The Room

He was found in what was once a white box, a room with no windows. We had to storm the door and it took many attempts. There are two bad padlocks and a bolt. And we needed to switch on a weak light in order to see. A single bell light bulb hung like a pendulum from the ceiling. casting shadows across the room, deep and long, a spider with its prey.

He was no more than three, a skinny little thing with long black hair. He wore a grubby T-shirt, much too small, and was naked from the waist down. The only furniture in the room was a chair. Currently on its side and casting additionalbars of darkness across the room.

There was a gagging smell of urine, shit, and vomit which was spread across the four walls and floor.

The child was crouched in the corner, arms covering his head, eyes as rounders footballs, clearly terrified. He began to move and shake. And squeezed himself smaller into a ball no larger than a cat.

I wanted to run in, pick up pick the child, to smother him in love to say, it's okay, its okay now, mummy has found you, at last.

It would've been the right thing to do. But instead, I ran from the room, and vomited and cried.