Page 113 of The Vanished

“I cremated it,” Colin replied. “I listed him as Joe Bloggs.”

“Joe Bloggs?”

“That’s a name commonly used for unidentified bodies,” Drew explained.

“So why did you run?” Quinn asked, turning to Logan once again.

“I didn’t know if someone would come looking for him, and then you sent the police to my house,” Logan exclaimed. “I was afraid they’d find something and open an investigation.”

“I had no choice,” Quinn snapped. “I had no idea what happened to you. And what was I to tell Max? He was frantic.”

Logan’s eyes welled up. “I wanted to ring you and ask to speak to Max, but Colin wouldn’t let me,” he explained. “If anyone found out what we’d done, we’d both go to prison. So Colin took Ronnie’s phone and tossed it in the river, and he handed his wallet, which was full of credit cards, to a homeless guy who begs outside King’s Cross. If anyone reported Ronnie missing and the police checked his financial activity, that would be proof of life, unless they pulled the footage and saw someone else using his credit cards. If they questioned the bloke, they’d assume the wallet had been stolen.”

“No one is pursuing a case against you, Logan,” Drew said. “Quinn reported you missing, but the police found no evidence of foul play and moved on, even after someone tried to abduct Max from the nursery school.”

“What?” Logan cried.

“Some woman pretending to be Quinn turned up at the nursery school the following day.”

“Is Max—?” Logan cried.

“Max is safe. But when Ronnie didn’t come back, she either continued with the plan or decided to try her hand at blackmail and keep the money for herself. When the school refused to hand Max over, she fled.”

“Is it safe for me to go home?” Logan asked. His gaze burned with hope. “I need to see my Maxie.”

Drew nodded. “If anyone asks where you’ve been, say you went off the grid for a few days—maybe a walking holiday, and you and Quinn got your wires crossed. And while you were away, someone stole your car. No one is going to waste precious resources trawling through endless hours of CCTV to try to verify your whereabouts. And I seriously doubt that woman will try again. She shot her shot, and now she’s out of ammunition.”

“But what if she comes for Max again?” Logan exclaimed.

“Then you go to the police,” Drew said. “All this could have been avoided if you had done that to begin with instead of taking the law into your own hands.”

“I was afraid I’d lose my son.”

“Now that I know what happened and have Ronnie’s name, it won’t be too difficult to track the woman down. I’ll make sure she never troubles you again,” Drew promised.

“Thank you,” Logan said.

“Don’t thank me yet,” Drew said gruffly, and pushed to his feet. “I’ll be in touch once I’ve had a word with her and explained what will happen if she’s charged with attempted kidnapping.”

“Max will still be up,” Quinn said, and Logan was on his feet before she’d even finished the sentence.

“I need to see my son.”

“Go on,” Colin said. “I’ll be here when you’re ready.”

He shot Drew a worried look, but Drew shook his head. “As far as I’m concerned, you were nowhere near this, Doctor. It’s case closed.”

“Thank you,” Colin said somberly.

“I can’t believe this nightmare is finally over,” Logan said.

Colin smiled at him, and his eyes shone with love. “He cried himself to sleep every night because he was worried about Max, even though I told him I had spoken to you and Max seemed to be all right.”

“So, what’s on the horizon for you two?” Quinn asked Colin when Drew had stepped outside to give them a few minutes and Logan popped into the other room to get his wallet and keys. “Have you changed your mind about being a dad?”

Colin nodded. “I was such a fool, Quinn. I will never forgive myself. But if Logan will have me, I would like to be a partner to him and a father to Max.”

“You saved my life,” Logan said as he came back into the room. “And I never want to be parted from you again. I was an idiot to take up with Rafe. I always knew it wasn’t right.”