Jacob leaned against the car window as they headed towards Winyates in Redditch. Gina steered into the shopping centre car park and spotted the flats that surrounded the small shopping area.

‘How are things going with Amber?’ she asked.

‘Really good, I think. We get on so well and the biggie, she still hasn’t dumped me. It’s been three months now. Apart from Beth, she’s the longest. Any good-looking men on your horizon?’

She let out a comedy laugh as they stepped out of the car, heading up the ramp towards the flats above the shops. An old bike was secured to the railing. Gina doubted anyone would pinch it, given its rusty condition and flat tyres. A large spider dangled from a cobweb that reached all the way from the handlebars to the saddle.

As they waited for an answer at Callum Besford’s flat, a group of six youths kicked a ball and supped energy drinks below, shouting obscenities. She knocked on the door again and inhaled the smell of fresh paint.

‘Hello,’ the young man said as he opened it. He was wearing a T-shirt with a designer tear on the shoulder. He removed his glasses and pulled his jeans further up his super skinny waist. There was someone he reminded her of. His facial features matched that of a young Clark Kent in the original Superman films. He looked to be in his early twenties.

‘DI Harte and DS Driscoll. May we come in and speak with you?’

‘Of course. Is it about what the kids did the other week? I had to repaint the door.’

‘No. We need to speak to you about Darren Mason.’

‘Oh. He told me the police had contacted his dad about his van being in the area where that girl was found.’ He led them in through the hall of a small flat. They passed a basic kitchen, one worktop and an old-fashioned cupboard with sliding wooden doors. Washing-up filled the sink and there was a smell of fried food in the air. The sitting room was tiny and overlooked a chip shop. That was where the smell was coming from. Gina’s stomach rumbled as she and Jacob sat on the old brown settee.

Callum pulled a wooden chair from against the wall and sat opposite them. ‘About the other incident. I know the kids were cautioned but things are becoming unbearable here. I’m gay, my neighbour is from Pakistan and he is lovely. The kids never leave us alone. It’s not all the kids, most are okay. It’s just the one group. They run up and down the ramp at all hours with their spray cans screaming homophobic and racist slurs. I’m trying to get out of here. Just need to save a bit more money. We were going to wait until Darren finished his degree before we officially move in together.’

‘That was one of my questions. Are you and Darren in a relationship?’

‘Yes. Look, I haven’t heard from him all day. I’m worried, especially with the way things are around here. I went for a walk around the car park, looking for his van. I was relieved when I couldn’t see it. I thought he’d been attacked or something, not that he can’t look after himself, he can… I just worry. He never ignores my calls and his phone is turned off.’

‘We have Darren at the station while we conduct our enquiries. He’s perfectly safe and you can rest assured, he’s all in one piece. I’m sure he’ll call you as soon as he’s able.’

‘Phew.’ The man leaned forward, clasped his arms around his legs as if hugging them.

‘Can you tell us how Darren was on the morning of Saturday the fourteenth of July? He said he stayed here.’

‘That’s right. He stays a lot and even goes to uni from here. He left really early, said something about trimming a tree in Cleevesford. Said he’d be back in the afternoon and he was. We hung out here until evening and someone tagged him in a news post on Facebook, something about the van. I didn’t take much notice but Darren kept going on about it, but we soon forgot.’

Jacob began making notes and Gina leaned forward, partly so that she didn’t have to sit on the sticky patch behind her. She sniffed her hand hoping it wasn’t anything sinister, and was relived to discover it was golden syrup. ‘Let’s go back to that morning. What time did Darren get up?’

‘It was early, I know that much. He wanted to make a start before it got too hot. I think it was before six. He threw his clothes on and left.’

‘Did you speak?’

Callum sat up and looked away. ‘A bit.’

‘What about?’

‘Him and his family, well, his dad.’

‘Could you tell us more?’

He looked at both of them in turn and nodded. ‘We started arguing the night before and I barely slept.’ She could tell he was nervous as he was scratching his neck. ‘His dad doesn’t know about us. We’ve been together for two years and I haven’t met any of his friends. I kept telling Darren, if I meet them I’ll be on my best behaviour and I won’t embarrass him. I’m not a bad person and I’d love to be a bigger part of his life and not feel like some dirty secret. I know it’s hard though. He’s not ready to come out.’

‘I see. Did these words carry on after he left?’

‘I was really upset when he left and things got a bit heated. I suppose I hoped he’d call me to apologise. A while later, probably just before seven, he tried to call. I didn’t answer. I wasn’t playing games, it was just that I was still wound up and upset. I didn’t want him to know that I was crying. Anyway, he tried again and I answered. Things went from bad to worse. He told me that I’d never meet his parents and that’s how it had to be if I loved him. I hung up and that pissed him off because he tried to call me a few more times before finally giving up. Of course, when he got home, I forgave him as I always do. I know how hard he’s having it because I’ve been where he is now. But people accept these things once they know. Family do, friends don’t care; at least mine don’t. Darren cares though. I don’t pretend to know it all.’

‘You’ve been really helpful. Would we be able to see the call log on your phone for that morning?’ Callum handed his mobile to Jacob. He took a few photos and made a few notes. ‘I know this is a big ask but it will really help Darren and us. Does Darren share your room?’

‘Yes. He even has his own wardrobe.’

‘May we take a look?’ Gina held her breath as she waited for his answer, hoping that he’d consent to them conducting an informal search.

Callum nodded and led them to the dark bedroom. The black curtains looked like they’d been drawn all day. There were no clothes on the floor like there had been in Darren’s room at his parents’ house. Gina placed a pair of gloves over her hands and opened the wardrobe. Darren’s clothes were neatly hung and his shoes were lined up along the bottom. She felt between the clothing, in pockets, and inside the shoes before heading to the bedside tables. She slid the drawers open and found nothing of interest. There was a copy of The Lord of the Rings and a box of tissues. She flicked through the book, nothing fell out. She kneeled and looked under the bed. Again, it was as tidy as the wardrobe and the carpet was clean.

‘There really isn’t much to see in here. I keep it tidy, can’t bear clothes everywhere.’

He was right, there was nothing out of place. She spotted an old greyish stain on the pale green carpet and moved her hand away from it. Tidy but grubby, she concluded. After a quick glance behind the furniture, she gave Jacob the nod. ‘Thank you so much for your cooperation. I’ll call Redditch Police to follow up on the incident you reported.’

‘Thank you. Will I be able to see Darren soon?’

‘I’m sure he’ll call you when we’ve finished our enquiries. He’s perfectly safe though so you don’t have to worry about his welfare.’ Gina smiled. ‘May I use your bathroom?’

He nodded and held his hand out, pointing to the next door. He and Jacob headed back to the lounge. The damp room still smelled of what was probably his morning shower. Black mildew covered the whole back wall and the light looked like the wiring had become slightly exposed. She wondered how landlords had the nerve to charge for properties in this state. She made a note to let the council know. Maybe they’d conduct an inspection and force the landlord to improve the flat. She opened the bathroom cabinet. Again nothing out of the ordinary. She checked her watch. It was almost seven in the evening.

‘Right, we’ll leave you to it. Once again, thank you,’ she said when she returned to the lounge.

They left and Callum closed the door.

‘So, Darren had been arguing with Callum, that’s why he was on his phone a lot. There was nothing in that flat. Callum was totally cooperative and he seemed like a nice lad.’

‘He did,’ Jacob said as he opened the car door. ‘Briefing first thing, I suppose?’

‘Yes. I’ll check that the system’s updated with the forensic results that came back on the girl in the hospital. We have so much to talk about. In the meantime, we can only hope that the technical team get back to us before Darren Mason’s twenty-four hours is up. There’s no way we’ll get an extension on what we have so far. We need to know what was on the phone and the laptop and what had been in that syringe. Bernard will be attending to go over any updates on what he and Keith found.’