Sorry it's taking so long to post chapters. What with prelims and stuff I've barely had any time to do them! But I will be posting asap. I'm really enjoying writing this fic, and I hope you guys are enjoying reading it I will try to get chapters posted as soon as possible and please keep reviewing. I love knowing what people think of the chapters! XX
Reflections – Chapter 4
It was silent. Smithy daren't make a sound for fear of destroying the fragility of the profound quiet. Any sort of noise at all would pierce it like a knife, and would appear so loud it would frighten the silence away. Glancing in his mirror, Smithy could see the little boy – Kieran – staring glumly out of the window, probably trying to forget the horrors he had just witnessed, and it made Smithy feel awful. Despite the little boy's lack of participation in his surroundings, Smithy could almost guess that – inside – he was screaming, screaming at the world that had let him down. Suddenly, possibly sensing the Inspector's eyes on him, Kieran glanced up at him, innocent eyes wide as he tried to work out why this man was staring at him.
"Hey. You OK?" Smithy looked at him with concerned eyes, and the little boy just sat in cold silence, neither committing himself to a 'yes' or a 'no'. Smithy allowed the silence to return, not wanting to put pressure on the little boy to talk to him. As they drove along the road leading to the police station, his radio crackled into life.
"Sierra Oscar to Sierra One." It was Nate.
"Go ahead."
"Sir, there's a woman in the front office for you, says she's got some information on these rape cases. I told her you were on your way."
"Ok PC Roberts. I'll be there in a few minutes." He paused to look into his mirror again at Kieran, concerned for him. "And can you have someone waiting in Custody to look after Kieran Hayes for me?"
"That the little boy from the scene?"
"Yeah. Thanks PC Roberts." He ended communication as he turned into the Yard. Parking the car, he turned off the ignition and turned to talk to Kieran.
"Kieran? When we get in there, there's gonna be one of my colleagues waiting to take you to the canteen to get some juice and something to eat. That ok with you?" He smiled encouragingly at the boy and, slowly, Kieran nodded in agreement.
"Ok then. Let's go." Smithy unfastened his seatbelt and stepped out of the car, breathing in the fresh air properly for the first time that morning. He opened Kieran's door and helped the small child climb out, taking his hand as he led him into the station. Waiting on them, was PC Tony Stamp.
"Stampy! How's things?" Smithy greeted his friend fondly, and Tony grinned back.
"Yeah not bad Sir." He looked at Kieran and gasped, as if seeing him for the first time. "Oh, and who is this young man?" Tony bent down so he was Kieran's height. "Hey little man. What's your name?" Kieran smiled, and Smithy noticed that the boy had instantly warmed to Tony. That was a good sign.
"I'm Kieran." He said, rather shyly. Tony took his hand and shook it, acting very proper.
"Nice to meet you Mr Kieran. My name's Tony Stamp. This here's my mate Smithy." Tony smiled encouragingly at Kieran, who returned the gesture. "So Kieran, how was it riding in a proper policeman's car?" The little boy grinned.
"It was so cool! It's really weird too." Tony laughed.
"Ah that's just Smithy. He's weird, but we love him anyway." He winked and Kieran laughed, gazing up at Smithy to see the man's reaction. Smithy just pretended to look shocked, but deep down he was just glad that someone had been able to get through to Kieran. He had been worried that the events of that morning would have an adverse effect on the little boy but thankfully he seemed alright, at least now he was in Tony's company.
"Right fella. I wondered if you would like to see where we hungry policeman have our lunch? It's not as wild as the police car, but there's a can of juice and some crisps in it for you." Kieran nodded enthusiastically, and Tony stood up to speak to Smithy.
"Sir, I'll take Kieran up to the canteen for a bit, get him something to eat." He lowered his voice. "I want to try to keep his mind off of everything that's happened today, as best I can anyway." Smithy nodded grimly. He knew that these events would stick with the young boy for the rest of his life, but if anyone could help him take his mind off it, even for a little while, Tony could.
"Fair enough. I gotta head to Reception; Nate says there's someone to see me. Might be important. I'll come and find you if there's any development."
"Sir." Tony nodded, before taking Kieran's hand and leading the young boy away towards the canteen, turning around to see Smithy mouth 'thank you' at him as he left.
"Excuse me." The young woman turned around and instantly Smithy was struck by how scared she looked. She had shadows under her eyes to indicate the nightmares that kept her awake at night, and she looked as if she'd been crying quite a lot. Smithy noted her scruffy appearance; ripped skinny jeans and a baggy jumper that bore the word 'Aiden' on it, and Converse trainers that had seen better days. No make-up and her hair tied back in a messy bun. It was possibly her style, but Smithy felt that it was more a statement; that something had caused her to give up on herself completely.
"Hi I'm Inspector Smith. My colleague on the desk says you have some information involving the rape cases we're dealing with?" The young girl paused for a moment before nodding, tears prickling her eyes. She had an air of defeat about her, one that Smithy had seen before, and he realised just what had happened.
"Yes um…I'm Lana. Lana Crowley. I uh, I need to speak to someone about the…the rapist. I think I can help." His throat tightened as he realised that before him stood someone who had survived these attacks. A girl who had been through deep hell and returned through the other side; the lucky one. Even at that he scoffed. Lucky. It made him so angry.
"Ok Lana. If you come through here, we can talk. Ok?" He smiled, attempting to look reassuring. Given the circumstances, he understood if men weren't high on her list of friends right now but he had to help her. Together they entered the small interview room at Reception, Smithy offering Lana a seat, which she gratefully accepted. She was visibly shaking and Smithy could see that it took all the strength she possessed not to simply collapse on the floor right in front of him. He wanted to reach out to her, do something that could help her, but no gesture seemed great enough.
"Ok Lana just…just take it slowly ok? Now, if you're alright to do so, can you tell me what it was you wanted to say?" Her eyes filled with fear, her hands wringing together as if she could somehow rub away the dirt that she felt grew all over her.
"Don't worry. Anything you tell us will be held in the strictest confidence, I promise you." At that she looked up at him, her pleading eyes looking for answers in him that he just didn't have. He decided to sit down, trying to disassemble the barrier between them and alleviate her obvious anxiety. It seemed to work, as she relaxed only slightly, and took a deep breath.
"Um, well…happened like this…"
End of Chapter 4.