The Silent Ones: Could You Leave A Child Behind? (Chrissy Livingstone Book 3)

by Linda Coles

  “Stone me,” she said, louder than she’d wanted, and felt the attention once more of the three others in the car, if only via the rear-view mirror from Adam. She ignored her own outburst and hoped the others would too. Glaring out from the page in front of her: Ed Sheeran. While it wasn’t quite the same code as the others it made sense now. ‘Castle on the hill’… Whatever went on in the tiny holiday home was what went on at the other addresses too.

  She now had to figure out just what that was.

  Chapter 63

  Looking inside Bronagh’s phone had been invaluable and the fact she’d put everything in a code that was reasonably easy to decipher had been a blessing. The only thing Chrissy could think of doing now was to set something up and see what happened, and for that she’d definitely need Bronagh’s phone again. If she was going to send a text to those involved about a package, it had to be Bronagh’s she used. There was only one way to get the phone back and that was via her brother. She pushed her new knowledge to the back of her head to percolate for a while.

  For the rest of the afternoon, Chrissy, Adam, Julie, and Richard sauntered slowly around the streets of Limerick and she tried her best to appear interested. When they pulled into a small bookshop that had a café at the back, she was glad of the space it created, as everyone browsed and she could lose herself in her thoughts for a few more moments undisturbed. They arranged to meet inside the café in twenty minutes’ time.

  Richard was still browsing the shelves, injured leg cocked like that of a horse standing in a paddock. Adam was ordering at the counter and Julie flicked through her phone. Had Chrissy been visiting on her own, she’d have been tempted to carry on the rest of the journey down towards Cork to Kinsale and check out the address. It wasn’t that far from her current location, and from Google Earth, it looked like any other small village urban development. Regular houses for everyday people. But who lived there, who was staying in the one she was particularly interested in? She had a feeling she might find Lorcan and Ciara behind the door. But what of Flynn? Had he since been placed in a proper foster home somewhere? There was little point calling the guard she’d met that day; he couldn’t tell her anything.

  “Come on, Chrissy,’” she said to herself under her breath. “You need to go directly to the horse’s mouth. That’s the only way you’ll find out.” Adam arrived back with a tray of silver teapots, jugs of milk, and a plate of tiny cakes. He set them down and played mother by dishing everything out. Richard was too engrossed by a shelf to notice, and rather than call him, Adam strode over. Chrissy watched him go. Could she make up a feasible enough story for family services, if she pretended she was from another agency? Perhaps back in England? Watching the two men walk back to the table, she made her mind up to at least try. She dug inside her bag for her phone and, as the two men sat down, made a big show of looking at the screen then pressed it close to her chest.

  “Sorry, I need to take this one,” she said, pulling a face and left the table to walk outside onto the street, quickly putting her phone on silent. Once outside, she slipped out of view from the front window and googled family services, Tulsa, and waited to be connected. In her best authoritative telephone voice, she asked to be put through to the caseworker for a little boy, Flynn, that entered the system on Tuesday. She waited while she was transferred, and a woman answered. From the tone of her voice she was either annoyed at the interruption or just generally stressed and bordering on downright rude. Chrissy explained that she was from a UK family service agency and was checking up on a little boy that had come to her attention on Tuesday evening. There was a long pause before the woman finally said something.

  “I can’t give you any information, I’m afraid. You need to go through the proper channels, and with a case number.”

  “I understand that,” Chrissy tried again, “but I’m simply enquiring as to how the boy is, not any particular information about his case. Are you at least able to tell me that much? He was such a cutie and I’m almost embarrassed to say he’s stuck in my mind somewhat. I just hope he’s settled in somewhere nice. You know how it can be.”

  Was it enough?

  The line stayed silent for another long moment and Chrissy hoped the woman was checking her computer screen, or at least finding something useful and not ignoring her. “I still can’t tell you anything,” she said finally with an exasperated sigh.

  “May I ask why not?”

  “For the simple reason that I have no record of a little boy being entered into the system on that day or the following.”

  That was something Chrissy hadn’t expected. She’d personally handed Flynn over to Tilly Murphy, back at the house.

  “That can’t be right. My information is that Tilly Murphy took charge of the little boy. Can you check again for me, please?”

  “I don’t need to,” she said. “Since there’s nobody at this agency called Tilly Murphy.”

  Chapter 64

  Chrissy couldn’t believe what she just been told, and a chill settled down the base of her spine. There was no record, no notification of Flynn ever entering the system and no woman by the name of Tilly Murphy worked at the agency. Who the hell had she handed the child over to then? She stood on the pavement outside with the phone pressed to her ear, pretending she was talking on a call, while she tried to make some sense of it. The Guards had been present – surely they had checked the woman’s credentials, perhaps even knew of her from previous dealings? No, there had to be some mistake somewhere. She fought to remember the scene back in the living room that day. The sergeant had moved to the far side of the room to make the call, and Chrissy had thought no more of it, she’d assumed he was calling family services, there was no reason to doubt that. Was he somehow involved in this mess, turning a blind eye even, or was he unaware and it a pure coincidence? Sure, he made the call, had spoken to someone, but was that someone Tilly Murphy? Or maybe he’d spoken to someone else who had then in turn called Tilly Murphy and maybe Sergeant Staines was simply an officer stuck in the middle without realising it. Perhaps she should call him, but that came with its own set of problems because if he did know, what did that mean for her? The whole thing was like a ball of wool coming unravelled and Chrissy was trying to undo the knots it was creating. The wool was winning. She turned back to the bookshop café and all that it contained. Three of her holiday companions had likely finished their tea and cakes and were ready to go. She’d better get back to them before stiff questions were asked and she was persona non grata. The tinkle of the bell above tried its best to lighten her mood as she entered. She spotted Richard hobbling his way back to the table and Julie and Adam deep in conversation. By the smile on Julie’s mouth, it seemed Adam was telling her sister something amusing. If she didn’t know better, she would have said they looked almost conspiratorial. Chrissy sat down with a heavy thump and tried to look like she hadn’t a care in the world. Adam glanced her way and, knowing her well, knew there was something on her mind. The way her features contorted gave it away and he caught her eye questioningly. Knowing she’d just taken a phone call, he could afford to be more obvious and so asked, “Everything all right?”

  “Not really,” she said honestly. “One of my cases has just taken a strange turn.”

  Julie looked up at that. “Oh, how?”

  “I’ll tell you later if you’re still interested,” she said, dismissing it. “Let’s enjoy tea and the rest of what Limerick has to offer,” she added finally and hoped she didn’t sound rude. She could run the news past Julie when the opportunity arose. Perhaps her wisdom would help in what to do next.

  When everyone had finished, Chrissy suggested they split up so the men could go one way and look at whatever, and the girls could peruse the shops without having to think of them being bored, trailing behind them. It was agreed they’d meet back in an hour’s time. As the girls turned left, and the boys right, Julie wasted no time in asking for an update. “What’s happened? Come on, tell me.”

  “Y
ou’re not going to believe it but here goes.” She paused before blurting her concerning news out. “Remember when the Guards came to take Flynn away?”

  “Of course, it was only a couple of days ago. What’s happened?”

  “I just rang family services. Only it appears that Flynn has not been entered into the system and not only that, but Tilly Murphy doesn’t work for the agency. She doesn’t exist on their records.”

  “What?” Julie exclaimed, incredulous. “Who the hell has Flynn then?”

  “I don’t know. And that’s the worry. What I need to know now is what do I do about it?”

  “Go to the Guards of course.”

  “I’m not so sure. Remember who made the call from the living room? I’m wondering about his involvement in this whole thing.”

  “You can’t be serious,” said Julie. “A Guard officer wouldn’t be involved in something like this, surely?”

  “I don’t know,” she shrugged. “But I do know that little boy is now missing, and I do know Bronagh knows more than she’s telling us all. Maybe she knows where the child is and how this all fits together.”

  “You need to put some pressure on her, threaten her with the Guards and see what she comes up with. If you don’t get anything from her, you’ll have no choice but to go to report your concerns. Maybe speak to Sergeant Staines’s boss. Doesn’t have to be him remember, there’s more than one officer in the place. If Staines mentioned it to a colleague, it could be the colleague that’s bent, or whatever.”

  “That’s what I’m coming around to thinking too,” she said. “He may have thought he was doing the right thing and the culprit is at the agency. I don’t know what else we can do.”

  “So, what were you beavering away at in the back of the car on the way down? It was obvious something has come to light.”

  Chrissy had almost forgotten what she’d been doing, that she’d cracked the code. “I’ve been trying to figure out the contacts and the locations out of Bronagh’s phone because she had them written in some sort of crazy code. And now I’ve figured it out, I’ve got locations and addresses but they still make no sense in terms of what they are for.”

  “So now you’re thinking Flynn is at one of these locations.”

  “It’s possible,” she said as they walked on thinking about everything they’d just talked about, not really interested in window shopping or anything else.

  “I hope he’s not in trouble or harm’s way,” said Julie. “You hear of such wicked things…”

  “I know, it doesn’t bear thinking about. We thought he was safe, now we’ve no clue about his whereabouts or his situation.”

  “Well, I vote when we get back and meet up with the boys, we should head off home and you need to go and talk to Bronagh, and see what she says, find a way of digging deeper. You’ve got these addresses now, haven’t you?”

  “Yes and I’ve got one for near Cork too, where the van was seen, and I’m wondering about Lorcan and Ciara, if that’s where they are. Could Flynn be with them perhaps, though why would he be?”

  “You’ve got to find out, Chrissy.”

  Chapter 65

  Before the two women met up with their respective husbands, Chrissy had another call to make. While she wasn’t going to get very far with Bronagh herself, she could tell Brocc what was going on. After all, he seemed just as interested as she was, and now they had new information to work with. Unfortunately, it didn’t sound like Bronagh would cough up any time soon, though if she knew Flynn was missing… She dialled the garage and waited for him to come on the line before saying, “I need to speak to Bronagh and urgently, and I think it’s probably best if you’re there too.”

  “What’s happened?”

  “I’d rather not say on the phone, but let’s just say it’s urgent, and if I don’t get any answers from her, I’m going straight to the Guards myself.”

  Silence filled the airwaves as Brocc registered what would happen next. He didn’t want to see his sister in trouble with the law, but at the same time if she was up to something criminal, then what was he supposed to do? “Okay,” he said. “Meet me here at seven and we’ll go around together.”

  Chrissy checked her watch. It was doable but there would be no white linen tablecloth for her this evening. While it wasn’t ideal for a family dinner, with Flynn missing and possibly in harm’s way, this was far more important. She hoped Adam would understand, and since Julie knew the whole story that would have to suffice. “See you at seven then,” she said before hanging up.

  “I hope this works, Chrissy. She’d be a fool if she doesn’t tell you.”

  “Let’s just hope she does. There’s nothing else I can do apart from go straight to the Guards right now. I’ve got my doubts there still. I suspect at least one of their officers are involved so I need to tread carefully.”

  “So, if she doesn’t say anything, what then?”

  “Then I’m going to drive down to Cork and on to Kinsale and take a look at the address myself. We know the van was seen down there from the ANPR cameras. I wonder if the Guards know about that?”

  “I don’t see how they’d know to be looking for the van. You only got the reg plate details by chance, your eagle eyes. And our joint snooping in the dark at the castle that night.”

  “True. But I suspect the Guards were monitoring the ports for Ciara and Lorcan. Maybe they found out their real names, or at least their surname?”

  “Not heard anything or seen anything in the local paper, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t found them yet.”

  “Perhaps I should try the Guards after all, they may tell me,” said Chrissy. “It also makes me think the pair are still in the country, have not gone back to England. My bet’s on the south, and now I know the address, that’s what I’m going to do tomorrow. It’s too late to go now, it’s a three-hour drive.”

  “I’ll come with you,” said Julie. “Richard won’t mind, I think he’s quite enjoyed himself relaxing and reading on his own for a time.” Chrissy thought about Adam, who liked to go out and do stuff and not hang about, he could be bored stiff by now, though he hadn’t said anything. Yet. It was his break away too. “I’m going to have to make this up to Adam somehow because I’m going to miss dinner tonight.”

  “You’ll be in the doghouse,” said Julie.

  Chrissy grimaced.

  “If you’re meeting Brocc at seven, you’re not going to be round at Bronagh’s house too long anyway. You can still meet us at the restaurant later.”

  “We’ll see. All I can think about now is getting Bronagh to talk to us without turning the screws on her. I’m hoping when she realises we know Flynn is not safely with family services, her conscience will encourage her to spill the beans.”

  “That’s the best outcome.” Changing the subject slightly, Julie added, “I’ll keep the menfolk happy. If we book the table for 8 pm, that should give you the time to slip out, do what you need to do and hopefully be there for the most part. There must be a local taxi so the three of us can get there and you take the car. You do what you need to do and meet us later.”

  “Right.” Chrissy could see Adam and Richard walking towards the arranged meeting place ahead and she waved lightly as if they’d had the time of their lives. In actual fact they’d barely looked in a shop, preferring to mull over the current predicament and saunter along at the same time. As they got closer, Richard wore a surprised look, his eyebrows almost up in his receding hairline as he enquired, “No bags, Julie?”

  “No, there was nothing I needed,” she said sweetly and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. His brows resumed their normal position at the news, not something he was used to hearing. It didn’t matter whether she needed it usually. If Julie wanted it, Julie bought it, their credit card bill testament to that.

  “I’m ready for home,” she said, slipping her arm around his waist affectionately. “I’m sure your leg must be aching by now, isn’t it?”

  “It is somewhat, it’s the f
urthest I’ve moved all week,” said Richard, sounding exhausted.

  Chrissy grabbed the chance. “Then let’s get back and you can rest up a bit before a later dinner. Relax a little, have a whiskey or something beforehand.” The four moved along together, back towards the car park, leaving Chrissy and Julie smiling inwardly at their manipulation.

  Chrissy decided it was her turn to drive them back and not risk detours with Adam the explorer behind the wheel. By the time they reached the house, Richard was almost asleep in the back, his head resting on Julie’s shoulder, showing his tiredness. Julie in turn was resting back on the headrest, her eyes closed behind giant sunglasses. Neither of them looked like they were up for an exciting evening’s entertainment at a posh restaurant, but more ready for pyjamas, cocoa, and a good book. As the car came to a standstill, Richard and Julie both stirred in unison and pretended that neither of them had been asleep. Adam glanced at Chrissy and smiled as they watched the pair head straight for their room.

  “I need to ask a favour of you,” said Chrissy.

  “I wondered when it would come.”

  “I need to slip out before dinner. Something’s come to light, so I’ll organise a taxi for everyone and I’ll meet you there a bit later. I should be there in time as you sit down to order.”

  “It’s fine,” said Adam. “Not ideal, but it’s fine. Where’re you going?”