Man Finds Note Saying ‘Adam, 10 yo, Help Me!’ Under Seat in a Cab – Story of the Day

Matthew was a former detective turned private investigator. After coming across a "Help!" note from a 10-year-old boy in a taxi, Matthew would find himself in one of the strangest mysteries thus far.

Matthew was a former detective who had served seven years in the police force. He was married to his wife, Elizabeth, and they had two children together. Elizabeth worried about Matthew's safety in the force, especially after they had children.

The fearsome worry of waiting on her husband and not knowing if he would come back home or get a call informing her about his death began to take a major toll on her. She finally convinced Matthew to quit the force.

So, Matthew eventually left the force and set up a private investigation company. Things were a bit tough initially, but Matthew soon gathered a good enough clientele to get his business moving.

One day, Matthew was heading home from a bar after taking his company staff out for drinks. He had had quite a bit to drink, so he decided to leave his car and grab a local taxi back home.

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"Had a bit of a night, huh?" the taxi driver asked Matthew.

"Haha, yeah. A couple of drinks with my staff turned into something else. I should probably call the Mrs. and let her know I'm safe," Matthew said, pulling out his phone.

"If she's anything like my wife, I'd do that ASAP," the taxi driver said, laughing. Just then, they hit a hump, and Matthew dropped his phone while texting his wife.

"Sorry about that, sir," the taxi driver said.

"No problem," Matthew said, bending down to pick up his phone from under the passenger seat. As he scrambled for his phone under the seat, he came across a small note written "Help" on it stuck under the seat.

Matthew opened the note and read it in full. It read, "Adam, 10 years old, Help!" Matthew was confounded but kept his calm. He had encountered several kidnapping cases in his line of work. He discreetly took a picture of the driver's name and photo before exiting the taxi.

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Later at home, Matthew sat in bed, looking at the note in deep contemplation. Elizabeth walked in and joined him in bed.

"The little ones are all tucked in," she said warmly.

"That's great, hun'," Matthew replied nonchalantly, his attention still on the note. Noting her husband's distraction, Elizabeth instantly snatched the note from his hands.

"What's got your mind so far from me at this hour of the night?" she asked before reading the note aloud, "Adam, 10 years old, Help!"

"Where did you get this?" Elizabeth asked in a slight panic.

"I found it in the cab home," Matthew responded.

"I know I promised to keep it light and not to take on any major cases. But—" Matthew started before Elizabeth cut in.

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"No buts, Matthew. We have a family now. I can't go through that kind of stress again. This is a kidnapping case! Who knows what kind of trouble this could bring for you and our family?" Elizabeth said emotionally.

"I know, my love. But it's a child. Imagine if it were Peter or Lisa. I'm sure it's nothing major. But I can't just sit back and watch," Matthew said solemnly.

Elizabeth sighed deeply, lay down, then turned away from Matthew in frustration. Then, after a moment of silence, she finally concluded, "Just promise me you'll be careful. Goodnight."

"I promise, my love." Matthew said, kissing her on the cheek.

The next day, Matthew called one of his old friends from the police force, Ben, and asked him to check all the cases of missing children in the past year and to specifically look for a child called Adam.

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Matthew's friend got back to him a couple of hours later, saying he had found a report on a missing boy named Adam. He said it was a rather odd case.

"The boy's parents called to report the kidnapping of their kid on a Monday morning almost a month back. They then called the station that very evening and said they found the kid. Turns out he was with his grandmother the whole time. She must've taken the kid from school without the parents' knowledge or something. It was a closed case," Ben explained.

"Alright. Thanks again, Benny,"

Matthew told himself that there was probably nothing to worry about. When he was in the force, these types of misunderstandings used to happen all the time. But the more he thought about it, the less sense it made. If the child was with his grandmother, then why the note?

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Matthew decided to go to the parent's house and investigate further. He feared the child might be a victim of domestic violence. The parents lived on a large estate and were pretty wealthy. Adam's stepmother met him at the door when he got there. He asked to see Adam but was met with much difficulty.

"I'm sorry, Adam's not here right now. He is at school," Adam's stepmother explained.

"Oh, okay. No problem. What time does he get back? I'd like to have a chat with him," Matthew said.

"Uhm... It's a bad time right now. H—He's going to his grandmother's after school. I'd give you her address, but I don't remember it," the stepmother nervously explained. Matthew could sense she was hiding something, but he simply thanked her and left.

Sitting in his car on a stakeout, contemplating his next move, he saw one of Adam's parents' neighbors taking out the trash. Matthew figured this was an ideal opportunity to get more information.

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Matthew asked the neighbor about Adam's grandmother. The neighbor explained that Adam's grandmother had passed away three months ago. At this point, Matthew was certain that something fishy was going on. According to Ben, the case was closed because it turned out he was at his grandmother's house. However, she was no longer alive by then.

The neighbor also told Matthew that Adam's father had divorced Adam's mother after inheriting his late rich father's company. Since then, Adam's parents have constantly been at odds over who Adam would live with. After a lengthy battle, the court finally decided that Adam should stay with his father because his mother was struggling financially.

He looked up the taxi driver and arranged a lunch meeting with him.

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Matthew asked the taxi driver about the note and if he remembered anything strange. He showed the taxi driver a photo of Matthew, but the driver said he had never seen him before. He explained to Matthew that the car was fairly new to him. He had bought it second-hand from a man three weeks back.

Matthew asked Ben to help him track the previous owner, and it turned out that he was Adam's mother's boyfriend. Matthew was now certain that the boy was with his mother. Ben got Matthew Adam's mother's address and paid them a visit.

Matthew arrived at their home, and before he had even got to the door, he saw Adam, his mother, Ashley, and her boyfriend, John, playing a jolly game of soccer in the small front yard. The boy looked happy and didn't seem to be in any sort of danger.

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Matthew introduced himself, and the family welcomed him in for tea and biscuits. Matthew was shocked to see how good-hearted, kind, and educated Adam's mother and her boyfriend were. Over tea, they finally explained to Matthew everything that had transpired.

"I had to take my Adam away from my ex-husband, Luke. He didn't care much for his child. Not the way I did. Adam was miserable there. Luke didn't love him or want him. He was too preoccupied with his new wife and business. But he wouldn't let me see him," Ashley said.

"If he didn't want Adam, why not just let him stay with you? Then he can live his life however he pleases. I mean, you have both clearly moved on," Matthew inquired.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Ashley said.

"I wanted to live with my mom. Dad and his wife were mean to me. This is my home," Adam said.

"Okay. But what about the note?" Matthew asked, placing the note on the table.

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"Oh. I remember writing this. Uncle John came to pick me up from school, but I didn't know him at the time. So I thought it would save me if I was getting kidnapped. My mother had always taught me to be careful. He said she had sent him, but I didn't trust him," Adam said.

"And that was pretty smart of you, champ," John said, frisking Adam's hair playfully.

"Yeah, I was pretty scared until I saw Mom waving at us as we approached the driveway. No offense Uncle John, but you looked pretty dodgy," Adam said with a chuckle.

The story was beginning to make sense, but there was one thing Matthew still couldn't understand. Why would Luke let him go just like that after all the court battles? And even more so, why would he fight so hard for a child he didn't want in the first place?

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Matthew left Ashley and John's place, but his investigation was not yet done. He asked a couple of his lawyer friends to check if any inheritance was left for little Adam in the last couple of years. And as Matthew had suspected, one of the lawyers confirmed that Adam's grandmother had left him a whopping $2 million.

Matthew finally understood what Adam's father was up to. Luke was keeping custody of the boy so he could have a claim over his inheritance. He was afraid that she could claim the money if Ashley had custody.

Matthew decided to help Adam's mom get custody of Adam so that Luke wouldn't get a cent of his money. He lent Ashley and John money to help them get on their feet. Matthew even hired Ashley at his offices while John found himself a job.

They were both eventually able to get back on their feet and take Luke to court again. Ashley won the case this time, as their financial affairs were in order, and they were finally free to be a happy family.

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What can we learn from this story?

• Love conquers all. Ashley's love for her son led to an eventual victory for them in the end.
• Help those in need. Even though Matthew's wife didn't support his decision, he still did what he could to help Adam and his family.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a man who abandons his wife with newborn triplets only for them to accidentally meet a few years later.

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