Eight-year-old Maisie Brown disappeared during Tanniford's annual fete and Chief Inspector Millson suspected Maisie's stepfather. Millson disliked stepfathers - his own daughter had one and he resented having to arrange with him and his ex-wife when he could see her.
The local police had closed the only road out of the village while the fete was on and no vehicle left the village between two o'clock and six that day. This convinced Millson that Maisie had been abducted in the village and was still there - dead or alive.
The villagers believed a stranger had taken her. In a way, they were both right.
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