Sleepwalk (17 page)

‘Come on Ell, lets go home. This is ridiculous. She’s obviously got plenty of money anyway and she seems like quite a respectable girl. You should be pleased for David and yet you’re acting like a jealous lover following her around like this. Is that what you are?’

‘Abi you know that’s not true. My only concern is for Oliver. He’s my son. I have to know he’s being cared for properly. You must know how hard it has been for me to just give him up? This is not about David.’

‘Ok…….. Ok Ell, but we should also be having a life together and all we seem to do is observe someone else’s life. I can’t take much more of it.’

‘I know……. I know, I’m sorry Abs. Ok, give it another half an hour, please?’

‘What exactly are you hoping to see?’

‘I don’t know. I wanted to follow her back to town; see if she picks Ollie up or not.’

‘And would it matter if she did? Honestly Ellie you need to stop this because it’s not healthy. I’ve had just about enough. As if it wasn’t bad enough us following David; we’re now following his girlfriend. Where will it end?’ Abi turned and began to walk away.

‘Abi! Don’t go! …. Please?’

‘I’ve had it Ell. I’m going home. You do what you like.’

Abi quickened her pace
leaving
Ellie behind her. Torn between watching her subject or going after her lo
ver, Ellie hovered momentarily
then turned and
ran after
Abi.
When they got to the precinct they both stopped in their tracks. A police car had parked across the back of their car and two policemen were studying the vehicle. One was on the radio and the other was walking around it and looking in through the windows. You could hear the woman’s voice on the police radio quite clearly saying
David Wilson of number nine,
Rose Lane, East
Barton
.
Abi caught her arm and whispered to her, ‘Keep walking’. She did as she was told and they walked straight past as if they were heading for a completely different car. When they got to the end of the parking bay Abi dragged her around the corner and they looked back and watched as the two uniformed officers got into their car and slowly drove off.

‘Right come on Ell. We’re going home and then we need to talk.’

Ellie sat at the kitchen table sipping her black coffee while Abi peeled potatoes at the sink, questioning her all the time.

‘So you honestly have no recollection of what happens ……. just these dreams that don’t make any sense?’

‘That’s about the truth of it, yes. Abs whatever it is that happens to me if, as you say things do, then I certainly don’t remember.’

‘Ok.’ Abi put the potato knife down on the draining board and came and sat next to her.

‘Now listen. We need to act fast Ellie. It seems apparent that your car was involved in some kind of scrape but if you don’t remember driving it then you’ll hardly remember hitting anything. Now I know the car was okay on Saturday and we found it damaged on Sunday when we went to the coast so it must have happened on Saturday night. It’s now Tuesday; that’s three days. We’re okay as long as no one has spotted it in the last few days. If they quiz the neighbours we could be in trouble but……... ok. Leave it to me. I know this guy who can sort it out for us.’

‘What do you mean? Say it’s been stolen? We can’t do that Abs. People will have seen us. They’ll know we’re lying.’

‘What else do you suggest?’

‘That we tell the truth.’

‘Oh that you go off for a little drive around town occasionally in your sleep? Do you really want to get yourself locked up?’

‘No I mean we tell the truth about what we know. We woke up on Sunday morning and found that someone had driven into it while it was parked up overnight; which, incidentally is probably what did happen and we’re worrying over nothing.’

‘Right. And this is the same morning you had a dream about waking up in the car by the river?’

‘Yes but they don’t know that and it must have been a dream Abs. How could I possibly drive a car in my sleep? The very idea of it is ludicrous.’

‘Hmmm…… Well ok. Maybe you’re right. We just tell them the facts, and the facts are, we woke up and found the car like that. Ok.’ Abi went back to her potatoes and Ellie stood up to help her prepare tea. Why couldn’t she remember? Sometimes it felt like things were happening to her, things over which she had no control and no recollection other than this distant vision. But the visions didn’t make any sense. Faces of people she had never met and places she had never been all flashing past her as she made her way to a place she didn’t know……….

As David pulled up outside his house that evening he was relieved to find Felicity’s little mini parked in the lane outside. He opened the gates and reversed his car into the driveway, released Ollie from his car seat and went to close the gates. He could hear Ollie shouting to her, ‘Vic! I done a pitcher!’

David smiled to himself and then the aroma drifting along the hall from the kitchen where she was obviously busily cooking dinner suddenly hit him and he realised how hungry he was……. and how good it felt to come home to this.

‘Oh! Wow! Ollie this is excellent! You are so clever. Well done.’

He stepped through the kitchen doorway and caught a glimpse of Felicity kissing his son on the forehead and watched her as she carefully released his arms from his little beige jacket. ‘Did you have a lovely time with Nanny?’

‘Made cakes!’ Ollie smiled at her as she laid his coat down on the chair, turned back to the worktop and began to mash a pan of potatoes.

‘Well, Ollie……. Your talents are unfounded. Cakes with Nanny! Lucky you!’

David came to her side, a wide grin creasing his cheeks. She had a natural maternal instinct which was an incredible bonus….
as well as her beauty, her poise, intelligence and her sexy body
…….

‘Hi! David I’m sorry. I hope you don’t mind? I’ve cooked some fish and peas and there’s parsley sauce but I don’t know if Ollie will like it …… or if you will for that matter.’

‘It sounds wonderful Flick but you shouldn’t have. I wasn’t expecting you to look after us like this.’ As Ollie ran off into the lounge he spun her around and kissed her briefly but very tenderly and she forgot about the fire and the cat and the bump on her head…….. ‘Thank you’ he said and he left her standing there, a potato masher in her right hand, her legs all turned to Jelly and the peas boiling over……….

After they had eaten they played with Ollie for a while and Felicity produced a little book from one of her shopping bags that she had bought for Oliver. She read ‘
James and the diesel engine’
from cover to cover and then had to read it to him again. When it was time for him to go to bed they were both quite shocked when the child insisted, ‘Vic take me a bed’.

‘Ok. But Daddy can come too eh?’

‘You’ve made quite an impression on Oliver.’ David said later.

‘I expect he misses his mum. I’m just a substitute. I think children need both male and female influences in their daily routine, don’t you?’

‘Maybe’

‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound patronising.’

‘You didn’t. You’re probably right. But you know, she never was the motherly type. She was too career minded. Oliver’s been farmed out to family or friends ever since he was born. I was watching you with him. You’ve spent more time playing with him tonight than she’d spend in a week.’

‘That’s a shame.’

‘Yes. You know what else?’

‘What?’

‘You’ve spent more time playing with him tonight than you have with me in the last three months…..’

‘Is that right?’

‘Yes. So…… what are you going to do about it?’

‘Would you like me to read you a story?’

‘I can think of better things to do……’ He sat next to her on the sofa and kissed her and she melted completely in his arms then his hands were moving up and down her arms stroking her gently, then her waist and her thighs and she was completely helpless as he gently pecked at her neck and her shoulders and then……….

‘What’s that?’ She jumped and sat upright, trying to compose herself as David got to his feet and went to the door. ‘Stay there’ he panted, ‘Don’t move…… I’ll be right back.’

‘David Wilson?’

Two police officers greeted him at the door.

‘Can you tell me if you own a dark blue Ford Fiesta sir?’ The constable read the registration number. It was Ellie’s.

‘Yes. Well it’s my wife’s car. Has something happened? Is she ok?’

‘If the car belongs to your wife sir, why is it registered in your name?’

‘Well……. I don’t know exactly. I filled in the log book when we separated and she promised to send it off to change the ownership to her.’

‘So you and your wife are separated Mr Wilson? How long ago was this?’

‘I…… don’t know. I can’t remember exactly.’

‘You can’t remember how long you’ve been separated? You must have an idea? A week? A month? Six months?’

‘About a year or so.’
Thursday evening 23
rd
April 1988
to be precise when I came home from a work course and found her in bed with our son and her gay lover
……

‘A year? You’ve been separated a year and the car is still registered in your name, and at this address?’

‘Yes……… well; that is, I didn’t know she hadn’t sent off the log book. I mean, I filled in my part of it and she assured me she would send it in.’

‘With respect sir, it is the seller’s responsibility to send off the log book to the DVLA and it is illegal not to do so. The fact is made quite clear on the documentation sir. You’ll be hearing from us again regarding this matter. Now, do you know where your wife is living sir? Do you have her address?’

David gave them Ellie’s address and the two police officers made their way down the path, got into their car and drove off. He went back into the lounge where Felicity waited patiently for his return, although no longer in a state of semi undress.

‘Another drink?’

‘Thanks.’ She held up her empty wine glass. ‘What did they want?’

‘Ah… well…… It looks like I’m in trouble.’

‘What for?’

‘Not sending the log book in to DVLA when I gave Ellie the Fiesta.’

‘Oh right; quite serious stuff then? I might have to rethink our little association if you’re the kind of man that doesn’t abide by the law.’

David sat down beside her, took her refilled glass away from her and set it down on the side table. ‘What if I kissed you before you had time to rethink?’

‘Then I guess I’d just have to rethink …… my rethink……’ Her words were lost as he took her in his arms and kissed her and her heart raced as that feeling of wanton lust rose up from the very depths of her womanhood and she knew this time, that it would not leave her until it had been sated. As the sun went down over Rose Lane, Felicity allowed David to take her hand and she went willingly up the stairs and across the landing to his room where they made love like she had never made love before and she gazed into those eyes like the deep blue sea until his eyelids became heavy and slowly closed and then she still gazed on his face
until the small hours; his perfect tanned skin; his high cheekbones; the dimple on his chin and his designer stubble; the same designer stubble that had been rubbing against her chin and had made it smart. She touched her chin. It felt sore and she didn’t care one jot. As the darkness of night fell upon East Barton Felicity finally closed her eyes and thanked God for allowing some happiness into her life and prayed
that this feeling could last forever
……
..

Vanessa Gordon was walking along the river path when she saw it; something glistening in the reeds, silver on black. She edged her way down the muddy bank and turned her walking stick around placing the hooked part around the object then gently pulled it toward her. It was a small box; black silk embossed with a silver emblem on the top. It was heavy and as she reached for it and picked it up, the muddy river water dripped from its casing. She climbed up the bank and took a yellow flag from her rucksack to mark the spot and pushed its steel pin into the bank as low as she dared. This was quite close to where the old man had been found. Carefully she lifted the lid. Inside was a black velvet pad which had possibly once contained some item of jewellery or a medal perhaps. A small black tab protruded at one side which she carefully lifted to reveal a folded piece of paper in its base which showed the royal coat of arms and had printed
On Her Majesty’s Service
beneath it and beneath that;
To the Right Honourable Colonel Arthur Jack
Harding
was clearly visible. She decided against moving the letter while it was wet. She had seen enough of it to know that someone had stolen the old mans medal. Instead she closed the box, took a clear plastic bag from her rucksack and put it inside, then went about her investigations, looking for more clues. The mid day sun was high in an azure blue sky by the time she reached the viaduct and the sight of movement beneath the bridge made her stop and take a step back. He was sitting under the bridge leaning against the wall, his knees drawn up to his stomach and he was holding something which glistened and shone like gold as he turned it round and round swinging it from a piece of ribbon. She lifted her binoculars and focussed on her subject. She was right! The missing medal! Here was her evidence; the icing on the cake. At last she had him. Stephen Williams and his manky mongrel banged to rights. Vanessa back-tracked along the river path until she was safely out of hearing distance
. She phoned Carter from the pay phone near the supermarket
. Elated, she made her way back to the bridge and waited. He was still there. That was good. She’d told Carter to come in from the fenced off area and she would cover the river path. That way he had no escape. It seemed like an eternity had passed before she heard the shouting and saw the boy jump to his feet and head for the side of the bridge. He’d barely got one leg through the broken fence when he suddenly withdrew and a uniformed officer emerged from it. Slim turned and ran toward the officer under the bridge. He tried twisting this way and that but the officer had him and before he could struggle free had slapped the cuffs on him and the boy gave up and walked quietly to an awaiting police car where the uniformed officer searched him.