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there was still something similar about them, something healthy and capable and confident. They all looked like they worked out a lot too.
    “They were all from the immediate area - two were from Tavistock, one was from Newton Abbot…”
    Ryan shifted uneasily. That was where he lived.
    “…One from Ivybridge, one from Totnes, two from Exeter and one from Moretonhampstead. They were all quite athletic, into various sports, but not the same sports. The eldest man was forty one when he disappeared, so they’re all relatively young. Beyond that there’s nothing connecting them. The two from Tavistock knew each other because they’d grown up in the same place but they weren’t close friends or anything. The only other thing they all have in common is that they disappeared without a trace and have never been seen since.”
    Ryan stared at the gallery of happy, healthy faces and wondered if one of those poor bastards had ended up buried in concrete on his land. He ran a hand thoughtfully across his jaw, hearing the stubble rasp against his skin. He hadn’t had a shave for a few days with everything that had been going on lately. Lexie and Jules - his two half-sisters - had come into his life and caused havoc. He’d decided to grow it, it was time for a change.
    “I want in on this,” said Ryan.
    “You sure?” said Battler, surprised.
    “I suspect one of these men was buried beneath our annex. The police are doing nothing. It must stop.”
    “I don’t know what Rachel will say.”
    “She’ll understand.”
    Battler wasn’t so sure.

CHAPTER 5
     
    Mikey returned home tired and a little shaken. It had been difficult for him spending all that time alone with Jules, especially in the confined space of his car. Her effect on him wasn’t fading, to his chagrin.
    The sight of Amber , his wife, hurrying up to him, red curls tumbling down her back was a soothing balm and he hugged her to him, the feel of her pert little body against his combined with the pent-up sexual tension causing an immediate response.
    “Let’s go to bed,” he whispered in her ear.
    “We can’t.”
    “Course we can. Your mum and dad are looking after Jamie. We’ve got all the time in the world,” he said, grinding himself against her.
    Amber removed his hands from her waist and stepped back. “We can’t. Jamie’s here.”
    “Why?”
    “Because Mum’s here.”
    “Why’s she here?”
    “Because she’s left Dad. She says she can’t stand his put downs and distance anymore. I said she could stay with us for a few nights, if you don’t mind.”
    “Course I don’t,” he lied. He couldn’t stand his mother-in-law. She was a vicious, stuck-up shrew. Still, she was marginally better than her husband, who was such a pathetic loser Mikey couldn’t stand it. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you like Joyce,” he said when she appeared in the hallway behind her daughter, looking sheepish.
    “I appreciate that Mikey,” she said quietly.
    “I said I’d take her shopping to cheer her up. A bit of retail therapy always works,” smiled Amber.
    Mikey swallowed nervously. Amber was capable of spending astronomical sums of money on complete crap when the mood took her. Amber and her mother combined were capable of bankrupting him.
    “You’ve got your credit card?” he said.
    “I do.”
    Mikey was glad he’d had the foresight to put a limit on it. “Have fun,” he called as they exited the house, taking Jamie with them, Joyce suddenly looking much more cheerful, leaving Mikey alone and horny. He needed a distraction. He took out his phone and scrolled through the phonebook.
    “Jez, you busy?” he said.
    Jez arrived half an hour later and found Mikey just finishing up a sweep of his office for listening devices.
    “I take it this is business?” said Jez, throwing down his briefcase and pulling off his tie. Jez always wore smart suits, even though he hated them, he was much more comfortable in t-shirt and jeans but it was