Missing Me (12 page)

‘You think I was acting weird?’ I said, desperately trying to think up a cover for my actions.

‘I was watching you,’ Wolf said. His eyes softened as he spoke next and his voice lost its accusatory tone. ‘Actually, I couldn’t stop watching you.’

My heart thudded.

Wolf sighed. ‘You have absolutely no idea how beautiful you are, do you?’ he said.

What?
I stared at him. Today had already been surreal enough without Wolf making bizarre comments like that out of nowhere.

‘I don’t understand,’ I stammered.

Wolf looked away. All the force he’d spoken with before seemed to evaporate . . . all the confidence. He stared down at the pavement.

‘I know you’re out of my league,’ he mumbled. ‘Look, let’s forget it. Just tell me what you were doing in Mr Baxter’s office. You stole something,
didn’t you? Was it money?’

‘No.’ I stared at him, my head whirling with confusion and outrage. I couldn’t make sense of anything he was saying. In the same breath he was accusing me of being a thief and
virtually telling me he had a massive crush on me. Except that last thing
had
to be a joke. Wolf might not be obviously good-looking with his thick fringe and his skinny arms, but he was
rich and stylish and he hung out with
Esme
for goodness’ sake. She was way more beautiful than me. I decided to ignore this part of what he’d said.

‘I didn’t steal anything.’ I blushed, thinking of the M21 memory stick. Still, I’d only borrowed that to read. I’d put it back afterwards. I turned on my heel and
set off for the tube station, hoping Wolf would go away, but he followed me.

‘So what were you doing?’ he persisted.

‘It wasn’t anything.’ I kept walking, not looking at him. ‘I was just checking something out. My . . . my dad’s a journalist and he’d heard a rumour. Well,
more than a rumour really . . . to do with Mr Baxter . . . I was just looking into it for him.’ I stopped. Jeez, I was probably making my situation here far worse by admitting to spying, yet
only hinting that Baxter had done anything wrong.

I expected Wolf to demand more information – or to accuse me of using him and Esme – but, to my surprise, he just made a face. ‘Baxter is into some really dodgy stuff,
isn’t he?’

‘Yes.’ I didn’t know what else to say. My head spun. Why couldn’t I ever think quickly, like Lauren always did?

Wolf glanced over his shoulder, back towards Burnside Road and the flat where I’d found Natalia.

‘Is he doing something illegal in that flat you just left?’

I bit my lip. ‘I’m not sure how illegal it is, but I know it’s wrong.’

We reached the High Street. The tube station was just a few metres away now. Wolf stopped and turned me to face him. He tilted his head a little to one side. ‘Wrong?’ he said.
‘How?’

God, he was persistent. And I didn’t have any clever explanations or excuses up my sleeve. In fact, I had nothing . . . no idea what to say now . . . no idea what to do to help Natalia . .
. and – with Allan still not answering his phone – no-one to turn to . . .

I looked away, along the High Street. Traffic was whooshing up and down the road, shoppers and commuters bustling along the pavement.

‘You can trust me, Madison,’ Wolf said, his voice suddenly much gentler. ‘I’m sorry if I sounded rude before, it’s just I really thought you might have stolen
something from Esme’s house.’

‘OK.’ I took a deep breath and turned back to face him. There was genuine kindness in his eyes. ‘It’s about some girls who’ve gone missing. Mr Baxter is keeping the
latest one in that flat. He’s paying her to have a baby, but she’s changed her mind and now she—’

‘What? Slow down.’ Wolf’s eyes widened with horror.

‘Listen,’ I said. I explained everything. I told Wolf all about the
Miriam Project
and how Natalia was Miriam 21. I even told him how I’d tracked Allan down and how he
had brought me to Baxter’s party.

Wolf stood completely still, listening while I spoke. After I finished, he let out a long, slow breath. ‘Whoa, this is serious,’ he said.

‘I know,’ I said miserably. ‘I’m kind of in over my head here. I can’t get hold of Allan, but I’ve promised to help Natalia. But Natalia says she can’t
get away or go to the police because of the tracker . . . that Baxter will trace her. She thinks he’ll punish her if she goes against him
and
he’ll take her baby away.’

‘So we need to get rid of the tracker around her ankle?’ Wolf asked.

‘Yes, but . . .’ I hesitated. ‘Are you saying you’ll help?’

‘Of course.’ Wolf took my arm and started leading me towards the tube. ‘I don’t think it should be too difficult to get rid of this tracker thing. We just need the right
tools. My dad has got loads at home. I can go and get something now. Shall I meet you back here in thirty minutes?’

My heartbeat quickened. ‘No, wait,’ I said. ‘Natalia said her nurse was coming over. She’s probably arrived by now. Natalia said she’ll be there until tomorrow
morning at ten. We’ll have to come back then.’

‘OK, well, describe the tracker so I know what I need to bring.’

I told him exactly what the plastic bracelet around Natalia’s ankle had looked like. ‘It’ll need a saw or something,’ I suggested. ‘And Natalia will also need lots
of money. I’m sure Allan will help her, but he’s not back in the country until tomorrow so . . .’

‘No problem,’ Wolf said. ‘I’ve got plenty of money. Let’s swap numbers. I’ll call you later to arrange a time to meet.’

Feeling stunned, I handed over my number. This was all happening so fast. Could I really trust Wolf? Still, what option did I have? I had no access to any tools myself – and wouldn’t
know how to use them if I did. Anyway, tomorrow Allan would be here. Surely if Wolf and I could take Natalia to him he would know what to do from there?

Wolf walked me down to the tube station. ‘I’ll call you in a few hours, Madison,’ he said.

‘Thanks, er . . .’ I hesitated. ‘Er, why are you helping like this?’ I asked. ‘I mean, you don’t know this girl, Natalia . . .’

‘No.’ Wolf smiled. ‘But I know you.’ He turned and walked away.

I went into the tube station, more confused than ever. Was he saying he was helping in order to be with me? A thrill wriggled through me at the thought. I pushed it away. I couldn’t be
sure Wolf really meant what he said. Anyway, he was the least of my worries. I was more concerned that my getting involved hadn’t got Natalia into any greater danger than she was already
facing.

It was all down to tomorrow.

I was back in Hampstead, as arranged, at 9.30 the next morning. I’d made yet another excuse to Annie to spend time away from home. I didn’t like lying to her about
where I was going, but it was really her own fault. If she didn’t push me so much about everything, I wouldn’t be forced into concealing the truth from her. At least – thanks to
Wolf’s generosity – I hadn’t had to take the emergency money from the kitchen jar.

Wolf was waiting for me outside the tube station. He had a small canvas bag in his hand.

‘What’s in that?’ I asked.

‘A Stanley knife and a hacksaw.’ He grinned. ‘If the first doesn’t work, we’ll get the tracker off with the second.’

‘Right.’ Now we were here, I could feel my anxieties building inside me. Natalia might have given birth during the night and no longer be in the flat. Even if she were still there,
our plan might not work. What if we couldn’t get the tracker off after all? What if we couldn’t get Natalia safely to Allan? I’d called and left a message for him saying I needed
to speak to him urgently, but he still hadn’t called back. At least I knew he’d be back in England today. He’d told me before he left that his plan was to go straight from the
airport to
The Examiner
offices in west London. I was planning to take Natalia to him there.

We walked round to Burnside Road. Natalia had said the nurse who stayed overnight would leave at ten, giving us an hour before the next nurse arrived.

We stood at the end of the road and waited. At 10 am precisely, a woman in a dark coat left number 30. Wolf squeezed my arm.

‘Is that her?’ he said.

‘I think so.’ We crept closer to the house. I looked up. Natalia was peering out of the window. When she saw me, her eyes lit up.

Seconds later, we were inside the flat.

‘This is Wolf,’ I said as Wolf shyly followed me inside. ‘He’s got the stuff we need to get your tracker off.’

Natalia trembled as she thanked us. Her eyes looked red and sore from crying.

‘Don’t thank me yet,’ Wolf said sheepishly. ‘Let’s see if this works first.’

Natalia sat down and hitched up her leggings again. She peered anxiously down, over her bump.

Wolf crouched beside her ankle. He took his Stanley knife in one hand and Natalia’s leg in the other.

‘OK, now keep very, very still.’ Wolf shot me a nervous glance.

I nodded back encouragingly.

Wolf placed the knife over the tracker. Natalia flinched.

‘Hold still,’ Wolf warned.

Natalia screwed up her face, closing her eyes tight shut. Wolf applied the knife to the plastic. He made a stroke. Then another. He looked up. ‘The knife isn’t sharp enough,’
he said. ‘I’m going to have to use the saw.’

Natalia’s face paled as he took the hacksaw out of his bag. Its serrated edge glinted in the sunlight shining in through the window.

‘Oh, God,’ she said shakily, shrinking away.

‘Don’t look,’ I said, taking her hand. ‘As soon as this is done, we’re going straight to find Allan. He’s the journalist who put me onto Baxter in the first
place.’

‘He’s a
journalist
?’ Natalia’s face creased with a new anxiety. ‘Won’t he want me to tell him about what Baxter has done? Won’t he want quotes
and my name and—?’

‘I’m sure he can keep everything anonymous,’ I said, hoping this was true. ‘And once we’ve got the tracker off you, Baxter won’t have any idea where you
are.’

I looked down. Wolf’s forehead beaded with sweat as he positioned the saw over the tracker.

‘Keep t . . . totally still,’ he ordered again. ‘I don’t want to cut your leg.’

Natalia whimpered.

I gulped. ‘Have you thought about names for the baby?’ I said, trying to distract Natalia.

Natalia kept her frightened gaze fixed on my face as Wolf sawed at the plastic tracker band. She ran through the various names she’d been considering, but I wasn’t listening
properly. My mind had wandered to Lauren and
her
pregnancy. Why hadn’t I thought to ask her and Jam about names? Jeez, I really had been so selfish before.

‘Done.’ Wolf held up the two pieces of the tracker.

‘Let’s go,’ I said.

Natalia got up. She grabbed a small backpack from the floor and led the way downstairs. I followed, feeling numb. This whole business was totally surreal. I caught Wolf’s eye as we walked
out of the house.

‘How long d’you think we’ve got before anyone notices she’s gone?’ he said quietly.

‘The nurse isn’t due for forty minutes or so. The tube’s only round the corner.’

We hurried along the pavement. Reached the end of the road. Natalia was panting for breath even though we were only walking briskly.

‘You OK?’ Wolf asked.

‘The station’s not far,’ I said.

‘I know,’ Natalia moaned. ‘But it’s hard to go fast when I’m so big.’

As she spoke, the sound of tyres screeching to a halt filled the air. I glanced over my shoulder. A thickset guy in a leather jacket was bounding out of a silver Mercedes, heading for
Natalia’s flat.

‘Oh my God,’ she gasped.

‘That’s one of Baxter’s staff,’ Wolf said. ‘I recognise him from the house.’

‘Nooo,’ Natalia wailed.

‘Come on.’ I grabbed her wrist. ‘Run!’

Wolf took Natalia’s other arm. Between us we half dragged, half carried her along the pavement. Natalia was sobbing, clutching at her belly and gasping for breath. I
looked over my shoulder as we turned onto the High Street. Baxter’s leather-jacketed henchman was looking up and down the road. As I watched, he caught sight of us and broke into a run.

‘Hurry!’ I yelled.

Wolf sped up, taking more of Natalia’s weight.

‘I
can’t
,’ she cried. ‘The baby.’

‘I know but we have to,’ I panted, running hard to keep up with Wolf.

‘Oh my God,’ Natalia wailed.

We reached the tube station. I glanced over my shoulder again. Leather Jacket was just metres away, fighting through a crowd of tourists.

‘My pocket . . . travelcards . . .’ Wolf panted, holding Natalia as she wept.

I reached into his pocket and drew out two travelcards, one for him and one for Natalia. I fumbled for my own. Seconds later, we were through the barrier and standing by the lift. I kept my eyes
on the entrance. Leather Jacket would be here any second.

‘It’s on its way.’ Wolf’s eyes were fixed on the arrow above the lift. It was signalling an elevator was rising from the bowels of the station.

‘Come on, come on,’ I muttered.

Leather Jacket appeared at the station entrance. I froze.

The lift was arriving. People gathering around, ready for the doors to open. I kept my eyes on Leather Jacket. He spotted us. His eyes widened, his lips curling into a snarl. As the lift doors
opened, Leather Jacket rushed for the ticket barrier.

‘Get inside,’ Wolf ordered. ‘Pregnant lady! Make way!’

I pushed my way in after him. Leather Jacket leaped over the barrier.

‘Oy!’ called the ticket inspector. ‘Stop there!’

Leather Jacket ignored him. He was running over. The doors were closing. Our eyes met as his fists lunged forward. He couldn’t hold back the doors. They shut.

We were safe.

Except . . . ‘He’ll take the stairs,’ I said, remembering the emergency spiral staircase.

‘Maybe the ticket officers will stop him,’ Wolf suggested.

‘Maybe.’ We looked at each other. I could tell Wolf wasn’t convinced.

‘Get ready to run again, as soon as the doors open,’ I said.

Natalia nodded. Seconds passed unbearably slowly. If Leather Jacket was coming down the platform via the stairs, how far had he got? The lift landed. With a beep, the doors opened. Wolf and I
raced out, holding Natalia between us.