Like This, for Ever

‘Do you want me to check that, too?’
    ‘Yes, please. Look through his recent emails, any posts he’s made on Facebook or Twitter or anything. The constable will be watching everything you do, not because we don’t trust you, but because if you find anything, it needs to be properly recorded.’
    When the two of them had left the room, Dana turned back to Oliver’s parents. They were sitting side by side, holding on to each other.
    ‘I need you to tell me where Oliver was this evening. Starting from when he got home from school.’
    Mrs Kennedy spoke, her husband holding on to her hands, giving her little pats and squeezes whenever she threatened to break down. Oliver had arrived home from school on time. He came home by bus, travelling with several other kids from his class. There were always several parents on the bus, too, so his mother never worried about his safety. She left work at 3.30pm and walked to the bus stop to meet him before they walked home together.
    He’d had a snack, a glass of squash and a packet of crisps,changed out of his school uniform, then gone out to play tennis at some local courts. He walked there and back with a mate, Joe Walsh.
    At six-forty, by which time Oliver would normally have returned home, she’d gone out with her older son to look for him. Seeing nothing of either Oliver or Joe, they’d gone to Joe’s house to find him already home.
    ‘Joe told us he’d left something at the clubhouse,’ she said. ‘They’d just got into the recreation ground when he remembered. He jogged back, leaving Oliver waiting for him at the entrance to the park. He wasn’t out of sight for more than a couple of minutes, he said, but when he got back Oliver was gone. He shouted for him a couple of times, then got freaked out and ran home. Oliver’s mum was just about to phone me when we got there.’
    Dana nodded. There had been practically no time at all for Oliver to disappear.
    ‘Why did Joe go back, did he tell you?’
    ‘He realized his phone wasn’t in his pocket,’ Mrs Kennedy replied. ‘The kids always hang their coats up in the clubhouse while they’re playing. Joe got to the park and realized his phone was missing.’
    ‘Did he find it?’ asked Dana.
    The woman nodded. ‘It was in the clubhouse, he said. Must have fallen out of his pocket.’ She turned to her husband. ‘Except it couldn’t have fallen out, could it?’ she went on. ‘Remember, Joe said he found it on the worktop by the sink.’
    ‘Someone could have picked it up off the floor,’ said Barrett, who was pulling his own phone out of his pocket.
    ‘Or someone could have taken it out, in the hope of separating the two boys,’ said Dana. ‘If you can let us know who’s in charge of the club, we can talk to everyone who was there this evening. We’ll also talk to Joe again. If Oliver’s abductor went to the tennis club this evening, someone will have seen him.’
    ‘Talk to you in the hall, Ma’am?’ said Barrett.
    ‘What is it?’ asked Oliver’s mother, like a hound with a scent.
    ‘Our guv’nor just needs a quick word with DI Tulloch,’ said Barrett. ‘You too, Susan.’
    ‘I’ll be right back,’ Dana told Oliver’s parents, before following Barrett and Richmond into the hallway.
    ‘That was Gayle on the phone,’ said Barrett, when the door had closed behind them. ‘Another Facebook post, give me a sec.’
    The two women waited, while Barrett found the right app on his phone and opened the page.
    ‘Can we rule the parents out of having anything to do with it?’ asked Dana.
    The profiler nodded. ‘I think so,’ she said. ‘They’re falling apart. They’ve no idea where he is.’
    ‘Here we go,’ said Barrett. Richmond, standing closer, saw it first.
    ‘Oh my God,’ she said. ‘We can’t show them this.’
    Dana took the phone being offered to her. A photograph had been posted on the Missing Boys page by Peter Sweep. It showed a small boy tied up and blindfolded. From the position of his mouth, he looked to be whimpering.
    ‘We have to,’ said Dana. ‘They need to identify him.’
    ‘Well, we know Peter Sweep’s for real,’ said Barrett.
    A thudding noise upstairs. ‘Mum! Dad!’ Oliver’s brother appeared at the top of the stairs and came hurtling down. Dana stepped forward to stop him at the bottom.
    ‘Have you been on Facebook?’ she asked the scared boy.
    ‘It’s Oliver, there’s a picture!’
    ‘I know,’ she said. ‘Come on, we’ll tell them