11
I had to wait for a while in the reception area at police HQ before an officer came down to get me. I used some of the time to call Geoff and Lucy, who were at the park near their house. Mia was on the swing, Geoff said. Did I want to talk to her?
‘No, I’m just checking that pick-up time is still one o’clock.’
‘Yep, all good.’
I disconnected, ignoring the little niggle that said maybe I wouldn’t make it in time. I signed in and was taken upstairs, back to the same beige room to find Emma sitting in the corner of a couch, knees up as usual. But she wasn’t as hostile as yesterday, and it looked like Lauren Chandler had been allowed to buy her some new clothes. Emma sported new jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt, and her fingernails sparkled with blue polish. Lauren had been playing girl
