Find you III

"Lily?" Adrien lifted his head up to have me right in his eyes. As soon as I turned around, I met those eyes sparkling with innocence and curiosity.

"Mmm?", I murmured, trying not to forget my shopping list right away. It was the ricotta. We had at least half a dozen eggs left in the fridge. The ones I had bought on Tuesday.

"Lily, look," he tore at my hand in excitement. The little one had quietly enjoyed the walk. But that was probably due to the filled (overfilled) stomach. "There! There! Look! There!" The urge to tell me about the things he found incredibly interesting was irresistible. I could tell that immediately by looking at his face.

"What?", I asked and followed his outstretched finger with my eyes.

A black van drove past us. The windows pitch black. I stopped for a moment. With my eyes always on the vehicle. Too many Liam Neeson films were probably not good for my state of mind, my paranoia was probably suffering from a strong growth spurt. I forced myself to take a deep breath, stay calm and banished my thoughts. "The car? What about it?" The only special thing about it was probably the fact that the driver had to be a true Tetris master. The way he had skilfully guided the car through the narrow alleys to here. Not a single scratch on the lacquer. Respect!

"There! Car follows..."

Well, it went a bit too slow... But by these roads, somehow understandable, but I decided not to provoke it any further. The car was strange. No local would have been desperate enough to squeeze through the alleys with such a giant. A tourist... mhm could be... with a fully comprehensive insurance. I didn't have any. And also no training as action hero alla Liam Neeson. My paranoia was healthy, which is why it suggested that I should go to a place where a lot of people would be watching me if I called for fire. Just as a tip, with HELP most people ignore it, but with FIRE, you have their attention. After all, it could be that your own car or house caught in flames. So FIRE was clearly the better choice if I wanted to shout for HELP. "Wanna go for a walk down by the harbour?"

"Can I have some ice cream?"

"But just one scoop."

"Lily I love you so much", Adrien squeaked, demonstrating his love with outstretched arms.

I giggled and said in a low voice, as if we shared a secret. "More than mommy?"

He stopped abruptly and looked at me in bewilderment, his eyes widened, tilting his little head to one side, thinking, absorbed in his thoughts. His lips plunged into a cute pout, which widened the grin around my lips. It was four months. Only four months, but enough time to find a place for me. A family? A strange feeling. When was the last time I felt like this?

"Why are you so cute?" I teased him and bent down next to him. "How about a draw?"

"A draw? What is that?"

"A dr..." He was on the other side, the man from house 22. The black hood was pulled down till the middle of his face. His lips were pressed together to a narrow line. My heartbeat accelerated.

"Lily! What is that?", urged the toddler.

"Wait. Adrien."

He hung on the smartphone, but his gaze fixed on us, calm and cold, only for a fraction of a second, wandered on and then returned to the screen.

Just a neighbour who wanted to get bread at the bakery.

"Lily!" whimpered Adrien.

"Yes...sorry.", I mumbled, still looking at Mr. 22. He had continued his steps, slipping the cell phone back into his trouser pocket. Just the paranoia then?

I smiled, somehow relieved. "A draw is... if you love me as much as you love your mummy. Do you love me as much?"

The innocent toddler shook his head violently, the dark corkscrew curls bouncing up and down in his forehead like little springs before he jumped into my arms.

I pulled him closer to my side. "I love you too," I whispered, brushing the soft curls out of his face while holding my hand out for him. At the next corner we turned into a narrow alley leading directly to the promenade at the harbour. In silence we walked steeply down the slope. The shadows of the houses fell on us playing in the weak light of the sun. Shivering I raised my shoulders as a salty breeze whistled through the alley.

"Addy, wait," I called and fished his denim jacket out of the bag, helping him slip into his sleeves. "Are you cold?"

He shook his head. Stopped abruptly. His whole body stiffened.

I raised my eyebrow. "What is it?", I stroked his delicate shoulders. But he just shook his head and pressed his lips together, looking spellbound at a single point behind me as if he had seen a ghost.

"What...?!, I started, but fell silent as soon as my gaze fell over my shoulder.

There he was again.

The neighbour. Mr. 22.

And this time he was not alone. Two more glances rested on us. One behind Adrien. He was standing right at the exit of the alley, watching the scene down by the bay from an iron barrier. But his gaze wandered at regular intervals to Adrien and me. The third one leaned next to a bin at the entrance of a side street, smoked his cigarette and made a phone call or at least pretended to.

I bit my lips. Maybe I wasn't paranoid after all. I calmly put my arm around Adrien's hip and pulled him into my arms and straightened myself up. "Hold on tight," I murmured. Now I couldn't lose my head. They didn't want any witnesses. At least I hoped they didn't.

We had to go back to the café once we reached it...

He was the only one blocking the way back, but the way to the harbour was blocked by two men. If we could just get to the café...

They would not hurt us then. Too many eyes, they would wait until I was in a more remote place.

I turned on my heels and started running, sprinting as fast as I could, fast. Past the Mr. 22. I could already see the end. Then only ten metres to the café. Just a few more...

The screeching of brakes. The transport stopped right in front of us. Blocked the exit. In the middle of the pavement. The doors were ripped open at lightning speed. A man with a golden grin looked at me, "End of the line, mademoiselle!"

Suddenly I felt an arm around my centre. It tore me up. Into the dark. I could only gasp for air, frightened, trying to protect Adrien in my arms. My back bounced against cold metal. The air pressed out of my lungs. A second man got in right behind me. Mr. 22. The door slammed shut. Then the engine roared, the wheels squeaked and with a pull back, the vehicle moved again. Speeded up. Panicked, I groped behind me, tried to get up. Freezed as something hard pressed against my temple. "Move your ass, bitch, and you' catch a bullet."

I felt as if I couldn't breathe, as if my lungs tightened up into a tight knot that couldn't be untied. That I couldn't unwind. My lungs were on strike, just like my brain. I was stuck. Trapped. Four walls.

And in my arms a little child was whimpering. I should never have got him involved in this. Not Adrien. An additional life...

They wanted me. Just me. Not him. I gently stroked his back. He was trembling, crying. I wanted to tell him that everything would be all right. But... I just couldn't do it. I couldn't tell him because I knew I was lying. We wouldn't get out of here so easily.

There were four men, big as oxen, trained. Probably not their first abduction. Not their last. The van was specially equipped for kidnappings. Blacked out windows. Soundproof. Fake licence plate. I'd be naive to think I could walk out of here.

It was all because of me. It was all my fault. I'd put him in danger, him and Elodie, because I just couldn't say no. I couldn't push her away. Because I was so indecisive. Reckless and careless. I should have seen this coming.

"Is she what the client wants?"