Page 75 of The Stolen Child

‘It’s the negroni I regret,’ Zach said, shaking his head sorrowfully. ‘I’ll make some coffee. Señora Alvarez always leaves the best ground roast for her guests. And treats too, with any luck.’ He opened a ceramic bread bin and whooped when he discovered a bag of pastries.

He began preparing their coffee in a stovetop moka pot. The rich, fragrant aroma of the coffee beans filled the air and with one espresso and a sweet, flaky almond pastry behind her, Lily began to feel more human.

‘Better?’ Zach asked, licking his fingertips.

‘I’ll live. But it’s a good job I’m only here for one night. My head and liver couldn’t survive another night like that!’

A big grin spread across Zach’s face. ‘It was fun, though, wasn’t it? You, little sis, are good company.’ He caught her eye and looked away as he finished. ‘It feels like I’ve known you my entire life.’

Lily understood what he was saying. She felt an ease with Zach that she rarely found with strangers.

‘When we get confirmation . . . that we are brother and sister . . . we can catch up on all those lost occasions,’ Zach said.

A shiver of unease ran down Lily’s spine – not because she didn’t want that, but because she was becoming increasingly worried about what might happen when the results came back. Zach appeared to have a simplistic view of their future, and assumed they could all become one big happy family.

‘Zach . , ,’ she started, then stopped, finding it difficult to break their happy mood.

‘Go on. You can say anything to me,’ Zach replied, a line creasing his forehead.

‘I believe that our DNA test will come back positive. It will be an incredible moment for my family. I can’t even begin to imagine how Dad and Mum will feel. But have you thought about what will happen to your family?’

His frown deepened, and Lily took no pleasure in upsetting him, but the truth had to be said.

‘Zach, your mother stole you. And put my family through decades of horrific loss. I’m not sure that those damages can ever be repaired . . .’ She paused as Zach’s eyes glistened.

‘My mother would never hurt anyone,’ Zach said, but his voice was uncertain. ‘She’s a good person. The best person I know.’

Lily picked up her iPad from the table. She opened YouTube and found a video that she wanted Zach to look at. She’d watched it hundreds of times over the years.

The screen filled with a close-up of Jason sitting beside Inspector Ortega, at their press conference in July 1983. Lily turned the sound up so Zach could hear the pain and anguish in Jason’s voice as he begged for information on their missing son.

‘Do you see?’ Lily asked. ‘Your mother will have to pay for what she did to my family. If she took you, there has to be accountability.’

‘Mom might be arrested,’ Zach said, his voice little more than a whisper.

‘I suspect so.’

‘She’d never survive prison.’ Zach hit the table with his fist, anger sparking from his eyes.

Lily closed her eyes in frustration at his reaction. ‘One could argue that my parents have been in their own prison for forty years. You’d be surprised what a body can survive.’

He pushed his seat back, and the sound of the chair scraping on the terracotta floor pierced the air.

‘What a bloody mess,’ Zach said.

‘I know. But it’s not our mess, Zach. You can’t take responsibility for your mother’s actions. You didn’t ask for any of this.’

‘I need to get out of here,’ Zach said, standing up abruptly. ‘I’m going for a walk, okay?’

Lily understood. He had a lot on his mind, and the fresh air would do him good. She hated that her words had caused Zach pain, but she wasn’t sorry that she had stressed what the repercussions of his reappearance might be.

Once he’d left, her eyes moved to Inspector Ortega, frozen on the screen beside her father. Her parents hadn’t said much about the formal investigation at that time, but it was evident that her dad in particular had little love for the inspector, going by the scathing tone he used whenever his name came up.

She googled ‘Inspector Ortega’ and dozens of online news reports came up. Using the translate button, Lily scrolled through several articles until she came to the most recent one in 2022. She paused when she saw a photograph of Inspector Ortega standing in front of an imposing building. From what she could garner, he had received a distinguished service medal. The auto-translate was tricky to understand, but Lily got the gist.

The inspector had retired from active service. This made sense, because he must be in his seventies now. She did a double take when she came to the final line, which stated that Ortega had retired to the coastal town of Marbella, which they’d passed by on their way to Ronda.

Zach returned within half an hour, but the walk didn’t appear to have resolved anything for him. His face was drawn, and his jaw clenched in the way she’d begun to notice was his when he was upset.