Then He Was Gone

by Stephen Edger

  ‘But what if someone has taken him? We’re not that far from the border. We passed those refugee camps on the way over. What if one of them has taken him? What if they sell him into…into…?’

  ‘That’s not going to happen, Jules. You’re letting your imagination run away with you. I am certain Noah is in this shop somewhere. He’s probably really scared, and wondering where we are. We just need to find him, and then we can put all of this behind us.’

  ‘Why didn’t I put him in the trolley? If I’d put him in the trolley we wouldn’t be in this mess now.’

  ‘This isn’t the time for hindsight and recriminations. He didn’t want to get in the trolley. Remember? You tried to put him in and he threw a tantrum.’

  ‘I should have insisted. A better mother would have.’

  ‘No they wouldn’t. You didn’t do anything wrong, Jules. Stop blaming yourself. I’m just as responsible as you. I wasn’t watching him either.’

  Julia screwed up her face as fresh tears formed. ‘I just want my boy back.’

  ‘And that’s what we’re going to do. Look, the guard is talking to another guard. One of them must speak English. I can’t believe they would employ someone without a basic grasp of our language. After all, more than half the customers who come through this place must be from the UK!’

  The second guard approached them, and took them over to the barriers. ‘Allo, I am Antoine Lemaire. How can I help you?’ He was a good six inches taller than Becky, with large bushy eyebrows. His olive-coloured skin and thick dark hair suggested Italian routes, but his accent was rooted in the Basque region.

  Becky sighed with relief. ‘You speak English. Thank God. My friend’s son is missing. He is in the shop somewhere. Can you help us find him?’

  ‘You have a picture of the boy?’

  Julia fumbled for her phone again. She handed it to the guard.

  ‘Please forgive my colleague. Today is his first day. He doesn’t speak English very well.’ His unkempt eyebrows almost merged into one as he focused on the phone and then jabbered into the small radio attached to his shoulder. He offered a sympathetic smile. ‘I have put out a description of the boy to my team around the shop. If he is still here, we will find him.’

  He patted Julia’s arm, before heading out onto the shop floor. Becky tried to smile reassuringly at her friend, before looking away as a troubled thought entered her mind. It was something Antoine had said. He’d used the word if.

  But what if Noah wasn’t in the store anymore?

  FOUR

  Becky took Julia by the hand. ‘I think you should sit down, sweetie.’

  Julia’s skin was suddenly an unhealthy shade of white, like somebody had blown flour in her face. She didn’t reply, but allowed Becky to lead her to a nearby wooden bench adjacent to the guards’ station.

  Becky gently squeezed her friend’s hand. ‘I’m sure they’ll find him.’

  She had to stay positive.

  She had to stay strong.

  Antoine returned a moment later, every muscle in his face taut with one focus. He crouched down in front of them. ‘Can you describe the boy to me? How tall is he? What was he wearing?’

  Julia stared blankly into the distance.

  Becky took the cue. ‘Uh…he’s three years old.’ She held her hand out. ‘He’s about this tall…’

  ‘What was he wearing? The colour of his shirt?’

  ‘Uh…it was…’ She furrowed her brow. ‘Well, it was…God, I can’t even remember…this is silly…what was he wearing? My mind is blank.’

  Julia was still staring into the distance, oblivious to the conversation.

  Becky suddenly reached for Julia’s mobile, and unlocked the screen. ‘The photograph we showed you earlier: it was taken today.’ As soon as she saw the t-shirt and cream shorts, she remembered. ‘Of course, of course. Here you go. A red t-shirt and cream three-quarter length shorts. He has dark brown, curly hair.’

  ‘And what is his name?’

  ‘Noah. His name’s Noah.’

  ‘Surname?’

  ‘Saidi. Oh, I should say that too: his skin is uh…it’s kind of tanned. Do you understand? Like a light brown colour?’

  The guard frowned with surprise.

  ‘His father was Iranian.’

  ‘Je comprends. I understand. Does he speak any French?’

  ‘No, no, I don’t think so…’ She glanced at Julia, but her friend was no use right now. ‘No, he’s English, and he barely speaks that. He can understand words, but doesn’t speak very much.’

  ‘Do you think if he went off, he could ask someone to help him find you?’

  ‘Um, I’m not sure…he could probably say he couldn’t find his mum. Oh God, I don’t know…I can’t think.’

  ‘Est-il timide? I mean, is he…shy? Will he talk to strangers?’

  ‘His mum tells him not to talk to strangers, so I don’t know…I just don’t know. Is that what’s happened? You think he has gone off with someone?’

  Antoine quickly shook his head. ‘Non, non, I am just trying to…think of what has happened. My men are looking for him now.’

  ‘Can we help? Can we search with you? I don’t know if he’d come with you unless one of us is there.’

  ‘With respect, please, I think you should stay here, and let us search. Your friend looks ill, I think she needs you here.’

  Julia’s breathing was suddenly more rapid. Becky wrapped an arm around her tense shoulders.

  Antoine stood. ‘I will pass this information to my men.’

  ‘Why is this taking so long?’

  ‘I am sorry. The shop is very big, and today in France it is…how do you say in English…it is un jour férié…the schools are closed…we have lots of children here today.’

  ‘You mean a bank holiday?’

  ‘Oui, merci. It is bank holiday. My men are checking every child in the shop. If he is in here, we will find him.’

  He put the radio to his mouth and turned away as he spoke into it.

  There was that word again: if. What if Noah had wandered out of the store?

  She looked over her shoulder at the sprawling shopping centre. It was a huge floor space, spread over two floors, in the shape of a cross. She wanted to cry at the thought of Noah wandering out there, lost and alone.

  Becky called Antoine over. ‘Excusez-moi? Do you think he is out there? Did any of your men see a little boy leaving the store alone?’

  He leant over. ‘None of my men saw the boy leave the store. If we saw a child without an adult, we would have asked where his mum or dad was. This is not the first time a parent has lost a child.’

  ‘We didn’t lose him. He wandered off.’

  ‘I’m sorry, I did not mean to offend you. My translation is maybe not good. What I meant was, we often find children get lost. We look out for children without parents.’

  ‘This has happened before?’

  He nodded.

  ‘And how many times have you managed to find the child or find the parents?’

  He leaned a little closer. ‘Every time.’

  That brought momentary relief.

  He straightened up. ‘I should go and join the search. I will let you know as soon as we find him.’

  Becky thanked him, and watched him move back into the store. It felt like it was all her fault. She’d suggested the trip away, without considering what might happen.

  She looked back at Julia, trying to understand what her friend was going through. With no children of her own, it was difficult to imagine the abject horror her friend was now facing. Becky had a niece – her brother’s daughter – but they lived in Florida, and Becky had yet to meet her.

  The closest experience she had of losing something so precious was when she’d been fifteen and had taken her Cavalier King Charles Spaniel to a village dog show. Her mum hadn’t been interested in attending, so she’d set off alone, certain that Misty would win the prize of ‘Most Adorable Pet’. What wasn’t to love about those
long fluffy ears; the tiny screwed-up face; and the beautiful mask-like patches around her eyes? Becky had washed and brushed her the night before and had headed to the show feeling confident.

  But Misty wasn’t used to seeing so many other canines in such close quarters, and during the show, she slipped her lead and raced off after a Yorkshire Terrier, who had been picking fights with any dog that looked in his direction.

  Panic had set in, when Misty hadn’t returned within twenty minutes. Images of her racing into the nearby road had flooded her mind. What would her mum say when she returned home empty-handed?

  On that day, an eagle-eyed neighbour had spotted Misty roaming without a collar and had helped reunite dog and distraught teenager. If only that neighbour were here now.

  He was three years old and due to start preschool in a few months. Surely, he’d be sensible enough to ask someone for help.

  But what if he’d asked the wrong person for help?

  Becky forced the thought from her mind. That wasn’t somewhere she wanted to go.

  ‘Jules, you need to calm down. You’re starting to hyperventilate.’

  Julia wasn’t listening. Her eyes were wide, her breaths short and rapid. She was as stiff as a statue. She was unresponsive to Becky’s questions.

  Becky searched for someone who could help. There was no sign of a staff member anywhere. She needed a paper bag or something to help regulate Julia’s breathing. She stood and looked for anyone who would make eye contact. She felt Julia crash into her leg, as she collapsed and fell from the bench, landing on the cold tiled floor. Her eyes tightly clamped shut.

  FIVE

  Becky tenderly stroked Julia’s forehead, as her friend started to stir. ‘There, there, it’s okay.’

  Julia blinked her eyes several times as she looked around the small office, trying to work out where she was and what had happened.

  ‘You were hyperventilating,’ Becky explained. ‘You passed out on the shop floor. They wanted to call an ambulance for you, but I said we weren’t going anywhere until we find Noah.’

  Julia’s cheeks suddenly dropped: either she’d forgotten that Noah was missing, or she’d just realised he hadn’t yet been found.

  ‘They decided to move you into the security office where you could lie down on this armchair. I think they wanted to avoid other shoppers standing around gawping. Anyway, drink this.’ Becky passed her a mug. ‘It’s hot, sweet tea. It’s good for shock. Sip it and you’ll soon feel better.’

  Julia cleared her throat. ‘Where are we?’

  The room was no larger than a small kitchen, with filing cabinets lining three of the four walls. The final wall had a large desk pushed up against it, on top of which was a collection of small monitors, and one large screen in the middle. There was a panel of controls in front of the screens, with knobs and flashing lights.

  ‘We’re in the office where all the security camera feeds come into. There are dozens of cameras discreetly located throughout the store, and it all comes here and is recorded as digital files and placed on their server.’

  Julia sipped from the mug. ‘So they haven’t found…’

  Becky shook her head. ‘Not yet. They have scoured the shop floor, without success. However, they said it’s possible that he might have wandered into the storage area out the back and beneath the store. There are fewer cameras back there, so Antoine’s team are searching there now, but suggested we could come in here and review the footage from the moment Noah disappeared. It should give us an idea of where he went, and then hopefully we can trace his steps to wherever he is now. The guard here is just setting each of the feeds to the same time, so we can watch what was happening in the store in real time.’ Becky leaned closer. ‘He doesn’t speak very good English, so we’ll have to bear with him. Let me handle it, while you drink your tea.’

  Becky turned back to face the screen. It was strange seeing versions of herself and Julia standing by the toiletries, frozen in time. This view was on the main screen and the timestamp in the corner showed it had been half an hour since they’d last seen Noah. It didn’t seem that long, but it probably felt even longer to Noah, wherever he was. Becky watched as the guard flicked from feed to feed, adjusting the timestamp until all the screens were synchronised. He gave a thumbs up to indicate that the feeds were ready.

  Becky nodded for him to start the footage. Each of the frozen screens simultaneously came to life. Becky leaned forward and studied the image. She saw Julia and herself talking, though the image was too far away and grainy to read their lips. Her eyes were glued on Noah’s movements. She saw him taking a few steps away from the trolley. Becky held her breath, knowing something bad was about to happen, but with no clue what.

  The Julia on screen rushed to the boy and told him off for wandering, and made him return to the trolley. Becky had forgotten that incident until now. She saw Julia re-engage in conversation, but this time Becky kept her focus on the boy. He was dancing around by the trolley, lost in his own little world. The seconds ticked by, and Noah’s dancing moved him inch-by-inch away from the trolley, unnoticed by the two adults who should have been focusing on him rather than on the shelves of painkillers.

  Out of the corner of her eye she saw herself reading a packet she’d picked up, while Julia continued to scour the shelves. Noah was still in the same aisle, but he’d moved almost to the end. Then the boy paused. He was looking at something. He slowly moved forward, to the end of the aisle and turned the corner.

  ‘Wait, where’d he go? We need to see this from a different angle.’ She helplessly waved her hands at the screen. ‘Where did he go?’

  The guard fiddled with the buttons on the control desk. The images froze again, and a new image filled the large screen. This time it was a view of the store from the end of the aisles. She could just about make out Noah at the end of the fifth aisle from the bottom of the shot. He was still focused on something. The boy moved forward again, turning up the next aisle.

  ‘Where’s he gone now? What is down there?’

  The guard froze the image again, and pressed some buttons and an image of the new aisle filled the screen. She could just make out the tops of hers and Julia’s heads in the adjacent aisle. They were still studying the shelves.

  She hadn’t realised how long they’d not been watching him for. It had felt like seconds.

  At the far side of the aisle on the screen, Noah was talking to somebody. A dark figure was crouching down, talking to the boy.

  ‘Can you zoom in on that person? Can you see who that is?’

  The guard stared blankly back at her.

  ‘You know, zoom?’ She tried to mime what she meant.

  The guard still looked puzzled, but then his eyes widened, and he reached for a small joystick on the panel. He pushed the stick forwards and the screen zoomed in. It only served to make the image grainier. Becky indicated for him to zoom back out.

  She continued to watch the figure and the boy. The figure placed a cap on the boy’s head and grasped his hand. The two of them walked up the aisle. In the adjacent aisle Becky’s and Julia’ heads suddenly turned as they realised Noah was gone. As the figure and Noah passed one end of the toiletries section, Julia and Becky were turning out the opposite end.

  Becky pointed at the screen. ‘Follow them. Suivez.’

  The guard punched more buttons. A new view of the store appeared. The figure was wearing a long dark overcoat, and his head was covered with a dark baseball cap. He kept his head bent low, so it was impossible to see his face beneath the peak of the cap. They disappeared from view again.

  The guard was already pressing more buttons as Becky gesticulated.

  The next view was of the store entrance. She recognised Antoine laughing and joking with the guard who’s first day it was. She watched the dark figure and the boy walk right past them unchallenged, and head out into the shopping centre.

  ‘Follow them. Suivez,’ Becky shouted at the guard.

  He shrugged apolog
etically. ‘Uh…sorry…our cameras…uh…stop there…we cannot see anymore. C’est fini.’

  ‘It can’t be finished. Where does he go? The shopping centre must have security cameras. Where do we see them? How can we see where he goes next?’

  The guard wasn’t sure what to say. He reached for his radio and called for Antoine, who arrived moments later. ‘What is going on? You have found the boy?’

  Becky’s voice was more urgent than before. ‘He’s gone. He left with a man. They went into the main shopping centre. I need to see their cameras. I need to know where he’s taken him. Please. I need to see those cameras.’

  ‘Okay, okay. There is a different security team who watch the rest of the centre. I will take you to them and explain what has happened. Come with me, please.’

  SIX

  Becky followed him out of the small office, before realising that Julia wasn’t with her. She returned and found her friend studying the image of the figure in the baseball cap. ‘Jules, we need to go. They’ve already got a head start. You need to come with me now.’

  Julia’s face was as pale as when she had passed out earlier. ‘Who is that man, Bex? Who is he, and why did he take my boy?’

  Becky took her hand. ‘I don’t know, but I promise you I will find out. I won’t rest until I do. I know this is hard, but you need to be pragmatic now. We know someone took Noah, and now we need to do whatever it takes to find out where he has taken him. I need you to be strong and to come with me.’

  Julia didn’t answer, but allowed herself to be dragged from the office. Antoine Lemaire was waiting for them by the store’s exit, and led them out into the shopping centre. As they quickly moved across the floor, past brightly lit shops, full of chattering consumers, Becky suddenly became aware of just how large the centre was. There had to have been hundreds of cameras covering every square inch of the site. Finding the right sequence of views to watch where the figure had taken Noah was going to take time; time they didn’t have.