Page 31 of The Stolen Child

Michael’s eyes darted between Robert’s and Zach’s baby photograph. ‘They could be twins,’ he acknowledged. He pointed to the age-progression photograph now. ‘Does he look like this?’

‘Nope. Not at all. Well, maybe the eyes. I honestly can’t see the resemblance to the age-progression photo, but that might not mean anything because—’

‘It can never be an accurate portrayal without both parents’ photographs,’ Michael interrupted. It was impossible to spend time with the Murphy family and not become an expert on missing children.

‘Your father was right all along. He said the photographs and interviews would pay dividends,’ Michael said in wonder.

Lily had shared the same thought earlier, but she still couldn’t trust this information to be true. Discussing this possibility felt surreal, dreamlike.

‘Zach said his mother met and married an American when he was five. He’s close to his stepfather, and he has three younger sisters. He’s on a temporary contract with his firm here in Ireland. It was pure chance that he saw that interview.’

They both took a sip of their coffee, their eyes locked.

‘Where’s his biological father?’ Michael asked.

‘He never had a relationship with him. His stepfather looked him up a few years ago and found out that he’d died.’

‘Okay, but I’m still missing something here,’ Michael said, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the photographs again. ‘Why does he think he’s Robert? Just because he looks like this? That sounds fishy to me.’

Lily frowned. Now that Michael was questioning it, she realised it seemed preposterous. But it wasn’t only the photographs.

‘He used to have an imaginary friend as a young child.’ She exhaled deeply. ‘He called her his other mother.’

Michael raked his hands through his hair and swore softly under his breath.

‘I know. It’s a lot,’ Lily said.

‘What does he want from you?’ Michael’s eyes narrowed. ‘Did he ask for anything?’

Lily shook her head quickly. ‘He looked stressed by it all too. He wanted to talk it through, but I asked him to leave. I couldn’t handle him being here. I suppose I’ll have to get in touch, once I’ve had a chance to think about it all.’

Michael stood up and grabbed a notebook and pen from a drawer on the kitchen island. Then he flipped open their laptop and switched it on. ‘Right. I’d like to know more about what or who we are dealing with before we invite this Zach dude back into our home. Can you start by listing everything you know about this man? Let’s regain some power and ensure he’s been telling the truth about the basics. For all we know, this is some kind of shakedown. A scam to get money.’

Lily jumped up, her heart pounding. She had never been more grateful for her husband than she was right now. She knew he’d have a plan.

‘I’ll get his file. It has his address and date of birth in it,’ Lily replied, sprinting to the office.

It took Michael only a few moments to find confirmation that Zach did work for the firm he’d given her. He was listed in their employee section. And his image was included in a recent fundraiser on their Instagram page. He’d cycled from Dublin to Wexford with twenty colleagues, who’d raised over fifty thousand euros for a children’s charity. Lily took in his bright, wide smile as he posed for a photograph, sitting on his bike. And she fancied she could see a resemblance to her mother around his mouth and chin.

‘Let’s see if he’s been tagged in any of the photos, then we can do a deeper dive into his online profile,’ Michael said. He tapped away on the screen for a few minutes, then whooped when he found his personal account. He had 412 followers and followed 155 accounts, most of which were brand and sports-related accounts. They scrolled through his grid, clicking on each photograph. The most recent images were posted in June, with the caption ‘June photo dump’. Ten shots, which included the charity cycle run, a night out in a bar and a barbecue at a friend’s house.

‘This feels intrusive,’ Lily said, nibbling her bottom lip.

‘You think he’s not had a good look through all of your socials?’ Michael muttered.

A shiver ran down Lily’s spine. She remembered Zach mentioning Ben by name and how odd it had felt. Now she had never felt more vulnerable.

‘Open that one.’ Lily pointed to an image of Zach standing in the middle of three girls, his arms looping over their shoulders. ‘I think that could be him with his sisters. He’s the eldest of four.’

They both peered closely at the image as Michael zoomed in on it. They looked tanned and happy, standing before a grey lake beneath a blue cloudless sky.

‘He looks more like them than me,’ Lily said firmly.

‘Hmm,’ Michael replied. ‘These two sisters are alike. And Zach has a similar colouring to this one. They do look like siblings, I suppose.’ He turned and scrutinised Lily. ‘There are similarities between you and Zach too. You have the same smile, chin . . .’

Damn it, Lily thought. Michael saw that too. Her stomach began to cramp in protest again. She decided to ignore her husband’s comment. If Lily allowed herself to believe, to hope, that Zach was her brother . . . Her body trembled at what that might mean for her and her family.

‘Location says this is Lake Champlain,’ Michael added.