As the kids waited for a boat to turn up, Robyn decided she'd better put in a request for her 'finance' to sit with her. Then she realised, and said in a small voice:

"Mrs Beauchamp, where's Ben?"

Mrs Beauchamp's quick eyes scanned the group… dear God, no. How could they have missed him, quiet as he was? Part of her wanted to shake the small boy hard for going missing – was this some childish form of revenge from him? – and part of her was feeling sick.

Abandoning the ride, they retraced their footsteps, apologising to those they jostled on the way.

Lofty's soul was numb. Cal had told him what men did when they grabbed small children and he knew that was going to happen to him. Unless the stabbing happened first.

As the man dragged him – the pressure on Lofty's arm was really hurting him now – away from the ride, and in the direction of the exit from the parks, he suddenly saw them. The gang, looking worried to death, and the teachers pale-faced.

The man followed his line of vision.

"Think of the knife."

Lofty suddenly had enough. He would rather be stabbed and killed, however much it hurt, than go and live with the horrible man. If he couldn't be with his Mum and Dad, his friends and teachers, and Eric Chiltern, he wanted to be dead.

Hurting his throat to the point of agony, he yelled as loudly as he could:

"Mrs Beauchamp! Please come and get me!"

The next minute there was a savage pain and the world swam before his eyes.

Later he would remember it all. How the man – who had lied about the knife – had punched him hard in the back. How he'd been pushed over and thought the crowds would trample him. How two kind ladies helped him to his feet and hugged him, making him wince with pain.

And most of all, how Mr Keogh had run over to them, and had got the man by the throat and had shaken him like a rat. How the man had stumbled away coughing horribly, and had tried to run for it but been stopped by two of the park guides.

But now Mrs Beauchamp's arms were round him and she wasn't cross any more. She was just saying "Oh Ben, sweetheart…" over and over again.

Ethan was howling in sympathy.

"Come on, Ethan, Ben's safe now; he's gone to have some treatment for his back and then the police want a statement from him and Mrs Beauchamp. They'll be joining us later and this time we'll make sure we keep an eye on him all the time."

"You were a hero, Mr Keogh", Robyn said shyly.

"Thank you, Robyn. If I'd been any angrier I'd have choked that bugger on the spot and got myself a record with the French police." Mr Keogh made no apology for swearing.

Louise was crying as hard as Ethan.

"Louise, it's all right."

"No it's not Miss Freeman, I'm a bad person. I was cross with Ben for holding us all up and making us miss the Pirate ride."

"We've a day left; we can go on rides till half past four tomorrow," Ms Chao tried to reassure her.

"But I'm bad…."

"Hey come on. Ben's been saved. That's the main thing."

Zoe wanted to buy Lofty a present but Max surprisingly said no.

"Presents remind people of things. Ben won't want reminding about today."

"Very wise, Max. He'll want a bit of kindness and understanding. But go easy on hugging him in case you hurt his back. I can't believe that piece of offal punched him in the kidneys."

The police were very kind, they told Lofty he was a brave boy to shout out. The Police Doctor gave him an injection to take away the pain in his back, and a lemon and honey drink for his sore throat.

"You may take him back now, Madame. He will maybe need to come over here again when the case goes to trial, but for now, take him for a long drink and some ice cream."

Mrs Beauchamp's heart ached. Physically ached. Because of one crazy night out and her bad temper, she might have been having to make an agonising phone call to Ben's parents. And even now he was subdued, as he would be, but he showed no signs of being angry with her. She wanted him to snap at her, even lash out.

But he just put his small hand into hers as she helped him towards the taxi that would take them back to the hotel.

The Maitre D at Inventions Restaurant had seen what had happened on the local news.

"This is on the house", he said as he settled Mrs Beauchamp and Lofty into a private booth, with a large plate of ice cream and a fruit drink.

After he'd been able to sip some of the drink and eat his ice cream, Lofty whispered:

"Mrs Beauchamp, I know what that man was going to do with me later."

She shivered, but needed to hear it.

"Go on, Ben."

"Cal told me and Ethan. They take them as slaves. And the kids have to get up at six when they've been to bed at five and they have to work and work. But if they stop, the people who take them can kill them."

Thank God for Cal. Ben's innocence hadn't been affected.

"No, they can't kill them, Ben. Nobody can kill a child and not be punished. But you're right. That's what they do."

Zax held an emergency meeting for nearly all the members before the evening's entertainment.

"Now we've got to keep a watch on Ben all tomorrow and make sure he's not alone. If he wakes up in the night and cries, one of the boys has to hug him, but mind his back. If he needs a wee a boy has to go in with him."

Ethan was still weepy.

"He could have been taken to ROME as a slave."

"Well he wasn't. Mr Keogh saved him. Come on Ethan, he needs you to be smiley for him. And if he wants a cuddle of Snap nobody else has got to stop him."

Ethan sighed. He loved the new toy crocodile but knew it was a gang mascot and only Zax could order who held it.