“Help me, I’ve been kidnapped, and I’ve been
missing for ten years. And I’m here. I’m free now!”
Those
were the words spoken by Amanda Berry to the 911 operator after her escape from
Ariel Castro’s Cleveland home. Amanda had been kidnapped by Castro on the day
before her seventeenth birthday, and held captive by him for ten years. While
finally escaping, she carried her six-year-old daughter as she crawled out of a
hole kicked into the door of Castro’s house. Two more women were released from
the house, leaving people all around the world wondering how Ariel Castro could
treat fellow human beings like his own personal slaves.
But
Amanda Berry, Michelle Knight, and Gina DeJesus are not the only victims of
such a crime. Josef Fritzl kept his own daughter, Elisabeth, captive for 24
years, which resulted in the births of seven children. Natascha Kampusch spent
3096 days in captivity with her kidnapper Wolfgang Přiklopil until she escaped
on the 23rd August 2006.
While
I was researching the kidnapping cases above, I began to question everything I
knew about humanity. It can be difficult to comprehend the cruelty of our own
kind when reading about these crimes. Joseph Fritzl, Wolfgang Přiklopil, and
Ariel Castro are truly the worst of us, and the dehumanisation of their victims
is a chilling exploration into a complete lack of morality. The idea of being
completely controlled by another person is a terrifying and claustrophobic
thought that squarely hit many of my own worst fears.
But
at the heart of it all is an incredible strength and instinct for survival. For
an example of
the resilience of the human spirit, we need only think of Amanda
Berry escaping through a hole in a door with her daughter in her arms, or
Natascha Kampusch running through gardens to escape her kidnapper while he was
distracted.
And
the aftermath can bring out the good in people. Elisabeth Fritzl now lives in a
two storey house in a quiet village, the location of which has never been
revealed. Her new community rallies around her to ensure Elisabeth’s safety and
anonymity. The villagers turn journalists away and are said to be fiercely protective
of her. Now she lives in this close-knit community with her children, while
Josef Fritzl is incarcerated in prison. Ironically, Přikopil and Castro both preferred
suicide over captivity.
Survivors
are people who refuse to be broken no matter what they are forced to endure. Survivors
are the people now free to leave their mark on the world. It was the stories of
these survivors that drew me to this crime, and their stories will stay with me
long after my research ended.
Silent Child,
written by Sarah A Denzil, narrated by Golden Globe winner and Downton Abbey
star Joanne Froggatt has been chosen as Audible’s Thriller of the Year and is
out now on audible.co.uk
Silent Child by Sarah A Denzil
In
the summer of 2006, Emma Price watched helplessly as her six-year-old son's red
coat was fished out of the River Ouse. It was the tragic story of the year - a
little boy, Aiden, wandered away from school during a terrible flood, fell into
the river, and drowned. His body was
never recovered. Ten years later, Emma
has finally rediscovered the joy in life. She's married, pregnant, and in
control again... ... until Aiden returns. Too traumatized to speak, he raises
endless questions and answers none. Only his body tells the story of his
decade-long disappearance. The historic broken bones and injuries cast a mere
glimpse into the horrors Aiden has experienced. Aiden never drowned. Aiden was taken. As Emma attempts to reconnect with her now
teenage son, she must unmask the monster who took him away from her. But who,
in their tiny village, could be capable of such a crime? It's Aiden who has the answers, but he cannot
tell the unspeakable.
Buy it from SHOTS A-Store.
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