Read Online Approaching Zero by R.T Broughton - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: R.T Broughton
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worrying about the mess, she had stopped noticing it. And as she hung around the kitchen, it was as if her eyelids were still down, although she was walking around. She was clearly exhausted and resolved to eat the toast, drink the tea, check her emails, and take herself off to bed.
The living room was cluttered for very different reasons to the kitchen. But as Kathy lowered herself onto the sofa and set the tea and toast on the coffee table, she was every bit as blinkered as she had been to the explosion of crockery and food mixers. This room had become a kind of HQ for her research, with each wall displaying heavily annotated maps, pictures of men and children and notes that she had made. Every surface in the room housed a pile of either books or papers and the odd plate was dotted around and cups with small carpets of green fur at the bottom. The actual carpet had once been a colour that belonged to the red family, but it had been so long since it had seen a hoover that it really could have been any colour. Kathy’s laptop was where she had left it, plugged into the wall, and she took it onto her lap and flicked it open. Before she could even access her email account, Brady’s face was flashing up in a little box at the bottom of the screen. Kathy answered the call and immediately wished that she hadn’t.
“Kathy, where the hell have you been?” Brady spat furiously. She was dressed in her casual uniform—the green shirt with the open top button—sitting amongst greenery that gave absolutely no clue to where in the world she was Skyping from. “Holy shit! Your face!” she then said.
“Cheers,” Kathy told her. “Like I didn’t feel bad enough anyway.” But Kathy was smiling inside. This was the first friendly face she had seen in days. She took a bite of the toast then gripped her cup and snuggled back on the sofa to tell Brady all about it.
When she had finished her explanation of events—how she had floored Malcolm Scott, but ended up in hospital herself—Brady said, “Are you sure you’re okay?” and her face filled the screen as she looked into the camera to scrutinise her friend.
“I’m fine. We’ll a bit battered, but nothing I can’t handle. It’s just… It’s just.”
“I know, Kathy. It’s always just the same thing, but we’re trying. In fact I’ve got some awesome news for you.”
“But none of it makes a difference, Brade. It’s laughable.” Kathy only began to realise just how angry she was as she spoke to Brady. “Running paedos over on my bike?”
“Well you could hardly have used your car. You don’t want to end up inside.”
“You know what I mean. I can’t run them all over and they’re everywhere. Everywhere. The vapour rub doesn’t work anymore. Kids just aren’t safe anymore. They never have been really. But what’s the point in knowing who these perverts are if there’s nothing I can do about it. It’s getting worse if anything, Brady. They’re everywhere and I’ve got no idea about the missing kids.” She hardly noticed the tears flowing down her cheeks as she ranted at her friend. It was as if she had been waiting for this moment since she woke up alone in the hospital. “And I’ve lost the list,” she said pitifully as if everything that could possibly have gone wrong had gone wrong. And then she stopped and looked closely at Brady. “Are you laughing, Brade?”
“I’m sorry, it’s just–”
“I can’t believe you’re laughing at me. What’s funny? Why are you laughing at me?”
“It’s just that you’ve got a great big lump of something white on your forehead. I’m not laughing at you honestly.”
Kathy swept her hand over her forehead and found the blob of moisturiser. She rubbed it into her hands and couldn’t help smiling just a little herself.
“It’s all going to be okay,” Brady reassured her before she could cry again. “I can’t believe you actually did it, you know. I don’t think I’d have the balls to
The living room was cluttered for very different reasons to the kitchen. But as Kathy lowered herself onto the sofa and set the tea and toast on the coffee table, she was every bit as blinkered as she had been to the explosion of crockery and food mixers. This room had become a kind of HQ for her research, with each wall displaying heavily annotated maps, pictures of men and children and notes that she had made. Every surface in the room housed a pile of either books or papers and the odd plate was dotted around and cups with small carpets of green fur at the bottom. The actual carpet had once been a colour that belonged to the red family, but it had been so long since it had seen a hoover that it really could have been any colour. Kathy’s laptop was where she had left it, plugged into the wall, and she took it onto her lap and flicked it open. Before she could even access her email account, Brady’s face was flashing up in a little box at the bottom of the screen. Kathy answered the call and immediately wished that she hadn’t.
“Kathy, where the hell have you been?” Brady spat furiously. She was dressed in her casual uniform—the green shirt with the open top button—sitting amongst greenery that gave absolutely no clue to where in the world she was Skyping from. “Holy shit! Your face!” she then said.
“Cheers,” Kathy told her. “Like I didn’t feel bad enough anyway.” But Kathy was smiling inside. This was the first friendly face she had seen in days. She took a bite of the toast then gripped her cup and snuggled back on the sofa to tell Brady all about it.
When she had finished her explanation of events—how she had floored Malcolm Scott, but ended up in hospital herself—Brady said, “Are you sure you’re okay?” and her face filled the screen as she looked into the camera to scrutinise her friend.
“I’m fine. We’ll a bit battered, but nothing I can’t handle. It’s just… It’s just.”
“I know, Kathy. It’s always just the same thing, but we’re trying. In fact I’ve got some awesome news for you.”
“But none of it makes a difference, Brade. It’s laughable.” Kathy only began to realise just how angry she was as she spoke to Brady. “Running paedos over on my bike?”
“Well you could hardly have used your car. You don’t want to end up inside.”
“You know what I mean. I can’t run them all over and they’re everywhere. Everywhere. The vapour rub doesn’t work anymore. Kids just aren’t safe anymore. They never have been really. But what’s the point in knowing who these perverts are if there’s nothing I can do about it. It’s getting worse if anything, Brady. They’re everywhere and I’ve got no idea about the missing kids.” She hardly noticed the tears flowing down her cheeks as she ranted at her friend. It was as if she had been waiting for this moment since she woke up alone in the hospital. “And I’ve lost the list,” she said pitifully as if everything that could possibly have gone wrong had gone wrong. And then she stopped and looked closely at Brady. “Are you laughing, Brade?”
“I’m sorry, it’s just–”
“I can’t believe you’re laughing at me. What’s funny? Why are you laughing at me?”
“It’s just that you’ve got a great big lump of something white on your forehead. I’m not laughing at you honestly.”
Kathy swept her hand over her forehead and found the blob of moisturiser. She rubbed it into her hands and couldn’t help smiling just a little herself.
“It’s all going to be okay,” Brady reassured her before she could cry again. “I can’t believe you actually did it, you know. I don’t think I’d have the balls to
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