[2022 Wattys shortlisted story]
A missing family. A twenty year old murder. An old ghost story. And a private detective from London. But what do they all have in common? It's the job of DCI Neo Denzel to figure it all out.
In the quiet town of Mart...
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Neo stifled a yawn as he pulled the station door open and stepped into a sea of chaos. Several officers were on the phone, others were scouring over the map he and Charlie had found, and Gwilt was marching towards him with heavy black bags under his eyes.
'Chief.'
'Gwilt,' Neo replied, looking around the busy room. 'What's happening?'
Gwilt motioned to Neo's office, and they headed over. A few curious pairs of eyes followed Neo, not that he was surprised after everything that had happened with him and Charlie the day before. No doubt word of their closeness in the Sailor's Mate had become public. And that he'd been the one to take her home. Though he doubted that many knew where she'd actually stayed the night.
Gwilt shut the office door and sat in the chair across from Neo.
'The electricity board are stopping any more exploration of the tunnel.'
Neo raised his eyebrow. 'They're aware this is a missing person's case?'
'They've been informed,' Gwilt replied with a clipped tone.
'So what's their excuse?'
Gwilt shook his head. 'They're embarrassed since they have no record of the tunnel or the electricity point. They're worried about the safety of the tunnel and have requested a few days until they can justify its safety.'
Neo huffed. 'And will they consent to an officer being present when this is carried out? We need to know if there are signs the Bennett family has been there.'
But Gwilt was already shaking his head. 'I already asked. It's deemed too dangerous for non-trained personnel. Also, as this is a police matter, they will inform us of anything they find, however their sole focus is the tunnel.'
'Shit,' Neo cursed. 'How long until they can get a team down there?'
'It's the weekend, so right now, Monday. They're trying to chase some people down but haven't been successful. They'll let me know if it's any earlier.'
Neo blinked. 'You're joking? Monday? What, have people lost the ability to work weekends? This is a fucking missing person's case,' Neo fumed.
'I know, boss, but there isn't much we can do. We were just lucky that CSI could finish their job before the electricity board threw them out.'
'Aye lucky.' Neo rolled his eyes. 'Any more news about the other dotted lines?'
Gwilt sighed. 'I wish I had better news, but one has caved in completely, and the other one appears to never have been built. We've tracked down a restorer who's coming to work on the map. Once it's cleaned up, it might tell us more.'
Neo tapped on his desk, thinking whilst Gwilt sat waiting for his verdict.
'So what you're saying is we've hit a stalemate until the electricity board allows us access to the tunnel?'
