Perfect People

114

‘I’m sorry, Dr and Mrs Klaesson,’ Detective Inspector Pelham said. ‘I was hoping to be able to give you good news. This is a big disappointment for you, I know. It is for us, too.’

It was Monday morning, and he was seated at the round table in his office, beside DS Humbolt and Renate Harrison. He looked drained. They all did.

John and Naomi stared at him in stunned silence. Then John said, ‘Are you telling us it isn’t the Disciples’ people who have taken them?’

‘The base of the Disciples of the Third Millennium was raided in the early hours of this morning by the Greek police, backed up by the Greek navy, a US SEALS squad and a British SAS squad. Agent Norbert told me on the phone an hour ago that they are certain beyond any reasonable doubt that they have the ringleader of the cult and the majority, if not all, of its members in custody in Greece, awaiting rubber-stamping of extradition papers.’

‘But they don’t have Luke and Phoebe?’ Naomi said.

‘I’m afraid not, no.’

She lowered her head into her hands and wept. ‘They’re dead, aren’t they? They must have killed them.’

There was a long, awkward silence.

‘Not necessarily,’ Tom Humbolt said. ‘You see-’

‘NOT NECESSARILY???’ Naomi raised her voice at him. ‘Is that the best you can offer us? Not necessarily?’

Humbolt raised his huge hands in the air. ‘We don’t have any reason to believe they’ve come to any harm.’

‘Don’t you?’ Naomi said. ‘They were abducted in the middle of the night and two people are dead, and you don’t have any reason to believe they might have come to any harm? What planet are you on, Detective Sergeant?’

‘Hon!’ John put a protective arm around her. ‘Hear him out.’

‘I’m all ears,’ Naomi said. ‘Tell me what you know about them. What do you know about the Disciples?’

‘Very little more than is in the papers, at this stage.’

‘Or than the Americans would tell you?’

Ignoring the barb, Pelham said, ‘We know it is a religious cult dedicated to halting the progress of science. Its leader is now in custody, along with forty other members of the cult.’

‘They were all on this island?’ John quizzed.

Pelham replied, ‘It could well be that their abductors hadn’t got your children there before the raid and might be holding them somewhere en route.’

‘And what do you think they’re going to do with them now that their organization has been busted? Take them on a fun day out to Euro Disney?’

‘All of the people arrested are being interrogated at this moment. I can assure you that if any of these Disciples has information about their whereabouts, they’ll get it out of them.’

‘I hope they torture the bastards to death,’ she said.