Miss No One Mark Ayre (children's books read aloud TXT) 📖

about my daughter,” said Ndidi. “He told me to call him A. You said he was this Orion Becker?”

“I did.”

“How can you be sure?”

Abbie glanced Ndidi’s way, then nudged him and pointed at the next left. They took it and made their way towards Ana’s car, further along the street.

They continued in silence for a few more seconds while Abbie mused over whether she should tell Ndidi anything. There was no reason not to, she supposed. Maybe it would even help. She couldn’t force the detective to work with her after all, so she might as well try to win his trust.

“I overheard one of the kidnapper’s gang talking on the phone,” she said. “This guy used the name Orion, and I wondered how many important criminals there could be with that name? Not many. Of course, it was still possible this was a different Orion, so while I was working under the assumption it was Mr Becker, I couldn’t be sure it was him until this evening.”

Ndidi glanced Abbie’s way. “But now you’re sure?”

“Now I am.”

They reached Ana’s car. Abbie tapped it then moved around to the driver’s side, unlocking it as she went. By the front doors, they each paused, facing each other over the car's roof. Ndidi’s face was half caught in a street lamp’s glow, and Abbie could see the anxiety. He wanted to ask a question but feared engaging in too much dialogue with this woman he did not trust. Not to mention, he was terrified of what might be her answer.

In the end, he couldn't stop himself from starting.

“You said if I did what this Becker asked, he would still kill my daughter.” Ndidi’s words seemed to trail into the darkness. This was set-up to the question, but the question was lodged in Ndidi's throat. Luckily Abbie knew what it was.

“No," she said. "I cannot be sure that's what he'd do. But it would be characteristic of Orion.”

“You’ve met him? Had dealings with him before?”

“Not with him, no.” Abbie looked up the street. Saw a light on in a bedroom window six or seven houses down. The curtains were closed. No one was watching, and it seemed unlikely anyone was listening. Still, it was always better to be safe than sorry. “Come on. Get in the car.”

She did and, after a few seconds, he followed her lead. When they closed the doors, triggering the soft yellow lights above their heads, Ndidi seemed to gain a little confidence. As Abbie was putting the key in the ignition, he took her wrist in his hand.

“If you’ve never met him, how can you know what he’ll do to my little girl? You’re guessing. This is all guesswork.”

Abbie sighed. Looked to where his hand gripped her wrist but didn’t yank free or tell him to get off. Not yet.

“No,” she said. “You want me to be guessing because if I’m guessing, you can write off what I have to say.”

“No, it’s not—“

“Yes, it is. And that’s fine. That’s a human reaction. You want to believe you can take the simplest path and save your daughter. The simplest path is following Becker’s instructions to the letter, not rocking the boat or pissing him off. You wish that would be enough to save Isabella and guess what, I wish it too. I really do. But it just isn’t so.”

Abbie met Ndidi’s eye as she spoke and did not look away. In the end, he did. His gaze dropped to her wrist, and on realising he still had her arm, he unclasped as though her skin was red hot. His hands came together, and he rubbed them as though beneath a tap.

“How do you know what he’ll do?” he asked. His head was bowed as if he were ashamed for having to rely on her for information. Keeping her own gaze on Ndidi, Abbie told a similar story as she had earlier to Ana and Christine. Her meeting with Orion’s mother, what she knew of Rachel’s arrest and Quintus’ death, and the file she had since had compiled not only on Orion but on the entire Becker clan.

Ndidi didn’t look up once as Abbie told her story, nor did he say a word once she was done. Awaiting questions, Abbie held her gaze on the Detective for near enough a half minute once she’d finished speaking, then turned her eyes back to the road and started the engine.

“Come on,” she said. “Let’s get out of here.”

When Ndidi offered no objective, she started the car and set off.

As Abbie drove, Ndidi remained with his hands in his lap. He looked agitated and unsure. Had he a mind, he could have grabbed the steering wheel and fired them into the nearest house. Given that would not help him save his daughter, Abbie didn't worry.

“You know who the woman in my boot was, don’t you?” Ndidi said after a minute or so of silent drive time.

“I do,” said Abbie. “I’m guessing Orion never told you who it would be?”

Ndidi shook his head. “He didn’t tell me anything more than I had to know.”

“Which was the plan you were to bring to the police,” said Abbie, “and what you were supposed to do while the fake heist was taking place?”

Ndidi looked up from his hands to Abbie. He seemed to consider her words, then shook his head. In the sweeping light of the passing street lamps, Abbie noticed his eyes narrow.

“You want me to trust you, yeah?”

Abbie gave a wry smile. “That would be ideal.”

“Yet I don’t know what’s going on. I had no idea what Orion was planning, like you said. I didn’t even know it would be a woman climbing into my boot until I saw her running past my car. Even then, it was only a guess.”

“Which makes sense,” said Abbie. “Involving you in the plan was a risk, even though Orion has your daughter’s life as security. He was always going to mitigate that risk by telling you as little as