DI Mason took a deep breath as he walked into the briefing room that morning. If the phone call he had received that woke him up was anything to go by, this case that had just come in was going to be a long one.

“So what have we got so far?” He asked as soon as he made his way to the front of the room. He always figured the best thing to do with cases that were set to be long was jump straight in. No point in messing around when there was someone out there threatening the lives of the public.

“Well, the tapes were found at the front door of the station around 5am this morning when the officer due to take over the front desk came to start his shift.” An officer said as she came forward to perch on the desk that was right in front of her DI.

“And the officer that was at the desk didn’t see anything?” Mason asked.

“Not at the time no. He checked over the CCTV after the tapes were brought to his attention and that’s where things get a little odd.”

“Odd in what way?”

“Well when they looked at the footage....”

“What are you about to tell me that no one was there?” The DI asked wondering what would make the office sceptical about what she had seen.

“No there was someone there. But it was a child.” She told him, watching as the same quizzical look that she was wearing write itself over the mans face.

“A child? Of what age?”

“Impossible to tell exactly, but from what we saw around maybe six or seven.”

“You better show me the tapes that this child delivered.” He said following as she hopped down from the desk and made her way over to where a few computers were placed at the back of the room.

The officer sat down at the only available chair at the desk leaving Mason stood behind her. “So there where four tapes in total each of them containing a number of short clips of what looks like a kidnapping. Tape 1 contains what looks like a woman in her 20’s being grabbed from behind.” She pressed play on the 20 second clip showing what she had just described. “As you can see we have no way of knowing who grabbed the woman as all we can see is a close up of an arm in black and gloved hand. And it’s obvious that this person who did the grab is different from the person that is filming, meaning there is at least two people involved.”

“Three if we count the child who dropped the tapes at the front.” The DI said although he knew that technically the child could be the one filming but doubted it.

“Yes three.” She agreed as she clicked off the video clip. “So this next clip is of a similar nature however you can see the woman being dragged backwards.” She explained as she clicked play on the next scene. “Now all of tape 1 is of the woman being grabbed and then being placed into an unmarked grey van.” She said clicking through the few remaining clips quickly.

“So this all looks like the woman has been taken from a park. Are we thinking it’s the local one?” He asked already assuming that someone would be checking to see if the few passing images on the screen match up to the local area.

“There out there now but it does look like it yes.”

“Good so what about these other tapes?”

DI Mason waited a few moments before the officer arranged the next clips to be played. “Tape 2 contains clips of the journey to woman took with the captive or captives. This one you still can’t see her face clearly though because her hood has been pulled down however if I pause and zoom in.” She explained and he watched and she moved the mouse to scroll to the left. “You can just about make out her hair colour that looks to be a light blond to me just poking out from the fur of the hood.” He moved closer to the screen not wanting to admit it but realising not for the first time that his late 50’s eye sight was getting worse.

“Now tape 3.” She continued as she clicked through the clips quicker now. “This one contains her been pushed into some kind of room, still she is hard to identify due to her coat covering her, and the 4th tape contains footage of her tied to a chair a what looks like a cloth bag covering her head while the camera is moved around her.”

“And the audio?” He asks suddenly realising that everything he has seen so far has been silent.

“There isn’t any. That’s what’s weird. This tape you would expect from the way it’s been filmed for some kind of conversation but nothing. There is no sound to any of these.

A few moments later DI Mason moved away from the officer leaving her still clicking on the clips. Kidnapping were always difficult to figure out but this one, with what he had seen on the screen and the confusing nature of why a child would be dropping off these tapes looked impossible.