The Date

Emma nearly missed the date at the top of the letter.

14 October 2026.

Yesterday.

Of course, anybody could write a recent date on an old letter. It was not proof that Claire was alive. But it made Emma feel that the past had suddenly become part of her present life.

She searched online for Claire Morrison. She found old news reports, appeals from Claire's family and a documentary made years after the disappearance. Then she opened one of her own articles.

Missing Teacher May Have Left Village After Personal Dispute.

Emma felt uncomfortable. The headline suggested that Claire had left because of a personal problem. An unnamed source had told Emma that Claire was unhappy, but had never provided strong evidence. Emma had been only twenty-one and wanted to publish an important story. Now she could see how unfair the article had been.

She opened her old notebook and found the notes from the interview on 18 September 2011.

Claire Morrison. Glenarraidh café. Education foundation. Uncomfortable when asked about directors. “Truth more dangerous than a lie.” Possible disagreement?

She had written a question mark, but had never investigated it further.

Emma searched for the Glenarraidh Education Trust. The foundation still had a website. It showed photographs of students and fundraising events. Its chair was Malcolm Vale.

She remembered him as a confident man who always looked well dressed. Emma had interviewed him twice in 2011.

She downloaded the foundation's latest annual report and looked through her old emails. She found a message from Malcolm, written shortly after Claire disappeared.

We are all deeply concerned about Claire. She was an exceptional young woman, although she had been under considerable personal pressure recently.

Emma looked at the words personal pressure. Had Malcolm been the person who gave her the story about Claire's private life? She could not remember. The name of her confidential source was stored on an old external drive.

Her phone vibrated. Sarah Bennett, her editor, had sent a message.

Someone phoned the office this afternoon. They asked if you still worked here.

Who was it? Emma replied.

They didn't give a name. They mentioned your old Claire Morrison story.

Emma stared at the letter. The call and the delivery had happened on the same day. Perhaps they were connected. Perhaps not.

Sarah sent another message. I checked your old article. More people than usual have visited it today. We can't tell who they were.

Emma knew the website statistics could not identify the caller. Still, the timing worried her.

Let's talk tomorrow morning, she wrote.

Then she opened her notebook and wrote three questions: Who sent the letter? What happened at the foundation? And who first told her that Claire wanted to disappear?

She knew where to start. She needed to find the old external drive and check her source notes.