Lying on his stomach, Tommy's eyes fluttered open as the pungent smell hit his nostrils and the ringing tone sounded waking him up. Not moving or making a sound, he scanned the place only to realize he was in a strange room with two men a few feet from him.
"Yes boss, we have the boy but there is a problem." Lying there on the thin mattress, Tommy heard one of the men talk on the phone causing a shiver to run through his body.
He didn't know how he got into the tiny room or who the strange men were making him more scared and worried those men might have hurt his grandmother. Trying to keep his eyes open, all he could remember was the time he left his grandmother to go buy ice cream.
"The police are everywhere looking for this brat. I'm afraid we can't leave for the city today boss." Piping at the two men, he didn't really get what the person on the other side of the phone said.
Seeing the man vigorously nod his head while standing alert when the person on the other side of the phone spoke made him scared.
"The boss said we have to get him to the city by morning. He has to be shipped out of the country with the rest." Ending the call, he spoke to his partner taking a drag of the cigarette in his hand.
"But it's too risky. We have to lie low for some days." His partner spoke pacing around. "If we move now they will surely catch us." Shaking his head he stopped turning to look at his partner.
"We have the orders man, it's up to us to deliver." Flattening the cigarette butt under his shoe, he stood giving orders. "Check if the boy is awake, he has slept for more than five hours."
"Are we leaving now?"
"Yes, we have to move. Go check the boy."
Hearing their conversation, Tommy closed his eyes feigning sleep.
Thinking of his grandmother left all alone or probably hurt, he got worried bringing tears to his eyes. As the man sauntered towards him, he kept his eyes tightly closed trying hard to stay strong for his grandmother.
As the man nudged him with his foot, Tommy clasped his hands tightly together not to make a sound. With his eyes closed, he remembered the movies and cartoons he had watched of children managing to escape from kidnappers. Missing his grandmother as the clock ticked he decided to be brave and escape from the bad men. With his mum and the police looking for him, he knew he had to run away. Hopefully, someone would find him and take him home.
"He is sleeping like a baby."
"He is a baby."
"Yeah yeah. With him asleep it will be easy to move without any suspicions." Listening to them converse only a breath away, he bit his tongue as a scream almost escaped his lips.
"I'll check the car to make sure we have everything we need, we have to move tonight." Tommy slightly opened his eyes looking around as the men turned to leave the room.
"Okay, we should have left already. We stay here longer the cops might catch up with us."
Still laying on the thin mattress, Tommy picked through the small window hoping for a way out but all he could see were trees, endless trees. With the night falling, turning the surroundings dark, he felt more scared but his hopes were restored as the full moon rose brightening the place.
He wanted to go to his grandmother to make sure she was alright and to see his mother too. Before she left for the city, she told him to take care of his grandmother but he had left her behind when he saw his favorite ice cream.
If those men take him away his grandmother would be all alone and he didn't want to leave her. He had to get back home, he missed his mother so much.
When he heard the footsteps gradually grow faint, as the two men went out of the room, Tommy fully opened his eyes. Sitting up he looked at himself. Unbound and unharmed, Tommy carefully stood up. The room was tiny with only two chairs a table and the mattress he was lying on.
Walking to the window, he raised his legs to look at the surroundings. With the moonlight illuminating the trees he was able to see a pathway. Though the forest night was scary, Tommy was more scared of where they were taking him.
If it was any other ordinary kid, they would sit in a corner and cry but not Tommy.
Briefly turning his gaze to the closed door not knowing how far those men were, he decided to climb out the window. Not being small as he was a year ago, only his head would fit through the small window.
Realized he couldn't jump out he turned to the door.
His heart raising, Tommy pulled the handle and slightly opened the door.
With one of the men busy checking the car engine and the other in the back seat with his head buried in the supplies, he fully opened the door.
Finally getting the chance he was hoping for, he snuck out tiptoeing to the back of the house running into the woods. It was scarily for him being all alone with the creepy sounds around him but he had to be brave like his mum had asked him to be.
He had to go back home and take care of his grandmother as had promised his mum. Thinking of the people he loved, he kept running.
In the moonlit forest, all he could hear were the cricket's songs and the sound of his heavy breathing.
From hitting the tree breaches and bushes to occasionally falling to his knees, Tommy didn't look back nor did he feel any pain. All he wanted was to get out of the forest. Go home and sleep on his warm bed.
"Where did he go?" One of the men rushed out to his partner.
He had gone to get the boy but he didn't find him.
"What do you mean? Didn't you say he was asleep?" His partner went into the room to confirm.
"He was, I sure he was."
"We have to get him back. Go look for him. Don't leave any stone unturned." They looked around the cabin but didn't find him. So they decided to comb the forest.
After running for some miles, Tommy got exhausted. Sitting down at the bank of a tree, he looked around wishing his mother was with him. Wrapping his arms around his knees feeling cold and scared he started crying.
"Mum come get me. I'm scared mum please come get me." With tears blurring his vision and his body shivering from the cold, he cried calling for his mum.
Reaching almost the end of the forest, one of the men heard him sniffing directing him to where he sat. near the river to take some rest but they caught up with him. He was cold and scared, crying for his mother to come and get him. The sniffing from his cries directed them to where he was.
"I found him." The man shouted, calling to his partner.
Startled by their presence, Tommy got up in hast turning to look at him. Losing his footing, Tommy fell off the cliff and into the river.
"Ah no no no..." The man tried to hold his chubby little arm but he couldn't.
"Where is he." His partner asked looking around.
"He fell." He responded pointing at the place he had fallen.
"No, we can't afford to lose him." They went down to the river to look for him. Searched everywhere but the water was moving so fast. It had washed him away.