A Time to Run by J.M. Peace Page A

first pieces of information here was also pushing her towards the Corbett case. Were these cases linked? Could there be more than one person stealing women from the streets of Brisbane? She needed more information – about Tahlia, about the missing prostitute, about Sammi.
    All of this before they even contemplated talking to the barman who had left work early and picked up a blonde woman on the street.
    It would be counterproductive to race around to his house without concrete evidence. He would laugh at them and send them on their way. Worse than that, he would know the police were on to him. Far better to gather enough evidence and turn up with a search warrant in hand. That way, he could be detained and they could go through his house with a fine tooth comb.
    A movement across the room caught Janine’s eyes. Jake was still on the phone but was waving a scrap of paper at her. She walked over and grabbed it. He had scribbled the missing persons report number on it. Janine took it and picked up her phone again.
    Saturday 10:22 am
    It was several minutes before Sammi’s brain could process anything but the most basic message to move forward, and away from the killer.
    Don’t panic, deep breath, don’t panic , she repeated over and over to herself. She tried to slow her ragged breathing and quell the wave of fear that threatened to crash over the top of her. If she panicked, she had no hope. Her only chance was to use her brains and to plan. She breathed in time with her footsteps: inhale twice and exhale once. The rhythm slowly settled her breathing along with her mind.
    An hour. She checked her watch. It was 10:23 am. Would he actually give her that long? Or was he just playing games? An hour was a long time. She knew she could cover maybe seven or eight kilometres through the bush if she pushed herself. Then she would have more time while he covered that distance to find her.
    He seemed pretty sure of several things – sure he would be able to pick up her trail, sure she would not encounter anyone else who might be able to save her. But there must be some small chance that there might be someone else around. If he knew the area, someone else must know it too. It must be remote, but there was still a track of sorts that led out here. It had been a bumpy ride in the back of the ute, but she didn’t remember them having to stop at any stage.
    She slowed down and looked around her. He had specifically said not to try to return to the track he had driven in on. Sammi doubted she would be able to find it, even if she wanted to. She had a notoriously bad sense of direction and her biggest risk would be running in circles, maybe moving back towards Don rather than away from him.
    She stopped and faced the morning sun, already quite high in the sky. She had to squint and shield her eyes, but here was the start of a plan, and better than nothing. She would run directly towards the sun. That way she would have something to orient herself against and know she was going reasonably straight. If she found the sun in her eyes annoying, he probably would too when he came after her. It was a very minor advantage, but she would take whatever she could get. At least now she had a direction.
    She set off due east, at a slow jog. She wanted to maintain an even tempo. She jogged for fun and fitness regularly and knew if she kept a steady pace, she would cover more ground in an hour. If she started running faster, she would wear out quickly and have to stop and walk until she caught her breath. She didn’t know when she would need to turn and fight, and wanted to keep something in reserve. Without a doubt, that’s what she would have to do when he caught up with her.
    As she concentrated, her shakes subsided. It was rough terrain, but mostly flat. She tried to keep as straight a path as possible, paying no heed to the small twigs that snagged her clothing and scratched her bare arms and legs. She