Vanished by James Delargy (free novel 24 TXT) 📕

But no Dylan. Though Ian might have kept the boy’s presence hidden. Emmaline looked at Liang but he was already halfway out the door. Everyone followed.

Summer shouted after them. ‘Here’s a map!’

Turning on his heels Oily waited behind to get it.

130

Emmaline

The same SERT teams that led the garage raid were put in place, the cabin surrounded.

Inspector Liang’s confident mask had slipped as the day went on, ever more impatient as the threat of darkness began to intrude. Emmaline felt it too. An operation like this had a much greater chance of success with full visibility. Less opportunity for friendly fire. Stick to protocols, stick to your training. Something he had made clear to the SERT team.

Finally in position, they paused. There had been no movement from inside or outside, the small log cabin perched on the side of the slope, pillared at the front and surrounded by thick, canopied trees that shaded everything. Even the damn mosquitoes.

Emmaline was convinced that Ian and Naiyana were inside. Dylan too she hoped. This was the perfect place to hide out. At least until they could get away either by boat or island hopping. For enough cash someone would supply the service. Ian just hadn’t hit the magic figure.

A call came through. Zhao. Emmaline grasped the phone, in two minds over whether to answer it or not. Shit was about to go down and she didn’t want to miss it. First time had been a false alarm. This wasn’t.

She answered it, keeping her voice low. ‘Yeah?’

‘It’s about Dylan Maguire.’

‘What about him?’

There was a pause.

‘Some locals in Hurton rustled up a couple of dingoes that were worrying some livestock.’

‘And?’

‘They found pieces of clothing that had been ingested and had passed through their system. A name tag too.’

Emmaline knew what Zhao was going to say. She squeezed her eyes shut in preparation.

‘Dylan Maguire. Nearby were a scattering of bones and a skull. The skull was fractured above the eye.’

Emmaline held her breath. Even with the machinations of Inspector Liang and the SERT teams nearby, everything grew still.

‘It’s been confirmed as cause of death,’ said Zhao.

131

Naiyana

The crest caught them out, the down slope much steeper than the gradual approach. They were going too fast. Naiyana screamed as the ute reared up, her stomach suddenly feeling as if it had been ripped out, empty, her eyes closed and waiting for that butterfly-inducing lurch.

She put her palms on the roof to try and halt the sudden rise. There was a choked squeal from Ian as well, fighting for control. They were going to crash hard. The front of the Toyota pitched back towards the earth. There in front of them was Lorcan. And Dylan. Directly in their path.

Everything happened in slow motion. She wasn’t sure if the scream she emitted was a continuation of the one that came from her when they launched over the crest, but it was as sharp and urgent. She watched Lorcan reach out for her son, trying to drag him away from the path of the vehicle. She felt the front of the ute slam into the sand, the tyres immediately burying into it. She hoped that it would arrest their progress but the vehicle didn’t seem to slow one iota. She stared in horror as Lorcan yanked at Dylan’s shirt. She lost sight of her child, nothing but scrub and sand in front of her. Then mercifully she could feel her progress arresting, the tyres biting, the brakes trying to halt them.

Then came the two sounds.

The first was hollow with a slight ring as if someone had cracked a shiny belt buckle off metal.

The second was harder. Her head whipped forward with a violent snap. The dull thud exploded in her ears, her skull ringing in shock. The ute came to a stop. She felt limp, her body thrown back in the seat, everything that had been so sharp now a blur. She squeezed her eyes shut. As if pressing the reset button. How she wished it so. Opening them, her eyes stung. A sudden cloying feeling wormed across every inch of her skin as if she was burning up. There was blood on the dashboard. And blood trickling off her chin into her lap. For a moment she sat there, her system trying to reboot. She could hear Ian asking how she was, his searing hot hand on her arm.

Outside the windows, all she could see was dust.

Dylan.

Grabbing the door handle she clicked her belt open and nearly fell out the door.

132

Lorcan

The pain was blurry but intense. He made it to his one good elbow, his other arm limp and useless. Broken. But that was a secondary concern. He looked at Dylan lying in the sand, at peace, almost idyllic. Reality struck like a hammer to his chest. He bolted forward, scrambling on his knees towards his son. From the side he could see Naiyana emerge from the Toyota, her face awash with blood, staggering towards them like an old-school movie monster.

As he lifted Dylan’s head onto his knees, she knelt down beside him.

He put his hand to Dylan’s mouth. There was no breath.

Putting him back onto the ground he began to pump his chest with one hand, the training he had undertaken years ago just a haze. Beside him Naiyana cried out for her son.

He pumped his chest as she stroked Dylan’s face.

The body jerked each time as if still alive.

Each time Lorcan prayed for his eyes to open.

But there was no saving him.

Dylan was dead.

He placed Dylan’s head back in his lap as Naiyana clasped her child’s hand. He glanced over at her. They were finally united again. In grief.

From the background he heard a door opening. He turned to watch Ian get out of the truck, his rifle at the ready, like a farmer about to put down an injured dog.

Lorcan didn’t move. His own rifle was only a few feet away behind Naiyana but there was