Marguerite soon reappeared with a cup of steaming hot cocoa. "Chocolat," she said with a smile as she slid the cup to Noah.
He took a sip and smiled back. It was the best hot chocolate he'd ever had.
"Merci," he said. That was the only French word he could remember at the moment, but it was one he truly meant.
"Monsieur Ed!" Roussel said as he barreled through the door of his own office. "We have located your son. He is okay!"
Ed jumped to his feet. "You found him?"
"Yes, yes. He is at Verneuil-sur Avre."
Ed didn't have a clue what or where that was. But he didn't care. Noah was okay. The police knew where he was.
He started looking around the room. Olivia had taken Nicole to the restroom just a few minutes ago, and they're weren't back yet.
Ed thanked Roussel and started out of the office to find Olivia. He knew she'd be back in a matter of minutes, but he couldn't wait. He was so relieved, so thankful, so anxious to reunite his whole family.
Roussel followed him explaining that the boy had escaped from the kidnapper's car and was with a shop owner and his wife awaiting the local police who would coordinate a rendezvous. Ed was barely listening. He was so overwhelmed he didn't even realize that tears were rolling down his cheeks.
"Ed?"
He looked in the direction of Olivia's voice. She gasped when she saw his tears.
Realizing that she misunderstood his emotion he shook his head and flashed the biggest smile he'd had all day. "They found him. He's okay." He said as he closed the distance between them.
"He's okay?" She asked again not sure if she could believe it.
"They got Noah?" Nicole asked.
Ed picked her up and kissed her cheek. "Yeah, sweetheart, they did!"
"Is he okay?" she asked with a serious face.
"He's okay," Ed said to his daughter, then he looked at Olivia. "He's okay."
Olivia almost collapsed into Ed half squishing Nicole between them. Ed rested his forehead against hers. They both just took a few breaths and let the news sink in. It was a short lived moment. Olivia was suddenly full of questions. Where was he? Where was the woman who took him? Was he really okay?
Knowing that the couple wouldn't rest until their son was back in front of them, Roussel suggested they take a police van and head toward Noah's location. It would take a lot longer if they waited for Noah to be brought to them.
Ed immediately agreed. It was going to be the longest two-hour car ride of their lives, but at least they knew their son was safe, finally safe.
Once they were on the highway, Roussel directed the officer who was driving to use lights and sirens to speed their progress. Then he excused himself to make a few phone calls.
Back at the shop, Noah sat with Marguerite and Francois. It was a little awkward because they could barely communicate, but Noah understood that the police were on their way. He didn't know how long to expect, they seemed to be out in the country in a very small town.
As it turned out the nearest police officer was about 20 minutes away. Francois had hung up with the police and then called his nephew, Gerard. His nephew spoke English and worked at a school just down the street. The younger man arrived in a few minutes, and spoke quickly to his aunt and uncle before turning to Noah.
"Hello, Noah. I'm Gerard." The man wasn't very tall and had dark hair. He explained who he was and filled him in on what he knew so far.
"Are you okay? Can you tell me what happened?"
Noah told him a shortened version about getting separated from his parents on the train and ending up in the car. "Do you know if my sister is okay?"
"Your sister?" Gerard asked, confused. His uncle had said there was only the boy.
"My sister was with me in Paris, but she got away before Amelia got me in the car." Noah bit his lip. "I don't know if she made it somewhere safe or not."
Gerard saw the kid was obviously upset and worried about his sister. He patted Noah on the arm. "I'm sure she is okay. If her picture wasn't on the alert with yours, that probably means she has already been found."
Noah hoped the man was right. He reached for the cup of hot chocolate again, and almost dropped it when Marguerite called out.
He looked at her in confusion as she muttered in French and took the cup from him. Then he saw that she was pointing at his left hand which was covered in dried blood. In the earlier excitement it had gone unnoticed.
Marguerite pulled up his sleeve. There was a gash on hand that went all the way past his wrist. There was dried blood all around the cut and his sleeve. He vaguely remembered a stab of pain when he pushed the ice skate out of the window at Amelia's apartment, but in the chaos that ensued, he never paid attention to it.
The old woman jumped up and took Noah's other hand. Gerard followed and translated for the two. There was a restroom in the back where he could wash his hands, and the woman could get a first aid kit.
A little while later, Noah's hand was bandaged up, and he had a fresh cup of hot cocoa in front of him. It wasn't long before a few others from the town showed up. Apparently word traveled fast in small towns everywhere. People were shocked to learn that such a high profile case had ended in their town, and they wanted to see for themselves.
Noah was a little embarrassed by the attention, but he didn't mind the treats that a few of the people brought. One woman gave him a cookie shaped like a star. Another gave him two caramel candies. Yet another gave him a chocolate bar. Most of the people didn't speak much English, but Gerard helped out when necessary. Usually it wasn't, kindness didn't need translation.
It wasn't long before a policeman arrived and sent the townspeople packing. Many hung around outside the store or in the coffee shop next door.
The policeman explained that his parents had been notified and they were on their way. At first, they'd planned to take Noah to the police station at a larger neighboring town, but it was in the opposite direction from Paris and would just delay reuniting Noah with his family. They opted to stay at the little shop, much to Marguerite's delight. She'd taken to the boy and wanted to stay with him until his family arrived.
The policeman saw an empty wooden crate near the window next to the table. He turned it on its side and sat down.
"I need to ask you a few questions," he began pulling out a little notepad. "About the woman who brought you here."
"Okay," Noah said. He tried to remember everything and answer with as much detail as he could. They spoke for several minutes before the policeman stepped away to phone in some of the details Noah had provided.
There was no way to know how Amelia would have reacted to Noah's escape, so officers were still waiting at the cabin, police in Paris were watching her apartment, and there was still a watch out for her car.
Noah hoped that he'd been able to give them something, so they could find Amelia. She needed help or jail or something. While he was trying to figure out what he thought should happen to his abductor, Noah's stomach growled, and he eyed the goodies he'd been given.
"Tsk, tsk," Marguerite said. Then she continued in French.
"She says you should eat something better before dessert," Gerard said with a smirk. "But I think the cookie would be okay."
Noah grabbed the cookie and took a bite. The old woman just muttered something under her breath and went to the door.
"She's going to get you a proper meal," Gerard said. "I hope you're hungry."
Having finished the cookie in three bites, Noah didn't doubt he could eat more. He hadn't had anything since breakfast, and it was already dark outside.
As Gerard had guessed, Marguerite reappeared about ten minutes later with a bag of food from next door. Marguerite and the coffee shop owner had been friends since grade school, so the food was probably free.
There was a baguette, a couple kinds of cheese, some kind of salami, a cup of soup, some little sauces that Noah didn't recognize. Noah wasn't too picky when it came to food. At this point he probably would have eaten anything.
Marguerite kept apologizing that she didn't have a cooked meal, but Noah just smile and said "merci". The food was pretty good. He didn't like one of the cheeses, and the little sauces weren't his thing, but everything else was good.
"How much longer?" Olivia asked Roussel for the third time in the past half hour.
"Not long," Roussel said. "Just a quarter hour at most."
Ed smiled at the man and gave him a slight nod of thanks for his patience. The Captain smiled in return. In truth he was relieved that this had worked out so quickly and relatively easily. In child abduction cases time was so critical.
In the front seat, the officer turned off the sirens as he exited the highway. He left the lights going.
Once again, Olivia was chomping at the bit to get out of the car. That left Ed to rouse a now sleeping Nicole.
"Madam," Roussel cautioned. "We are almost there. Just a few more minutes."
The car pulled to a stop. Olivia pulled on the door, but it was locked. Roussel clicked a button to release the door and hurried to get out as well. He quickly scanned the street and identified the shop where Noah was waiting. He pointed Olivia in the right direction and looked to see Ed lifting Nicole from the back of the cruiser.
Ed saw Olivia jogging the few steps toward an inconspicuous shop. He stopped when he saw the figure in the window.
Noah. He was laughing and eating what looked like a piece of bread. There was a man in a police uniform standing in the corner, and older couple sitting at the table and another middle aged man talking to Noah. Ed's heart felt whole again for the first time since this morning.
"Daddy?" Nicole said with a little sleep still in her voice. "Did we find Noah?"
"Yeah baby," he said and kissed her cheek. "We did. Look."
She looked in the direction her dad was looking. Then she was scrambling to get down.
"Noah!" She squealed and took off after her mother.
Noah looked up when he heard the door jingle as it opened. It was as if he knew it would be her.
"Mom!" he dropped the bread he was holding and ran to her.
"Noah, Noah, Noah," she repeated over and over as she grabbed him and pulled him close.
Then she did the same as she'd done to Nicole, she crouched down and ran her hands over his face and shoulders checking for injuries. She knew he'd been hurt, but there wasn't anything obvious.
"Just a little cut on my hand," Noah said holding up his arm. "I'm okay."
She took his bandaged hand in hers and kissed the inside of his palm. "Oh baby, I'm just so happy you're safe." She pulled him back into a tight hug and let her tears of joy and relief continue to fall.
Before she could say another word, the pair was almost tackled by an exuberant Nicole. Olivia had to drop one of her knees to the ground to keep from toppling over.
"Noah!" Nicole shouted throwing her arms around him. "They finded you!"
"Nicole!" He said. "I'm so glad you're okay. I was so scared for you."
Roussel went to speak to the other officer while Ed joined his family. Ed couldn't stop the tears that once again rolled down his cheeks. This morning, they'd been a happy family at breakfast. Then they'd endured almost nine hours of hell. He couldn't even let himself think what could have happened. But now here they were, reunited and safe.
"Dad," Noah said. He eased out of Nicole's grip when he saw his father approaching. He was speechless when he saw his dad's tears. He didn't remember seeing his dad cry. Ever.
"Noah," Ed croaked and kissed the top of his son's head before hugging him tightly.
"I'm okay, Dad," Noah said.
Ed didn't say anything at first, he just nodded and squeezed him a little tighter while he tried to compose himself. "I'm so proud of you," Ed finally said when he eased his embrace and looked his son in the eye. "You protected your sister. You got yourself to safety. You're a brave, brave young man."
"I just tried to think what you would do," Noah said matter-of-factly.
Watching the interaction and hearing her son's words caused a fresh flow of tears from Olivia. The day had certainly taken its toll on all of them.
After giving the family some private time, the police officers returned and explained that they'd need an official statement from Noah as soon as possible. And they wanted to get the family back to Paris before it got too late.
Olivia thanked Marguerite for looking after Noah these past couple of hours. The older woman smiled and patted Olivia's cheek while going on and on in French about what a wonderful boy Noah was and what a sweet family they all were. Gerard translated loosely.
It took almost an hour to get everything organized and square up with the regional police. It was after 8pm when they were finally ready to get back into the police van and head back to Paris.
By now a crowd had reformed outside the little shop as town's people saw the flashing lights and came to watch the little reunion. The Tucker's were oblivious until they stepped outside and the crowd erupted in applause.
Ed looked at Roussel for an explanation. The Captain just shrugged and smiled. This was big news for the small town.
Nicole ate up the attention and even waved at the small crowd. Noah was oblivious. Olivia nodded her appreciation for the support, and Ed just tried to usher the family to the car.
At Ed's insistence, Roussel conducted the initial interview with Noah in the car on the way back to Paris. They agreed to bring him to the police station for any follow up the next morning, but now, Ed wanted them back at the hotel away from the police, away from the reminders of how terrible the day had been.
Olivia found herself fighting tears as she listened to Noah rehash the details of the ordeal. He was pretty sober about it. He expressed some guilt for going with the woman in the first place, but both the police and his parents assured him that it wasn't his fault. He seemed to accept their reassurances easily.
In fact, both Noah and Nicole seemed to be taking things in stride so far. Olivia wasn't. She was overwhelmed by the need to be in almost constant physical contact with them both. She didn't want to go back to their hotel. She wanted them home at their apartment in New York tucked safely in their beds. She wanted to go back to a time before any of this happened, before they were touched by the worst fear she'd ever known.
Ed kept a hand on her back for the whole two-hour drive. It was as much to ease his own mind as it was to comfort her. The small connection reminding them both that in the end everything had worked out okay. The kids were basically unharmed, and they were safe and back where they belonged.
They made good time and were dropped off at their hotel by 10:30pm. Ed hung back and made arrangements for them to return to the police station the next day. Roussel promised to keep them updated on the pursuit of Amelia who still hadn't been found.
After thanking the man once again, Ed jogged to catch up with his family in the hotel lobby. The exhausted group shuffled onto the small elevator and headed to the quiet of their suite.
"Can I take a shower?" Noah asked.
"Sure," Olivia answered. "Just be careful with your hand."
"Okay," he said already making his way to the bathroom. He wanted to get out of the stranger's clothes and try to warm up the chill that had settled into him from the moment they left the train station with Amelia.
"Nicole, do you want a bath?" Olivia asked. "Or do you want your jammies?"
"Bath," she said. Olivia smiled expecting her to copy her brother's actions.
It was almost midnight before they got everyone settled into bed. Olivia announced that they were all sleeping in their king sized bed tonight much to Nicole's delight. Ed agreed only because he knew it was the only way Olivia would sleep. Noah didn't protest, but he didn't seem overly thrilled with the idea.
"Just for tonight," Olivia said as she scooted Nicole in between her and Ed and made room for Noah on her other side. "I need you both close by tonight."
"It's okay, Mom," Noah said. "I think we all want that tonight."
a/n: OMG they're finally reunited! Now, how are they gonna cope, and will they ever find Amelia?