Read Online Cry of the Children by J.M. Gregson - Free Book Online Page A

she wasn’t safe at all, was she? She should have been. I should have looked after her!’ His broad features looked in that moment as if they might crash into tears.
    Lambert kept his tone even, almost matter-of-fact, despite his theme. ‘And what happened next, Mr Boyd?’
    â€˜We went back to the small rides, where she’d wanted to go at first. I’d promised her, you see. I remember her tugging at my hand to get me back there.’
    â€˜But you weren’t aware of anyone following you?’
    â€˜No. But there might have been, I suppose.’ He shook his head wretchedly. ‘My attention was all on Lucy, you see. I wanted her to enjoy it. I wanted her to go home to her mum and say she’d enjoyed herself with me.’
    â€˜And she went on one of the smaller rides.’
    â€˜Yes. They don’t move very quickly, so children don’t need adults with them. It’s not far from one side to the other on the smaller roundabouts. I still can’t see how it happened. I was so unprepared for it, you see.’
    â€˜Just tell us exactly what took place, please. Try to leave nothing out.’
    â€˜Well, Lucy got in the blue bus she’d wanted to ride in from the start. I think she’d seen the ride being put together on her way home from school and set her heart on a ride in that bus. She was a bit nervous when they started to go round – it’s only a small ride, but it was the first one she’d been on by herself.’
    â€˜And even at this stage, you weren’t aware of anyone else watching her?’
    â€˜No. There were parents around me waving to their own children and me waving to Lucy. That was all. If the bastard who took her had been on my side of the roundabout, I’m sure I’d have seen him, even though I was watching for Lucy to come round each time and waving to her.’
    â€˜What about the staff? Did you see anyone on the ride paying any attention to Lucy?’
    â€˜No. I’d paid the money before it began to move, and I think most of the other adults had done the same. I didn’t see anyone collecting fares or swinging around the carriages once it started.’
    â€˜Carry on, please.’
    â€˜Lucy waved to me, the first three or four times she passed me. Then she got more confident. She tooted the bus’s horn and twisted the steering wheel and got really involved. She looked very happy.’ He threatened to break down again, but he filled his big chest with a huge breath and regained control. ‘They got a good long ride, as I’d said they would. Most of the younger children had been taken home by this time, so there weren’t many waiting to get on.’
    â€˜But you didn’t see Lucy again after she left that little bus on the roundabout.’
    â€˜No. I waited for the ride to stop and Lucy to climb out and run to me, all excited. But when it stopped, the bus was exactly opposite me on the other side and I couldn’t see across the other cabins to where she would have got off. I waited for a moment for her to come round to me. I was afraid that if I went to collect her, she might choose the other side of the ride from me and panic if I wasn’t where she’d left me.’
    â€˜So you stood quite still for a moment and watched for Lucy coming back to you. How long would that be?’
    â€˜I’m not sure. It seemed a long time, as I gradually realized that she wasn’t coming. I was worried, but I didn’t really panic at that stage. I thought Lucy would be standing still on the other side of the ride, waiting for me to collect her. She’s a sensible girl. I suppose I stood waiting for about thirty seconds before I moved – certainly not longer than a minute.’
    â€˜You’re probably about right in that guestimate. A minute is a long time when you’re standing quite still and waiting for something to happen.’ Lambert was thinking of how