasha, they’d have called him to say so – but he doesn’t want it to look like CID just hand off all the shit jobs to uniform.
He spots the sergeant in charge a few yards away, talking to a female officer. Gis knows him pretty well. He’s a safe pair of hands.
‘Anything new, Barnetson?’ he says, drawing level.
The man looks up and shakes his head. ‘We’re pretty much done here. We’ve spoken to everyone between the Blake house and the bus stop. A couple of people recognized Sasha from the photo, but only because they’d seen her round there before. No one remembers seeing her last night or noticed anyone acting suspiciously.’ He gestures at a clear plastic sack at his feet. ‘We’ve trawled the gutters and verges too, but all we’ve found is the usual crap. I’ll get it sent over to forensics but I’m not holding my breath.’
Gis looks down at the sack. Fast-food wrappers, beer cans and bags of dog shit. ‘Alan Challow’s going to love you.’
Barnetson gives a wry smile. ‘Oh, I don’t know. It might make a nice change from rotting corpses.’
‘So what now?’
‘There’s a team starting on the fields either side of the Marston Ferry Road. I’ll pop over there later but the last I heard they hadn’t found anything either.’
Gislingham looks up at the sky. The wind has just got up and there’s rain in the air.
‘Hope they remembered their wellies,’ he says.
* * *
Jayne Ayre @NotthatJaneEyre 15.07
#Oxford folk, does anyone know anything about something happening on Cherwell Drive? There’s a bunch of police cars parked up there.
Alicia Monroe @Monroe51098 15.09
Replying to @NotthatJaneEyre
I live on Thirlmere Road – just saw a couple of officers talking to people on doorsteps on Windermere Avenue #Oxford
Mariza Fernandes @Brazilia2012 15.11
Replying to @NotthatJaneEyre @Monroe51098
They have called here also – they are asking about a girl. I think she is missing #Oxford
Alicia Monroe @Monroe51098 15.19
Replying to @NotthatJaneEyre @Brazilia2012
Oh no – not again. Her poor parents #missing #Oxford
Jayne Ayre @NotthatJaneEyre 15.22
Replying to @Brazilia2012 @Monroe51098
I’ve just checked @OxfordNewsOnline and @BBCMidlandsBreaking. Nothing yet
Oxford’s News @OxfordNewsOnline 15.26
Replying to @NotthatJaneEyre @Brazilia2012 @Monroe51098
Do you know the girl’s name and age?
Mariza Fernandes @Brazilia2012 15.32
Replying to @OxfordNewsOnline @NotthatJaneEyre @Monroe51098
Sacha I think. I did not recognise her. In the picture she looks about 15
Oxford’s News @OxfordNewsOnline 15.39
Replying to @NotthatJaneEyre @Brazilia2012 @Monroe51098
BREAKING Reports coming in of a possible missing teenager in the Marston area of #Oxford – residents in the area believe it may be a 15yo girl. More on this as we get it
* * *
Adam Fawley
4 April 2018
15.45
I’m out at the car when my phone goes.
Harrison. Wanting an update.
‘I’ve just been speaking to Isabel Parker, sir. She