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“Okay, I’ll sit up with you. We can’t do anything now, but in the morning, I’ll do everything I can to help you find Ella.”
At the mention of her name, Cerys rests her head in her hands and cries. The uselessness of seeing her pain and unable to fix the situation panics me. Carefully, I peel Cerys’s hands from her head and pull her close. Cerys buries her face into my chest and I hold her shaking body as she sobs. Along with my sense of uselessness comes an engulfing anger—somebody hurt the woman I love, and possibly Ella. When I get my hands on that bastard, he’ll be fucking sorry.
* * *
I wake on the sofa,with a sore neck and the sound of Cerys rummaging through drawers in a nearby dresser. I squint at the clock. 7 a.m.
No Ella.
“I can’t find it!” she says, dropping papers to the floor as she continues her search. Cerys’s pale face is lined by exhaustion. She hasn’t slept at all.
“What are you looking for?”
“Ella’s passport.” Her voice cracks.
Fuck.“Is this where you keep it? Let me look.” I place a hand on Cerys’s in an attempt to soothe. She jumps at my touch and steps back.
I carefully sort through all the papers on the floor and in the drawer but the only passport is Cerys’s. “You keep them together?”
She nods, chewing on her nails. “He’s taken her, hasn’t he?” she asks hoarsely.
“Maybe.”
“Someone took her passport! Of course he fucking took her somewhere!”
“How would he know where to look?”
“I don’t know! Maybe Ella gave him it!”
I guess I need to accept today will be one where I’ll constantly say the wrong thing. “Right. Where would Craig go? We’ll go there. Today.”
“I don’t know... he has family in Italy. Would he take her there?” She’s talking to herself. “Fuck, Marcella must know! She lied to me!”
Spinning around she snatches her phone from the table and proceeds to call and scream at someone. I retreat into the kitchen to make some phone calls of my own. When I return, Cerys is staring out of the window, breathing rapidly.
“Marcella doesn’t know where Craig is. She’s lying. She has to be. He would tell her.” Cerys tucks her shaking hands under her arms. “Do I tell the police? What do I do, Liam?”
My brain cycles options. “Tell me his name and date of birth; tell me everything you know about his family. Do you have a rough idea where his family in Italy is? We’ll track him down.”
“How? What if he isn’t in Italy?” Her voice rises towards hysteria.
I hold her shoulders. “Look at me, Cerys. If I have to spend every minute of my time looking for Ella, I will. I am not stopping until she’s home. I’ll spend every penny I have on finding her and I’m starting now.” A pen lies in the open drawer and I pull out a notepad, handing both items to her. “Cerys, I know you’re freaked out and upset, but do this. Write down everything you think might help. Ipromiseyou we’ll be in Italy as soon as we can.”
I leave her alone and walk outside into the new day, not wanting Cerys to see how I feel. The bubbling panic inside threatens to consume me too. This hit me as hard as if she were my own child, my love for Ella as strong as the one I have for her mother. I slam a fist against the wall, unable to feel the pain through my own numb shock, and imagine Craig’s face in its place.Get a grip. I need to be strong for Cerys because she’s inside, disintegrating.
After making calls to lawyers, I pass on details given to Tina, who promises to put someone onto this quickly. Then I convince Cerys to eat something. The frightened look she held when I woke is replaced by an angry determination, but she refuses to eat.
“Thank you, Liam,” she says eventually, turning her dull eyes to me.
“Why thank me? I told you I’d always protect you and Ella; and I failed, so I have to fix this.”
“We couldn’t predict he’d do this.” She touches my face with her soft fingers as she leans in to kiss my cheek. Her hair sweeps my face and I bite down on my lip.
I can’t remember the last time I came close to tears.
