THE MAN’S WORDS TUMBLE THROUGH Jordan’s mind like a flock of Angry Birds.
‘Where’s my mum?’ Jordan had asked.
‘She is . . . she is . . . somewhere else.’ His voice was deep and not unfriendly, but there was a coldness to it that frightened him.
‘Is she dead?’
‘Yes.’
He didn’t want to believe it, but Jordan knew it was true. Didn’t he witness the man squeeze her neck and stand frozen as she dropped to the ground? He has played that scene over and over in his head. A small part of him couldn’t quite accept it, but when he heard it direct from the killer’s mouth, Jordan crumpled and sobbed, his shattered heart crushing into dust.
The man said nothing. He just watched.
Tears stung Jordan’s eyes and snot ran from his nose. His chest heaved as he wiped his face with his sleeves. ‘W-w-why?’
The man sighed. ‘Don’t be sad, Jordan. She’s in a better place.’
‘What does that mean?’
‘It means she’ll be preserved in the hearts and minds of generations to come.’
Jordan scratched his temples hard. He was terrified but deep down an anger was racing to the surface. ‘I don’t know what that means. You’re not making sense!’
‘Think of her like a modern Mona Lisa. That lady has been preserved for more than 500 years in the hearts and minds of people from all over the world. People are born, they live, they die. Wars rage, famines purge and plagues cull. But the Mona Lisa remains as she was created: enigmatic, dignified, beautiful. Your mother will be just like her.’
Jordan didn’t know what to say to that.
The man tossed a plastic carrier bag at his feet. ‘Don’t be frightened. This nightmare will end soon.’ He then shut the door and slid across the bolt.
Jordan felt his blood go cold. What did he mean by that?
He inched away from the bag half expecting rats or spiders to spill from it, but nothing came. Now, after thirty minutes his curiosity has gotten the better of him and he peers inside. There is a cheese and ham sandwich, a packet of bacon crisps and a can of warm Coca Cola. His stomach rumbles and despite his despair he tears open the wrappers and stuffs himself.