‘That was taken a few hours after she was born. She’s our third child.’
The photo showed Jenny with curly hair looking tired but happy cradling the infant.
A happy moment before their lives were changed forever.
Meadows chased away the image of the skeleton as he handed the photo back to Steven.
‘It’s a lovely photo.’
Steven talked some more about his other children until Jenny came back into the room carrying a tray. She set it down on the table and handed a cup to Meadows and Edris before taking a cup herself and sitting down.
‘We only have a few pictures of Cerys,’ Jenny said as her eyes fell on the photograph that Steven had laid on the table.
‘We haven’t had a chance to read the case file,’ Meadows said. ‘Would you mind talking us through what happened that day? If it is too painful don’t worry.’
‘It’s fine.’ Jenny sipped her tea. ‘Cerys was born on the fourth of April 1993 at two in the morning, she weighed seven pounds and two ounces. You never forget those things.’
Steven took hold of Jenny’s hand.
‘Jen had a bit of a rough time and needed an emergency C-section. She had general anaesthetic, so I got to hold Cerys for a little while Jen recovered. I’ll always be thankful for having that time.’
Jenny took another sip of her tea and laid the cup on the table.
‘That afternoon a nurse came in and said she was going to take her to the nursery for a bath. I slept for a while and when I woke, I asked another nurse if she could get Cerys from the nursery. She said she would when she had finished checking the other mothers. She never came back. She said later that she thought another nurse had fetched the baby for me.’
She paused for a moment and then continued.
‘Steven came in a while later with the kids. I asked again for Cerys. It was then that they discovered she was missing. There was a lot of confusion as the hospital was searched and all the babies’ identity bracelets checked. There was no trace of the nurse who took Cerys for her bath. The rest, you can imagine. Appeals, days of waiting for news that turned into weeks and months, but even as the years passed we still hoped.’
‘I take it the nurse was never identified,’ Edris said.
‘No.’ Steven sighed. ‘No nurse of that description worked at the hospital. I doubt she was even a nurse. Probably got the uniform from somewhere and waited for her opportunity.’
‘I would imagine that was the case,’ Meadows said. ‘Could you tell us what she looked like?’
‘I’ll never forget her face,’ Jenny said. ‘Every time I went out shopping, or on my way to work, I would scan the crowds or people passing on the bus and in cars hoping to see her face. She was in her mid-thirties, perhaps nearing forty. She was a little overweight, curly short blond hair. She spoke well and wore light make up. I guess she could probably walk by in the street and I wouldn’t know her now.’
‘It’s unbelievable to think that someone could pose as a nurse, walk into a hospital, and take a baby without anyone noticing,’ Steven said. ‘Of course, they have all sorts of security now.’
‘Did Cerys have any health problems when she was born?’ Meadows asked.
‘No, well none identified from all the initial tests they give a newborn. There were no breathing problems or heart defects if that’s what you mean,’ Jenny said. ‘Is that what you think happened to the child you found, that she was sick?’
‘Honestly, we don’t know,’ Meadows said. ‘But it’s one possibility we have to look at. Do you have any connection to Coopers Wood estate or the surrounding area?’
‘No. Oh, I did have an aunt that lived in Bryn Coed. She’s dead now, but I used to visit her.’
‘Okay, well thank you for talking to us. I’m sorry that you’ve had all this brought up again.’
Meadows drained the last of his tea from the cup and stood.
‘That’s okay.’ Jenny smiled. ‘It never really goes away, you just learn to live with it. You will call us as soon as you have the result? There’s no need to come out to see us.’
‘I’ll call the minute I know. We’ll move it along as quickly as we can.’
‘Thank you,’ Steven said. ‘Maybe after all this time we can have some answers.’
* * *
‘It takes some balls to walk into a hospital and steal a baby,’ Edris said.
‘Or a house. If Natalie and her friends are telling the truth, then someone watched the house and waited for an opportunity to take Ella.’
‘If they lived in the house previously then they would know the layout,’ Edris said as he slipped on his seat belt. ‘I hope the kid turns out to be Cerys. It must be hell not knowing what happened to your child.’
‘Yes,’ Meadows said, ‘but there’s another family to see with probably an equally heart-breaking story.’
He pulled on to the main road as Edris fed the postcode of the next address into the sat nav.
‘Yeah, and this next one is closer to the age of the child found in the garden, so the odds are in their favour.’ Edris leaned back in the seat.
‘Not necessarily, whoever took Cerys could’ve cared for her for three months, even convinced themselves that the child was theirs. Then the child got sick or had an accident and they couldn’t risk going to the hospital.’
An image of Ella lying limp in Natalie’s arms came to Meadows’ mind.
No, she could’ve called for help, even if she knew she would get in trouble for having Ryan there or taking drugs. If it was some sort of accident, then it’s more likely that it was too late to help. Natalie doesn’t act like a mother who has lost her child, she wouldn’t be able to hide her grief.
Edris’ voice chased away the thoughts and brought Meadows’ mind back to Cerys Lane and the child found in the garden.
‘If she cared that much for the child she would’ve got help even if it meant going to prison. Not just bury her in the garden,’ Edris said.
‘I guess, but maybe it was too late to call for help. We won’t know what happened until we track down the person who took the child, even then they may not tell us. First, we need an identity for our little miss, it should make it easier to find the person responsible for taking her. This person or maybe a couple, at some time, lived in Natalie’s house.’
‘We still have to track them down though,’ Edris said. ‘Once they’ve seen the news they’re likely to go into hiding.’
‘Or they could think they’re safe after all this time. They’re probably confident that they won’t get caught. It’s not going to be easy to prove. I’m assuming there was no DNA or fingerprints from where Cerys was taken. Too many people in the hospital. I’ve asked Valentine to get hold of the original case files. We’ve still got Poppy Moore to check out. Maybe there were forensic traces found where she was taken.’
They lapsed into silence and Meadows mulled over the case as he drove down the motorway.
So sad how people’s lives can be ruined in a matter of moments. Worse still that Cerys was taken at random. Could’ve been any of the babies at the hospital that day. His thoughts turned to Ella again. She definitely wasn’t taken at random, and still we can’t find her.
* * *
Port Talbot steel works came into view, stretching over a mile, its structure bellowed clouds of smoke into the sky and left a faint smell of sulphur in the air.
‘Wouldn’t like to live here,’ Edris said as Meadows took the slip road.
‘I expect you become immune to the smell and it does have a nice beach.’
‘Yeah, I used to come here for days out when I was a kid.’
The road led them past the beach, and two turnings later, the sat nav announced that they had arrived at their destination. Meadows parked the car and looked around the quiet back road. There were pairs of semi-detached houses running the length of the road, with trees dotted along the pavement. Each house had a long front garden with a low fence separating the properties.
>
Meadows got out of the car, stretched and inhaled the salty air.
‘Certainly not the type of place you expect a child to be abducted. Quiet road, probably close watchful neighbours. It’s a big risk,’ Meadows said as he opened the gate and stepped through.
‘Maybe someone who knew the family, or maybe someone could’ve been stalking them for a while and waited for an opportunity,’ Edris said.
‘It’s a long way to come from Coopers Wood estate.’
Meadows looked at the garden as he walked. There were wide borders filled with rose bushes and in the centre stood a large hydrangea, its leaves poised to unfurl.
‘You would need a car, it’s unlikely they abducted the child and took public transport.’
Edris nodded his agreement as they approached the door. It wasn’t opened on the first knock even though Meadows knew that Tom Moore had been informed that they would be calling. He knocked again and heard footsteps approaching. The man that opened the door looked to be in his late fifties. He had fair, thinning hair that had turned white at the sides. His moustache and sideburns were darker but speckled with grey.
‘You must be Detective Meadows,’ Tom said.
‘Yes, and this is DC Edris.’ Meadows smiled.
‘You better come in.’ Tom turned and led them into the sitting room.
Meadows looked around. There were no family photos displayed, apart from one that sat in a white frame on the mantle. It was of a young woman with long black wavy hair, her face looked familiar, but Meadows couldn’t recall where he may have seen her.
‘Have a seat,’ Tom said.
Edris sat down in an armchair. ‘It must be nice living so close to the sea, especially in the summer.’
‘Yes, I suppose, I don’t go to the beach very often.’ Tom turned to look out of the window.
He looks uncomfortable. Can’t be easy having the past dragged up.
Meadows took a seat in the other armchair and surveyed Tom. He wore jeans and a T-shirt, no jumper even though the temperature inside was no warmer than outdoors. His arms were muscular and looked like they were regularly exposed to the outdoor elements.
Builder, or a gardener perhaps.
‘My daughter should be here soon.’ Tom turned around and looked at Meadows. ‘I would rather we wait until she gets here.’
‘That’s okay,’ Meadows said.
‘It’s just the two of us. She rang to say she was running late.’ He turned back to look out of the window. ‘Ah, here she is.’ His shoulders relaxed and he turned and smiled.
I wonder how long it’s just been the two of them. Did his wife leave? Or is that photo a reminder of a lost loved one?
Meadows heard the front door open and stood to greet Tom’s daughter.
‘In here, love,’ Tom called.
The door to the sitting room opened and Daisy rushed in. ‘Sorry, Dad, I got held up.’ She gave Tom a hug and a kiss on the cheek before turning to Meadows. ‘I’m glad it’s you two.’ She smiled nervously.
‘Well this is a surprise.’ Edris had vacated his chair and now the four of them stood.
It took Meadows a moment to process what he was seeing.
It’s no wonder the photo looks familiar. Daisy looks like her mother.
‘I didn’t make the connection with the surname.’ Meadows gave her a smile which he hoped would put her at ease. ‘I guess this is what you wanted to talk to me about.’
‘Yes, I’m sorry, I should’ve come out with it as soon as we found her. I guess I needed time to think about it and what it could mean. Then I wanted to be sure, to run the test to see if it was a girl before I spoke to Dad. I didn’t want to get his hopes up. I… I didn’t know where to start when I saw you at the lab.’
‘It’s fine,’ Meadows said. ‘I understand that this must be very difficult for you and especially hard given what you were faced with yesterday.’
‘Oh, Daisy love, don’t tell me that you–’
‘It’s okay, Dad.’ Daisy cut him off. ‘It’s my job and I was glad it was me who took care of her, especially if it is Poppy. Come on, let’s sit down.’
She sat on the sofa and patted the seat next to her. Tom sat close to his daughter and Meadows and Edris took up their seats in the armchairs.
‘Have you already run a DNA test?’ Edris asked.
‘No, to be honest I was tempted but it’s better to have Dad’s as well as mine for comparison. I thought it wouldn’t be very professional of me to run the tests without telling you, and I guess there are others. I called Dad this morning to prepare him and let him know to expect a call. I knew you would find Poppy on the missing list.’
‘It came as a bit of a shock,’ Tom said. ‘After all this time, I tried to put it to the back of my mind. I thought we would never get answers. It can’t bring her back but at least we can put things to rest.’
‘It may not be Poppy,’ Meadows said gently. ‘At the moment, we are testing all the parents of children that went missing over the last thirty years. I’m sorry that we have to put you through this but there is no other way of identifying the child.’
‘I understand,’ Tom said, ‘but you can’t help getting your hopes up, even though it could mean that Poppy has been dead all this time.’
Daisy took hold of her father’s hand and gave it a squeeze.
‘Have you read through the case file?’
‘No,’ Meadows said. ‘We have requested the files, so only have names and dates at the moment.’
‘Well, we can tell you as much as we can, obviously we don’t know anything about how the investigation was handled. You start, Dad.’
Tom rubbed his hand over his chin.
‘My wife Annie went into premature labour on the 1st of March 1992, Poppy wasn’t due until April. Poppy was a difficult baby. She didn’t sleep well in the night and poor Annie was exhausted most of the time. My mother came around to help when she could and Annie seemed to be coping. We had a good summer that year. It was only just over two weeks to go for school to break up, and we were going to have a family holiday. Poppy was four months old and still not settling at night. Annie used to spend her time out the front garden hoping the fresh air would help Poppy sleep. I remember every minute of the Saturday it happened, I’ve been over it so many times wishing I had done things differently.’ Tom sighed.
‘I had to go into work that morning, it was a warm day and Annie wasn’t happy with me working on a Saturday. She wanted me to stay so we could take the kids out for the day. I wish I had stayed. Biggest regret of my life.’
‘You weren’t to know,’ Daisy said.
‘From what Annie told me later, she sat out in the garden reading, with Poppy sleeping in the pram and Daisy playing on the grass. She developed a headache so went indoors to get out of the sun. She didn’t want to disturb Poppy, so she left her in the shade and asked Daisy to call her if Poppy woke up.’
‘I was supposed to watch the baby,’ Daisy said.
‘How old were you?’ Meadows asked.
‘Six, nearly seven. Old enough to do a simple task like call my mother if the baby woke.’
‘No, Daisy,’ Tom said. ‘You weren’t old enough to take responsibility for what happened.’
Meadows could see the years of guilt on Tom and Daisy’s faces.
I bet they hardly talk about it, each one carrying the blame for something they didn’t have any control over.
Daisy sighed. ‘I know, but it doesn’t stop the what-ifs creeping in over the years. Not all the time. It sneaks up on you when you least expect it. My memory is a bit hazy, but I had to go over the story so many times with the police that I guess the details stuck. I was playing with my dolls when this woman stopped at the garden gate. She said something about it being very warm and asked where my mother was, then she came through the gate and looked at Poppy. She said she was a pretty baby. I don’t remember how long she talked to me but she asked for a glass of water. I ran inside, Mum was sleeping on the sofa, s
o I crept into the kitchen. I didn’t want to wake her. When I took the water outside the woman was gone so I just carried on playing. I didn’t even check the pram to see if Poppy was okay.’
‘What was the woman like?’ Meadows asked.
‘There’s probably a good description in the case file. To me she became an old haggard witch that stole my sister. I guess that’s how my young mind dealt with what happened.’
‘The police were really good with Daisy, but the description didn’t give them a lot to go on. The woman was young, they thought no more than twenty, maybe even younger. She wore a hat and sunglasses.’ Tom shook his head. ‘Even an adult would have difficulty giving a good description.’
‘Did anyone else see her?’ Edris asked.
‘No, the neighbours were out,’ Tom said. ‘Annie couldn’t be sure of the exact time it happened. She said she must’ve been asleep for about an hour, maybe an hour and a half. She went outside to check on the girls and the pram was empty. You can imagine the panic. It was a horrible time. The days lasted an eternity and just ran in to each other. Each morning I would wake with my stomach in knots but still hoped that the woman would give herself up and Poppy would be returned to us. There was nothing from the appeal, the newspapers ran a follow-up but with nothing to report, the story dried up and Poppy became yesterday’s news.
‘Annie blamed herself for leaving the girls outside alone. We tried to move on with our lives and get back to some sort of normality for Daisy’s sake. I went back to work, and Daisy returned to school at the end of the summer. Annie was left at home with nothing but her thoughts to torment her. She took her life a year later.’
‘I’m so sorry,’ Meadows said. It occurred to him how little he knew of Daisy’s life outside work.
‘Thank you.’ Daisy gave Meadows a weak smile. ‘That woman not only took my sister, she killed my mother and left me and Dad heartbroken. I can’t help wondering, why us? But I guess all the other families you have to visit will say the same thing.’
‘Yes, and I wish I had the answers. Were there any visitors to the house in the time leading up to Poppy’s abduction? Or anyone that showed an interest in the children when you were out?’
Suffer the Children Page 14