Page 73 of Only You

“Olivia’s missing,” he said, his voice sounding so lost, she wanted to be there to wrap her arms around him.

“How?” Ana asked.

“Eva dropped in this morning. I should have realised,” he said, not making any sense.

“What happened?” Ana said, trying to understand what was going on. Had Eva taken Olivia? “Andrew! Talk to me.” she could no longer keep the panic out of her voice. If anything had happened to that little girl.

“She put two and two together and Eva told her you are her aunt. Olivia stormed off. I thought I’d let her calm down, but when I went upstairs, she was gone.” The despair in his voice broke Ana’s heart.

“Andrew, I’m twenty minutes away. Millie is driving. We will find her.”

Chapter Forty-eight

Ana

Millie parked while Ana threw herself out of the car and up the steps to the house. Andrew was there with the door open, pulling her into his arms and grasping her to his chest. When he finally let go, Ana saw the two police officers standing behind him, as well as Eva, John, and several of the neighbours. Ana unfolded herself from Andrew’s embrace, stepping back awkwardly.

Millie stepped in behind her and introduced herself to Andrew before standing quietly to one side.

Everyone congregated in the sitting room while the police took statements from everyone. Ana’s eyes flitted to the window. It was now dark outside. Olivia would be so scared. What had she been thinking? She should have come home, not agreed to drink the night away with her friends. This was all her fault. If only she’d been here, she could have spoken to Olivia, explained.

Ana felt eyes on her and looked up to find Eva watching her. She looked down and realised her hand was clasped tightly in Andrews. Her eyes met that of her older sister and her cheeks flushed. She would worry about this later. This was not about her or Eva, this was about a seven-year-old child, who was out in the dark and cold.

The officer in charge stopped speaking, and Ana looked at Andrew. “What did she take with her?”

Andrew looked confused and shook his head. “I don’t know. I couldn’t think straight,” he said, the colour draining from his face.

Ana got up and ran for the stairs. Throwing open Olivia’s bedroom door, she glanced around her. Star was hot on her tail.

“What do you see?” Star asked, “As Mum’s, we always know where everything is, even in the chaos.” Star put a hand on Ana’s shoulder.

Ana breathed deeply. She needed to think. Walking over to Olivia’s bed, she scanned the space. “Her doll is gone.” She looked around again. She was missing something, something obvious. Andrew and the officer were in the doorway. Ana’s eyes froze on the bed. “Her throw!”

Olivia loved her throw. Every time they created a den or a playhouse, her throw had to be inside for a bed.

“Her bedside clock/torch is also missing,” Andrew added, pointing at the spot next to Olivia’s bed. They had bought her the torch/alarm clock recently when she had woken up in the night having had a nightmare. It projected pictures on the ceiling.

Ana sank onto the bed. Where would a little girl go with a torch and a blanket? Her eyes shot up, and she stared at Andrew.

“Your parents,” she said. “Olivia and I talked about camping in the playhouse in their back garden.”

“It’s a start,” the officer at the door said before speaking into his radio. “I’ll need the address, Sir.”

Andrew reeled off his parents’ address. It was a long way for a little girl to travel on her own and was probably a long shot.

It was Star who spoke next. “You both go. If Olivia is there, she will be terrified by now. I’ll stay here in case she comes home.”

Ana watched as Andrew nodded, his shoulders slumped as despair ate at him.

As they walked down the stairs, Millie stepped out. “I’ll drive, and then you can both scan the streets as we drive.”

Andrew’s parents’ house was over half an hour away. Ana’s heart ached as she thought of Olivia walking alone. Andrew was silent, his eyes never leaving the surrounding streets. Another police car greeted them when they pulled up.

“We waited out here,” the officer said. “There appears to be a light coming from the playhouse in the back garden, but we didn’t want to scare her, knowing you were on your way.”

Neither Ana nor Andrew waited for the officer to finish before they flew into the back garden. Andrew reached the house first, calling Olivia’s name.

“Daddy?” a frightened little voice came from inside the wooden structure.