In the opening of Episode 1 of Vanished, we're introduced to a biker riding towards a hotel in Marseille, France. As we enter the hotel room, we find Alice washing her bloody hands at the sink. A knock at the door surprises her, and the biker announces that he's there to deliver a package. However, Alice pushes a chair against the door and escapes through the window. The man gives chase, but for some reason, Alice is limping, and her screams for help go unnoticed. The man quickly catches up and draws his knife.
Flashing back a week earlier, we see Alice arriving in France from Albania to meet with her boyfriend, Tom. She's an archaeologist who travels the world for work. She meets with Tom at a hotel, and they quickly get busy. After a lovemaking session, she notices a new bird tattoo on Tom. He claims it reminds him of her.
Later, they head to dinner, and Alice asks about his work in Jordan. Tom shrugs it off, claiming it's all the same. Alice informs him about a job offer she's received to teach at Princeton, which is her dream job. She wants Tom to move with her, and he seems hesitant but agrees to relocate.
The following morning, Alice wakes up to find Tom on the balcony, talking on the phone with his uncle, Brian. As she gets ready, she sees an entry in his diary and Googles it, discovering it's a jewelry shop that specializes in engagement rings.
At breakfast, Tom announces that Brian called in a favor and got them a room at one of the hotels Alice has been dying to stay at. The hotel is in Arles, so they take a train. On the way, Tom's jokes offend the old woman sitting next to them, who grows more judgmental after realizing that Tom and Alice are not married.
Tom gets a call and excuses himself as the train comes to a stop. Alice takes a picture of the bridge on their way and falls asleep. She wakes up to discover that Tom never returned to his seat. She starts looking for him on the train but he's nowhere to be seen. He's also not picking up his phone. By this time, they're approaching Avignon.
Alice begins to panic, frantically displaying Tom's picture throughout the train carriage. No one has seen or heard from him, and the bus conductor, Maurice, proves to be of no assistance. He stubbornly refuses to allow her to search his office, causing an argument between the two. Just as the dispute escalates, Alice receives a call from Tom, but he remains silent. All she can hear are the sounds of a waterfall and a car door closing.
Helene, the woman acting as her language translator, disembarks the train with Alice in Marseille. She kindly offers to escort Alice to the police station, but the latter declines. Helene nonetheless provides her with directions and her business card, hoping that Alice will change her mind. However, Alice is convinced that this is merely a misunderstanding that will be swiftly resolved.
On her way to the police station, she inadvertently fails to notice a man following her. At the station, Inspector Drax insists that they must wait 48 hours before declaring Tom a missing person. He theorizes that Tom might have disappeared to avoid relocating to America with Alice. Given that Tom's passport is not in his bag, Inspector Drax is not inclined to reconsider his theory. Despite Alice's desperate attempts to explain the urgency and seriousness of the situation, he remains unyielding and unhelpful.
Frustrated and exhausted, Alice secures a room at a local hotel. Returning to the picture she took of the bridge, she reflects on their meeting four years ago in Jordan. Tom's car tire had burst, and he was on his way to deliver vaccinations. The memory brings a sense of nostalgia and urgency to her search for him.
Tom, the Director of Operations at SOS Global, an NGO that aids Syrian refugees in Jordan, found himself in need of a ride to the camp. Despite the inconvenience, Alice offered to drive him there. As they chatted on the way, Tom couldn't help but tease her about how spotless her car was.
Now, Alice has decided to rent a car and return to the exact spot where Tom went missing. There, she discovers a bubblegum wrapper from his favorite brand, which reminds her of the moment he tried to offer her gum before he received that fateful call. She also notices skid marks and realizes that the water sounds were coming from a nearby bridge. As she investigates further, she comes across a few dogs guarding a house. She spots blood and decides to investigate inside. She opens one of the doors and sees a hanged animal carcass.
When she returns to the station, Drax ignores her evidence of foul play and warns her to tread carefully when she points out his expensive car. He leaves to meet with his wife. Alice takes a break on the stairs and reminisces about the camp where she first drove Tom when they met. Tom had stood up bravely against local bandits who were trying to capture Syrian refugees for human trafficking.
Currently, Alice meets with Helene, who shares her theory that Tom was kidnapped. However, Helene, who turns out to be an investigative journalist, thinks it is unlikely. She asks Alice to look for more than just gum wrappers and suggests that she start by looking into Tom's recent activities.
Alice goes back to the hotel and goes through Tom's things. She finds a telephone receipt from their last hotel and calls the number, expecting Brian to pick up as Tom had suggested. Instead, the call goes directly to the SOS Global office. She goes through the photos in Tom's camera and comes across a picture of him with one of the volunteers. Alice grows suspicious after seeing that the woman has the same bird tattoo as Tom and that they appear very close in the picture.
