Read Online Hidden by Derick Parsons, John Amy - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Derick Parsons, John Amy
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those not in their right minds? a small, chill voice in the back of her mind asked her, What if it’s a maniac waiting to rape and murder you? She pushed that thought away and remained standing where she was for what seemed a very long minute but still she could hear no signs of life. Refusing to consciously wish that Peter or any man was there to do it for her she cautiously proceeded to search the rest of her apartment, still nervous but not as frightened as she had been; she knew in her mind, if not her heart, that any burglar would have run from that scream.
‘Let’s just hope the bastard’s not deaf,’ she sa id loudly, and then gave a giggle that was a little too close to hysteria for comfort. But she searched the entire flat nonetheless. And found nothing but the same indescribable mess everywhere.
She returned to the living room, shaking now from nervous reaction and with the first seeds of angry horror forming. The dirty, rotten, vicious bastards! How dared they? How dared they?
And she u nderstood for the first time why so many people compared burglary to rape. She wasn’t physically hurt but she felt violated and dirty and unsafe. And as if some gyroscope inside her was broken, leaving her disorientated and confused and close to tears. The dirty, rotten bastards! Invading her privacy, pawing through her things, stealing or smashing everything they came across. The insolence, the sheer effrontery of them! As if they had the right to do this to her, to force their way into her home! At that moment she would quite happily have voted for the death penalty for burglars. She might even have volunteered to carry out the executions.
A furtive movement in the hall made her jump and a squeak of fear escaped her suddenly tight throat, but fortunately she instantly recognized the elderly, balding man who entered the room as Brendan Kelly, one of her neighbors above. He was wearing pyjamas and a bathrobe, and he was blinking uncertainly in the bright light as he entered the living room. ‘Er, is everything all right? We thought we heard... Oh my God!’
Kate gave him a lop-sided , slightly teary smile, ‘No, I don’t think it was Him, but yes, I have had an unexpected visitor. Quite a mess, eh?’
Kelly gazed around in shocked but also fascinated horror, his eyes enormous behind his thick glasses, ‘The state of the place... Have you phoned the police?’
Kate shook her head, ‘I haven’ t had time, I only just got in.’ She felt closer to tears than ever and bit her lip in anger; she was not going to cry. But a tear crept down her cheek in spite of her resolution.
The tear galvanized her neighbor into action, very much the man on the scene taking charge now that womanly weakness had been evinced.
‘I’ll call them for you,’ he said in a firm, authoritative voice, ‘And then I’m taking you upstairs for a cup of tea while we wait for them to arrive.’ He gave her a shy, timid smile at odds with his bossy manner, ‘And I’ll get the wife to make up the spare bed for you. You won’t want to stay here tonight.’
Kate shook her head, wanting to protest. Wanting to say that staying elsewhere would mean giving in to the bastards, would mean losing more than just possessions to them. But she said nothing as she immediately realized that she really didn’t want to stay there that night. And in any case it might not be safe; the bastards could come back.
She almost stopped Kelly as he went into the hall to the phone but then realized she was being foolish; if it had to be done it was best to get it over and done with. Besides, if the culprit was still in the area the Garda might even catch him. Possibly burgling someone else in the neighborhood; from her liaison with the Oxford police she knew that burglars would often hit several properties in the one night, to ensure a good haul. And let’s face it, he or they were unlikely to have gathered
‘Let’s just hope the bastard’s not deaf,’ she sa id loudly, and then gave a giggle that was a little too close to hysteria for comfort. But she searched the entire flat nonetheless. And found nothing but the same indescribable mess everywhere.
She returned to the living room, shaking now from nervous reaction and with the first seeds of angry horror forming. The dirty, rotten, vicious bastards! How dared they? How dared they?
And she u nderstood for the first time why so many people compared burglary to rape. She wasn’t physically hurt but she felt violated and dirty and unsafe. And as if some gyroscope inside her was broken, leaving her disorientated and confused and close to tears. The dirty, rotten bastards! Invading her privacy, pawing through her things, stealing or smashing everything they came across. The insolence, the sheer effrontery of them! As if they had the right to do this to her, to force their way into her home! At that moment she would quite happily have voted for the death penalty for burglars. She might even have volunteered to carry out the executions.
A furtive movement in the hall made her jump and a squeak of fear escaped her suddenly tight throat, but fortunately she instantly recognized the elderly, balding man who entered the room as Brendan Kelly, one of her neighbors above. He was wearing pyjamas and a bathrobe, and he was blinking uncertainly in the bright light as he entered the living room. ‘Er, is everything all right? We thought we heard... Oh my God!’
Kate gave him a lop-sided , slightly teary smile, ‘No, I don’t think it was Him, but yes, I have had an unexpected visitor. Quite a mess, eh?’
Kelly gazed around in shocked but also fascinated horror, his eyes enormous behind his thick glasses, ‘The state of the place... Have you phoned the police?’
Kate shook her head, ‘I haven’ t had time, I only just got in.’ She felt closer to tears than ever and bit her lip in anger; she was not going to cry. But a tear crept down her cheek in spite of her resolution.
The tear galvanized her neighbor into action, very much the man on the scene taking charge now that womanly weakness had been evinced.
‘I’ll call them for you,’ he said in a firm, authoritative voice, ‘And then I’m taking you upstairs for a cup of tea while we wait for them to arrive.’ He gave her a shy, timid smile at odds with his bossy manner, ‘And I’ll get the wife to make up the spare bed for you. You won’t want to stay here tonight.’
Kate shook her head, wanting to protest. Wanting to say that staying elsewhere would mean giving in to the bastards, would mean losing more than just possessions to them. But she said nothing as she immediately realized that she really didn’t want to stay there that night. And in any case it might not be safe; the bastards could come back.
She almost stopped Kelly as he went into the hall to the phone but then realized she was being foolish; if it had to be done it was best to get it over and done with. Besides, if the culprit was still in the area the Garda might even catch him. Possibly burgling someone else in the neighborhood; from her liaison with the Oxford police she knew that burglars would often hit several properties in the one night, to ensure a good haul. And let’s face it, he or they were unlikely to have gathered
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