‘At the moment we don’t know if Leon has left the grounds of the estate or not. We have police officers and park staff out searching, but there are three hundred acres to cover. There are also police officers going into the local area to see if anyone has any information; if anyone saw him walking outside the park or waiting for a bus. I need all of you to think carefully about anything Leon said or did yesterday that was unusual, or different. If any of you can think of where he might have gone, it’s very important that you tell us. We need to make sure Leon is safe. He won’t be in trouble when we find him.’ He looked at Liz Marcek. ‘We’re still trying to get in contact with Steve Wilkinson. The number you’ve given us is going straight to voicemail.’

A couple of the teenagers turned to look at each other, one continued to stare straight at Singh and the other looked at the ground. It had been thirteen years since I’d left school, and it felt like a lot longer, but I tried to put myself in their position. The five of them were all in care, with the residential part of the school acting as a care home year-round for those students who needed it. Foster carers who could use BSL were rare, so the arrangement worked well and ensured consistency for the students. Anna had gone to Lincoln School for the Deaf, so I knew a little about it already, although I had only been to the school a couple of times when I was a teenager, to watch Anna starring in drama performances.

Just because they all lived together didn’t necessarily mean they were friends, but I knew from Anna’s stories it was likely the residents knew each other pretty well. Leon was fifteen, and there could be all sorts of reasons a fifteen-year-old would run away, but until the police discovered why he’d gone it might be harder to figure out where he’d gone. I cast my eyes over the group again, and realised one of the girls was looking at me, her head tilted slightly to one side, one hand fiddling with the pendant around her neck. She was dressed in very drab clothes, dark jeans and a grey jumper that was too big for her, and her mud-brown hair hung limply.

I decided to take the initiative. Have you thought of something? I signed to her.

The girl looked over at the staff members, then shook her head.

Cassie, it’s okay. If you know something, you should tell them, Miss Marcek told her, but the girl shook her head again.

I don’t know where he went, she signed, and I interpreted for the detectives. She looked at me again, something like defiance in her eyes. He’s been looking forward to this trip for weeks.