Read Online The Death of the Elver Man by Jennie Finch - Free Book Online
Authors: Jennie Finch
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head as she stared out of the windscreen leaving Alex at a loss for words. Just when she began to feel some empathy with the Mallorys she ran up hard against their own special view of the world …
It was just gone four o’clock when she dropped Ada Mallory at her house and set off to find the road back to town. She felt she really ought to go into the office, just in case anything had come up. Be honest, she told herself, she should go in and see Lauren. Despite the stresses of the day she was still squirming at the memory of her behaviour the night before. She had been rude, arrogant and childish and the sooner she put it right the better she would feel. At the turning onto the townroad she hesitated – town or home, she wondered. She could no longer stand the smell of herself, the odour of the prison that rose from her clothes and hair. Feeling guilty, but also slightly relieved, she turned right and headed for the calm of her clean, tidy home.
The next morning there was a note on her desk from Garry demanding her immediate attendance. It was dated the day before and she read it with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. She flipped through her diary and realized she’d not entered the Bristol visit – she’d not been sure whether it was ‘official’ and she doubted whether driving prisoner’s relatives around the country counted as part of her duties. She hesitated before picking up the phone. Lauren would know, she thought, only Lauren was not in the office – she had rung in the day before and taken a few days off, Pauline informed her rather briskly. Alex replaced the phone, picked up the note and headed upstairs feeling utterly alone.
Garry was reading a file and waved her to a chair without looking up. She sat for a few minutes as he continued to ignore her, the silence broken by the rustling of turned pages and the frantic buzzing of a fly trapped behind the half-drawn blinds. The windows were tightly closed against the warm spring air and the room was stuffy. Garry was wearing a particularly strong aftershave lotion and the pungent smell began to make her feel quite dizzy. Finally he laid the report down on his desk and looked at her.
‘So, you’ve not made contact with Mr Hinton yet?’
She felt a rush of relief – this wasn’t about her absence yesterday after all.
‘I went out the same evening,’ she said, ‘but there was no-one home. I thought I might try again today.’ She heard her ingratiating tones and despised herself for this show of weakness . Garry, on the other hand, looked rather pleased. He nodded approvingly and tapped the file in front of him.
‘We’ve got a few more details come through,’ he said, and then lowered his voice forcing her to lean forwards. The aftershave became almost overwhelming as he continued.
‘Mr Hinton is a special case. The police will be looking after him for a while, whilst he’s with us. You should not mention him to anyone. Do you understand?’
Her confusion must have shown on her face and Garry gave a deep sigh sending a wave of peppermint mouthwash in her direction.
‘He is a special case, an early release for – co-operation shall we say. He’ll only be in the area for a short while and then he’ll move on somewhere where he’s not going to be recognized. Now do you understand?’
‘What do I do about his case then?’ Alex asked.
Garry waved a hand at her. ‘Oh, go and see him, make sure he doesn’t need anything and make it look like a normal release order in your notes,’ he said. ‘Obviously there are some issues of confidentiality here and I expect you to be discreet . The fewer people know about him the better really.’
Alex nodded and rose from the chair. ‘Of course.’
‘Let me know when he’s moving on,’ said Garry, as she walked to the door. ‘Oh and by the way, where were you for the whole of yesterday?’ he added.
She didn’t think the day could get much worse but she was wrong. Hurrying
It was just gone four o’clock when she dropped Ada Mallory at her house and set off to find the road back to town. She felt she really ought to go into the office, just in case anything had come up. Be honest, she told herself, she should go in and see Lauren. Despite the stresses of the day she was still squirming at the memory of her behaviour the night before. She had been rude, arrogant and childish and the sooner she put it right the better she would feel. At the turning onto the townroad she hesitated – town or home, she wondered. She could no longer stand the smell of herself, the odour of the prison that rose from her clothes and hair. Feeling guilty, but also slightly relieved, she turned right and headed for the calm of her clean, tidy home.
The next morning there was a note on her desk from Garry demanding her immediate attendance. It was dated the day before and she read it with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. She flipped through her diary and realized she’d not entered the Bristol visit – she’d not been sure whether it was ‘official’ and she doubted whether driving prisoner’s relatives around the country counted as part of her duties. She hesitated before picking up the phone. Lauren would know, she thought, only Lauren was not in the office – she had rung in the day before and taken a few days off, Pauline informed her rather briskly. Alex replaced the phone, picked up the note and headed upstairs feeling utterly alone.
Garry was reading a file and waved her to a chair without looking up. She sat for a few minutes as he continued to ignore her, the silence broken by the rustling of turned pages and the frantic buzzing of a fly trapped behind the half-drawn blinds. The windows were tightly closed against the warm spring air and the room was stuffy. Garry was wearing a particularly strong aftershave lotion and the pungent smell began to make her feel quite dizzy. Finally he laid the report down on his desk and looked at her.
‘So, you’ve not made contact with Mr Hinton yet?’
She felt a rush of relief – this wasn’t about her absence yesterday after all.
‘I went out the same evening,’ she said, ‘but there was no-one home. I thought I might try again today.’ She heard her ingratiating tones and despised herself for this show of weakness . Garry, on the other hand, looked rather pleased. He nodded approvingly and tapped the file in front of him.
‘We’ve got a few more details come through,’ he said, and then lowered his voice forcing her to lean forwards. The aftershave became almost overwhelming as he continued.
‘Mr Hinton is a special case. The police will be looking after him for a while, whilst he’s with us. You should not mention him to anyone. Do you understand?’
Her confusion must have shown on her face and Garry gave a deep sigh sending a wave of peppermint mouthwash in her direction.
‘He is a special case, an early release for – co-operation shall we say. He’ll only be in the area for a short while and then he’ll move on somewhere where he’s not going to be recognized. Now do you understand?’
‘What do I do about his case then?’ Alex asked.
Garry waved a hand at her. ‘Oh, go and see him, make sure he doesn’t need anything and make it look like a normal release order in your notes,’ he said. ‘Obviously there are some issues of confidentiality here and I expect you to be discreet . The fewer people know about him the better really.’
Alex nodded and rose from the chair. ‘Of course.’
‘Let me know when he’s moving on,’ said Garry, as she walked to the door. ‘Oh and by the way, where were you for the whole of yesterday?’ he added.
She didn’t think the day could get much worse but she was wrong. Hurrying
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