Hi everyone, thanks for the reviews.
I have decided to split the Bianka situation up into a couple of chapters - so this is again quite short. But it just makes it easier in terms of how quickly i can update.
Thank you for reading, i hope you enjoy and please let me know what you think :) x
Rachel and Eddie were sitting alongside each other in the office, both scribbling away. Despite the workload, they were both very much enjoying working together again in such close proximity. Conversation was limited, but the silence was more than comfortable - with the pair sharing longing glances at one another frequently.
'Come in!' Rachel raised her voice slightly, responding to a rather urgent knock on the door.
'Rachel, Eddie.' Kim stated, erratically swapping her gaze between the two senior members of staff, 'we have a problem.'
'What is it?' Eddie queried, apparently more concerned than Rachel. This was certainly the last thing he needed on his first day back. The headmistress sensed her deputy's worry, and followed his comment with, 'you'd better take a seat.'
'Bianka Vale has been taken out of school by her father. Her father who is not allowed to see his children without supervision,' Kim stated matter of factly, wanting to get to the bottom of the situation as soon as possible.
Rachel and Eddie exchanged uneasy glances like they had done many times before: Stuart Hordley, the fire, the gun incident, Maxine's death, Ralph Mellor. Somehow though, this rocked their emotions in a different kind of way. A young pupil had been abducted by her own father. At that point, only one question was swimming around in Rachel's mind - did he intend to harm her?
'H… how was that allowed to happen?' Rachel questioned, as the trepidity and reality of the situation set in.
'Two words. Grantley Budgen.'
With that, the confusion only grew. So Rachel widened her eyes encouragingly, suggesting that Kim should evaluate.
'Bianka was in his class, he believed she had a dentist appointment. He obviously knows nothing about the girl, nothing about the situation with her father and so on.'
'I don't believe this!' Eddie grunted in frustration, throwing his arms up in the air and allowing them to hover for a moment.
Rachel on the other hand, was verging on a breakdown. It was too close to home for her. Like Bianka's Dad, her father was found to be dangerous. Well, Rachel knew that he was dangerous - there have been several occasions in the past, where Rachel was attacked by her Dad. It was essentially part of the reason Rachel left home so young. She just hoped for Bianka's sake that it wasn't too late for her, that she could help her.
Eventually, Rachel ripped herself out of her own thoughts; acknowledging that they needed to deal with this and fast.
'Right… thank you for letting me know Kim. If you can get in touch with the social worker and I'll get in touch with the police,' Rachel explained, directing this comment at Kim whilst realising the shocking amount of times she has dialled 999 at Waterloo Road, 'and, Eddie, could you try and get hold of Bianka's Mum for me - she really needs to be made aware of this situation before it escalates further.'
Eddie nodded swiftly in response; he recognised how important the speed of their upcoming actions was - they had to save Bianka and fast. At the end of the day, none of them really know what her Dad is capable of.
…
Ten intense minutes later and everything was in order: the police were on route; social worker ready; Bianka's mum contacted. Of course, this wasn't enough to reassure them that everything was under control. In particular, Rachel, who spent her time waiting for the police pacing up and down her office, unable to think clearly due to the abundance of thoughts darting around in her mind.
Eddie simply watched her for a moment, aware that she was becoming increasingly concerned. This reaction from Rachel was all to familiar for him; it reminded him of one of the worst days he had experienced at Waterloo Road: the day Earl Kelly brought a gun to school. It was a sense of déjà-vu for Eddie, and he knew he had to comfort her in exactly the same way now.
'Rachel,' he spoke softly whilst stopping Rachel in her tracks, gently placing both hands on her shoulders, 'it's under control. The police will find Bianka and her father, there is nothing more we can do but wait for them to arrive.'
The headmistress nodded profusely, and allowed herself to get lost in his gaze - she wanted more than anything to believe his wise words. It was no use though, not even Eddie could help her this time, 'I can't just sit here and do nothing Eddie. I already feel very responsible as it is.'
'Hey,' he stated, clumsily draping his right arm around Rachel's neck so that his fingers brushed her collar bone on route, 'this is not your fault Rach. You've done everything you can. Let's just wait till the police get here, then you and me can maybe work out what to do next, yeh?'
'Okay. Okay Eddie, you're right. They won't be long now anyway… and they'll sort it won't they?' She queried, wanting any form of reassurance at this point. Now though, it was Rachel's turn to acknowledge the stark parallels between the current situation, and Denzil's gun incident that occurred exactly two years ago. She just hoped that she would get it right this time.
