Eventually, the engine stopped and the sound of the driver getting out of the cab and coming to the back doors brought another rush of fear to Danny’s mind. With his breath coming in shallow gulps he squeezed into the corner of the van, trying to make himself as small as possible in the futile hope that whoever they were, they might go away and forget about him.

They didn’t.

The man who was in the back with him dragged Danny towards the doors before hoisting him over his shoulders as if he was no weight at all. Kicking his legs around was useless and earned another, even harder, slap to his head.

For a moment, Danny felt sick and dizzy. Then he allowed his body to go limp – it seemed pointless to struggle with this large strong man. Unable to see his surroundings was frustrating and terrifying, but Danny concentrated on listening for sounds that might give him a clue as to where they were. It was quiet with only the faint sound of vehicles in the distance and the happy song of birds busily flying from tree to tree without a care in the world. The rain was still falling and the men’s boots squelched as they walked, as if they were stepping in mud. It could have been a farm, or perhaps a cottage in the country somewhere?

Danny was carried inside and up a flight of stairs, then dropped onto the hard floor, sending a sharp pain through his hip and down his right leg. As the man left the room, closing the door firmly behind him, Danny heard the sound of bolts sliding into place – two bolts locking him in, then the sound of the man stomping down the stairs. For a minute Danny remained still, listening. There was the sound of voices downstairs, the same two men, but it wasn’t possible to make out what they were saying.

When he was as sure as he could be that he was alone in the room, Danny freed his arms from their loose binding and pulled off the hood to look around. He was in a square room with a small window, bare floorboards and nothing other than a dirty-looking mattress in one corner and a bucket in another. A couple of blankets were on the end of the mattress. The walls were half-covered with peeling paper and the damp was running down to the rotting skirting boards. It was so very different to his bedroom at home, a place he briefly wondered if he’d ever see again. Danny remembered his rucksack with his mobile phone but realised he must have dropped it when the man grabbed him. Perhaps someone would find it and know he’d been kidnapped?