by Karen Moore
Hanna’s cheeks were smouldering now. “So, we might have just as well not have bothered reporting it?”
Luciano shrugged. “Well, somebody had to, I guess. Anyway, let’s try and get some shut-eye before tonight. Don’t know about you, but I’m whacked.”
“Me, too. Though I think I’m too wound up to sleep. Maybe the brandy will help.”
She finished off her drink before following Luciano into the bedroom where she undressed and slipped between the sheets. Her mind was in turmoil. She couldn’t believe that people could passively accept this horrific situation without wanting to do something about it. Thoughts continued to churn through her head.
Luciano had already fallen asleep, breathing in slow and rhythmic waves as if untroubled by the night’s events. Maybe I don’t know him as well as I think, she mused, turning over. Nagging doubts gnawed away inside her head, keeping sleep at bay.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
North Wales, Sunday 26th November, 2017
“Oh, Rhys, thank God I’ve reached you at last! Eva’s disappeared! She was playing in the garden one minute, the next she’d gone. I’ve been all over looking for her but there’s no sign of her anywhere. It’s as if she’s been swallowed up. And the weather’s getting worse…”
Sobs smothered Hanna’s words. Her hand clenched around the mobile phone, the skin drawn tight and white across the knuckles. She wanted to scream, beat her fists against the wall. She’d been in the kitchen and had only taken her eyes off her daughter for a few minutes, just as she’d done so many times before. How could I have been so careless? she thought. Something must have happened. Eva couldn’t have got far on her own; she’d have found her by now.
Someone must have taken her. There was no other explanation. But how could that be when she’d heard nothing, not a sound, and certainly hadn’t seen anyone lurking in the vicinity. A cold knot of fear snaked through her body.
Rhys’s calm voice broke in. “Hanna, try not to panic. Anything could have happened. We’ll find her, don’t worry. She might have fallen and hurt herself. I’m on my way, stay where you are until I get to you.”
An image of Eva lying in a ditch, battered and bruised, flashed in front of Hanna. She shuddered. “Hurry, Rhys. Something bad’s happened, I just know it. I’ll never forgive myself if it has. I should have kept my eye on her. It’s all my fault…” Her voice was rising to a crescendo again. She was on the verge of hysteria now, sobbing and trying to speak at the same time, the words coming out in a jumble.
“Try and calm down. Everything will be fine. She won’t be far away and there’ll be a perfectly good explanation, you’ll see.” Rhys’s soothing tone had little effect.
“I just hope you’re right…”
“Sit tight, I’ll be with you in no time at all. I’m only at the bottom of the valley. Maybe she wandered off and got lost. Stay in the cottage. You need to be there if she does make her way back. Try not to worry. We’ll get her back safely, you’ll see.”
His attempts to reassure her rang hollow. She felt a vast aching void in the pit of her stomach. There was more to this, she felt sure. She ended the call and slipped the phone into the pocket of her waterproof. Tearing herself away from the window where she’d been keeping a lookout for any sign of Eva, she hurried outside again. The wind had increased, whipping through the trees as if in a hurry to get to its destination. Hailstones started to fall, striking and stinging her face with their force.
Stifling her sobs, she began to call out, “Eva, Eva – where are you? Can you hear me? Eva, come on home now. Vieni qui. Eva, Eva, Eva-aa…” She paced up and down, calling her daughter's name repeatedly. Each time the wind whipped the sound away, reducing it to a pathetic whisper.
It was only early afternoon but already the light was fading, dark storm clouds scudding menacingly across the sky. With the temperature dropping, more snow could be on the way. What hope could there be of finding Eva in these conditions? She trembled at the thought of what could have happened.
Going around to the back of the cottage, she called again, louder this time, still competing with the wind. Still no answer. She scanned the surrounding countryside with a pair of old binoculars she’d grabbed earlier from a kitchen drawer. It was increasingly difficult to focus in the bad light and she struggled to see through blurry eyes. There was no option; she’d just have to stay put and wait for Rhys.
“Still no sign?” Rhys shouted through the open window of the Land Rover as he brought it to an abrupt halt in front of the cottage. Bryn squeezed his muzzle through the gap and started to bark as if sensing something was wrong.
“No, nothing, not a peep, and the light’s starting to go. We’ll never find her…”
“Don’t talk daft, Hanna. Jump in and we’ll find her before long, you’ll see.”
Hanna wasted no time clambering up into the passenger seat. Rhys switched on the vehicle’s powerful main beam and accelerated away from the cottage, heading for the track leading up to Nerys and Lars’ place. Trees swaying in the breeze cast ominous shadows on either side.
“Keep a lookout for her as we drive,” he shouted over the roar of the engine. “Could she have gone as far as Nerys’s?”
“On her own? I very much doubt it.” Hanna grabbed the side handle of the Land Rover as it lurched and bounced over the rough track. “I tried calling them before but there was no answer. If she’d shown up there on her own, they’d have called straight away. But it’s quite a long way from the cottage. She’s unlikely to be there.”
“But she might have been on her way up there when something happened, or else she’s wandered off en route,” said Rhys. “It’s worth a try, anyway, don’t you think?”
Hanna sighed, unconvinced but at a loss to suggest anything better. They continued on their way in silence for a few minutes when Hanna suddenly spotted a dark shape at the side of the track. “Stop the car! What's that over there?”
“Stay here, I’ll go and take a look.” Rhys pulled up and disappeared from view, returning with a shake of his head. “It’s not her. Just a dead badger.” Hanna felt both relieved and dismayed.
They started off again. Their neighbours’ cottage loomed up ahead, dark and foreboding, not a light to be seen. Clearly, there was no one home.
Rhys must have sensed Hanna’s thoughts. “I’ll just check quickly that she’s not in any of the outbuildings before we go,” he said, hastily rummaging through the glovebox for a torch. “Won’t be long.”
He left Bryn whining in the back as he slid out of the driver’s seat and shone the torch across the flagged yard, creating arcs of light as it flickered from place to place. The only sound was from the wind whistling through the trees. No sign of life. He returned, grim-faced. “She’s not here. Let’s head down the track and check around the cottage again before we go any further. We need to make sure she’s missing before we report it to the police.”
So, Rhys is starting to believe she’s missing, too, thought Hanna with a heavy heart, as he steered his way across the tracks behind the cottage. They stopped at regular intervals to call her name, straining to hear any response. But there was nothing. Driving down the valley, they repeated the process. Still nothing.
They continued to scour the countryside for an hour or so, their efforts hampered by the darkness and occasional flurries of snow, but there was still no sign of Eva. Their feelings of frustration and anxiety were now running at a peak.
“This is hopeless. We’re just not getting anywhere on our own. We’ll have to call in the police and the mountain rescue team,” said Rhys with an exasperated sigh, as he climbed in the Land Rover again and turned the key in the ignition. “They’re more used to getting results with this sort of thing.”
“We can’t, Rhys, not in the circumstances…” Hanna started to say but her words were interrupted by the sound of a text alert from her mobile phone. She pulled it out of her pocket and stared at the screen, her blood turning cold as she read the message, wri
tten in Italian:
EVA STA CON NOI – We have Eva. You have information that we need. Wait for further instructions. Don’t alert the authorities if you want to see her again.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
North Wales, Sunday 26th November, 2017
Hanna’s heart continued to hammer as Rhys drove back to the cottage through the darkness. The message confirmed her worst fears. Her head throbbed, threatening any attempt to think clearly, the knot of fear in her stomach swelling by the minute. But one thought prevailed: she had to get Eva back, whatever it took
“It’s all my fault,” she wailed, pounding her thighs with her fists. “Why didn’t I confront things sooner? I was kidding myself. It all seemed so safe here, far away from everything that happened in Sicily. I’ve been an idiot.”
“You shouldn’t blame yourself, Hanna. You were only doing what you thought was right for the two of you.” Rhys paused before adding, “I don’t know what you’re thinking of but whatever it is, you can’t do it on your own, Hanna. It’s far too dangerous and you can’t risk Eva getting hurt. You have to report it, despite what the message says.” He glanced at her, his concern almost palpable.
“You don’t understand. I don’t have any choice,” Hanna responded in a despondent but exasperated tone. “We’re not dealing with some petty low-life criminals here. This is big business, with millions of euros at stake. They must have found out somehow that I’ve got evidence on a memory stick. Without proof, it would just be my word against theirs. Ruthless bastards, they’ll obviously stop at nothing to get the information back.”
“But if you start negotiating with them, whoever they are, you’re putting yourself in danger, too. Can’t you see that? There’s no guarantee that the two of you will come out of this safely even if you turn over the information they want. Remember the silver bullets?”
She did, vividly; her main reason for escaping in the first place. But who was behind Eva’s disappearance? Luciano had the most to lose from the incriminating information she held. But was he so callous as to snatch his own daughter away from under her mother’s nose? And how had he tracked them down? If it wasn’t him, who else could it be? His family, his associates? So many unanswered questions plagued her mind.
She was vaguely aware of the noise of the engine, the bumpy track back to the cottage, and Rhys’s voice, pleading and cajoling her to see sense and call in the authorities. That was out of the question. What if she never saw Eva again? It was too painful to contemplate. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if anything happened to Eva. She felt sick at the thought. All that mattered now was getting her daughter back. She didn’t care about bringing the people trafficking operation down. Even with her evidence, that might never happen anyway. Too many people, often in high places, were embroiled for that to occur.
Rhys eventually pulled up outside the cottage, a dark silhouette barely visible under the overcast night sky. Hanna shivered as she went inside and turned on the lamps; it was nearly as cold inside as it was outside.
He busied himself making up the fire, hampered by Bryn’s efforts to turn it into a game. Hanna sank onto the sofa, still deep in thought but at a loss to know what to do next. The place seemed eerily quiet without Eva. She checked her phone in the vain hope that she might find out who’d sent the text. Chillingly, her daughter’s name appeared but with no clue as to the sender’s number.
Rhys went into the kitchen and returned with two large brandies. He handed one to Hanna and sat down next to her, his face pale and drawn. Hanna absentmindedly ran her finger round the rim of the glass as she stared at the flames licking the glass window of the wood burner, lulled by their hypnotic spell. Thoughts raced furiously through her head in no coherent order. She felt faint, so desperate was her concern for Eva.
“So, what’s the plan?” Rhys ventured, interrupting her thoughts. He seemed to realise that his efforts to talk her into notifying the authorities had been in vain.
Before Hanna could reply, her mobile beeped again with another text alert. She snatched the phone and stared at the brightly-lit screen:
We have unfinished business to resolve. Get the next flight back to Sicily if you want to see Eva again.
A wave of anguish ripped through Hanna; she felt dizzy and light-headed as panic threatened to engulf her.
“What is it? Is it the kidnappers again? What do they want?” he asked.
“Oh, my God, it’s Luciano, it’s got to be him. He must have found out somehow about the information I’ve got on him and he’s blackmailing me to hand it over so I’ll get Eva back. What a bastard! How could he stoop so low?”
She started to sob, her hands trembling as she fumbled for a tissue. Rhys attempted to put his arm round her shoulders in a comforting gesture, but she shrugged it off, her sobbing becoming more intense.
“I keep trying to tell you that we need to—” Rhys started to say hesitantly, a helpless look on his face.
Hanna’s sobs subsided in an instant and she rounded on him, almost angrily. “You really have no idea what we’re dealing with, do you? I’ve got no option. I’ll have to go back to Sicily straight away and settle this once and for all. I knew it had to come to a head but just not quite like this. I need to call Ceri and let her know what’s happened.”
Rhys must have realised from her determined look that there was no point arguing. He sighed deeply and picked up Hanna’s laptop lying on the coffee table. “Okay, you do that, and I’ll try and get you on the next flight back to Sicily.”
Hanna slipped her jacket on and took her mobile outside on the pretext of getting a better signal. She didn’t want to run the risk of involving Rhys any more than he already was and of giving him more information that might persuade him to go to the police.
With trembling hands, first she checked the messages again for any details as to their source. Nothing. The information must have been blocked by the sender. Then she called Ceri, who picked up after a couple of rings although it was now in the early hours of the morning in Sicily.
“Hanna, what is it? What’s happened?” Ceri asked in a concerned voice.
“It’s Eva. She’s… she’s been kidnapped. I’ve been told to come back to Sicily otherwise I’ll never see her again,” Hanna whispered into the handset between sobs.
“What the…!”
“It must be Luciano. He must have found out where we’d gone and that I’ve got information on him. I just hope he won’t harm Eva. He wouldn’t harm his own daughter, would he?”
Hanna could sense a slight hesitation on the other end of the phone.
“I’m sure he wouldn’t. I’m surprised he’s gone to such lengths, but it’s not unheard of. Not in the circumstances. What are you going to do? D’you know for sure it’s Luciano? Have you reported it to the police over there?”
“Course not. Rhys was trying to persuade me to. I’ve got to get back as soon as possible. I can’t risk them harming her. I have to get her back whatever it takes, even if I have to hand over all the information I’ve got. Rhys is trying to get me on a flight tomorrow.”
“Let me know what time you’re arriving and we’ll pick you up at the airport.”
“Have you heard anything at your end about a possible kidnapping?”
Again, a slight hesitation before Ceri responded. “Well, things are hotting up even more now. There’s talk of a turf war, with African gangs moving in on traditional mafia territory. Nothing specific about a kidnapping, though, or anything about Eva. But the most important thing is we’ll help you to get her back safe and sound. Both Sergio and his father are well connected. We’ll have Eva back before you know it.”
Hanna started to cry again, tears of relief on hearing Ceri’s reassuring words. She made it sound so straightforward; Hanna feared it wouldn’t be. Right now, she felt terrified and exhausted, her head and emotions all over the place, wondering where Eva was and praying she hadn’t been harmed in any way.
“Okay, I’ll let you know
about the flight. See you tomorrow hopefully. And thanks, Ceri. Let’s just hope we’ll be able to get Eva back OK…”
“We will, you’ll see. Try not to worry too much and get some rest.”
“Speak to you soon.” Hanna ended the call, her hands still trembling, and went back inside.
Rhys sprang up from the sofa, closing the laptop. “I’ve managed to get you on the early afternoon flight to Catania tomorrow. I’ll stay over and drive you to the airport in the morning. How did Ceri react to the news?”
“She didn’t seem overly surprised, as if she was expecting something would happen. She’ll pick me up from the airport tomorrow. I need to pack a few things and let her know what time I’ll arrive.”
“I wish I could do more. Maybe come over to Sicily with you?” Rhys suggested in a subdued tone.
“Thanks for the offer, Rhys, but you’ve done more than enough already. Ceri and Sergio will be more than enough support. They know how things work out there and Sergio’s got lots of contacts and his father’s in the police. At worst, I’ll just have to hand over the information to Luciano if it’s going to save Eva. I just hope that’ll do it…” Hanna realised how brittle and rattled she sounded.
A shiver slid down her spine at the prospect of having to confront this situation head-on. But there was no choice. She had to stay strong for Eva’s sake. This was no time to feel weak and helpless. She had to get her daughter back, no matter what.
From the corner of her eye, Hanna caught Rhys looking at her.
“Sorry, I don’t mean to be rude or ungrateful, Rhys. You’ve been a real rock these past few weeks. We couldn’t have survived without you.”
“Try and get some sleep. You must be exhausted,” he continued gently, a wounded expression on his face. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Hanna kissed him lightly on the cheek and turned away quickly, bidding him goodnight as she retreated to the haven of her bedroom. She threw some clothes into a cabin bag. I’ll need to take some clothes for Eva, too, she thought, vowing to do it in the morning, not wanting to confront Rhys again that night.
