Neo woke with a start, his phone vibrating against his night stand, the lights dancing across the room. He rubbed a hand over his tired eyes before picking it up.

'DCI Denzel,' he said gruffly.

'Sir, the search team found something.'

Neo's blood ran cold, the sleep leaving his body in a rush. He sat up and turned on the light.

'Report,' he barked at his constable. The early morning wake up call and unpleasant news made him lose his usual pleasantries.

'A cuddly toy has been found by the marsh, it's believed to be one of the missing children's toys. Or at least the name on the tag matches the youngest child.'

Danny, Neo thought to himself. That's what the Bennett's youngest child was called.

The marsh was two miles or more away from Felton Pond as the crow flies. The two weren't even connected by the same road. To get from Felton Pond to the marshes, a car would have to join the main road first and travel the three miles north before turning off.

'Were there any other signs that the family had been there?'

Neo was in full police mode now that he was awake.

There was a pause on the other end of the line, which made his stomach turn.

'They found a yellow cardigan in the water.'

Neo cursed. 'Have they identified it yet?'

'No Sir, it's been taken to forensic for testing.' His constable paused, weighing up his next words. 'Sir, should we alert the diving teams?'

The diving teams, Neo thought to himself. It was the next logical step, given the evidence they'd found.

The marsh was a dangerous place to be, especially at night. If the family had managed to stumble their way there, there was a possibility that they could have fallen into trouble.

'I'll contact the Superintendent and arrange for the team to start. Keep me updated if they find anything else.'

With a few more brief words, he hung up and called Palmer, not surprised to find that she was already awake. After so many years in the job, it wasn't surprising that Palmer struggled to sleep. Insomnia was just another thing that came with the job.

Their conversation was all business, both of them knowing the same thing; the longer the family was missing, the higher the chance that they wouldn't be found alive.

Neo sent a quick message to Gwilt, knowing that the man would likely not see it until later, before finding his clothes. He left a message for his kids and grabbed a cereal bar. It would have to suffice for breakfast until he could find something better at lunch.

It would take forensic a day or two to identify the toy and cardigan, but that wasn't their only option.

Knowing his day was going to be a difficult one, he treated himself to double shot cappuccino, the coffee finally pushing the last remaining drags of sleep away.

                                                                                  ***

'So what have you found about the parents so far?' Neo asked, as he negotiated the winding bends to the Phillips' house.

Gwilt had the report open on his lap and began reading out what the constables had found so far.

'Harry Bennett's family live in Leeds. Both retired now, but father was a firefighter and his mother was a teacher. They're currently being looked after by the team there. Harry Bennett's father recently had open heart surgery and still isn't strong enough to make the journey here. His wife is choosing to remain with him until more evidence comes to light. Financials look normal. No trouble with the police.'

'And the Phillips?'

'Mr and Mrs Phillips moved to Marton in 1982 from Devon. Mr Phillips was the local pharmacist until he retired two years ago. Mrs Phillips has never worked as far as our records show. Their oldest daughter was born in 1985, and Jane was born a year later. We have received multiple phone calls about Mrs Phillips erratic behaviour shortly after Lucy's death, but nothing in the last few years. Police never investigated further.'

Given the obvious mental state of Mrs Phillips and the recent death of her daughter, it was unlikely the local police would have taken any of the phone calls too seriously. It would have been chalked up to a family grieving the loss of their child.

'And Charlotte Hoggins?'

This was the report that had been on Neo's mind the most. The mysterious Charlotte Hoggins who had landed slap bang in the middle of his investigation.

Gwilt pursed his lips unhappily.

'Born the same year as Lucy Phillips, her parents have since emigrated to Spain. After she left Marton, she completed her A levels in London, before undergoing regular bar work for about a year and a half before her records are sealed.'

Neo's grip on the steering wheel tightened. 'Sealed?' He worked to keep his voice level.

'From the age of twenty to thirty-one, she was employed by MI6. I've put in a request for information, but I highly doubt they'll release anything unless we find evidence she kidnapped the Bennett family herself.' And they knew that was most unlikely given that she wasn't in the area until after the event.

Neo ran a hand through his hair, glancing at his Sergeant from the corner of his eye.

'Please tell me you're joking? She's ex British intelligence?'

This couldn't be happening, Neo thought to himself.

'Sorry, Chief, but that's the report.'

'What about after she left MI6? I'm assuming we have access to those records?' Neo tried to keep the frustration out of his voice, but he knew he wasn't succeeding. He didn't like unknowns in his case and Charlotte Hoggins was turning out to be one of the biggest.

'Obviously we don't know why she left, but four months after her employment ended she set up a private investigator firm. As far as I can see, everything is above board. No problems with the law except a few misdemeanours when she was younger.'

Gwilt sucked on his teeth as he thought, and Neo spared him a glance.

'Something's bothering you, so spit it out?'

Gwilt stopped and sighed. 'It's just I've found her name attached to a few high profile Met cases.'

'So this won't be the first police case she's muscled her way in on?' The thought not making Neo feel any better.

'It looks like she has quite the contacts list.'

Neo declined to comment as they pulled into the Phillips' driveway. A large traditional brick house confronted them when they left the car. Ivy clung to the walls and wisteria hung lower over the door, forcing both men to stoop as they rang the doorbell.

A dishevelled looking Mr Phillips answered after a few seconds.

'Have you found them?' The hope in his voice was clear as he peered at them through his thickset glasses.

It was like a knife twisting in Neo's gut, knowing the news he was there to deliver.

'May we come in, Mr Phillips?'

They both watched as the older man's face dropped and he stepped aside, falling silent.

He led them through the house to the drawing room, where Charlotte Hoggins sat sipping at a fine china cup.

To say Neo was not pleased to see her was an understatement.

Her blue eyes connected with his as she looked between him and Gwilt. He noticed she had her notebook open and still twirled a pen in her hand.

'Can I get you gentlemen a cup of tea or coffee?' Mr Phillips asked, falling back on learned behaviour despite his world crashing down around him.

'No thank you, Mr Phillips,' Gwilt answered.

'Is your wife present? I'm afraid I have news from the morning search.' Neo watched the man pale.

Mr Phillips collapsed onto the settee, his hands twisting and untwisting in his lap.

'Alice is a late riser and after yesterday, she's more fatigued than usual. Please, can you just say what you have to say.' Jerry Phillips closed his eyes and leaned his head back.

It had taken him hours to calm his wife down after returning from the police station, and there was no way he was going to disturb her now.

DS Gwilt pulled two glossy photos from the file and held one out for Mr Phillips to see.

'This cardigan was found at the marshes this morning by the search team. We were hoping you'd be able to identify it.'

Mr Phillips took the photo and stared at it. He handed it to Charlotte before either officer could stop him.

Neo ground his teeth together as she devoured the image and scribbled in her notebook. Gwilt took the photo back from her and shoved it in the file.

'I'm sorry, Inspector, but I can't say for sure if it belongs to Emma. It looks like it could be her size, but I don't know.'

'That's okay, Mr Phillips. The team also found this.' Neo offered the second photo.

He knew they'd found something important when the older man's hand shook. Mr Phillips seemed to fall apart in front of their eyes. Tears rolled down his cheeks, and he pushed the picture into Charlotte's hands.

Charlotte spared the image a small glance before she let it fall to the table, moving instead to comfort Mr Phillips.

Grudgingly, Neo approved her actions.

'We bought Danny that when he was born, he wouldn't go anywhere without it.' Mr Phillips hung his head in his hands.

Neo walked to the table and picked up the picture of the mud coated llama. His daughter had also had a beloved stuffed animal. Elfa, the elephant, had never left her side until the unfortunate day she'd lost it. The screaming and tears were still something that Neo remembered.

'Mr Phillips, I have to warn you I've contacted the diving team.'

'Oh God, no,' Jerry whispered. 'Please tell me you don't think...the marshes.'

'We don't know for certain. At the moment, it's just a precaution but with the evidence that's been found, it's something we need to investigate.'

Mr Phillips took a few minutes to get himself together.

'If you have no other questions, then I think I need to be with my wife.'

But Neo held out his hand. 'Mr Phillips, could you tell me why your daughter and her family were coming to visit you? I understand that this wasn't a usual occurrence.'

From what they'd been able to piece together from Harry Bennett's parents, Jane rarely visited her family.

Jerry wiped away the tears from his eyes and stood.

'This year marks twenty years since Lucy's death. You must understand that her death...it almost tore my family apart. Jane suffered worse than all of us. She lost her sister, her best friend and her closest confidant all in one. I wanted us to be together, to bear the burden together.'

Neo nodded his head, and Mr Phillips left the room.

'We'll see ourselves out,' Neo said, already leaving the room.

They made it out through the front door before they heard movement behind them.

'DCI? I was hoping we could talk?' Charlotte Hoggins stood on the doorstep, closing the front door behind herself.

'We're terribly busy Miss-'

'Please call me Charlie, everyone does.'

'Right, well, Charlie-'

'Look, I know you don't want me on your case, but I will not let Jerry and Alice down. They asked me to find Jane and her family and I intend to do so.'

Neo sighed and turned back to look at her. 'I understand your commitment-'

'No, you don't.' She stepped down from the porch and came to stand in front of him. 'Believe me, Chief, if Jerry hadn't called me, nothing could have brought me back to this place.'

Exhaling sharply through his nose, Neo looked at the woman for the first time. The deep purple circles around her eyes and pale skin were belied by her fierce expression.

'You were friends with Lucy Phillips?' Neo asked.

Charlie's fierce expression turned into a weary one. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a stick of gum.

'Lucy was one of my best friends.'

'It must have been hard losing her,' Gwilt said.

But Charlie shook her head. 'It was hard losing all three of them.'

'And Jane Phillips? You were close to her?' Neo watched the barrage of emotions cross Charlie's face.

'Lucy and Jane were a package deal. You couldn't have one without the other.'

And for the first time, Neo realised something. 'You were Lucy's friend and not Jane's.'

Charlie focused on the surrounding area, finding the conversation difficult.

'Jane could be difficult, spoilt even. I liked her but I would be lying if I said we were close.'

'And when was the last time you talked to her?' Gwilt asked, sharing a look with Neo.

Charlie pulled her hair loose from her band, letting it fall down past her shoulders. Neo and Sergeant Gwilt watched her fiddle with the headband.

'Not since I left. Neither I nor Jane handled losing Lucy and George very well. Every time I tried to speak with her, she pushed me away. Eventually I got the message and when I left this place, I never looked back.'

'But you kept in contact with Mr and Mrs Phillips?' Gwilt said.

'I did. After everything that happened, I felt like I owed them that. That I owed Lucy that. And that's why you won't deter me from looking into this case, Chief.'

Neo sighed. 'Take care Miss Hoggins.'

'I'll get you to call me Charlie eventually, Chief,' she called after him as he shut the car door.

'Well, she seems persistent,' Gwilt remarked after they'd left.

Neo shrugged, saying nothing, but secretly agreeing with him.

Charlie Hoggins was many things, persistent was just the tip of the iceberg.