Chapter 63
NADEEKA
Nadeeka stares at Mrs Fairfax. The teacher is still talking, but Nadeeka can’t hear her over the roaring in her own ears. Maya isn’t here.
She drops to her knees so fast she almost topples Nish. ‘Where’s Maya?’ Her hands grip Nish’s shoulders. ‘Where’s your sister?’ Her voice breaks on the last word. Nish’s bottom lip wobbles.
Scott rounds on the teachers. ‘Twenty-eight kids in, twenty--eight out! How could you let this happen?’ He rubs a hand over his shaved head. ‘Jesus . . . where is she?’
Fear morphs into fury and Nadeeka turns on Scott. ‘I told you not to let them out of your sight!’
‘We weren’t allowed near them!’ Scott glares at her. ‘You have no idea . . . it was absolute chaos, people shouting, running around – getting everyone out of a building that was about to be blown to—’
‘A building you left them in!’ Nadeeka shakes her head. ‘So much for protecting us. Who were you with on Wednesday night? Gabriela?’
‘A bloke called Alan, actually.’
Nadeeka blinks.
‘That was the plan, anyway, but he wouldn’t talk.’ Scott rubs the side of his face.
‘Did you say Alan?’ Lauren cuts in sharply. ‘Alan who?’
‘Don’t know his last name.’ He jerks his head towards Nadeeka. ‘I was doing what she wanted. Finding out more about this New Dawn. Someone said this Alan bloke was involved, but he was well jumpy. Wouldn’t give anything up.’
‘But you were out all night,’ Nadeeka says.
‘It was late when I got back and I didn’t want to wake the girls, so I slept in my car.’
‘And last night?’
‘Someone said New Dawn would be meeting up at a warehouse out of town.’ Scott shakes his head. ‘The place was deserted. I reckon he just wanted to stop me asking questions.’
Nadeeka saw enough of Scott’s lies when they were married to know he’s telling the truth now. ‘You could have been killed,’ she says, quietly, so Nish doesn’t hear.
‘Yeah, well.’ He rubs his face again. ‘What they did to Jamie . . . it’s not on, is it?’
‘Who gave you this information?’ Lauren says sharply.
‘I didn’t get his name.’
‘Don’t bullshit me. This isn’t a game, it’s a matter of national security.’ Lauren raises an eyebrow. ‘Frankly, it’s the least you can do after leaking the story to the press.’
Nadeeka suspects it’s a punt, but Scott’s sudden pallor says she’s bang on the money. Jesus, Scott . . . She’d have a go at him, but Lauren’s got it covered, and Nish is tugging at her hand. She scoops the little girl on to her hip.
‘Maya went for a wee,’ Nish whispers.
‘Have you any idea what that’s done to public confidence?’ Lauren is saying. ‘There are vulnerable people too frightened to call 999 because the media have told them they can’t trust the police!’
Nadeeka looks at Nish. ‘When did she go?’
‘I’m sorry, all right! It wasn’t deliberate. I got talking to someone down the pub and it turned out they were from the paper.’
‘It was when we were lining up to leave,’ Nish says in a small voice. ‘Mrs Fairfax did the register and then we started walking, but Maya was desperate so she went to the loo and she said she’d catch me up but she didn’t.’ Her lip wobbles again. ‘Are we in trouble?’
‘No!’ Nadeeka kisses her hard on the forehead, but her stomach knots in fear.
Maya could still be in the building. Before she can stop it, she pictures a bomb going off.
A fireball, a cloud of smoke, a pile of rubble.
And under it all: Maya. ‘No,’ she says again, but she can’t stop the sob that makes it a wail.
‘I told Miss Key,’ Nish says. ‘She said she’d go back and get her.’
Mrs Fairfax gets out her phone. ‘I’ll call Miss Key.’
Out of the corner of her eye, Nadeeka sees Lauren start to walk away.
Is she going to look for Maya? Mrs Fairfax tuts and takes the phone from her ear, then tries again, but Nadeeka can’t stand here waiting for other people to find her daughter.
She hitches Nish higher and starts walking back towards the Civic Centre.
Scott catches up with her in three easy strides. ‘I’ll take her,’ he says.
‘I’m not leaving her.’
‘You don’t have to leave her. I’m coming with you.’ He swings Nish into the air and on to his shoulders. ‘Hold tight, sweetheart.’
Nadeeka starts running.