dead and had given up searching.
I ask about Edwin, and Faye says he had been arrested as he waited outside the operating suite. He will eventually be charged with kidnap, kidnapping of a minor, and rape. However, he had no ID on him and had decided to remain silent and not give them his name or address, therefore as yet they have been unable to find Amy. My heart sinks, because I know Amy is his princess and he doesn’t want her found. There is also the unspoken worry that the police won’t believe me until they find Amy.
Faye asks how I travelled to the hospital. I reply that Edwin took me in his car, but made me keep my eyes closed. I tell her I managed to pull some fur from the car seat and gave it to the anaesthetist. She nods and asks me where I thought he might have parked his car, but all I can tell her is that when we arrived at the hospital I opened my eyes but it was dark and I didn’t really take much notice of his car or where he parked it, as I was in too much pain and distress. She nods again and says the police now have the piece of fur and are searching the hospital car parks.
I tell her that he didn’t need to carry me too far before we were at the doors of Accident & Emergency, and she assures me they will find the car very soon. I tell her the passenger seat will be laid down almost flat, and she speaks into her radio and passes the information on to the search team outside.
I can’t believe what is happening to me. The two people I love most in the world apart from Liam and Amy come into the room. They have aged in the years we have been apart, and I break down completely at the sight of them. None of us can speak for the first few minutes. We hug together on the bed and they take a first look at their new grandson, completely oblivious to all the drama going on around him. They tell me he is beautiful, and that I am very pale but still beautiful. I smile at them through my tears and tell them they also have a 9-year-old granddaughter. Mum is lost for words again.
I want to ask if they know anything about Liam but can see Faye reappearing at the door, having kindly given us a few moments of privacy. She says a car with a passenger seat that is lying flat and covered with a greyish fur cover cannot be found in any of the hospital car parks.
He is one step ahead. He must have moved the car whilst I was in the operating theatre.
My joy is tarnished somewhat by the thought of my poor Amy still left alone in her prison, but at least Edwin is in custody and under lock and key himself. I ask what the next stage is, and Faye tells me Edwin’s face is soon going to be on national TV to see if anybody recognises him.
Mum and Dad say we have a home with them as soon as I am recovered and out of hospital. I tell them the stay will only be temporary until I am able to stand on my own two feet again. Money in my bank account has remained untouched since 1987, and I can see my parents are getting older. I have no wish to interrupt their peaceful life with a child and a newborn baby if I can work and find my own place. Mum says it will all come with time.
I ask Mum about Liam, but she says they lost touch several years ago. She says she has no idea where he is, but tells me she will phone the Rachelle hospital and find out if he still works there. She tells me she is going to stay in the room with me all night.
When the nurse comes in to check my wound and bring milk for Joss I ask if there is a hairdresser in the hospital. She looks surprised, but says there is. I ask her to book an appointment for me.
PART 3 - AMY
CHAPTER 16
My hands are sore from banging on the door. I want my Mummy. Daddy took her away ages ago and she hasn’t come back. I shout and shout, but nobody answers. Prince is in the house, but he’s asleep on the bed. The duvet cover is all wet.
I’m hungry. I open
Learning to Kill: Stories