“Yes and no.”Please remember!“They’ll think we didn’t. They won’t find me entering the hospital on any camera, but they’ll see you coming in on your own. Theywillsee me leaving in the early hours of this morning. I could answer all of their questions but they won’t believe me if I tell the truth.”Neither will you.
Kaden looked bewildered. “Have you claimed asylum?”
“Not yet. I wanted to be sure you were all right. If you’d not been here, I’d have gone to your bedsit to look for you.”
Kaden widened his eyes. “You know where it is? Oh God, how do you even know where my dad lives?”
“I’ve been here before—sort of. And I’ve been to your bedsit.” Joe held up his backpack. “Recognise this?”
“It looks like an old one of mine.”
“It was yours. And the clothes I’m wearing.”
Kaden’s mouth dropped open. He got up and went to get the hoodie. When he looked at the label, he gasped. “What the hell? This is crazy.”
“Sit down.” Joe offered Kaden the letter he’d signed and the utility bill.
Kaden read the letter, then looked across at him. “I don’t remember writing this. If you’re not from Afghanistan, why is it needed?” He tipped his head and massaged the back of his neck. “I wish I remembered. When did we first meet?”
“At Lixian.”
“Lixian? Christ. That was…”
Joe waited and hoped, but he could see that Kaden was struggling. How could he help him remember? He leaned forward, desperation bleeding through his restraint. A few more hints might work.
“Your bedroom is upstairs. On the right. Dark blue curtains. Star Wars duvet. You showed meThe Gruffalo. Your mum read it to you when you couldn’t sleep. You keep another children’s book beside it.Peace at Last. The last time you came here, you took a thriller calledLie in the Darkback to your bedsit. Though, I suppose you won’t remember doing that.”
Kaden stared at him, his breathing shallow. “I brought you here?”
“Yes.”
“You met my dad?”
“In a way.”
A phone rang. Kaden pulled it from his pocket and flinched. “Speak of the devil. Hi… Yes, I’m fine… Oh, have they? … Tell them to call me… You did? Dad, when I came the other night, did I take a book away with me?” He paled. “And I came on my own? I didn’t bring… Yes, I realise that was a stupid question but… Okay. Bye… No, I’m fine. Honestly. I’ll see you later.”
He turned to Joe. “I don’t understand. And now the police want to talk to me. They’ll be calling any moment. I can’t tell them what I don’t know.”
When the call came, Joe fidgeted while Kaden kept telling them that he didn’t remember. By the time the call ended, his face was grey.
“Like you said, they saw me arrive at the hospital on my own. Saw me go into and out of a couple of bathrooms and finally into the one where I was found. I looked fine at that point. No one was following me. There was no one in the bathroom with me before help arrived.” He paused. “But you were seen later, leaving it. Hardly able to walk. You collapsed. You left in the early hours. They’re looking for you. They asked if I’d seen you. I said no. Maybe I should have said yes.”
“We arrived at the hospital together.”
“How?” Kaden’s laugh came out broken. “Were you deliberately avoiding the cameras?”
“I didn’t need to on the way in. I couldn’t avoid them on the way out.”
Kaden stared at him. “Who are you? W…what are you?”
Joe swallowed. “Someone who might not survive being forgotten.”
He waited.
Hoped.
And Kaden remained in the dark.
