Read Online The Shift of Numbers by David Warrington - Free Book Online
Authors: David Warrington
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While admiring a particularly good likeness of a rabbit , a large gentleman in a lab coat walked up quietly behind her.
“Can I help you miss?” h e asked in a disturbingly gentle voice.
“Actually , yes. I have come to visit my fiancé.”
“Can I take your name and see some identification , please?” c ame the softly - spoken response. After giving her name and driving licence to the man , s he was led slowly up to a bright new- looking building made mainly of glass. As they walked through the front door , the large man stopped and turned to face Richard’s fiancé e .
“You liked the rabbit?” h e asked softly , leaning in close and looking intently.
“Erm…it’s very nice.”
“Good,” he replied with a smile and a nod. “You can wait over there, while I see if I can go and get Dicky.” He pointed to a collection of seats.
“Dicky? You mean Richard?”
“We give all our…” he made quotation marks with fingers, “… ´patients` alternative nam es. It speeds up the recovery. N ew start and all that.” Richard’s fiancé e took a seat while the man ambled off down a corridor. After 20 minutes of listening to cheery ambient music , she watched the large man return without Richard.
“Where is he?” e xclaimed Richard ’ s fiancé e when the man had got close enough.
“I ’m sorry. Y ou won’t be able to see Dicky today. H e has some gentlemen with him.”
“What gentlemen? I really need to see him. Do you not understand?”
“There’s no need to take that tone with me , miss. I’m only doing my job. I’m not sure who the gentlemen are but it’s quite impossible for you to see him today.”
Without warning , Richard ’ s fiancé e side- stepped the big man and ran down the corridor he had walked out of. She ran as fast as she could, clattering down a maze of corridors in shoes not made for the task. She rounded a corner and ran into a large bright room; at the far end next to a desk, Richard was being handcu ffed. She jogged over. T he 2 men with Richard , both wearing suits , stopped and looked at her.
“What’s going on? Where are you taking him?” Richard’s fiancé e asked the men breathless ly. Richard just stared at the floor in a heavily sedated stupor.
“Who are you?” a sked the shorter of the 2 men politely.
“I’m his fiancé e !”
“We ’ re taking him to the MSD for questioning.” The shorter man motioned to his colleague and he started walking Richard towards a glass door behind the desk. A black car could be seen parked outside.
Richard’s fiancé e looked at the man in front of her , all the while trying to catch her breath. He wore an immaculately pressed black suit with a washing powder advert white shirt and a dark blue tie. He was closely shaved with a short military -style hair cut. She glanced down , noticing his suit jacket was open just enough to show a gun holster.
“You can contact the MSD for further information,” he said handing her a card. B efore she could reply , a hand clamped her right shoulder and twisted her around. T he han d belonged to the large man in the lab coat. H e too was out of breath.
“You are n’t supposed to be back here,” h e said in the same unruffled soft tone.
*
Tim works for the Monetary Stabilisation Division, or MSD, for short, a well-known and feared department amongst government law enforcement agencies and the general public. He has worked in law enforcement since he left university 15 years ago and has risen through the ranks quickly. As a senior field agent, he gets paid 65 thousand pounds a year for his efforts. His job consists of being assigned cases by his boss, then using all his investigatory know-how to bring swift justice upon any perpetrators of crime.
The MSD building is fairly large, much too large to justify the number of staff who work there. The architect knew that law enforcement in the financial sector is much more about image than actual work, so the building was
“Can I help you miss?” h e asked in a disturbingly gentle voice.
“Actually , yes. I have come to visit my fiancé.”
“Can I take your name and see some identification , please?” c ame the softly - spoken response. After giving her name and driving licence to the man , s he was led slowly up to a bright new- looking building made mainly of glass. As they walked through the front door , the large man stopped and turned to face Richard’s fiancé e .
“You liked the rabbit?” h e asked softly , leaning in close and looking intently.
“Erm…it’s very nice.”
“Good,” he replied with a smile and a nod. “You can wait over there, while I see if I can go and get Dicky.” He pointed to a collection of seats.
“Dicky? You mean Richard?”
“We give all our…” he made quotation marks with fingers, “… ´patients` alternative nam es. It speeds up the recovery. N ew start and all that.” Richard’s fiancé e took a seat while the man ambled off down a corridor. After 20 minutes of listening to cheery ambient music , she watched the large man return without Richard.
“Where is he?” e xclaimed Richard ’ s fiancé e when the man had got close enough.
“I ’m sorry. Y ou won’t be able to see Dicky today. H e has some gentlemen with him.”
“What gentlemen? I really need to see him. Do you not understand?”
“There’s no need to take that tone with me , miss. I’m only doing my job. I’m not sure who the gentlemen are but it’s quite impossible for you to see him today.”
Without warning , Richard ’ s fiancé e side- stepped the big man and ran down the corridor he had walked out of. She ran as fast as she could, clattering down a maze of corridors in shoes not made for the task. She rounded a corner and ran into a large bright room; at the far end next to a desk, Richard was being handcu ffed. She jogged over. T he 2 men with Richard , both wearing suits , stopped and looked at her.
“What’s going on? Where are you taking him?” Richard’s fiancé e asked the men breathless ly. Richard just stared at the floor in a heavily sedated stupor.
“Who are you?” a sked the shorter of the 2 men politely.
“I’m his fiancé e !”
“We ’ re taking him to the MSD for questioning.” The shorter man motioned to his colleague and he started walking Richard towards a glass door behind the desk. A black car could be seen parked outside.
Richard’s fiancé e looked at the man in front of her , all the while trying to catch her breath. He wore an immaculately pressed black suit with a washing powder advert white shirt and a dark blue tie. He was closely shaved with a short military -style hair cut. She glanced down , noticing his suit jacket was open just enough to show a gun holster.
“You can contact the MSD for further information,” he said handing her a card. B efore she could reply , a hand clamped her right shoulder and twisted her around. T he han d belonged to the large man in the lab coat. H e too was out of breath.
“You are n’t supposed to be back here,” h e said in the same unruffled soft tone.
*
Tim works for the Monetary Stabilisation Division, or MSD, for short, a well-known and feared department amongst government law enforcement agencies and the general public. He has worked in law enforcement since he left university 15 years ago and has risen through the ranks quickly. As a senior field agent, he gets paid 65 thousand pounds a year for his efforts. His job consists of being assigned cases by his boss, then using all his investigatory know-how to bring swift justice upon any perpetrators of crime.
The MSD building is fairly large, much too large to justify the number of staff who work there. The architect knew that law enforcement in the financial sector is much more about image than actual work, so the building was
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