No Harry.

No Veronica.

Instantly, Sarah’s stomach lurched.

Where were they? Where were they?

Where was her son?

An image of Veronica smiling duplicitously shot through Sarah’s mind, but she breathed deeply and resisted the lure of it. They were grownups now; Veronica was a trusted teacher. Whatever hung between them, it would never reach so far as to put her son at risk. The playground. That was all. Surely they were at the playground. Harry had grown restless and Veronica had taken him out for some air. That must be it.

“Playground?” Amelia queried.

But they were not in the playground.

And they were not in the staff room, or the toilets, or any of the other classes into which she and Amelia peered with increasing haste. Sarah tried not to reveal her growing panic to her daughter, but her voice grew higher and faster as she hurried Amelia this way and that, and then back to the classroom, where she noticed that not only was Veronica not there, but her bag was missing too. Now Sarah couldn’t contain her terror. Where the hell was the bitch? Where was Harry? What was she doing with him? She looked at her watch – it had been a good fifteen minutes since they’d finished with the nurse, almost half an hour altogether. Should she call the police? The school security? Or is that exactly what Veronica wanted? To make her look silly and paranoid. To paint her as a parent not in control. What was her plan? What game was she playing this time? Whatever it was, Sarah could no longer play it. Feeling tears welling, her courtroom poise by now far out of reach, Sarah took out her phone to call David, and she was just about to press the call button when suddenly, of course, she heard a giggle from the corridor. And they were there.

The first thing she did, was to bundle Harry so tightly into her arms that he wriggled from lack of breath. The second thing, was to turn violently towards Veronica. Despite the learned courtroom art of patience and control, this time Sarah found it impossible to hold back her fury. “Where were you?” she spat through gritted teeth, “Why did you take my son away?”

Veronica smiled, seemingly oblivious to Sarah’s tone, and ruffled Harry’s hair. “He was hungry. So we went to the staff room for a snack. And then we’ve been walking about all over the place. He’s been leading the way. He’s so adorable.”

“Did you not think I might be worried?”

“I took my phone. I thought you’d call.”

In her panic, Sarah hadn’t thought of that.

“Sorry,” said Veronica. “Did we worry you?” Then, without waiting for an answer, she cast her eyes at Amelia. “Well, that’s a proper injury,” she declared. “You’re very brave.” Amelia puffed up with pride, and Veronica leaned in to inspect it closer, before whispering to Sarah. “We can finish our chat another time. It’s not urgent anymore.” Then she painted on a broad smile, and went back into the classroom, where she was a teacher and Sarah was a parent, and she still held all the power. And Sarah was left, staring, with her children, at the closed wooden door.