Lucinda had rung everyone she knew. ‘No one’s seen him or heard from him. No one.’ A tear slid down her cheek. In the past Daniel would have comforted her, but today he had no time for emotion. If he gave in to any emotion, either hers or his own, he would break down, and then he wouldn’t be able to find his son.
‘So now it’s time to phone the police,’ he said, in his most matter-of-fact tone.
Chapter Thirty-One
‘I think we’ll call it a day now. You’ve done enough,’ the physiotherapist told Eva.
‘But I want to carry on. I’m fine.’
‘No.’ The physio was firm. ‘If you overdo it on day one, you’ll chafe the skin too much, then you won’t be able to do anything for a while. A little bit each day will get you where you want to be.’
‘Okay,’ Eva said reluctantly. ‘If you say so.’
‘I do.’
Anna chipped in. ‘The footage is great and, besides, you want to give your readers something to look forward to. Little and often works for me.’
‘All right!’ Eva held her hands up in mock surrender. ‘I get the message.’
The sound of Anna’s phone ringing cut into their conversation. Anna looked at the screen, it was an unknown number. She still hadn’t returned any of Daniel’s calls — briefly she wondered if it was him ringing on someone else’s phone. She hesitated, wondering whether to answer, but decided to be brave. She’d have to face him sometime.
‘Hello, is that Miss Anna Wright?’ an unknown voice asked her.
‘Yes, that’s me,’ Anna said, frowning. ‘Who is this, please?’
‘I’m phoning from British Transport Police.’
‘British Transport Police?’ she repeated, even more confused. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t understand.’
Eva looked over, a surprised expression on her face.
‘I’m here with a Master Benjamin Redfern.’
‘Ben?’
‘Yes. He’s run away from home and he was coming to see you.’
‘What? Is he okay?’ she asked, horrified.
‘Yes, he’s fine. One of our train conductors spotted him on the London train alone, and flagged it up with us. We were there to meet him from the train.’
‘Oh, thank God! Does his dad know he’s safe?’
‘No. That’s the problem. He only wants to speak to you. Can you come to meet him?’
‘Of course. If you give me an address I’ll be there as soon as I can. And I’ll let his dad know.’
‘Thank you.’
‘What’s the matter?’ Eva asked when Anna ended the call.
‘It’s Ben, Daniel’s son. He’s run away from home and he’s at Euston with the transport police.’
‘Why would he do that?’
‘Daniel and I have split up.’
‘What?’
