Page 32 of The Stolen Child

‘Again, this rings true with what he’s shared with me. His family lives in Westport, about an hour from New York. They are a boating family, always on the lake. Are there any photos of his parents?’

Michael moved the mouse again and stopped when he saw an image of Zach sitting around a fire pit beside an older woman and a man. The caption read simply, ‘Good times with the folks.’ His parents were both smiling as they looked in Zach’s direction. The photograph captured him mid-story, both his hands gesturing, his face glowing with excitement as he spoke. A happy moment frozen forever.

‘Zoom in again,’ Lily whispered.

Zach’s parents looked to be in their sixties. Lily could not take her eyes from the woman’s face. She was tanned, with faint lines embedded around her eyes and mouth, and her ash-blonde hair was streaked with grey and worn loose to her shoulder. It framed a pretty face. Lily guessed that she’d been stunning when she was younger. The kind of beauty that could stop traffic. There was a kindness in her face. She looked normal, not like a crazy person who would snatch a child in the dead of night.

Michael moved on, and they spent over an hour clicking and zooming in on the family’s online memories that were special enough for them to share with the world.

‘He didn’t lie about his background and family,’ Michael said. ‘I reckon we have to at least give him a chance to explain further.’

Lily’s intuition told her that he was right. However, she couldn’t shake the fear of the consequences that may follow.

‘We also need to consider whether we should tell your mum and dad,’ Michael added.

Lily’s reaction was visceral and quick. ‘No!’ She steadied, then continued, ‘Not until we find out more. We cannot put them through another false alarm.’

‘Fair enough. But I think you should give this Zach a call,’ Michael said, pushing her mobile closer.

‘Now?’ Lily said, her voice little more than a high-pitched squeak.

‘Ben is in the crèche, safe and sound. I’m here. I do not want this guy catching you off guard when I’m not around. So let’s do it now. Call him and see if he’ll return to talk now.’

NOW

July 2023

Lily

Phibsborough, Dublin

They sat at the kitchen table, Zach on one side, his eyes nervously darting from Lily to Michael, who were opposite, their shoulders almost touching. Lily’s heart beat so fast that she was sure Zach could hear it from a few feet away.

‘Thank you for seeing me again,’ Zach said. ‘I was scared I’d frightened you off, and you wouldn’t call again.’

He’d arrived ten minutes after their call, admitting that he’d been in a nearby café for the past hour, hoping to hear from her.

‘It’s a pretty big bombshell you threw at Lily, bud,’ Michael said evenly.

Zach licked his lips and then sipped his water. He was nervous, but so was Lily. It didn’t mean he was doing anything wrong.

‘I didn’t know what to do,’ Zach replied. ‘I planned to say it to you at our first session, but I chickened out. It seemed ludicrous to say it out loud.’

‘It felt pretty ludicrous to hear it,’ Lily replied softly.

Michael picked up the age-progression flyer that Jason had produced. ‘I’m still struggling with how you went from this photograph to deciding you are Robert.’

Zach nodded and licked his lips again. ‘I can’t explain it. But when I saw Robert’s photograph, I knew it was me. In my gut.’ He looked down to his stomach, then back to Lily and Michael.

Then his eyes moved to three large canvas prints that hung on the kitchen wall. In the centre was Lily and Michael on their wedding day, gazing into each other’s eyes. On the left, Michael stood between his mum and dad. And, on the right, Lily stood between her parents, Kimberly and Jason.

‘I told you I had an imaginary friend when I was a child,’ Zach said. ‘If you’d asked me to describe what she looked like, I would have struggled, because her face had become blurred and vague over the years.’ His lips quivered as his eyes closed for a brief second.

Lily’s mouth was dry, and she couldn’t speak. Her eyes now locked on the family photograph too.

Zach raised his hand and pointed to Kimberly. ‘But her face became clear again, when I saw this photograph. She looked exactly like her.’

Lily heard a gasp. Then she realised that it was she who’d emitted it.