2006. Tony and Emily Hughes' life changes forever when their five-year-old son Oliver goes missing on a family holiday to France. A huge manhunt led by Julien Baptiste, one of France's finest detectives, is launched. The French police face an uphill struggle in their mission to find the young boy - Oliver seems to have disappeared into thin air. Tony and Emily are in a foreign land - they do not speak the language and do not understand the rules. As their desperation and the profile of the case grows, Tony and Emily find themselves thrown into a media maelstrom, learning the hard way that not everyone they meet is willing to operate in their best interests. Present day. Eight years on from Oliver's disappearance, the fallout has resulted in the end of Tony and Emily's marriage. Tony refuses to believe that Oliver is dead and doggedly continues his search to find his son. After years of searching, Tony is given new hope when a shred of evidence emerges. This reignites the interest of Julien Baptiste, the lead French detective at the time of the disappearance, who returns to Chalons Du Bois to try and finally get to the bottom of what happened to Oliver Hughes.
2006: Three days since Oliver's disappearance, and with little information to go on, suspicion immediately falls on a known paedophile living in the area. With police protocol keeping Tony and Emily firmly in the dark, Tony is tempted when ambitious journalist, Malik Suri, comes forward with illegally obtained information on the suspect in custody. Then the suspect is released with a seemingly concrete alibi. A generous benefactor reaches out to Tony and Emily when they are at their lowest ebb, offering a financial reward for anyone coming forward with information relating to Oliver's disappearance. Present day: Tony's attempt to reopen the investigation gathers momentum as he and Julien finally find the first bit of solid evidence. While Tony continues on his mission to find out the truth about what exactly happened to his son, both Emily and Julien have to deal with problems in their own lives.
Progress into the case is initially slow but a shocking new lead emerges.
The stress of the reopening of the case takes a toll on Emily and Mark's relationship.
In 2006, Tony and Emily's pleas to reinvestigate a suspect again fall on deaf ears.
In the present day, Tony and Julien make a breakthrough.
Tony and Emily return to Chalons du Bois and their relationship thaws.
The truth about Oliver's disappearance finally comes to light.
A young British woman stumbles through the streets of Eckhausen in Germany and collapses. Her name is Alice Webster, and she was abducted from the same town 11 years ago. Her return sends shockwaves through the tight-knit local community, as her family are thrown into turmoil. As the search for the abductor gathers pace, Alice also appears to hold vital clues to the whereabouts of a second missing girl, Sophie Giroux, whose disappearance was investigated back in 2003 by French detective Julien Baptiste. Two years on, Alice's parents Sam and Gemma are barely speaking, whilst Alice's brother Matthew has become violent and withdrawn. Meanwhile, Julien is in Iraq, following a clue that he believes is key to finding the person who abducted the girls.
After Alice returns to her family home, the Websters struggle to deal with the trauma she has suffered. As Matthew is faced with an unbearable request, Gemma's suspicions about what happened to her daughter begin to grow. The Royal Military Police and the German police agree to share jurisdiction over the case and launch a search for the second missing girl. During a search, Julien discovers a key clue that points the investigation towards a local suspect. In 2016, war journalist Stefan Andersson is helping Julien make his way to Azwya across an active warzone. What is Julien doing out in Iraq? And will he make it home unscathed? Meanwhile, back in Eckhausen, Gemma and Sam continue to drift apart, while RMP staff sergeant Eve Stone has to deal with her father.
Julien returns to Paris to visit the father of Sophie Giroux, but Remy isn't all that pleased to see him. Meanwhile, Alice is upset by an argument in the house and begs her brother, Matthew, to act against his better judgment in order to help her feel safe. When another unforeseeable trauma hits the Webster family, it looks set to tear them apart for good. In Iraq, Julien finally comes face to face with the Awol British soldier he has been searching for - but not in the way he expected. The trail of evidence looks like it leads back to Germany, but will Julien and Stefan make it out alive? Back in Eckhausen, Gemma channels her energy into searching for the truth of what happened to her daughter, uncovering a vital clue.
With Sam in hospital, the Websters begin to fracture as he continues to push away his wife and son. Gemma is forced to face up to the devastating truth of the destruction wrought on her family as she makes a statement to the press. While trawling through CCTV footage with German police officer Jorn Lenhart, Julien uncovers a surprising connection that implicates another major suspect. In 2016, Julien and Stefan return to Erbil to trace the lead they were given and discover a shocking truth that implicates two suspects back in Germany. Gemma continues her determined and desperate search for the truth about her daughter's disappearance, enlisting the help of Eve Stone. Her investigation seems to be hitting a brick wall, before she makes a breakthrough that implies the crimes of Alice and Sophie's abductor stretch further than originally thought. But will she make it to the missing girl in time?
Julien and Jorn's investigation leads them further into the murky underbelly of Eckhausen and the secrets of its conflicting German and British communities. However, as he gets closer to the truth, Julien is dramatically let down by his own body. The Webster family drift further and further apart as Matthew gets involved with violent thugs and Sam seeks solace elsewhere. In 2016, Julien returns to Eckhausen to confront the prime suspect in Alice's abduction. Meanwhile, Eve and Jorn work together on following up Gemma's lead, bringing them closer than ever before to tracking down the missing girl. Sam and Gemma are finally moving towards a reconciliation, until a shock announcement looks set to shake them both to the core.
It is now 2015 and Julien's health is failing, but his determination to track down the missing girl means he has not finished with the Webster case just yet. Back in Germany, the press descend on Eckhausen for a trial when a seemingly vital piece of new evidence comes to light. Gemma is surprised by a phone call from Julien and finds a new purpose that helps break through her stupor. A year later and Julien is still searching for his third suspect when he comes across a name that he recognises. However, he finds himself running out of time as friends in Eckhausen are beginning to question his mental capacity. Can he persuade anyone to listen to him? And will they make it to the missing girl in time? Meanwhile, Matthew's behaviour becomes more and more extreme, culminating in a violent altercation with life-changing consequences for the Webster family.
Secrets from the past are uncovered as Julien finally learns the truth behind Alice and Sophie's abduction. But time is running out, and nobody in Eckhausen will listen to him. Has Julien cracked the case, or is he simply deluded? With nowhere left to turn, how far will Julien go in his search to find the truth? Meanwhile, Sam and Gemma are forced to make a heartbreaking choice and are pushed further apart than ever before. As Julien is forced to take matters into his own hands, Gemma joins him in a final desperate race to uncover the truth.
The truth of the events leading up to Alice's return to Eckhausen in 2014 is finally revealed. Meanwhile, in 2016, Sam and Gemma are pulling together and join Julien in a desperate race against time, as they track Alice and Sophie's abductor from Germany all the way to the mountains of Switzerland.
