Short Stories (44)
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1. FOOTPRINTS
My missing colleague was a radio surveillance operator and he did 13-hour shifts of intense listening through his headset. Off-duty he would say very little apart from commenting that the constant whistling of the wind “drove him mad” … (full story available in printed form)
2. HOTEL HALSTEAD
In April 1983 I arrived at Bootle railway station in Cumbria. I was there to work at a secret weapons-testing military-base which was two miles from the train station, but not on the map, or marked by any signs. I was also to work at Eskmeals observation station …(full story available in printed form)
3. LORRY MAN
The Lorry Driver was heading south, over the Dava Moor road, towards the Cairngorms. His final destination was Madrid. He decided to travel through the night to get a head start. It was well after midnight and he had been speaking with his wife on the phone just a few minutes earlier ... (full story available in printed form)
4. HAUNTED ROAD
A new section of road was laid on the A41 to divert traffic away from a small town that was not that far away from Aylesbury. But, shortly after the building-work commenced, reports of strange happenings began to surface in the local community. The road became notorious for paranormal activity, but also for the many lives it would claim. This is a story about a haunted road …(full story available in printed form)
5. GLEN AFFRIC
Glen Affric is one of the three Great Glens that join up the West Coast with Loch Ness. If you feel hardy enough you can walk the 45 miles from Beauly right across the mountains to Kintail, then down to Cluny, then further south which takes you into Glen Affric. But maybe you don’t want to try this in winter no matter how tough you are. And give yourself three whole days to do the walk even in the summer … (full story available in printed form)
6. SMALL TOWN WEDDING
The year was 1984. Me and my mate Chas packed our Big motorbikes with camping gear and headed off from Dunfermline. I rode a Honda Goldwing, Chas strode a Honda CB900. These powerful bikes don’t hang around on the road. There were very few speed cameras in those days and so it didn’t take us that long to complete the 200 mile journey north from Dunfermline to Dingwall. Is was mid-August, and bright and warm, and so the run "up north" was enjoyable. We only had the clothes we were wearing, camping gear, and a toothbrush (each) …(full story available in printed form)
7. GOING OFF-GRID
Perhaps we should all give it a try. Because, if you do this, you will feel stuff, with no distractions. And I have led by example. I cycled all around Scotland - that is pedal power - and camped out in the wilds each night in a wee tent. I did this for four weeks, with no contact whatsoever with anyone. I had no phone with me, or radio, or any other form of communication – for a whole month. I was completely cut-off. And that is when you experience things deep in your soul … (full story available in printed form)
8. ICE
One day last year, during an extended cold snap, I set out on a mission to get some pictures of swans at the Secret Loch, a remote stretch of water that only I knew about. I suppose I risked it just a wee bit too much on this occasion … (full story available in printed form)
9. THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT
I found myself standing in this eerie graveyard at 6.15 in the morning. It was deathly silent as only a graveyard can be. Dawn was just about to break and the atmosphere was cool and misty. As I walked around I felt silky cobwebs brushing over my face and I could smell the damp earth under my feet … (full story available in printed form)
10. SEEING THE LIGHT
The distinguished couple that I met at Loch Garten were well-spoken and obviously highly-educated professionals. After all, they arrived in a Mercedes-Benz. In fact, he was a Diplomat and she was a Scientist …(full story available in printed form)
11. PARISIAN WALKWAYS
You are in Paris and surrounded by interesting architecture and beautiful people, and you have your camera with you. Your battery is fully charged and your memory card is empty. You are about to take some photos. Because that is what you came here for …(full story available in printed form)
12. THREE FRIENDS
The beautifully vulnerable and gorgeous cat lives on the street, surviving on scraps and the kindness of an old man, a street-musician, who plays his flute wonderfully for just a few coins …(full story available in printed form)
13. THE BUNKER
I worked as a scientist down in The Bunker. It was located several thousand feet under the City. To get there you walked through the doors of a traditional, innocuous-looking, castle on the edge of Dunfermline (military camouflage) …(full story available in printed form)
14. NIGHTSHIFT
Working overnight in an unused wing of an Old Hospital could be creepy. As an electrician this was something I experienced a few times. Big hospitals can often have dark pasts, and they store historic memories in their bricks …(full story available in printed form)
15. WAITING ROOM
I knew that the train station waiting-room had been out of use for many decades. I pushed the door anyway and, to my surprise, it opened easily, and so I entered the dusty and musty environment. My intention was to stay overnight at the station between the last train at 11.45pm, that late evening, and the next train at 5.45am the following early morning. I was armed with an old-fashioned 120 roll-film camera which only had 10 frames to play with. I managed to get 8 pictures to ‘come out’. Not too bad … (full story available in printed form)
16. CIRCLE OF FEAR
I was on a trip to the North-East, and I was cycling around on my pedal-bike looking for remote Standing Stones (marked on my ancient map). I would often come across rough tracks (ideal for a mountain-bike) that would lead me deep into the thick, dark woods, taking me well away from anyone … (full story available in printed form)
17. BUYER'S MARKET
It is November 1966.
“A splendid old house, isn’t it?” the estate-agent declared persuasively. “Just the thing for a large family with good taste. Not one of those modern boxes with no room to swing a … eh, do have any pets Sir?”
Deep in his heart Danny Adams agreed that the house was magnificent, but he also knew not to let his feelings show; not if a good deal was to be made. And so Danny tried to look mean and shrewd. But his was not a poker-face and it registered his emotions like he was an actor in those old black and white silent movies. He yearned for this big house, with its cornices, attics, endless nooks and crannies, and above all, the thirty-by-forty-foot living-room that ‘featured’ a nineteen-foot ceiling and a fireplace big enough for a bonfire.
And there were also ten acres of sweeping land too, offering wonderful privacy. What a great place for the kids! With five of them, all active, outgoing, creative, and impulsive -- just like their Dad. Finding a suitable house was no simple matter. Yes, but this one, almost hidden by the towering, leafy-oaks was a prize indeed -- a lucky strike.
“It’s not bad,” Danny said cautiously, totally unaware that his soft, brown eyes shone like beacons. “But, after all, Mr Ross, the place has been locked up for over thirty years, and what with all the stories and stuff, that would scare most buyers off. Everybody isn’t as free from superstition as I am, you know.”
“There’s nothing to all that talk,” the Estate-agent assured him. “The owner just didn’t care to rent or sell. He inherited the property at a fairly young age, but never actually lived there, most probably because it was just too big for one person living alone. That seems reasonable enough. One man in a thirty-room house! Of course,” he added quickly, seeing that a question was trembling on Danny’s lips. “It does need some work doing, but that’s why the ad said it "needs some attention." We thought a handy-man would see it as a real bargain, whereas if we had to call in our regular contractors…”
Danny was, indeed, a remarkably good DIY man, having a knack for cabinet work, masonry, electrical wiring, and even plumbing. He looked forward, with pleasant anticipation, to the job of renovating the house. The family could stay in the old one, several hundred miles away, while he worked away in peace, making the house ready for them. And there was no need to even consult Angela; she knew his taste was impeccable.
The Estate-agent and Danny agree on terms. There followed a period of intense activity and the old house was put into order.
Then there is the interesting puzzle of the mirror. The enormous mirror is set into the wall above the fireplace. The huge fireplace is intricately carved and decorated.
The family move in and are enthusiastic about the house. The five children enjoy exploring its many fascinating storerooms, attics, cupboards, and crawl-spaces. They kids range in age from five to thirteen. They walk, run, jump, and climb until they know every inch of the house.
Although the mirror was very old, it gave a clear, undistorted reflection. And with his family grouped around a blazing fire, Danny talked, with verve and imagination, about the reflected world to be seen -- in part -- over the mantel-piece. The oldest boy, Jerry, who was more science-minded at thirteen, showed less interest until his father, with shrewd premeditation, raised the question: why are left and right interchanged in the reflection, but not up and down?
This puzzle kept Jerry occupied for the rest of his father’s story. But Judy, who was eight, had a complaint. “The looking-glass room is just like ours,” she pouted.
“Not really,” Danny said. “See the picture on the wall? In our room, the man’s on the left; in there, he’s on the right. Besides,“ he added quickly, aware that the distinction didn’t impress her much, “we don’t know what’s in the rest of the reflected house, through the archway and in all the other rooms. They may be altogether different from this side of the mirror. And the ones who live in them may stay out of this room which we can see. The story will be continued tomorrow,“ Danny says, “at nine-thirty. Now it’s bedtime, except for Jerry; he gets his extra half-hour.”
“Not tomorrow, dear,” Angela reminds him. “We’re going to the partner’s meeting, remember, and we won’t be back until midnight.”
Neither Danny nor his wife had any misgivings when they left the following evening. Although the house was isolated to a degree, the heavy doors locked, as did the windows. Jerry was a strong and responsible kid and he would be left in charge.
The next evening, when the parents were away, the five kids became fascinated by the big mirror. They all pulled together and held up a bedroom dresser-mirror, which they had taken of its hinges, in front of the big fire-mirror in order to see into reflected areas in the mirror-world out of normal view.
When Danny and Angela came back into the house at eleven-forty and saw the living-room, she began to scream …
Angela never stopped screaming. Two days later she died. And Danny was indicted for murder. But he believed it was a mercy-killing.
18. ALTAR EGO
The remote farmhouse, five miles from Dulnain Bridge, received an order of delivered groceries four years ago. Since then, there has been no reported activity of any kind. However, on November the 17th, three separate 999 calls were traced to this exact location. But no-one actually spoke during those recorded calls. The Authorities turned up at the address, forced the door, and entered the property. What they discovered was not easy for them to take in … (full story available in printed form)
19. ON REFLECTION
To create a peaceful ambience, she put on soft music and lit some fragrant candles. Gathering a blanket, Lucy sat down on the settee, and laid her head down on a cushion. Her thoughts drifted around that day’s unusual occurrences, searching for an understanding or explanation …(full story available in printed form)
20. HELP ME I'M FALLING
In the Old Days, working as a Government Scientist, I travelled around the country, often staying in temporary accommodation. This was well before mobile phones were in general use …(full story available in printed form)
21. THE HAUNTED RECTORY
The House was built to last for hundreds of years but it stood for only seventy. It managed, however, to mark its place in history. Its name became synonymous with ghostly apparitions, poltergeist activity and terrifying phenomena that defied rational explanation.
The Rectory was constructed in 1852 opposite the Church. It was built as a replacement for a previous rectory which burnt down in 1841. The property had twenty-three rooms and was surrounded by five acres of land. Constructed using red brick, it’s neo-gothic architecture sat in stark contrast to the lush green trees and hedgerows that complimented the grounds.
A network of tunnels and vaults lie beneath these grounds but no-one knows who built them or the nature of their purpose. It is said that the Rectory was built on the same plot of land as a Cistercian monastery which existed in the Dark Ages, more than 500 years ago.
The disembodied cries of a young lady have been reported many times over the years and the ghostly apparition of a nun has been witnessed countless times over the centuries. The nun would walk across the grounds and then fade out of view.
One would expect, perhaps, to see the ghost of a monk because of the history of the monastery, but this apparently anomaly can be explained by a tragic story of forbidden love.
Legend has it that, in the 14th Century, an illicit affair took place between a monk from the monastery and a nun from a local Benedictine convent. The two of them planned to elope and settle down elsewhere in the country, at which point they would wed. But shortly after they had ran away, however, they were hunted down and were spared no mercy in the retribution they suffered. The monk was hanged and the nun was bricked up inside the monastery walls, while still alive, and left to rot.
Tales of paranormal activity were commonplace before the first residents moved into the rectory. Records show that the first resident was Reverend Henry Elgar Lawson Ellis. Ellis moved into the rectory with his wife and would go on to raise fifteen children there.
But such a large family required bigger, and more suitable, living quarters and so this led to the addition of a new wing in 1870. Many sources state that Ellis and his family experienced strange occurrences from the outset.
The Reverend became fascinated by the bizarre phenomena and requested that a summer house be built overlooking a small stretch of the grounds where the nun was seen most often. The family dubbed this area “Nun’s Walk” and Ellis would spend many evenings, after dinner, sitting outside the summer house, cigar in hand, trying to catch a glimpse of her.
The ghostly encounters began to occur more frequently. Staff, and even guests at the rectory, would often be found in shock, and fearing for their lives, after seeing faceless figures peering at them from the windows of the main house. Suffice to say, servants rarely stayed for long.
Henry Ellis passed away in 1892, leaving the property to his son Richard.
On the 28th July 1898 four of Richard’s daughters were exploring the grounds when they caught sight of the nun about 50 yards from the main house. Curiosity got the better of them and they decided to try and talk to her, but to their complete shock, the figure simply vanished into thin air as they approached it.
The parish organist, Ernest Tucker, is on the record as saying that “apparitions had been seen on many occasions." This was further supported by various people living within the vicinity of the rectory, who also claimed to have seen ghostly figures walking across the grounds.
Richard’s daughters would often see the nun making appearances in the daytime and evening. They also said they had seen a phantom coach on quite a few occasions.
Richard Ellis would remain at the rectory until his death in 1930. The lease then passed to Derek Tensing and his wife who moved in shortly afterwards. Already well aware of the rectory’s eerie past, the new residents were understandably apprehensive and it wasn’t long before this feeling was fully justified. One morning whilst cleaning out a cupboard Tensing’s wife discovered the skull of a young woman inside a brown paper bag.
22. TRANSITION
It was July 1975 and I was alone at home watching the third set of the Wimbledon men’s final between Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe, on a black and white coin-meter television. As a kid, I was keen on tennis … (full story available in printed form)
23. DISAPPEARING MAN
(1)
The year is 1972. The place is London. John feels like he is disappearing.
He walks, head down, out of the Housing Department building, and descends the big stone grey steps, into a busy street of bustling traffic. Cars, trucks, and red buses are jam-packed together. They thunder past him.
John is around 5ft 8 in height. He’s wearing a light-blue shirt, with a dark blue, plain tie, a dark jacket, and a lighter-grey over-coat, which is unbuttoned and blowing about in the wind. He looks at his best. But downtrodden. He’s 46 and still has all his own hair, albeit it’s a bit flat and dullish-looking, and it has quite a bit of grey running through the mousy brown.
John shows a stern expression, perhaps he even looks a bit indignant, as he walks along the pavement. Motorbikes, Commer vans, and black taxis, whiz by him. He doesn’t notice them. They don’t notice him. He walks along the crowded street, trying to avoid bumping into other people. He mutters away to himself. Now and then he waves his hands about to emphasise the points he’s making to his inner-self.
(2)
Somewhere else in London, there is the sound of a police siren. A Rover P6 swerves to a halt outside a council house. The flash white car is unmarked, but it does have extra spotlights on the front grill, and blue-flashers attached to its roof.
At the end of this grubby, and mostly deserted, street there’s a big factory, bellowing out thick smoke from its huge chimneys.
A tall man, with thick-black, straight-hair, briskly exits from the passenger side of the vehicle. He slams the door shut, leaving his driver still sitting behind the wheel. The tall man is wearing a light-grey plain coat, a white shirt, and dark tie, and he has purpose on his mind. In the distance, a couple of young teenagers clock the car and the man in the grey coat.
(3)
Meanwhile, while this is going on, John is sitting, on a bench-seat, inside a London Underground carriage. The coach rattles away, swaying his body from side to side. John is a bit tense. Every now and then he leans forward, and then sits back again. He seems to be experiencing some sort of inner turmoil.
(4)
The tall CID detective is now standing in John’s living-room, talking to John’s wife. He towers over her. A frumpy little lady, in a dark-blue, plain dress, has just picked up an old black and white, square, glossy photograph from her dresser. She walks over to the grey-coated detective with the picture. The CID man stands there, with his notebook and pencil, and a serious look on his face.
“That’s funny,” she says, in a shrill, and slightly confused voice. “I was sure he was in this one.” The photo shows a plain-looking lady, standing in front of an unsightly wire-mesh fence, which lies beneath two council-house iron window-frames. She wears a dark head-scarf and a dark coat. Her handbag dangles from her hands at the bottom of the picture. But the lady is not centrally-framed, she stands to the right-hand side of the photo. To the left, there is a gap, and just the non-descript background.
“Perhaps he took the picture,” the detective says, showing a bit of impatience.
“Ted, my brother Ted, took it. John never owned a camera,” she goes on, in her shrill voice. “Perhaps you know Ted? He runs a very successful business up Dawes Road.” She flicks her head to indicate the direction of where she is talking about.
“What would your husband be doing with a gun?” the detective asks. He speaks to the lady, slowly and deliberately, as if he is making allowances for her not being that bright.
“I’ve no idea,” she replies, with doubt on her face. “He wouldn’t know which way to point it.”
The detective persists, “Why should he threaten someone at the Ministry of Housing?” he says, rolling his eyes a bit.
“He wouldn’t; not John. But, our Ted, he was a crack-shot in the Army,” she answers.
“Can you describe your husband?” he says, now looking bored.
“John?” She gazes into the mid-distance, as if trying to picture him.
“Well, I mean … he’s not exactly Rock Hudson.” She trails off as she can’t think of anything else to say.
“Has he got any distinguishing features?” He’s losing patience.
She struggles. “No … nothing. You’d hardly notice him really. Nobody ever does."
(5)
John is sitting on the bench-seat, in the dimly-lit underground train-carriage, his body swaying with the motion of the train. He sees his own perturbed face reflecting back at him from the window on the opposite side of the aisle. Then his own face begins to change into that of his wife. She has an expression of disapproval on her.
In a nagging tone his wife’s reflection says to John, “People don’t notice nobodies, you know, you’ve got to impress yourself on them,” she says, sternly.
John suddenly snaps out of the dream he was in, and becomes aware of the train, and the others in the carriage. He slowly glances around. In front of him, to his right, sits a smart-looking man of about thirty-five who has slicked-back black hair. The man in wearing a dark suit, a white shirt, and a tie with small checks on it. The man’s head is nodding with the motion of the train.
To his front-right there is a woman of about twenty-five who has long, straight, brown hair. She’s wearing a thick white polo-neck jumper and she has a medium-blue wool coat on. There is a “No Smoking” sign just above her head. Right next to her is a bearded man in his mid-fifties who’s got a dark casual jacket on. John is wondering if these people are more significant than he is; more striking or important than him perhaps. “Are they making a bigger impression?” he asks himself.
He quickly takes a look at a younger man, standing, near the carriage door, to his right. This man seems to have self-confidence, he’s got curly hair, which is longish, but neat, and he’s wearing a thick polo-neck jumper under his dark coat. As John slowly turns his head away from the younger man he sees his own dour face reflected in the carriage window again, sitting there, with his dull over-coat on.
John decides to stand up in the train-carriage to avoid looking at his own, furrow-browed, reflection. Now, fully stretched, his hands are above his head as he hangs onto a strap at either side, and stands upright in the aisle, trying to keep his balance. He glances, again, at the young woman with long, light-brown, hair and the man with the beard.
He’s still uncomfortable, and so he walks forward out of the carriage and stands in-between carriages, next to the automatic door that swings open at a station. He looks down at a prim-looking women, with black hair, nearby, who has glasses on. She’s in her forties and is sitting in a twin-seat reading a newspaper. John bends right over in front of the lady. She doesn’t even look up. John looks uneasy. He was very close to her but she just kept on reading as if he wasn’t there. John goes to the other side of the aisle and peers over another lady’s shoulder and tries to read her newspaper. There is no reaction from her … (full story available in printed form)
24. NO TOMORROW
(1)
Katy Turner was a 30-year-old Canadian Police Officer with an exemplary record. She was a good-looking young woman with longish blonde hair and striking blue eyes. On the morning of the 22nd of September 2018 she was reported missing by her dispatch unit, based in Colchester, Nova Scotia. They requested a missing-person’s investigation - to be carried out immediately - after she failed to show up for work for the first time in her 7-year-long career.
She had not once been late, and was known as the “go-to colleague” for filling in last-minute shifts and late assignments. Jim, her patrol-partner, described her absence, and lack of communication, as “very out of character” and immediately went to check her apartment with a spare key she had given him. He testified that he found her alarm-clock ringing and nothing out of place.
Katy Turner’s credit card was traced to an Uber-driver at 3.40am the night before. The driver was located by the police and he testified that he picked up a male and female from the Ale Bar and dropped them off at the end of a street just 6 minutes away. He also stated that he could sense tension between them during the short journey.
The Ale Bar’s security cameras were then checked and the police discovered Katy talking, kissing, and dancing with a man, who at the time, was unknown and unnamed. The closest point of surveillance to the Uber-destination was the rear parking-lot of a leisure-centre situated about 50 yards from the street where they were dropped off from the cab.
Investigators checked the CCTV recordings from the night before and saw a bare-footed character dragging a large wheeled-bin shortly before 5am. Then, 7 minutes later, the same figure is seen dragging the bin, with some difficulty, because of the weight, in the opposite direction. The same man is then traced and seen dragging the bin to a location underneath the Mackenzie Bridge. When he emerges from the other side, the security-camera footage shows him dragging the wheeled bin more quickly as it appears that it has been emptied. This area was immediately searched and Katy’s lifeless body was discovered at 3.30pm.
Katy’s lifeless body was discovered at 3.30pm on the day she never turned up for work. She had two black eyes, a broken nose, and her cause of death was ruled as asphyxiation, most likely due to strangulation. As forensics got to work on Katy’s body at the crime scene, the police strengthened their operation and declared the figure of the man in the CCTV footage as their priority.
Just over 48 hours later they had found out the man’s identity. A member of staff at the Ale Bar testified that it was Christopher (“Chris”) Gardener who had worked at the Ale House, as a doorman, in 2014, four years earlier. The following Tuesday-night, Chris was spotted, on the same surveillance camera that covered Mackenzie Bridge, driving his girlfriend’s car. He was seen driving up to the location where Katy’s body had been dumped, presumably after noticing the body was gone. He was located, and arrested, at his apartment, on the early hours of Wednesday morning. He was immediately subjected to interrogation.
(2)
The grey-walled interrogation-room is small in area, and it has a low ceiling. The lighting is stark fluorescent white-light. The only furniture, apart from three chairs, is a plain and functional table that has many 10x8 inch or A4-size photographs spread over its entire area. Chris sits adjacent to the table, with his back to the grey wall, on a stool which has wheels, allowing it to move on the floor, and a back-support; a standard office-chair.
Two detectives sit facing Chris, on similar stool-chairs. They effectively make a barrier which prevents him from walking to the exit door. Two cameras, bracketed on the wall, are recording events, and there is also a continuous audio-recording being made. The interrogators are employing the “Mutt and Jeff” technique, or Good Cop/Bad Cop.
Facing Chris, on his right-side, is a stocky-built man in a grey suit who has a full, and thick, set of grey wavy hair which neatly just brushes the collar of his crisp white shirt. To Chris’s left, there sits a pleasant-looking woman, with her fine-light-brown hair, tied in a pigtail at the back. She has a light-blue thin top on, and black slacks and flat sandals. She is adopting a casual and approachable posture. The woman detective (the Good Cop) is leaning forward towards Chris and is stroking his left arm to comfort him. The man-detective (the Bad Cop) has positioned himself, also, in close proximity to Chris and he, too, is leaning forward, while holding a steady gaze on Chris.
Chris himself sits facing them both. He has his arms folded tightly across his chest. He is pressing back on his back-rest, but his head is pointing downwards. He is not making any eye-contact. Between his spread-open legs, on the chair, is a plastic bottle of water. Chris looks about thirty. He has close-cropped black hair and is wearing a short-sleeved black T-shirt which shows his upper-body and arms to be strong and muscular. He looks like a gym-guy. He has black sports-leggings on.
The female Good Cop is slightly-built compared to Chris, and she sits very near to him, side-on, with her legs-crossed over, and in a relaxed, non-threatening, posture. The suited-man Bad Cop, with the wavy grey hair, has a similar “chunky” build to Chris, and he sits back a couple of feet, leaning forward, and is face-on to Chris who’s shoulders are hunched inwards as he leans forward and looks down towards his knees.
When confronted with the surveillance images, Chris instantly broke down but alluded to nothing and asserted that his memory was blank on the night of the incident.
(3)
“Are you still saying that you can’t Chris?” the male detective gently asks. Chris says nothing and just sniffs, as if he has a cold, or he has been crying. Chris’s head shakes in a tremor but he says nothing. “There’s either I won’t, or I will, or I don’t want to. Which is it? You don’t want to?” The detective gently presses Chris who says nothing in response and just keeps on sniffling. “I’ve just talked to some people upstairs. I know what you had in your car.” The detective is referring to a tarp, gloves, rope and gasoline.
When Chris was arrested they had found a big tarpaulin, some thick rope, a pair of black gloves, and a large can of gasoline, in the car he was driving at the time. The police assumed that the tarp would have been used to wrap up the victim’s body to transport to a secluded location, to be dowsed in gasoline, and then set alight, as a method of eliminating evidence.
Chris remains silent in his chair, but raises his head up to meet the eyes of the male detective. He carries on sniffling. His head is visibly shaking.
The male detective carries on. “Chris, the people that we interviewed, that were with you this weekend, said that you did not show any remorse. They said that you were your regular old self. No issues. Your Dad came in, but he wouldn’t give us a statement. He found out through the police. The police called him.”
The detective leaves a pause. Chris shakes his head from side to side and starts to sob. The female detective reaches out and gently pats Chris on the shoulder in a comforting manner. Chris makes high-pitched sobbing sounds and continues to shake his head from side to side. “Chris, you’ve been sitting here saying, ‘I can’t, I can’t, I can’t.’ Life is about choices right now…” The male detective raises the tone in his voice and begins to point at Chris. “…just like the choice you made to go out on Thursday night. She paid for the cab.” The detective jabs at a photo on the table from the cab camera. The detective stabs at the photo on the table again for emphasis. “She paid for the cab Chris.”
Chris turns his head to the side to look at the picture, on the table, of Katy and himself in the back of the cab. The detective remains silent. Chris lingers on the photo on the table. “Do you remember that?” the male detective sternly asks, pointing at the taxi-cab photo. Chris shakes his head in a “no” gesture while still keeping his arms tightly folded over his chest. “You don’t remember, or you don’t want to remember?”
“I don’t remember,” Chris replies, in a squeaky and pathetic-sounding high-pitched tone.
“What do you remember?” The male detective taps at the photo again, impatiently. “After she paid for the cab, what do you remember?” The male detective uses the power of silence to increase the pressure. Chris sighs and sobs.
The female detective strokes Chris’s arm and, in a soft voice, gentle whispers reassuringly, “It’s ok.”
“Chris, do you see what’s going on here?” the male detective asks, and then leaves more silence. The detective now tries an alternative question as a tactic. “When you put her down, were you really hoping someone would find her?” This is a subtle technique used to get an indirect confession out of a suspect. Answering “yes” would appeal to Chris's higher morals and the detective is hoping this will swerve his thought-processes from the fact that it would also distinguish him as the culprit in the victim’s death. Again, more forcibly, the male detective asks, “Chris, when you put her down there, were you hoping someone would find her?” Chris sobs and sniffles and shakes his head in a “no” gesture. The technique fails.
(4)
The male investigator now switches to the “ego-down” approach which is, essentially, the opposite of the “ego-up” approach he had just attempted. The detective now attacks Chris’s sense of personal-worth in the hope that, by doing so, the subject will voluntarily provide information in an attempt to vindicate himself and redeem some of his pride.
“How can somebody … I mean … if I ran over a dog …” The male detective raises his hands and makes chopping motions for emphasis. “… if I ran over a dog I’d feel bad. How can somebody do something like this and all weekend you act normal, have sex with your girlfriend, go to your father’s birthday party, and everybody says you were acting as always. Then, you’re driving around … you were gonna go and do something with her body …” The detective leaves a pause.
“I don’t know what I was gonna do,” Chris says.
“Ok, the stuff you had in your car, what was that for?”
“Well … I had my bags … I was not sure if I was going to leave or not”.
By “leave“ Chris means skip Town, run away. In his bag was a passport, enough clothes for a week, and all of his savings in cash, which amounted to just under $3000.
"The stuff you had in your car, what was that for?" asks the detective.
"Well … I had my bags … I was not sure if I was going to leave or not."
“And what else?” The detective prompts Chris.
“Ah … eh … the tarp and gas … they were for … eh … one or two things …” Chris then clams up and starts sniffling.
“Which were what?” The detective prompts him. “That’s what I’m saying Chris, what did you have these for?” The detective adopts an upward-palms, open arms, gesture and puts a pleading tone in his voice as if to say, “Come on, you can tell me Chris.” Chris just sniffs away with a blank look on his face. His forearm is shaking with the tension.
“You know what you had them for. You were going back down there … to get her?”
“I thought about it,” Chris says, while nodding his head.
“Yes, you were,” the detective confirms.
We have a breakthrough. This is Chris’s first incriminating statement, although it is not a full confession. However, this is an example of good, low-key, detective work. But it is not nearly enough, yet, for a guaranteed conviction that would stand up in court. The words “I thought about it” could be transmuted, in a number of ways, by a defence team. Yet the suspect has essentially identified himself as the man who was dragging the bin and therefore insinuating to the crime of interfering with a dead body. The highly-skilled detectives will use this breakthrough as a foundation to frame their next set of questions in order to increase the pressure for a full confession.
(5)
“What were you gonna do with the gasoline Chris?” The detective sweeps his hand in an arc to emphasis his question. Chris moves his head from left to right in a “no” gesture.
“I don’t know.”
“Chris, stop playing this game, ok? Seriously. You knew what you were gonna do" The female detective sits very still and maintains a steady gaze on Chris as the male detective continues. “If there hadn’t been anyone around there you would have went down there and did that …”
“I don’t think I could have.” Chris sounds feeble. “I drove by there before.”
“Yes I know you drove by there before,” the male detective says to Chris, while nodding his head in the affirmative. “I appreciate your honesty, ok?” (using the “Ego-Up” approach, giving Chris a reward for being truthful). Again, “I appreciate your honesty.” Then the detective leaves a pause.
“I don’t know what I was thinking,” Chris says in a pathetic voice, while shaking his head from side to side.
“Chris, you had your girlfriend’s car, too, right? Why … why would you do that? Because you didn’t want …”
“No, no, I didn’t have a lot of gas left and I thought I would have to go further away … to try to get away …” Chris says in a weak voice.
“Ok, that’s reasonable.” The detective waves his hand in acceptance of the lame reasoning.
“I didn’t want to lie to you.” Chris’s voice is whinny and he grips himself tightly with his arms.
“Ok, you don’t have to lie to me,” the male copper says gently and kindly. The female cop reaches out and pats Chris on the shoulder to reassure him they care about him and he is with friends in this room. “Tell me this, was she … tell me this … was she still alive when you put her in that bin?”
Chris’s arm is trembling. His right leg is rapidly moving up and down on the seat. His foot is tapping away on the floor. “No,” he says.
Chris has now confessed to the “felony” of interfering with a dead body. It is no longer insinuated, it is now confirmed.
(6)
“She didn’t suffer in there? She didn’t suffer when you threw her over that bank, she was dead? How do you know she was dead?” The male detective presses Chris, in a serious tone.
“I think she was,” Chris replies. His right-leg and arms are trembling markedly. Chris should really have legal counsel at this point. He has just admitted that he did not know if the victim was already dead before the attempted disposal over her body. There was a chance she could still have been alive, but instead of taking her to a hospital, he left her underneath a bridge in the middle of the night. Disclosing lack of morality in such a manner will be brought up by the Prosecution at a trial.
“How did you know that?” the male detective asks. “Are you telling me she was not alive when you stuffed her in there?” Chris sniffs. “How did you know she was not alive?” The detective taps the table for emphasis.
“She wasn’t moving,” Chris whines.
“You’re a paramedic,” the detective states. Chris was, in fact, a salesman for a fire-suppressions company and a part-time personal trainer. He briefly served as a volunteer fire-fighter and underwent emergency medical technician training which is what the detective is referring to. “How do you know she was not alive?”
“She wasn’t breathing,” Chris says.
“She wasn’t breathing? Like, how did you know that? Did you get down to feel for a pulse? Did you get close to her face, you know, because you are a paramedic, some people might have faint breaths?”
“I don’t know,” Chris shakes his head and sniffs.
The victim not moving, or appearing to be breathing, is now Chris’s acumen for recognising her death. He has just admitted to not checking for a pulse, or using his CPR training, to try and save her life. The female detective now grips Chris’s left hand in her own, tightly, to bond and comfort him in his time of intense stress.
(7)
“When you put her in there, she wasn’t alive, 100 per cent, you’re telling me 100 per cent she wasn’t alive?”
“I think …” Chris shakes his head from side to side and grips the female detective’s hand tightly.
“Was she making any noises?” Chris replies with a shake of the head.
“Did she suffer? Did she suffer Chris?”
Chris sighs. “I don’t think …”
The male detective continues. “I can understand how some of those other things happened … but …”
This is a cunning and calculated tactic by the male investigator. He is now focusing his disapproval on one element. That is, the victim still being alive inside the bin, overly emphasises the wickedness of this single misdeed while he downplays, and partly justifies, all the other infractions that haven’t been confessed to yet.
“Please tell me she was not alive Chris. I need to know. Everybody needs to know…” The detective taps the table. “…you’re telling me she was …” The detective leaves a pause hanging in the air. “…and you said she wasn’t breathing?”
“No.” Chris shakes his head.
“She wasn’t making any noises?”
“No,” Chris says.
“Did you check her pulse, or anything like that?”
“No.”
“You didn’t? Because if you had told me that she was still alive when you did a thing like that I don’t know if I could still be in the same room as you Bud. Okay? So did she suffer? How do you know she didn’t suffer?”
“I don’t know,” Chris sighs.
“I guess what I’m saying is, if you’re telling me that she’s dead, that you’re certain that she’s dead, when you put her in the bin, then how do you know she didn’t suffer? How did it end? Was it over quick?”
This is the first indirect question relating to the suspect, Chris, being present at the time of the victim’s murder. The detective is very good at stating the essential wording of the question at the end of his sentences in a very quick and casual manner which disguises the condemnatory nature of the inquisition.
“I think so,” Chris says with a sigh.
“Chris, how did you know it was over quick?” The detective pursues further admission. “You’re a paramedic, you’re a fire-fighter, you know anatomy, you know how people’s bodies work?”
Chris sighs and sniffs, then composes himself. There is now a slightly stronger tone in his voice. “She wasn’t moving, and she wasn’t breathing,” Chris says with certainty. This is not the answer the detective was hoping for … (full story available in printed form)
25. TRAIN OF THOUGHT
(1)
Long train-journeys in the mid 70s seemed to take forever. This was especially the case for a young and attractive woman. She was going to be spending the weekend with some friends. Joan was heading to a pretty little village and she was assured that she would like it. Her friends were supposed to be meeting her at the station that late winter evening.
The papers said that “They hadn’t caught him yet”. All the more reason for her to be extra careful.
Three girls had been assaulted on this train-line in as many months. And, in each case, it was a lot more than just assault. One girl nearly died too. They said that there was nothing to worry about because they’d catch him sooner or later. However it was Joan who was doing the travelling on this line that winter evening.
The Papers said they were “looking for a man with short blond hair.” Joan had shoulder-length, straight, dark-brown hair. She had an air of class about her and was well-groomed. The train stopped at a station. The next stop was were Joan was to get off. So not long to go.
Joan picked up a discarded newspaper that had been left on a nearby bench-seat in her small compartment. She was engrossed in it when someone entered the cabin and sat down opposite her. Joan glanced up from her paper to see a man of about thirty staring directly at her. He had short-cropped blond hair.
The attractive-looking man in the checked-jacket, sitting opposite Joan, had a pleasant smile on his face. His pale blue eyes were piercing, almost hypnotic. He was well-dressed and had a confident and relaxed presence. He stopped staring at Joan and politely looked away.
Joan hid behind her paper, glancing over it now and then, revealing her wide eyes. The blond man rattled his fingers on the seat as if he was getting a bit agitated or impatient. It was just the two of them in the small cabin, sitting opposite each other on the bench seats.
(2)
Joan glances up at the alarm-chain above her. The notice says:
ALARM
Pull the chain
Penalty for improper use £25
Joan glances over to the blond man. He smiles. Joan then realises she is crossed-legged and her skirt has risen up at bit. She sits herself upright, pulls her skirt down, and tucks her open beige jacket over her red blouse. The blond man looks at her legs approvingly. Joan is now feeling very self-conscious and she shifts around on her seat.
The man pulls out a lighter as if he is some sort of a magician. It just appears in his hand. He stretches out his arm in front of himself as if for dramatic effect. He rapidly flicks the flint of the disposable lighter creating lots of sparks. Joan’s eyes widen a bit as she locks onto the lighter. She looks to the man to see that he now has a big wooden pipe in his mouth. But he still has those gleaming eyes fixed upon her.
Joan turns her head slowly and looks at the triangular red notice on the window. “No Smoking” it states. Her concerned eyes are reflected in the window. The train speeds along though the darkness of the night, gently rocking their carriage. The lighter may have just been for dramatic effect because the blond man now produces a big box of Schiff Hamburg matches. The matchbox has a tall clipper ship on the label. He strikes a match on the side of the box. It immediately bursts into flames. He lights his pipe; smoke temporarily engulfs his face. He tosses the match to the floor and holds his gaze on Joan.
With his pipe in his mouth, and both hands now free, the good-looking blond man sits upright, then slowly and deliberately, he leans forward. He stretches his hand out towards her. Joan shrinks back into her seat.
The blond man picks up the newspaper that was next to Joan. She sighs in relief. His outstretched arm was not a threat, he was merely reaching for the reading material.
He sits back and holds the Times over his face, occasionally peering over it to meet her eyes. The train carriage jerks and sways. Joan is thoughtful. She slowly reaches for her leather handbag while keeping an eye on the man behind the newspaper. She delicately puts the strap over her right shoulder and begins to make motions to get up and leave the small compartment.
She stands up, and then looks up at the luggage-rack, above her head, where her big case is lying. She stretches her hand upward and touches the case handle. With a start, she feels his hand over hers. He stands behind her and he grabs the handle. She slowly sits back down. He hands her the case. She accepts it with a frown and dashes out of the compartment. He looks on with a serious expression on his face as he caresses his pipe. He is no longer smiling.
Joan gets off the train at the next station. She walks over the platform, carrying her case, and into the station ticket-office. She looks around. There is no-one there to meet her.
(3)
She stands in front of the ticket-bureau window and looks inside. There is a lamp on but no-one in the office. A big wooden wall-clock above her shows the time to be 10.45pm. Looking through the ticket-office window again, she flinches at the site of a wooden pipe sitting next to the ticket machine. It is silent all around, and the clock above her head ticks away.
She feels a hand from behind, touching her shoulder. She jumps and lets out a subdued cry of fright. And then she spins around.
“Miss Stevens?”
“Yes,” she answers warily.
The grey-haired Station Master peers over his glasses at her. His face is friendly and helpful. He is in uniform, with crisp white shirt and dark tie, and he wears his official cap of authority. His moustache is greying and his hair at the side is long and straggly, giving him a slightly dishevelled appearance. His voice is polite and clear as he looks over his gold-rimmed reading glasses at her.
“Your friends called me,” he says.
“What?” she nervously flicks her hair back.
“Mrs and Mrs Hunt were on their way back to town and their car broke down. So they’ll be delayed and so they want you to go on and let yourself in.”
Joan looks a bit anxious.
“They key’s under the mat” he informs her. “This way miss” he gently puts a hand on her back and guides her out of the station building and into the dimly-lit forecourt. “Turn right, out of the station, and it is the first house that you see” the man says helpfully. “About quarter a mile” he says, then pauses. “Everything alright Miss?” he leans towards her and shows genuine concern as they both stand face-to-face in the dark forecourt.
“Yes, thank you,” she says with composure. Joan briskly walks off.
A few seconds later a tall blond man, wearing a smart checked-jacket, over a light-coloured polo-necked jumper, walks through the station building and past the ticket office. He stands in the forecourt and looks around keenly. His eyes searching.
“Just a minute,” a voice of authority says. “Can I have your ticket please?” the Station Master asks. The blond man spins around to look at the source of the voice behind him.
(4)
Meanwhile Joan is now out of the station and quickly walking uphill. She keeps glancing back towards the station lights. The road is dark and she briskly walks on the tarmac but not actually on the pavement itself.
The blond man is now emerging from the station and walking her way. Joan quickens her step while glancing back often. She crosses a road of traffic, dodging the speeding headlights. Her case is becoming heavy and cumbersome. Her face shows anxiety as she is well aware that she is isolated and vulnerable in this dark, late, evening light. She is not even familiar with the surroundings.
She steps onto the pavement as a car approaches. The car headlights momentarily blind her. As the car sweeps by she looks back at it to check the registration-number on the rear plate. The car has now travelled another 50 yards, or so, and its headlights illuminate the shadowy figure of a tall man behind her, walking along the pavement.
There is an intense beauty in the vulnerability that shows in the eyes of Joan as her polished heels click-clack on the pavement in the stark white shadowy moonlight. And there is a strength in those eyes too. A resilience.
(5)
Joan reaches the Big House. She finds the Yale key under the doormat. She glances back at the path to check if there is anyone following her. She quickly puts the key into the lock on the door. In her haste, she pushes the door open, walks inside, and slams it shut. But she leaves the key, still in the lock, on the outside of the door. Her attention is now fully focused on surveying the dark and empty house she has just stepped into.
Joan walks further into the dark house. Standing by a window she looks out into the moonlit night. She sees that the big white gate across the track to the house is not closed properly. There is a gap where the fences should meet. The curtains are wide open on the window she looks through but, so far, she has not put any lights on inside the house. She walks to the hall and flicks the light switch.
Her eyes see into the house. She turns slightly to her left. Bracketed on the wall, just two feet away, are two solid axes, crossed over in an “X” shape. It suddenly occurs to Joan that she has left the Yale key in the lock on the outside of the door. She frowns. Then her eyes widen with the realisation. She spins quickly and heads towards the front door. She opens the door and looks out.
Standing outside, just a few feet away, is the blonde man from the train compartment. He has a gentle smile and nods his head in greeting. He stretches his hand out and his palm is almost touching her face.
Standing outside the house, just a few feet away, is the blond-haired man from the train compartment. He has a gentle smile and nods his head in a greeting. He stretches out his hand. Joan, bares her teeth, and lets out a high-pitched scream of terror, as the shadow of the blond man’s hand covers her face.
(6)
The next morning is cold, but bright and sunny. A cream-coloured Rover car, registration PFA 324H, speeds along a stretch of dual-carriageway. Inside the car a middle-class couple in their mid to late thirties are chatting. The dark-haired man is driving. The good-looking woman in the passenger-seat, with the neat fringe, subtle pale-blue eye-shadow and streaked-blonde hair, has a big fur coat on.
“She’ll be furious. Absolutely furious,” Susan Hunt declares, slightly theatrically, in her cultured voice. She glances over to her husband to gauge his response.
Keeping a tight grip on the steering-wheel and sounding slightly irritated, Jeff Hunt replies to his wife, “Remember darling, it wasn’t our fault,” with his voice sounding a bit strained. “It wasn’t anybody’s fault.” On both occasions he emphasises the word “fault”. Jeff has fine short black hair and looks like he needs a shave. His wide sideburns are neatly trimmed. He looks like a professional man who can handle responsibility. His even-featured, handsome face, looks pasty in the harsh winter light coming through the car window.
“It’s your car,” she mildly accuses him. “Men are supposed to look after their cars, to make sure they don’t break down.” She looks at him mischievously to see if he is rising to the bait. Jeff handles this by saying nothing. He concentrates on his driving.
Jeff keeps tight-lipped for just a short while. Susan breaks the silence. “Poor Joan,” she sighs. “We were supposed to meet her last night, but now look at it.” She quickly glances at her watch. “It’s … it’s tomorrow.” Susan looks at Jeff as if to challenge him a bit. Jeff puts on a calming tone.
“She probably made herself some supper and went quietly to bed,” he says, reassuringly.
“But I had to sit by the roadside and freeze all night.” Susan puts on a slightly perturbed look.
“Just who are you worried about, Joan, or yourself?” Jeff says with a smirk.
“Both of us, of course,” Susan has concession in her eyes as Jeff takes a bit of command.
This is all play-acting.
“Both of us had an absolutely beastly night,” Susan says with a warm grin. Jeff is grinning too. “All because of your wretched car,” she teases. They both now have wide smiles.
“But you love me,” Jeff says with confidence. Susan pushes her big fur collar up over her neck and face, and peers over the top revealing just her alluring eyes.
“Maybe,” she says.
(7)
Jeff and Susan arrive at the entry to the driveway of their big country house in their cream “H” registration Rover. Susan gets out of the passenger side-door, takes a few steps forward, and opens up the white wooden gates to allow the car access. Jeff drives the car through and parks it next to the house, stiffly yanking the hand-brake on before exiting from the driver's side.
They both walk along the paving-stones of the path still mildly grinning at each other. Susan’s thigh-level leather boots make an impressive clumping sound on the stone path. She squats down and lifts up the door-mat to check. There is no key.
She stretches her arm out towards Jeff and makes a beckoning motion with her hand as if to say “the door-key please.” Jeff picks up a couple of full milk-bottles from the ground, swiftly transfers both of them to his left hand, and uses his free right-hand to place a set of keys into Susan’s palm. Susan puts the keys into the Yale lock, turns them, and opens the front door.
“Jeff!” she shouts in a high-pitched voice.
They both stare into their house. In the hallway they see tables upturned, cabinets tipped over, and books scattered all over the floor. As they look around they see picture-frames smashed on the floor and stools lying horizontally. There are bloody, hand-marks and finger-prints, on the walls, and large streaks of deep-red blood in places. One of the short axes is missing from the display.
They stand there in shock, frozen. Jeff holds a milk-bottle in each hand in front of him. Susan’s dark-brown leather hand-bag dangles loosely off her left hand.
“Joan!” They both shout, in unison, at the top of their voices. A bloody hand begins to emerge from behind the plasterboard of the wall-corner about 20 feet away from them. The disembodied hand moves slowly, and is about three feet off the ground, as it creeps around the corner of the wall.
They hear the sound of sobbing. Joan gradually appears from around the corner of the hallway. She is on her knees and she grips the wall, to steady herself, as she rises slowly into a standing position. This takes all her strength of will. Joan is battered and bruised and her clothes are torn. She staggers and falls into the arms of Susan, who has rushed forward to catch her. Jeff grabs the telephone that is sitting on a small table nearby.
The police are on their way. Their blue lights are flashing and their sirens are loudly wailing.
(8)
“Surely just one minute,” the plain-clothed Inspector demands, with his face contorted. He stands at around 5ft 10. The knot of his tie is loose and bulges out of his dark-blue suit as it attempts to grip the collar of his check-patterned shirt. His craggy face, furrowed brow, and big moustache, mark him out as a tough guy with experience. His receding, but still lively, dark-red hair and huge sideburns give him an imposing appearance.
“The answer must be no,” states the tall and distinguished doctor in the white coat. The surgeon clears the height of the copper by at least two inches. His voice is steady and firm.
The Inspector and the Doctor both look over to see the limp body of Joan being placed down on a hospital bed by two orderlies.
“Half a minute then?” the Inspector pleads, and attempts to use a softer approach to persuade.
“No.”
“Look, you’re doing your job Doctor, I’m just trying to do mine.” The Inspector points at his own chest for emphasis. “She saw the man, she must have. Maybe she can give us an accurate description?” he tries to convince.
“Not now please.”
“Look Doctor …” The Inspector gestures for them both to go out into the corridor. When outside the room, the Inspector raises his voice to a shriller pitch. “If we don’t catch him, he’ll do it again.” The cop stares directly at the tall man in the white coat and challenges him to concede. The Doctor comes back robustly.
“Potential victims are your concern. Mine is that girl.”
The Inspector pauses for a second, realises there is no compromise and then says, “I’ll be back tomorrow then,” before quickly walking away. The Doctor calls out and the Inspector stops in the corridor and looks back.
“Don’t you realise it is her mind that is affected? The state she is on now she may never make any sense”.
“I’ll be back tomorrow,” the copper mutters under his breath and then walks away.
(9)
Joan is lying on the hospital bed, unconscious. She’s just been given an injection to sedate her. The tall doctor in the white coat comes into the private room to check on her. He leans over the bed. Her eyes are open, but she doesn’t see the doctor, she sees the blond man looking at her.
“Take the man away,” she whimpers. She sobs and cries. “Take the bad man away.” The doctor moves away from the bed and whispers some instructions to a nurse. Joan grips her pillow and carries on wailing and sobbing.
Meanwhile, Susan is down on her knees in the hallway, cleaning up the mess at the house. She scoops up broken glass and has a vacuum-cleaner sitting next to her. Some pieces of furniture are still tipped over. The big cream phone, sitting on the small table, begins to ring. Susan glances up with concern and looks over at the ringing phone. She is dressed in a thin black polyester top and long black trousers. Jeff, still wearing his checked shirt, which now has the collar wide open, walks over and picks up the phone handset.
“Yes, I see. Thank you for ringing,” he says into the phone, using subdued tones. Susan looks on in anticipation, with worry on her face. She has both hands placed on her thighs, and from her kneeling position on the hardwood floor, she looks up at Jeff who has placed the phone back on the hook. “It’s the hospital. No change,” he quietly informs her.
In the hospital, Joan is lying quietly now. She has a pretty floral gown on. Joan is awake but her eyes are in the distance. The Inspector is standing at the bottom of her bed. He has a friendly expression. “Miss Stevens” he says quietly and gently. His face looks softer and more approachable than the day before. His tie-knot is now tighter, and neater, over his fine-checked shirt. He looks quite smart in his blue suit.
“Miss Stevens,” he repeats softly, inflecting his voice to a slightly higher, questioning, tone. Joan stares but is unresponsive. He moves in close and leans over the bed and is about two feet away from Joan‘s face. “Look …” He shakes his head a little with impatience. “I just want to find the man…” He puts on a grin for her. She stares at him, wide-eyed. Joan almost looks like an innocent baby as she lies there.
The Inspector continues “The bad man…” He nods his head to her, gently trying to get her cooperation. The man you’ve been talking about …” Joan stares at him with her innocent and glassy wide eyes. "You are going to help me find …” His voice trails away and his head goes down a bit. He tries again.
“Miss Stevens, you don’t have to be frightened of me … I’m a police officer …” He takes out his I.D. from his jacket pocket and places it firmly in front of her eyes, just six inches, or so, away. “See”. The unfolded card has an emblem on it and it says COUNTY POLICE. It gives names and numbers, and it is signed. Joan looks a bit more relaxed. She slowly moves her head up to look at the man who is holding the I.D. card. Joan sees the blond man; the bad man. She lets out a hysterical scream of anguish. The copper shrinks back and looks bewildered. The doctor enters the room and instructs the Inspector to leave immediately. Joan carries on screaming intensely.
* * *
(10)
Later on that day ...
The Inspector is peering closely at the remaining axe which is still hanging on the wall-bracket. There is an empty slot next to it, where the twin was. His craggy face is screwed up in concentration and he strokes his moustache with his thumb. He steps away from the wall.
“You haven’t found it yet,” Jeff states with a sigh, and a flat tone of disappointment in his voice. He stands a few feet away from the Inspector, by the window. Jeff’s wearing a light-blue plain shirt which is open at the neck, and darker blue soft trousers that flair a bit at the bottom. Both his hands are in his pockets and his shoulders are hunched up. He’s clean-shaven but his thick, straight, black hair is looking a bit too floppy. He could do with a good haircut.
“Nah. The axe … nor him,” the Inspector replies. “Funny though …” the Inspector continues, while shaking his head. “I thought we would have found it.” He walks forward to stand in front of Jeff. “Judging from the injuries, he didn’t use the axe on her. I thought perhaps she took it to defend herself.”
“Well if she did, it didn’t do much good,” Susan buts in impatiently. She had been within earshot listening to them both. She is standing upright, about twenty feet away from them, leaning on a wall, with her arms tightly crossed over her chest. She’s wearing a light-coloured floral dress.
The Inspector paces around slowly and continues with his analysis. “Probably put his prints on it during the struggle … eh … what he did … he ran out though here …” He points down the hall “He remembered the axe … and, eh, came back for it.”
“How do you know that?” Jeff asks with incredulity. He is now standing behind Susan and has his arms loosely around her.
“I don’t know, I’m just guessing,” says the Inspector, but he doesn’t sound very convincing though. He looks at the floor. “But there’s mud on this carpet …” His voice trails off. “I wonder why he didn’t kill her?” The Inspector hangs the question in the air. Jeff and Susan both fix their gazes on him.
“I wonder why he didn’t kill her?” the Inspector conjectures.
“Well he might as well have.” Susan looks stressed. “They’ve taken her to Corby Hall.”
“I know,” the Inspector confirms, with a slight grin.
Susan is perturbed. “She’s not mad is she?”
“Not mad, maybe disturbed, but that’s understandable after what’s happened to her. As a woman you should understand that,” the Inspector says with a wide grin. Susan is now close to tears.
“When I think of Joan in that place …” Susan’s eyes are glassy. Jeff grips her by the shoulders.
“Now darling it isn’t … a place like that.” Jeff puts on a comforting tone.
“Corby Hall’s the best in the country.” The Inspector has a uplifting tone, and a grin on his face. “And expensive.” The Inspector nods to Jeff, who is clutching Susan’s shoulders.
“The Americans are showing their customary generosity. The Embassy is paying all the bills,” Jeff states.
Joan had just arrived in the country to take up a position as a stenographer. Her train journey was the first time she had travelled on a British train. Because she was so well brought-up and educated Joan only had the mildest accent which she could take away, at will, if the context required this.
She’ll soon be well enough to talk to me,” says the Inspector, confidently, “…and then … I’ll nail him.”
* * *
(11)
Later …
It is a cold and overcast day at Corby Hall. Joan wanders around aimlessly on the immaculately-mowed lawn next to the water-fountain. She is wearing a long grey coat over an ankle-length white, floral-pattered, gown and her footwear is loose-fitting scandals. Her arms are wrapped across her body, tightly, in an effort to keep out the chill. A nurse, in uniform, walks towards her to check her welfare.
Jeff, Susan, and a psychiatrist, are standing on a balcony of the grand house. All three are observing Joan, who is below them, at a distance, talking to the attendant nurse. Jeff and Susan gaze down, looking concerned. The psychiatrist stands back a bit and has a look of professional detachment.
Jeff is wearing a light grey suit and blue shirt and dark tie. His hair, while still full of body, looks neater and trimmed. Susan is wearing a patterned tweed jacket over a bright yellow polo-neck jumper, and she has matching flared yellow trousers. The psychiatrist wears a fine-quality dark-blue jacket, a crisp white shirt, and a conservatively-striped tie and buttoned-up waistcoat. He stands upright, with his hands behind his back, and his fine grey receding hair, and slightly tanned skin, give him an air of authority. He looks to be a man in his early fifties.
“I understand she has no family,” the psychiatrist states with perfect diction. He has the slightest of accents.
“None to speak of, a couple of distant aunts…” mutters Jeff in a low voice.
“It is important she doesn’t feel lonely … isolated in any way,” the psychiatrist states, drawing out the word “lonely” in a commanding way, almost as if he is a high-level government-official advising a Minister of State. His manner irritates Jeff a bit.
“Yes of course,” Jeff says snappily. “We come every weekend …” His voice trails off.
“Can I go and talk to her? Susan asks.
“Yes, but only bright things please,” the psychiatrist instructs, in his superior tone, as he paces away with his hands behind his back. They all walk inside. The psychiatrist heads over and sits behind his polished wooden desk. Susan and Jeff begin to walk out the office door.
“Not you Mr Hunt.” The psychiatrist’s voice booms out and echoes of the walls. Jeff pauses, turns around bemused looking, and meets the eyes of the psychiatrist. “For the time-being it is best she only has female contact” the psychiatrist then looks down and carries on writing busily, without looking up. Jeff is a bit taken aback and so is Susan. Jeff glances at Susan as if to say, you carry on and I’ll deal with this. Susan walks away out of the office. Jeff walks back in and closes the door. He paces around for a while but says nothing. The psychiatrist doesn’t look up. Jeff is uncomfortable. He rubs his hands together and sighs a bit.
Jeff moves over to stand by the desk. “Doctor Warder,” he says in a quiet voice. Jeff is now wringing his hands. Warder carries on writing for a bit, then he looks up at Jeff. He says nothing. Jeff walks towards the window and gazes out into the bright-white daylight. He briefly points out of the window and then he gently asks, “How long is this going to take?”
“Progress will be slow, but over the next few months I hope that she may …”
Jeff spins around from his window-gazing and cuts in. “A few months?” he says with a surprised tone while looking directly at Warder.
“I’d say six at least.” Warder spins around on his chair to look at Jeff.
“But then she will be completely well again?” Jeff asks, with concern on his face.
“Well, the experience she has been through, there must be scars of course.” Warder has spun back around in his chair and he looks away from Jeff, in a detached way, thinking abstractly. “But she will be a perfectly normal and healthy young woman again,” Warder states confidently, with his voice resonating.
* * *
(12)
Meanwhile ...
The Inspector is sitting behind his untidy desk, scribbling away intently with his black ballpoint pen, on a sheet of cream paper which is part of the contents of a manila-coloured cardboard file. His desk is functional, and probably too small, as there are many sheets of paper covering the whole surface. His two black telephones sit under a desk-lamp at his right-hand corner. He’s wearing a sleeveless, thin-grey, ribbed-patterned, v-necked jumper over a fine-checked blue shirt. His dark tie is fairly tight to the collar. On the blue wall directly behind him there are some notices and a big map. There is a purposeful knock on the door.
“Yes,” he acknowledges, absent-mindedly, while still annotating his document.
“Detective Constable Wallace, Sir,” a female voice announces.
The inspector carries on muttering to himself about his analysis of his notes and then pauses and slowly gazes up from his desk. At his eye-level he is facing the crotch of a set of blue female jeans about two feet away. The belt of the jeans is soft-grey/blue and studded with beads. The buckle is an ornate face with blue-beads for ears. Just above the belt-line is a horizontally pin-striped fashionable blue casual top. His eyes dilate involuntary as he continues to slowly raise them upwards to reveal a glamorous young blond-haired woman wearing a decorative necklace. The Inspector’s expression is frozen in surprise for a second as he clutches a piece of A4 paper, and then a wide grin appears on his face. He looks upwards from his desk at this tall woman, standing there, with approval in his eyes. He rises up from his seat and takes a few steps around to be at the other side of the blond woman from his desk.
“Well now constable Wallace, what I want from you is …” The Inspector’s eye-level only meets the woman’s chest-level. She towers over him. The Inspector looks distracted at what he sees just two feet away. Slightly embarrassed, he gestures with his hand. “Why don’t you sit down”.
* * *
(13)
Later ...
I’m very pleased with you Joan, very pleased indeed.” Doctor Warder leans forward over his desk. “Cure is a two-way process.” Warder’s eyes gleam with self-satisfaction. “We can lead, offer, direct, but ultimately it must come from you.” Warder speaks in his confident and formal manner. Joan sits on a hard chair, opposite him, at the other side of the desk. Her head is slightly bowed forward and she is fiddling with a string of paperclips she has assembled. Joan is wearing a medium-green open-necked top with lots of buttons running up the middle. She doesn’t look up at Warder, she focuses her concentration on adding more clips to her chain.
Warder slowly reaches over the desk to touch her hands to get her attention and to stop her fiddling away. “You are doing very well …” His voice booms out. Joan flinches at his touch and lets out a cry. Warder gives her a stern look. “But perhaps the most important factor of all … is time.” Warder maintains steady eye-contact on Joan. “Time to forget. Time to re-adjust.” Warder speaks with force, almost as if he is trying to hypnotise his patient.
* * *
(14)
Meanwhile ...
Susan stands in front of a full-length mirror, combing the neat fringe of her straight blondish hair. “I’m sure it’s going to be good news.”
“Don’t build up any hopes.” Jeff can be heard from the other side of the room.
“They said be prepared for a surprise,” says Susan, with a smile of optimism.
“I know, but don’t build up any hopes,” Jeff repeats. He has moved forward and is now standing behind Susan, fixing his cuffs. He, too, has a smile on his face.
“You’ve already said that about half-a-dozen times.” Susan turns around to look at him. “Darling, you’re beginning to sound like a needle stuck in a groove.”
“Well that doesn’t half date you. I always did go for the older woman,” he teases, and then he gives her a cheeky smack on the bottom. Susan spins around fast and swipes at him. Jeff ducks down at lightning speed and her attempted blow completely misses the target.
“I’m sure we’re going to see a great change in Joan.” Susan’s wide smile is bright. Jeff puts his arm around her as they walk, together, out of the house … (full story available in printed form)
26. PAST TENSE
It was a long drive to Taradale, on the edge of Loch Maree. It would probably take me four hours to get there. I was busy with other work for Trade Fairs, and the like, and so it felt like an inconvenience. This shoot was taking me well away from base. And so just as well the money was good.
I packed my road map and headed for the most remote part of nowhere, and Fionn Lodge. The house had finally found its way onto the market. Just about everyone in the North West had heard of the place and all that had supposedly gone on there - not least the staff at Chisholm and Sons, the Inverness Estate Agency, in receipt of my services, and now encumbered with the property’s future. It was an odd story indeed.
Mary Fraser, was an elderly spinster in her late nineties. She had resided at the Lodge for over half a century, before taking her own life just a month ago. She had left a note saying that her wish was to be with her long-dead son, Donald, and that the Loch would decide her fate.
Her body was never recovered. A verdict of death by suicide was recorded at the inquest. It was concluded that the old woman, burdened with grief, and advanced dementia, had leapt to her death from Slioch Broch, right on the edge of the Loch. That should have been the end of it. But then the stories began to emerge.
The local stories. Stories of a mother, Mary, and of her son, Donald, living in the big house together over many decades. They were reliant and self-contained, until Donald finally met, and proposed, to the woman of his dreams, in the nearby settlement of Poolewe.
Just a few days before they were to be married, Donald disappeared and was never seen again. The rumours quickly spread. The locals whispered that Mary had killed Donald in a frenzied rage of jealousy. She had never wanted him to leave the Lodge, and so the old woman had made sure that he never would.
Thereafter, myths evolved into predictable tales of ghostly sightings in the mists on the edge of the Loch, and lost souls wandering aimlessly, trapped in limbo, in an otherwise, deathly silent, brooding house, haunted by its past.
Following the inquest, Bruce and McKenzie -- an Ullapool-based solicitor’s practice handling the probate and settlement -- instructed an estate agent in Poolewe to sell the property. However, fuelling rumour and speculation further still, the agent refused, stating that there was no market for Fionn Lodge and that, even if there was one, he would have no hand in its sale. Subsequently, Chisholm and Sons, became involved and, in turn, my services procured.
But I had no interest in any of the ghostly stuff. My brief was simply to photograph colour and black & white exteriors shots of the Lodge. And the sooner it was done the better, as far as I cared. And so, after three and a half hours of travelling, on a dull and grey overcast day, I was now approaching the Lodge on the Loch. I was eight miles from Poolewe.
I entered the gravelled driveway and made my ascent to the house itself. At that point the sun appeared from behind thick dark clouds, beaming golden light through the spruce trees to either side. I was glad of this. I had been concerned that the photographs, especially the monochromes, would appear flat and lifeless in the absence of any bright and direct light. I knew, from experience, that the best shots would be dampened without the warmth of sunlight on the brickwork.
I parked the car and then I walked around to the front of the Lodge. I found the grass freshly mown. Someone had obviously made headway already to ensure that the property was as presentable as it could be. As I stared at the big house a cold breeze brushed across my face.
For a brief moment I had the feeling that someone was standing directly behind me but, when I turned around, there was nobody; only the house, standing silently against the backdrop of the Loch and Slioch, the 3200ft Mountain, in the distance.
The house was abandoned and paint-cracked. From another age. The forgotten past. Though it was just past midday, the paint-flaked sash-cord windows on the upper floors looked darker than night. I had to admit that the isolated Lodge was an intimidating sight. A part of me could only admire its desolate beauty as it stood bathed in the late autumn sunlight against the blackening cloud.
I used a neutral density filter to photograph the exterior. This allowed me to stop down the lens to capture long exposures that would be drawn out to over thirty seconds each. As the low-level stratus clouds were moving relatively quickly across the grey sky, I knew that this would create a blurred sense of movement in the skies, that would give more prominence to the Lodge itself as it stood silent and motionless in the foreground. My Olympus OM4 was firmly fixed to my Manfrotto tripod to ensure that the house itself was recorded tack-sharp.
By angling the camera-view slightly, and changing to a 28mm lens, I could also capture Slioch in the frame, ten miles in the distance, at the other side of the deeply grey Loch. I shot two rolls of black & white and one of colour, and that was my work complete. I packed away the camera gear and prepared to drive away. But before leaving, I couldn’t resist peering through the windows on the ground floor.
Inside, the rooms were sparse and unfurnished, dim and void of life or character. In one of the rooms, at the front of the house, a solitary wooden chair sat in the middle of the floor, facing the window. I imagined the view of the Loch from that position. (available in printed form)
27. DROWNING IN THE CITY
The City has expanded rapidly, since the Industrial Revolution, into a gigantic powerhouse of production. Hungry and desperate souls flock here in search of employment. The infrastructure has evolved to cope with the pressure … (full story available in printed form)
28. TWO LOST SOULS
(1)
Dampness permeates the night air. Across the water, in the darkness, a police-siren sounds, and a church-bell tolls. The lights of the City flicker in the distance. Cold waves brush the stony shore, illuminated by the pale and bright moonlight. A distant boat-horn groans and wails. And then there is the sound of ungainly footsteps on a muddy track.
A container-ship slowly makes its way along the river, watched by a middle-aged lady with dark, straight, shoulder-length hair. She is standing at the river’s edge, slightly smiling, as if in anticipation. A full moon shines through the broken clouds. The wind begins to pick up, and it whistles through the trees. A lighthouse pulses across the way. The lady takes a breath and then walks away from the shore.
Walking through the night, and through the woods, the lady comes across an isolated cottage. She looks cold, and her jacket is zipped up to the neck to keep the chill out. There are no lights on in the detached house. She pauses, and then heads up to the front door. The moonlight casts a sharp shadow of the lady onto the wooden frame.
The woman takes out a Yale key and opens the door-lock. The moonlight hits her face, as she glances back over her shoulder, before entering the house.
The house has two levels, and it looks in a well-maintained condition from the outside. She walks into the living room and switches on the light. The décor is modern and the house appears to be lived-in. She turns on some lamps, and the radio, and then she begins to have a look around.
(2)
After her walk outside in the wind, Carol looks a bit dishevelled, as she stands there, in the lamp-lit living room, but she’s, by no means, an unattractive woman. She’s probably about five foot six inches in height and she has a full, rounded, figure and ample bosom. Her face, has even features, and she has dark brown eyes, and a pale complexion of smooth skin. Carol is dressed casually, wearing blue jeans, and a dark-blue long cardigan, which is hanging wide open, over a green top of soft material which has six tight buttons leading up to a wide open-neck. Her chest pushes out of the top of her blouse, just enough, to draw attention.
As she flips through a photo-album, that she has picked up from a shelf, a news bulletin broadcasts from the radio.
Carol flips through a photo-album while, in the background, a news-bulletin broadcasts from the radio.
Male Radio Announcer voice: “… it’s also extremely grim out there so please do take care on the roads this evening. Gale force winds are forecast for the rest of the night and severe weather warnings remain in place across the Southwest and surrounding areas. It is really not very pleasant at all. Stay with us for updates on the weather situation every 15 minutes …”
Carol picks up some framed pictures from the bookshelf and takes a close look at them.
Announcer: “…and the headlines once again for the Southwest. The search continues for a missing patient who escaped from the Riverview secure unit earlier today. The resident, should not be approached …”
Carol is holding a small silver frame and touching the glass with her fingers. The picture is of a wholesome-looking male-and-female couple in their early forties. He stands tall, wearing a wool jumper and shirt; she is about four or five inches shorter and has shoulder-length straight dark hair.
Announcer: “… and is described as being …”
At this point there is a buzzing sound and the mains electricity cuts out. The living room becomes dark.
The radio had been plugged into the mains and so the living-room is now silent. Carol, lets out a sigh, and walks over to the wall light-switch and clicks it back and forth. There is no power. Some moonlight is shining through the gaps in the window-curtains however; just enough for her to make out the outline of a small, circular, wooden table which has, what appears to be, four glass candle-holders. Two of them are opaque and star-shaped, while the other pair are round and clear.
There is an electronic lighter on the bookshelf. She picks this up, flicks it, and lights up all four of the candles. One of the star-shaped candle-holders is deep blue, while the other is dark green. The remaining two are clear and show a golden flame. The candles all glow-away nicely on the small wooden table which Carol has moved over to sit right next to a big, comfy, sofa-chair which has wide, soft, arms. There are folded wool-blankets hanging over back of the chair, and the candle-light casts a wavering shadow of Carol’s head onto the plain wall directly behind her. She looks over to the face of a ticking-clock, sitting on top of the bookcase. The hands display a time of twenty-five past midnight.
Carol sits back on the sofa, rests her head on the blankets, and tries to relax. Her legs are crossed, and her left-foot sandshoe twitches up and down. The strong wind howls through the trees, shaking the branches. Eventually, Carol doses off. Her eyeballs move slowly, back and forth, under her eyelids, as she begins to dream. Outside, there is the sound of twigs cracking, under the force of footsteps.
There is the sound of footsteps approaching the cottage. Carol continues to dream and is unaware of this. Then, there is a loud, single knock, on the door. Carol’s eyes snap open wide. The handle of the door now rattles, repeatedly. Carol rises up from her chair, looking fearful.
(3)
Carol stares at the outside door, and then her gaze fixes on a stand next to the fireplace. The door-handle rattles impatiently. Carol’s brow is deeply furrowed and her heart is pounding in her chest. She steps, quickly, to the fire-stand and grabs a thick, iron, poker. She holds it with both hands.
Carol now stands at the outside door, poker in hand. A young-sounding voice of a man shouts “Hello! Can you let me in?” His voice sounds urgent, but not unpleasant.
“No, go away!” Carol shouts back, with strain in her own voice.
“Please, I need help!” the man pleads.
“Well, who are you?” she asks.
“I’m hurt, please!” he says. “Can I just use your phone, or anything, just for a minute. Please!”
Carol is in a dilemma. She huffs, and puffs, and sighs. But she also keeps a tight grip on her poker. Finally, she releases the bolt, and opens the door, slightly, and peers out. Standing, at a lower level, down a step, is a man of about twenty, who has thick, short, dark hair.
“What do you want?” she asks, through the gap in the door, while holding the poker up in front of her. “Do you know what time it is, for God sake, what are you doing here?” she says, firmly.
“Please, let me in,” he says. “I fell. I think I’ve busted my arm. Please.”
Carol hesitates.
“Okay, well, hurry, before we both freeze to death.” She opens the door, and the young man follows her in, along the short hall, and into the living-room. He is carrying a small backpack.
As the outside door clacks shut, the draft blows out the candle-flames on the table, and now they both stand in the living-room in near-darkness. Carol, still holding her poker at chest-level, takes a good look at the young man. He stands a few inches taller than her and has an athletic-looking, strong, body. His small backpack hangs over his left shoulder and he has his right arm tucked up, and wrapped around his torso as he winces in pain. He doesn’t look that threatening and his eyes don’t hold steady contact with hers. Instead, his uncomfortable gaze moves back and forth, from her face to the poker she is holding. As he stands there in the dim light, hugging himself, he appears more vulnerable than dangerous.
He appears more vulnerable than dangerous and Carol quickly concludes this. And so she puts the poker down as he is no threat to her. Her tone changes.
“Here, put that down.” She gestures to the bag he has over his shoulder. Her voice softens a bit. He puts his bag down on the floor. “You’re freezing, you poor thing,” she says, in a mothering type of way. He awkwardly sits down on a big armchair. She gets a blanket, spreads it wide, and wraps it around his shoulders, as he lets his weight fall into the chair. Carol then stares at the blown-out candles on the table. She holds her gaze on them and seems a little bit perturbed for some reason.
Carol stands above him, looking down. “I’m sorry there’s no electric,” she says, “the lights went out with the storm earlier.” Carol speaks with good diction and some authority. She sounds educated, perhaps middle-class. She has the sort of voice that commands attention. “Hmmm, they’ve been flickering on and off for ages but I think they have finally given up the ghost,” she says, casually and clearly.
“Ah, I don’t mind,” he says, sniffling and shivering, “it’s better than being out there.” his speaking manner is polite, and eager to take instructions for his own good. It is the voice of a boy, in a sense, rather than that of a man-of-experience. The time on the clock says twenty-five to one am. Carol sits back on the arm of the other chair and looks at the lad, wrapped in his blanket, and gently sighs.
“What the devil are you doing out, on a night like this, you’re lucky you didn’t catch your death?” she asks, slightly scolding him, but with a caring tone.
“Thanks for opening the door,” he says, gratefully, in a shivering voice. “It’s fucking freezing out there”
“Yeah, precisely,” Carol is sitting just a few feet from the lad, and looking at him sympathetically. Her open-neck blouse, revealing her chest cleavage, is at his eye-level. Carol then gets up from her sitting-position, on the chair-arm, and heads out of the living-room. “I’ll find you another blanket,” she says, as she walks out of the room. The lad sits on the chair, yawning tiredly, and clutching his sore arm.
Carol heads into a nearby bedroom, picks up a blanket off the bed, and then pauses to think. In the living-room, the lad looks towards the door to see if she is coming back, and he also takes the opportunity to glance around and get his bearings. With signs of pain in his face, he reaches out and picks up his rucksack from the floor and carefully places it next to him on the big armchair. Meanwhile, Carol is standing in the bedroom, clutching a blanket, and speaking to herself. “It’s fine, it’s all fine, I’m fine” she says, reassuring herself, and then she lets out a sigh.
"It’s fine, it’s all fine, I’m fine." Carol tries to reassure herself, and then she lets out a sigh of frustration and doubt. She actually has a thick towel in her hand, not a blanket.
She walks back into the living-room. “Found a towel. This will do, won’t it?” Carol places the bath-towel over his midriff and legs. She then freezes and fixes her gaze on the now-lit, and glowing, candles on the table. After a pause, she picks up a clear, round, candle and holds it very close to his face. He looks a bit perturbed at this, as he sits there wrapped up.
“Do I know you?” she whispers to him. She is only about a foot away from his face. Very close.
She keeps staring at him. Finally, he grunts in pain, and this breaks the spell.
“What have you done to yourself?” she asks him, as if talking to a child. “Let me see.” She folds back the blanket hanging over his shoulder. “Don’t be a baby,” she tells him, “I used to be a nurse … well … I wanted to be.” He groans in pain.
“I helped the nurses,” Carol informs him. “Anyway, let me … see. Well, do you think it’s broken? When you fell, did you feel it break, or hear it snap?”
“Fuck knows,” he says, with a pained expression. “I heard something, but it could have been the bits of wood or twigs I fell on.”
Carol puts her hand out to his arm. “I really need to …” She grips his arm. He winces in pain. “Fuck!” he says.
“Hmmm, can you move it at all, your fingers?” He twiddles his fingers a little bit.
“I don’t think you’d be able to move it at all if it was broken. I remember when my little boy broke his arm. And I think you’d be in a lot more pain …”
“More pain?” he snaps back at her. “It hurts like a bastard already.”
“How did you fall?” She puts a questioning tone into the word “fall.”
“I was running, I don’t know, and then I tripped over a fucking tree stump, and bam down, I fucking went.”
Carol puts her hand over her face in a gesture of angst. She then meets his eyes directly. “Look, I know you’re in pain, but I really would appreciate it if you wouldn’t swear quite so much. My husband always swore, and I hated it. I am sure it’s not that necessary,” she says, sternly.
“But it hurts like … a lot”. He moderates his language.
“There. That’s better,” she says, putting on a face of approval.
“So, we’re looking at it, just above the elbow. I think we need to take the weight off it for a start.” Carol looks around. “There’s a scarf I saw somewhere, we can use it as a sling.” She walks out, through the door, and then “Oh!” she exclaims, and comes back in. She picks up a candle, from the table, and then leans forward to just be just a few inches from his face. “I can’t see a flaming thing,” she tells him.
Carol heads into a dark bedroom with the glowing candle. She places it on top of a mirrored clothing-chest. She opens and shuts the drawers, in search. She finds a set of spectacles, and tries them on. Now on his own, the young man looks about a bit. His curiosity draws him to a small picture frame on the library shelf.
He looks over at a framed-picture of a male-and-female couple in their forties. The man is wearing a wool jumper and shirt; she has shoulder-length straight dark hair. And then the lad thinks his eyes are playing tricks on him. The lady in the picture begins to look like Carol. He lets out a gasp of disbelief.
(4)
In the bedroom, Carol takes the specs off and places them down on the cabinet top. She holds out a long scarf in her hands and starts to twist it around and play with it. She starts to feel a buzzing sound, and whispering voices, in her head. She wipes her brow, and shakes her head a little, as if to brush-off a strange feeling or memory. Meanwhile, the lad is shifting around in his chair, grimacing in pain. Carol waits in the hall, and peers through the gap in the door at him for a while. Watching him closely. He starts to get the creeps. He calls out “Hello?” in an unsure tone, to check where she is. She stares, through the gap, for a while more, but doesn’t answer him.
And then she finally enters the living-room again. “Why are you shouting? I’m just here,” she says, reassuringly, with a slight smile on her face. But he looks a bit disconcerted.
She starts to get slightly bossy. “Now, let’s pop this off.” She removes the blanket from his shoulder. “Right, just lift your arm up a little bit. Pop this through there …” She starts to sing a lullaby to him and hums away. “There, how’s that, better? She has slinged-up his sore arm. He looks slightly worried, in reaction to her motherly manner.
“That’s much better, thanks,” he says, politely.
“See, told you I used to be a nurse.” He gives her a little smile of gratitude. She flops back onto the main couch. “I would phone for a doctor, but the phone is dead.” Carol holds a cordless handset to her ear. She laughs. “What’s silver, and doesn’t work?” she asks him, with a giggle. She then stands up, moves forward, and puts the handset to his ear. “This telephone,” she chuckles. And then she flops back onto the couch, giggling.
He produces a mobile phone from his pocket and starts to tap it. She looks a bit disconcerted at this action, and her giggling face falls. Her tone gets serious. “I doubt you’ll be able to get a signal, in the middle of nowhere, or hadn’t you noticed?”
He produces a smart-phone from his pocket and checks the screen.
“I’ve got no battery left anyway,” he says, with a shiver. “It’s ok, just let me warm up a bit, rest, and I’ll get out of your way.”
“You wanna go back out there again?” she says, sharply. “In this? You wanna break your neck as well?” The living-room lights come back on.
“And then there was light!” she announces, in a shrill voice, with her arms splayed.
Carol has a big beaming smile on her face. “Yay!” she says, as stark white light fills the living room. He chuckles at her reaction. “Ah, thank goodness,” she says, laughing. And then her face goes stern and she stares at him.
Her sudden change of mood spooks him. “Are you okay?” he gently asks her, warily. Carol sees a vivid picture, in her mind, of a young boy, in a striped T-shirt, playing outside in a garden. The boy, in her mind, is playfully waving a bottle and there is a jet of water spraying out of it. And then the lights snap out again.
“Oh!” Carol slaps her hands on her knees and lets out a groan of frustration. “What a bugger! Or as you might want to say, what a fucking bugger.” She glares at him with hostility.
He laughs at her ‘joke'. “Oh well, it looks like we’re stuck here for the night. And, if that’s the case, I for one, would like to know your name.” She puts out her hand to shake his. “I’m Carol.” He can’t shake back with his right hand as it is in a sling. There is an awkward pause, and then he says, with a wince, “I’m John.” She grips his other hand a bit, to complete the ritual.
“That’s a lovely name,” she says, gently, looking at him with care. “Always liked it.” He looks down, not meeting her eyes. “It’s nice to meet you John,” she says, more formally. He gives her a bashful smile. She looks a bit wistful.
There is an awkward silence, between them, for a moment. And then she says: “I’d prefer more candles, if I can find any.” She stands up, holding one burning candle in her hand, and stares, somewhat transfixed, at a star-shaped candle, and a round one, sitting together on the circular table. His rucksack then falls down on the floor. A thick roll of £20 notes drops out of a side-pocket and momentarily lies next to the bag. He quickly puts it back out-of-sight into the sack. Carol heads into the dark kitchen with the small, clear, candle.
Carol finds a big, thick, candle in a kitchen cupboard. “How far from town are we?” John shouts from the living room. Carol, puts the lit candle under her face, to make herself look creepy, and comes back into the living-room. She makes her eyes stare and puts on a ‘Cornish’ accent.
“Ooooo, many many miles, John. Many many miles. ‘Tis a very lonely ‘ouse you found ‘ere. Very lonely and very … dark.”
John looks decidedly unsettled at this ‘stunt’.
She then snaps back into her normal accent, as she places the candles down onto the round table. “I’d say about 10? 11? Miles to the village. She lights the big, thick, candle. “Although, it’s easy to go round and round in circles at night in the dark and so you could end up walking 20. I’ve been lost walking, loads of times, out there in the middle of the night.” She sits back down on the arm of the chair so that her chest meets his eye-level.
John looks at her. “What?” she says, sharply.
“Why were you out walking in the middle of the night?” he asks, cautiously.
She makes a small laugh. “Well, you know … it’s nice to go walking … at night. It’s peaceful. There’s lots of reasons to go walking at night. Walking the dog? They always need walking. That’s enough reasons to go walking at night, isn’t it?” her voice is going up in pitch.
“Have you got a dog?” he asks.
This question ruffles her. “No, of course I haven’t got a dog! Do you see a dog?” She picks up some cushions to ‘check’ for a hidden dog, and then bangs the cushions back down in a strop. “I’m just saying, if you had a dog, it would need walking … at night.”
She carries on, in a shrill voice. “Besides, I can walk anywhere anytime. I don’t need permission, I am allowed. Young John, with the 20 questions. Huh, who’s in charge here?”
“Sorry, I … didn’t mean to upset you,” he says, apologetically. “I just think I may need a doctor, for my arm, that’s all.”
Her voice is still stroppy and she shakes her head about. “Yes, I know, your arm, your arm. You poor thing.” She calms down a bit. “I’m sorry.” Her voice becomes softer. “It’s so late. I’ve hardly slept, with this blooming weather and … what with the lights flickering on and off, it’s enough … enough to drive anyone up … up the wall, isn’t it?”
“You must be tired,” John says, sympathetically.
“Yes, I am, very. Just have to make the best of it. Sit it out ’til morning.” She walks over to the curtains, draws them back, and presses her face to the window. The wind howls outside and the full moon, dramatically, lights up her face. “It looks freezing out there. Not much better in here. I used to love watching storms, as a child, from the window.” She turns away from the window. “How old are you?” she demands, in a high-pitched voice. He doesn’t answer. She turns back to the window. “When I was 11 there was a storm, huge. Hellish.”
“I’m 19” he says. She doesn’t acknowledge this.
(5)
Instead, she turns back to the window, puts on a serious face, and begins speaking in a melodramatic tone. “When I was 11 there was a storm, huge. Hellish. No-one would let me watch it though, I was too little. Stay away from the window girl, it’s dangerous. They were all at the bloody window though, both my parents and my older brother.” She looks over to him, to check that he is following her story. “There was a massive bolt of lightning and the window was struck. My father was killed instantly, and my mother lost an eye. My brother was cut badly, but nothing more.”
She turns towards him and smiles. “Hey, it’s fine. My mother wears an eye-patch now and my brother, well, he recovered with only a few scars. Oh, my father … didn’t like him much anyway. So it’s all good!” She says, cheerily.
“Now I can do what I like. I can watch any storm I want from the window. Though frankly, there’s not much to see, is there. Just a lot of leaves blowing about. Don’t know what all the fuss was. Certainly not worth losing an eye over.” She closes the curtains over. Carol then flops, horizontally, over the back of the sofa, and stares at him.
John becomes uncomfortable. She then slinks over towards him, sits next to him, and puts her arm around him. She starts to stroke his neck. “So, what am I going to do with you, John?” She rubs his hair, and then grips his shoulder. “I mean, what can we do to while away the hours on this long dark night. Any ideas?”” She strokes his hair.
“What do you mean?” John says, nervously. She stares at him. “Look, I’m only 19,” John gulps. “You’re okay looking … I mean … you’re really pretty for your age, but you’re just … so much older than me,” John stutters.
Carol takes her hand off his shoulder, and looks appalled. “What are you blithering on about?” she says, with annoyance.
“I just think you’re a bit too old for me.” He doesn’t meet her eyes. “And … my arm really hurts…”
“What!” she leaps up and stands over him.
“I’m not interested in you!” she scoffs. He’s taken aback. She laughs, loudly, at him. “Goodness, that’s hilarious.” She spreads her arms out, and looks to the heavens, in a display of scorn. “I’m not Mrs Robinson,” she sneers.
John looks really embarrassed.
“Oh, you’ve no idea who I’m talking about, do you,” she says, mockingly. “She’s what you might call the ultimate cougar. Which I am not!” Her voice is high-pitched. “The very idea! And besides, you need to have two fully workable arms to have any chance with me. Oh gosh!” she cackles, “you’ve made me all coy now.” She fans her face with her hands, and then covers her face with her palms. Johns looks away. “You’re so naughty.” Carol then walks out of the room, giggling, and leaving John dumbfounded.
Carol goes into the dark kitchen and sits on a bench, still giggling. She talks to herself. “He’s young enough to be …” Her face becomes serious. Meanwhile John, wrapped up in the blanket, sits and listens out for her, in the candlelight of the livinroom. He takes the blanket off of his shoulders, with difficulty, as he grimaces in pain. John then removes the towel from his lower half. He stands up, and puts the rucksack over his left shoulder. He wanders around a bit, looking at pictures on the wall, and objects lying about. Carol is keeping silent, and watching him, through a gap in the door.
While John is having a look around, Carol is keeping quiet and watching him, through a gap in the door. John walks over to the window and folds the curtains back a bit to have a look out. She makes her move.
Carol rushes into the living-room. “Oh, look what I’ve found!” she declares, in a strident voice. She holds a pile of board-games in her out-stretched arms. “Monopoly, Scrabble, even a jigsaw. Although I hate jigsaws, don’t know why I brought that out. Keep us occupied for days."
Carol takes the board-games over to the table and starts to set them up. John sits down on the chair, reluctantly. “Em … I’m pretty thawed out,” he says. She gives a small, dismissive, laugh and carries on setting up the pieces. “I’m a bit warmer at least, might be able to get going soon. What do you think?” Carol says nothing. “Perhaps you could give me directions?”
“For goodness sake,” she says. “What’s the rush, John? I’m not going to jump on you. I thought we’d just established that. Uh! There’s no dog.” Carol exclaims. “I’m always the dog.” Her face screws up and she lets out a big sigh. She throws the pieces back into the box, in disappointment, shaking her head.
With great effort, and a lot of painful grunting and groaning, John lifts himself up from the chair and moves onto the wider sofa, for comfort. “Okay, Okay, I know, your arm,” she says, in an annoyed voice. “I’ll drive you to the village when it gets light.” she says. “As soon as my husband gets back in the …” Her face freezes.
"As soon as my husband gets back in the …in the … em…"
In Carol’s mind she sees a mental picture of a car pulling up towards the cottage. It is bright daylight, and calm, in her mind-image. The kind voice, of a mature man, then says “How are you feeling?”
“Good,” Carol says, in her mind. “I’m feeling really good,” she answers the man, with a lift in her voice. She then snaps out of her dream and is back in the candle-lit living room. “When is he back?” her voice now sounds unsure, and her face looks confused. “Morning is it?” John just looks at her. “Yes, yes, the morning, of course silly woman.” She gives herself a row. Her voice goes unsure again. “Maybe it’s the afternoon he gets back? I’m sure he wasn’t going to go for long.” She shakes her head. “I mean, he … he didn’t pack very much, not very much at all.” She begins to stammer, and her voice becomes shaky. There is concern on her face. “He should have told me though. Let me know, you know.” Her voice becomes sad.
(6)
“He’ll be back, don’t you worry,” she states, unconvincingly. She catches a grip of herself. “Anyway, whenever he’s back, I’ll take the car, and you’ll be returned to civilisation, how’s that?” she says, matter-of-factly.
Johns, nods his head. “Great,” he says, with a smile.
“Nice though, you have a husband.” John nods his head towards the photo-frame of the couple, on the shelf. “The man in the photo.”
“Yes, he’s my husband, we’re married, we’re very happily married.”
“I’m sure,” John says. His face doesn’t look too convinced, however.
She gives him daggers. “Oh, you’re sure, are you?” She puts on the mocking voice of an idiot, “nice that you have a husband” she shakes her head about in mockery.
John takes a deep breath. “Just glad you’re not out here alone,” that’s all. His voice has gone up a pitch.
“Alone? Out here?” she fires back at him. “How silly. Alone? And besides, I’m not the one running around, in the middle of a forest, with a bloody broken arm, am I John?”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.” John’s tolerance of her is being pushed now.
“Have you got any pain-killers?” he asks. She makes him squirm for a bit, and doesn't answer.
Eventually she says, grudgingly: “As you are in such pain, I’ll see if I can find anything in my cupboards for it." Carol walks out of the living room … (full story available in printed form)
29. FARE ENOUGH
Working the night shift, on a wet Sunday evening, John was driving past the graveyard in his taxi-cab. He noticed a young girl standing on the edge of the pavement. She hailed him down. He turned around on the quiet street and stopped to let her into the car. She hurried herself in, to get out of the lashing rain. The girl was wearing a dark winter-coat that had a deep hood, raised forward over her head. Inside the hood the girl’s hair almost completely obscured her face … (full story available in printed form)
30. A HERO'S WELCOME
Michael was a keen swimmer. He went for a dip, every day, in the loch near his house, in the Great Glen. Usually, he was the only person around, as he swam early in the morning, when the water was very cold … (full story available in printed form)
31. THE DANGER OF A STRANGER
Two Scottish men were travelling in Texas, on business. They were coming to the end of their short stay in the US. And so they decided to have a night out on the town, to celebrate the end of their successful trip … (full story available in printed form)
32. DRIVER FATIGUE
A good few years ago, a bus driver was working the Sunday night-shift. It had been a long shift, and he was tired. He was driving his empty double-decker along his usual route from the centre of the city out to the suburbs, when he saw something unusual … (full story available in printed form)
33. FIRING ON ALL CYLINDERS
Donald and Archie were a pair of seasoned poachers. Police officers from Fort William were alerted after they were notified of a crashed vehicle located in a remote part of the Cluny Estate. After arriving on the scene the police ascertained that the pair had been travelling back to Kintail following a successful hunt late at night, when their truck's headlights had failed and so they couldn't continue … (full story available in printed form)
34. LIVING FOR THE WEEKEND
The year is 1967. The location is France. It’s Saturday, and the time is 10am.
“Hurry up, or the motorway will be jammed,” says Jean-Paul to his wife, Mimi, as he briskly walks towards their car. There is a kid, dressed in a native Indian costume, complete with toy bow-and-arrow, firing plastic arrows at Jean-Paul’s classic car.
Without removing the cigarette dangling from his mouth, JP runs at the boy, aggressively. “I’ll show you!” he says, as he chases the lad away from his parked car.
Meanwhile, Mimi is sorting out her handbag on a nearby wall. “Get a move on!” he shouts over to her.
Unperturbed, the kid comes back. “Hey, mister,” the boy says, cheekily, “What make is this banger?”
“Get lost,” says Jean-Paul, as he gets into the driving seat.
As JP closes the car-door, the kid shouts out, in a shrill voice, “I know what it is, it’s a clapped-out Facel.”
Jean-Paul lowers down the roof of the cabriolet as Mimi is getting into the passenger side. The kid walks around the front of the vehicle and confronts JP’s wife. “As clapped out as your wife,” the boy shouts, in a falsetto tone. Mimi reacts to this by slapping the lad, fiercely, on the back of the head, several times, as the boy tries to run away. Mimi then gets into the passenger seat.
Now standing further back, at a safer distance, the kid shouts, “A clapped-out Facel!”
As the adult couple reverse out of their parking slot, the kid follows along and continues to badger them. The lad keeps whacking his bow off the bonnet of the Facel as they reverse back. There is a loud crunch as the Facel makes contact with another parked car.
“They’ve damaged the Dauphine!” the kid shouts.
Jean-Paul gets out of the car and gives the Renault Dauphine a few kicks on the bumper. “It’s ok,” he declares.
“Mom, they’ve damaged the Dauphine!” the kid shouts, in a high-pitched voice, as he runs after JP.
“Particulars must be exchanged,” cries the boy.
“I’ll kick your particulars!” replies Jean-Paul, still with the fag hanging from his mouth. And then he runs at the lad.
“Dad!” the boy calls out for help.
“Fancy some money?” Jean-Paul offers a bribe to the lad. He hands over a few notes. “Now, shut up!”
“Merci,” says the lad, while grabbing the cash.
The boy’s mum appears on the scene, carrying a few tennis rackets, and a kit-bag.
“Hey you! 8802! I’ve got your number!” she shouts, as they drive away in the Facel.
Jean-Paul comes to a halt.
“See what you’ve done to my car?” she says.
“Your car’s all right,” he replies, dismissively.
“The bumper’s dented.” She gestures over to her Renault.
“Bumpers are made to be dented,” he replies. He gets out of the car. The kid circles around the Facel and keeps whacking his bow off of it.
“Just because your father-in-law owns the block…” JP says.
“Just because you’ve got a dress from Chez Dolores,” retorts the tall lady, in the tight blue dress, as she glares at Mimi.
The lady in the blue dress grabs the door of the Facel open. “Give me your details!” she demands.
Jean-Paul, tries to get back into the driver’s seat, but she pulls him back out.
The fashionable blue-dressed tennis-lady, and mother of bow-and-arrow-boy, puts Jean-Paul into a neck-lock, and tries to throttle him.
“Give me the pistol from the boot, Mimi!” Jean-Paul cries.
As Mimi opens up the boot, the lad takes the opportunity to whack her behind with his bow.
Mimi quickly passes the gun to Jean-Paul and then grabs both arms of the blue-dressed lady, from behind, and twists them up her back.
“Get off me, you toffee-nosed bitch!” the blue-dressed lady shouts.
While Mimi is restraining the lad’s mum, Jean-Paul blasts her with a water-pistol, until she is completely drenched.
The blue-dressed lady manages to get her arms free. She steps over to her kit-bag, which had been dumped on the ground nearby, and picks up a tennis racket.
Meanwhile, the boy keeps on hitting Mimi with his bow. “Stop it. That’s enough!” Mimi shouts at him.
The blue-dressed lady, picks up a few balls and makes some first-class serves off of Jean-Paul’s head, as he ducks for cover.
At this point, the boy’s father appears in the distance, with a double-barrelled shot gun. There is an ear-splitting bang as he shoots, directly, at Jean-Paul.
Under attack, Jean-Paul sprints towards his open-top Facel. The blue-dressed lady continues to serve tennis balls at him.
As well as a shot-gun, the Father has a little dog on a lead. He passes the leash over to the boy, which frees up his hands. As the Facel drives off with screeching tyres, and burning rubber, he takes some pot-shots at the vehicle.
“Get that shit-heap out of here!” the Father shouts, as the Facel speeds away. “Bastard! Communist!” he shouts, with anger.
35. GAY PARIS
You are in Paris and surrounded by interesting architecture and beautiful people, and you have your camera with you. Your battery is fully charged and your memory card is empty. You are about to take some photos. Because that is what you came here for.
You whisper to yourself, “I’m going to get some great shots if I get cracking. I can see amazing opportunities all around me”.
And then you spot an elegant street lamp, still glowing in the dim early morning.
“This looks perfect,” you think to yourself.
But you suddenly freeze. How do you capture this street lamp creatively for maximum impact? Do you shoot it up close, or from a distance? Do you include the other street-lamps down the row, or shoot this one on its own against the sky? Or, do you climb up the nearby stairs to get an higher-level perspective, or more interesting angle? One street lamp; infinite possibilities.
You could maybe shoot every possible combination and just hope for the best. But that’s no guarantee of a final great photo. And, don’t forget, you have an entire city to explore. You can’t really afford to waste time. Perhaps you should follow one of the proven rules for composing a photo? These rules come from the knowledge of what the human eye finds attractive. You can use these basic rules anywhere, on any subject. Classic painters have used them for hundreds of years. Think, the Golden Section, or the Rule of Thirds.
But then you look up from your camera and discover that, rather disconcertingly, you are surrounded by a SWAT team of military police with live guns pointing at you. You quickly get bundled into an armoured-vehicle and rapidly get taken away, and locked up, for being a threat to the Free World. (available in printed form)
36. FLY PUFF
This man hangs his head in shame because he’s a smoker. James is hard-working. He drives off, around 7am every morning, and usually doesn’t get back until 8pm. As the manger of the branch he comes back from work, every day, in a different, flashy, pick-up truck. Ten years ago he was put on the Register for a minor misdemeanour. Perhaps he still feels guilty about this blot on his character.
At 10.30pm every night, this decent guy wants to enjoy a fag, to wind down at the end of the day. His wife, who is a gym and health freak, kicks him out of his own house. He often stands in the rain, while indulging in his light relief.
37. BICYCLE GUY
It was 4am in the morning and dark and wet outside. Dave wasn’t looking forward to his five-mile cycle-trip to work at the Aerodrome. And so he comforted himself with a piping-hot mug of coffee while he watched the weather outside…(full story available in printed form)
38. PAGE THE ORACLE
Richmond Pager was a Senior Scientific Officer. He lived alone. After a twelve-hour shift he would come back to his flat and peer out the window to observe the New Romantics. He disapproved of them, and their flamboyant ways. But he dearly wished he could be one of them.
He knew everything about nothing. And I called him The Oracle (in my mind).
Later that evening, he would have a glass of port and put on some Debussy. He was a Hi-Fi buff... (full story available in printed form)
39. MIST YOU
Big brother, Tommy, is a genius. He inadvertently invents a device that amplifies paranormal activity. It brings spirits into the Physical World.
The boy, Robert, is practicing holding his breath, under water, in the bath. The mist seeps in and engulfs him.
40. HIDING IN THE SHADOWS
This man’s biometrics have failed. He cannot work because he is not allowed to enter the building to get to his desk, and so he hides in his flat because he is too scared to show his face.
He has also been blocked from working, and will now be out of a job for life and also lose his home. His crime was that he clicked on the BBC website and was caught. This means he will be sent to a labour camp and his family will be punished…(full story available in printed form)
41. 1978
Cyndi mixes with the unsavoury, and that is how she makes her income. She is a significant member of the underground underclass. It’s 5am in the morning. Cyndi has had a nightmare. She wakes up totally alone and heads to a phone-box to call a friend, but then experiences her rejection. They had already split up. But Cyndi had no-one else to turn to at this point in her unstable life.
“Give me one last chance,” she pleads down the line. Cyndi feels lost and terrified and abandoned. Her friend, Ann, has just told her that their relationship is over and that she has to sober up and deal with reality. Cyndi collapses in despair.
It is a wake-up call for Cyndi. She seeks enlightenment and a new way of life. It’s not too late… (full story available in printed form)
42. SHE CAN DANCE
Susan is a ballet student. When she arrives at the Dance Academy another student, Patricia, is fleeing in terror. The person on the intercom refuses to let Susan into the School. And so she returns to Town.
Patricia hides at a friend's flat, where she reveals to Susan that she has discovered something terrifying hidden within the School. Susan returns to the School, where she meets an instructor, Miss Tindell, and the headmistress, Madame Blanchette.
This is the beginning of Susan’s nightmare. New students are being ritually sacrificed for the pleasure of the Elite. Anyone who speaks of this meets a violent and gory death. A year later Susan leaves smiling, and the Academy is destroyed in a fire witnessed by The Blind Man.
43. BEHIND THE MASK
Their Headquarters are located at the top of a hill just outside Hopetown, situated right under a 100 foot broadcasting mast.
Zanu, the woman leader of the Masu Cult, leads a group of new recruits to the Conditioning Chamber where they all live together in a claustrophobic atmosphere of control … (full story available in printed form)
44. BEYOND THE DUSTY DOOR
The morning sun painted the sky with hues of gold and pink as I stood before the weathered facade of the Dusty Door. With the time ticking at 8:30 AM, I felt a mixture of curiosity and apprehension tugging at my senses.
Pushing against the creaking handle, I stepped into the dimly-lit interior, and was greeted by the musty scent of age, and the soft glow of the dawn, filtering through cracked and broken windows. Armed with my vintage camera, I embarked on my journey into the depths of this abandoned building. Each room held secrets … their own story waiting to be unearthed. Faded photographs adorned the walls … ghosts of the past. Antique furniture stood silent sentinel amidst the dust.
As the morning progressed, the whole building seemed to come alive with the whispers of history. Shadows danced in the shifting light, and the air whispered with the echoes of distant voices.
It was then that I heard the faint strains of a musical melody, drifting through the empty halls, a haunting refrain that made me shiver. Mesmerized, I followed the sound to a forgotten parlour, where a grand piano stood, cloaked in shadows.
With trembling fingers, I reached out and pressed down on the keys, the music filling the air with a melancholy lament. It was as if the very soul of the building had been stirred from its slumber, its secrets laid bare for those receptive and willing to listen.
As the day wore on, the shadows grew longer and the air became heavy with anticipation. The clock on the nearby church tower chimed 12:00 PM, marking the passage of time, as I continued to explore the hidden corners eyond the dusty door.
As the afternoon waned, and evening approached, the surroundings took on a new aura of mystery. The shadows deepened and darkened, and the air was now thick with an eerie stillness.
The clock struck 6:00 PM, its toll echoing through the empty halls like a portent of things to come. With the passing hours, the building began to reveal a latent malevolent energy. Shadows twisted and writhed, and the air turned cold with a palpable sense of dread.
As the night descended in earnest, the time ticking at 9:00 PM, I felt a chill run down my spine, a sense of unease settling over me like a heavy blanket. The once-familiar rooms beyond the dusty door now seemed alien and foreboding, their secrets hidden in the darkness that lurked within. The piano's melody had turned discordant and haunting, its notes echoing through the empty halls with a sinister edge.
As midnight approached, the building seemed to pulse with a malevolent energy, its walls closing in around me like a vice. With a sense of mounting terror, I realized that I was not alone…that something sinister lurked within the shadows, waiting to claim me as its own.
As the clock struck twelve, the building erupted into chaos. Shadows twisted and contorted, and the air filled with the anguished cries of the past. With my heart pounding in my chest, I fled from beyond the dusty door, the echoes of its horrors haunting me long into the night.
And though the dawn eventually broke, casting its golden light over the deserted street, I knew that the darkness would linger in my mind forevermore, a testament to the horrors that lurk within the shadows of the past.
1. FOOTPRINTS
My missing colleague was a radio surveillance operator and he did 13-hour shifts of intense listening through his headset. Off-duty he would say very little apart from commenting that the constant whistling of the wind “drove him mad” … (full story available in printed form)
2. HOTEL HALSTEAD
In April 1983 I arrived at Bootle railway station in Cumbria. I was there to work at a secret weapons-testing military-base which was two miles from the train station, but not on the map, or marked by any signs. I was also to work at Eskmeals observation station …(full story available in printed form)
3. LORRY MAN
The Lorry Driver was heading south, over the Dava Moor road, towards the Cairngorms. His final destination was Madrid. He decided to travel through the night to get a head start. It was well after midnight and he had been speaking with his wife on the phone just a few minutes earlier ... (full story available in printed form)
4. HAUNTED ROAD
A new section of road was laid on the A41 to divert traffic away from a small town that was not that far away from Aylesbury. But, shortly after the building-work commenced, reports of strange happenings began to surface in the local community. The road became notorious for paranormal activity, but also for the many lives it would claim. This is a story about a haunted road …(full story available in printed form)
5. GLEN AFFRIC
Glen Affric is one of the three Great Glens that join up the West Coast with Loch Ness. If you feel hardy enough you can walk the 45 miles from Beauly right across the mountains to Kintail, then down to Cluny, then further south which takes you into Glen Affric. But maybe you don’t want to try this in winter no matter how tough you are. And give yourself three whole days to do the walk even in the summer … (full story available in printed form)
6. SMALL TOWN WEDDING
The year was 1984. Me and my mate Chas packed our Big motorbikes with camping gear and headed off from Dunfermline. I rode a Honda Goldwing, Chas strode a Honda CB900. These powerful bikes don’t hang around on the road. There were very few speed cameras in those days and so it didn’t take us that long to complete the 200 mile journey north from Dunfermline to Dingwall. Is was mid-August, and bright and warm, and so the run "up north" was enjoyable. We only had the clothes we were wearing, camping gear, and a toothbrush (each) …(full story available in printed form)
7. GOING OFF-GRID
Perhaps we should all give it a try. Because, if you do this, you will feel stuff, with no distractions. And I have led by example. I cycled all around Scotland - that is pedal power - and camped out in the wilds each night in a wee tent. I did this for four weeks, with no contact whatsoever with anyone. I had no phone with me, or radio, or any other form of communication – for a whole month. I was completely cut-off. And that is when you experience things deep in your soul … (full story available in printed form)
8. ICE
One day last year, during an extended cold snap, I set out on a mission to get some pictures of swans at the Secret Loch, a remote stretch of water that only I knew about. I suppose I risked it just a wee bit too much on this occasion … (full story available in printed form)
9. THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT
I found myself standing in this eerie graveyard at 6.15 in the morning. It was deathly silent as only a graveyard can be. Dawn was just about to break and the atmosphere was cool and misty. As I walked around I felt silky cobwebs brushing over my face and I could smell the damp earth under my feet … (full story available in printed form)
10. SEEING THE LIGHT
The distinguished couple that I met at Loch Garten were well-spoken and obviously highly-educated professionals. After all, they arrived in a Mercedes-Benz. In fact, he was a Diplomat and she was a Scientist …(full story available in printed form)
11. PARISIAN WALKWAYS
You are in Paris and surrounded by interesting architecture and beautiful people, and you have your camera with you. Your battery is fully charged and your memory card is empty. You are about to take some photos. Because that is what you came here for …(full story available in printed form)
12. THREE FRIENDS
The beautifully vulnerable and gorgeous cat lives on the street, surviving on scraps and the kindness of an old man, a street-musician, who plays his flute wonderfully for just a few coins …(full story available in printed form)
13. THE BUNKER
I worked as a scientist down in The Bunker. It was located several thousand feet under the City. To get there you walked through the doors of a traditional, innocuous-looking, castle on the edge of Dunfermline (military camouflage) …(full story available in printed form)
14. NIGHTSHIFT
Working overnight in an unused wing of an Old Hospital could be creepy. As an electrician this was something I experienced a few times. Big hospitals can often have dark pasts, and they store historic memories in their bricks …(full story available in printed form)
15. WAITING ROOM
I knew that the train station waiting-room had been out of use for many decades. I pushed the door anyway and, to my surprise, it opened easily, and so I entered the dusty and musty environment. My intention was to stay overnight at the station between the last train at 11.45pm, that late evening, and the next train at 5.45am the following early morning. I was armed with an old-fashioned 120 roll-film camera which only had 10 frames to play with. I managed to get 8 pictures to ‘come out’. Not too bad … (full story available in printed form)
16. CIRCLE OF FEAR
I was on a trip to the North-East, and I was cycling around on my pedal-bike looking for remote Standing Stones (marked on my ancient map). I would often come across rough tracks (ideal for a mountain-bike) that would lead me deep into the thick, dark woods, taking me well away from anyone … (full story available in printed form)
17. BUYER'S MARKET
It is November 1966.
“A splendid old house, isn’t it?” the estate-agent declared persuasively. “Just the thing for a large family with good taste. Not one of those modern boxes with no room to swing a … eh, do have any pets Sir?”
Deep in his heart Danny Adams agreed that the house was magnificent, but he also knew not to let his feelings show; not if a good deal was to be made. And so Danny tried to look mean and shrewd. But his was not a poker-face and it registered his emotions like he was an actor in those old black and white silent movies. He yearned for this big house, with its cornices, attics, endless nooks and crannies, and above all, the thirty-by-forty-foot living-room that ‘featured’ a nineteen-foot ceiling and a fireplace big enough for a bonfire.
And there were also ten acres of sweeping land too, offering wonderful privacy. What a great place for the kids! With five of them, all active, outgoing, creative, and impulsive -- just like their Dad. Finding a suitable house was no simple matter. Yes, but this one, almost hidden by the towering, leafy-oaks was a prize indeed -- a lucky strike.
“It’s not bad,” Danny said cautiously, totally unaware that his soft, brown eyes shone like beacons. “But, after all, Mr Ross, the place has been locked up for over thirty years, and what with all the stories and stuff, that would scare most buyers off. Everybody isn’t as free from superstition as I am, you know.”
“There’s nothing to all that talk,” the Estate-agent assured him. “The owner just didn’t care to rent or sell. He inherited the property at a fairly young age, but never actually lived there, most probably because it was just too big for one person living alone. That seems reasonable enough. One man in a thirty-room house! Of course,” he added quickly, seeing that a question was trembling on Danny’s lips. “It does need some work doing, but that’s why the ad said it "needs some attention." We thought a handy-man would see it as a real bargain, whereas if we had to call in our regular contractors…”
Danny was, indeed, a remarkably good DIY man, having a knack for cabinet work, masonry, electrical wiring, and even plumbing. He looked forward, with pleasant anticipation, to the job of renovating the house. The family could stay in the old one, several hundred miles away, while he worked away in peace, making the house ready for them. And there was no need to even consult Angela; she knew his taste was impeccable.
The Estate-agent and Danny agree on terms. There followed a period of intense activity and the old house was put into order.
Then there is the interesting puzzle of the mirror. The enormous mirror is set into the wall above the fireplace. The huge fireplace is intricately carved and decorated.
The family move in and are enthusiastic about the house. The five children enjoy exploring its many fascinating storerooms, attics, cupboards, and crawl-spaces. They kids range in age from five to thirteen. They walk, run, jump, and climb until they know every inch of the house.
Although the mirror was very old, it gave a clear, undistorted reflection. And with his family grouped around a blazing fire, Danny talked, with verve and imagination, about the reflected world to be seen -- in part -- over the mantel-piece. The oldest boy, Jerry, who was more science-minded at thirteen, showed less interest until his father, with shrewd premeditation, raised the question: why are left and right interchanged in the reflection, but not up and down?
This puzzle kept Jerry occupied for the rest of his father’s story. But Judy, who was eight, had a complaint. “The looking-glass room is just like ours,” she pouted.
“Not really,” Danny said. “See the picture on the wall? In our room, the man’s on the left; in there, he’s on the right. Besides,“ he added quickly, aware that the distinction didn’t impress her much, “we don’t know what’s in the rest of the reflected house, through the archway and in all the other rooms. They may be altogether different from this side of the mirror. And the ones who live in them may stay out of this room which we can see. The story will be continued tomorrow,“ Danny says, “at nine-thirty. Now it’s bedtime, except for Jerry; he gets his extra half-hour.”
“Not tomorrow, dear,” Angela reminds him. “We’re going to the partner’s meeting, remember, and we won’t be back until midnight.”
Neither Danny nor his wife had any misgivings when they left the following evening. Although the house was isolated to a degree, the heavy doors locked, as did the windows. Jerry was a strong and responsible kid and he would be left in charge.
The next evening, when the parents were away, the five kids became fascinated by the big mirror. They all pulled together and held up a bedroom dresser-mirror, which they had taken of its hinges, in front of the big fire-mirror in order to see into reflected areas in the mirror-world out of normal view.
When Danny and Angela came back into the house at eleven-forty and saw the living-room, she began to scream …
Angela never stopped screaming. Two days later she died. And Danny was indicted for murder. But he believed it was a mercy-killing.
18. ALTAR EGO
The remote farmhouse, five miles from Dulnain Bridge, received an order of delivered groceries four years ago. Since then, there has been no reported activity of any kind. However, on November the 17th, three separate 999 calls were traced to this exact location. But no-one actually spoke during those recorded calls. The Authorities turned up at the address, forced the door, and entered the property. What they discovered was not easy for them to take in … (full story available in printed form)
19. ON REFLECTION
To create a peaceful ambience, she put on soft music and lit some fragrant candles. Gathering a blanket, Lucy sat down on the settee, and laid her head down on a cushion. Her thoughts drifted around that day’s unusual occurrences, searching for an understanding or explanation …(full story available in printed form)
20. HELP ME I'M FALLING
In the Old Days, working as a Government Scientist, I travelled around the country, often staying in temporary accommodation. This was well before mobile phones were in general use …(full story available in printed form)
21. THE HAUNTED RECTORY
The House was built to last for hundreds of years but it stood for only seventy. It managed, however, to mark its place in history. Its name became synonymous with ghostly apparitions, poltergeist activity and terrifying phenomena that defied rational explanation.
The Rectory was constructed in 1852 opposite the Church. It was built as a replacement for a previous rectory which burnt down in 1841. The property had twenty-three rooms and was surrounded by five acres of land. Constructed using red brick, it’s neo-gothic architecture sat in stark contrast to the lush green trees and hedgerows that complimented the grounds.
A network of tunnels and vaults lie beneath these grounds but no-one knows who built them or the nature of their purpose. It is said that the Rectory was built on the same plot of land as a Cistercian monastery which existed in the Dark Ages, more than 500 years ago.
The disembodied cries of a young lady have been reported many times over the years and the ghostly apparition of a nun has been witnessed countless times over the centuries. The nun would walk across the grounds and then fade out of view.
One would expect, perhaps, to see the ghost of a monk because of the history of the monastery, but this apparently anomaly can be explained by a tragic story of forbidden love.
Legend has it that, in the 14th Century, an illicit affair took place between a monk from the monastery and a nun from a local Benedictine convent. The two of them planned to elope and settle down elsewhere in the country, at which point they would wed. But shortly after they had ran away, however, they were hunted down and were spared no mercy in the retribution they suffered. The monk was hanged and the nun was bricked up inside the monastery walls, while still alive, and left to rot.
Tales of paranormal activity were commonplace before the first residents moved into the rectory. Records show that the first resident was Reverend Henry Elgar Lawson Ellis. Ellis moved into the rectory with his wife and would go on to raise fifteen children there.
But such a large family required bigger, and more suitable, living quarters and so this led to the addition of a new wing in 1870. Many sources state that Ellis and his family experienced strange occurrences from the outset.
The Reverend became fascinated by the bizarre phenomena and requested that a summer house be built overlooking a small stretch of the grounds where the nun was seen most often. The family dubbed this area “Nun’s Walk” and Ellis would spend many evenings, after dinner, sitting outside the summer house, cigar in hand, trying to catch a glimpse of her.
The ghostly encounters began to occur more frequently. Staff, and even guests at the rectory, would often be found in shock, and fearing for their lives, after seeing faceless figures peering at them from the windows of the main house. Suffice to say, servants rarely stayed for long.
Henry Ellis passed away in 1892, leaving the property to his son Richard.
On the 28th July 1898 four of Richard’s daughters were exploring the grounds when they caught sight of the nun about 50 yards from the main house. Curiosity got the better of them and they decided to try and talk to her, but to their complete shock, the figure simply vanished into thin air as they approached it.
The parish organist, Ernest Tucker, is on the record as saying that “apparitions had been seen on many occasions." This was further supported by various people living within the vicinity of the rectory, who also claimed to have seen ghostly figures walking across the grounds.
Richard’s daughters would often see the nun making appearances in the daytime and evening. They also said they had seen a phantom coach on quite a few occasions.
Richard Ellis would remain at the rectory until his death in 1930. The lease then passed to Derek Tensing and his wife who moved in shortly afterwards. Already well aware of the rectory’s eerie past, the new residents were understandably apprehensive and it wasn’t long before this feeling was fully justified. One morning whilst cleaning out a cupboard Tensing’s wife discovered the skull of a young woman inside a brown paper bag.
22. TRANSITION
It was July 1975 and I was alone at home watching the third set of the Wimbledon men’s final between Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe, on a black and white coin-meter television. As a kid, I was keen on tennis … (full story available in printed form)
23. DISAPPEARING MAN
(1)
The year is 1972. The place is London. John feels like he is disappearing.
He walks, head down, out of the Housing Department building, and descends the big stone grey steps, into a busy street of bustling traffic. Cars, trucks, and red buses are jam-packed together. They thunder past him.
John is around 5ft 8 in height. He’s wearing a light-blue shirt, with a dark blue, plain tie, a dark jacket, and a lighter-grey over-coat, which is unbuttoned and blowing about in the wind. He looks at his best. But downtrodden. He’s 46 and still has all his own hair, albeit it’s a bit flat and dullish-looking, and it has quite a bit of grey running through the mousy brown.
John shows a stern expression, perhaps he even looks a bit indignant, as he walks along the pavement. Motorbikes, Commer vans, and black taxis, whiz by him. He doesn’t notice them. They don’t notice him. He walks along the crowded street, trying to avoid bumping into other people. He mutters away to himself. Now and then he waves his hands about to emphasise the points he’s making to his inner-self.
(2)
Somewhere else in London, there is the sound of a police siren. A Rover P6 swerves to a halt outside a council house. The flash white car is unmarked, but it does have extra spotlights on the front grill, and blue-flashers attached to its roof.
At the end of this grubby, and mostly deserted, street there’s a big factory, bellowing out thick smoke from its huge chimneys.
A tall man, with thick-black, straight-hair, briskly exits from the passenger side of the vehicle. He slams the door shut, leaving his driver still sitting behind the wheel. The tall man is wearing a light-grey plain coat, a white shirt, and dark tie, and he has purpose on his mind. In the distance, a couple of young teenagers clock the car and the man in the grey coat.
(3)
Meanwhile, while this is going on, John is sitting, on a bench-seat, inside a London Underground carriage. The coach rattles away, swaying his body from side to side. John is a bit tense. Every now and then he leans forward, and then sits back again. He seems to be experiencing some sort of inner turmoil.
(4)
The tall CID detective is now standing in John’s living-room, talking to John’s wife. He towers over her. A frumpy little lady, in a dark-blue, plain dress, has just picked up an old black and white, square, glossy photograph from her dresser. She walks over to the grey-coated detective with the picture. The CID man stands there, with his notebook and pencil, and a serious look on his face.
“That’s funny,” she says, in a shrill, and slightly confused voice. “I was sure he was in this one.” The photo shows a plain-looking lady, standing in front of an unsightly wire-mesh fence, which lies beneath two council-house iron window-frames. She wears a dark head-scarf and a dark coat. Her handbag dangles from her hands at the bottom of the picture. But the lady is not centrally-framed, she stands to the right-hand side of the photo. To the left, there is a gap, and just the non-descript background.
“Perhaps he took the picture,” the detective says, showing a bit of impatience.
“Ted, my brother Ted, took it. John never owned a camera,” she goes on, in her shrill voice. “Perhaps you know Ted? He runs a very successful business up Dawes Road.” She flicks her head to indicate the direction of where she is talking about.
“What would your husband be doing with a gun?” the detective asks. He speaks to the lady, slowly and deliberately, as if he is making allowances for her not being that bright.
“I’ve no idea,” she replies, with doubt on her face. “He wouldn’t know which way to point it.”
The detective persists, “Why should he threaten someone at the Ministry of Housing?” he says, rolling his eyes a bit.
“He wouldn’t; not John. But, our Ted, he was a crack-shot in the Army,” she answers.
“Can you describe your husband?” he says, now looking bored.
“John?” She gazes into the mid-distance, as if trying to picture him.
“Well, I mean … he’s not exactly Rock Hudson.” She trails off as she can’t think of anything else to say.
“Has he got any distinguishing features?” He’s losing patience.
She struggles. “No … nothing. You’d hardly notice him really. Nobody ever does."
(5)
John is sitting on the bench-seat, in the dimly-lit underground train-carriage, his body swaying with the motion of the train. He sees his own perturbed face reflecting back at him from the window on the opposite side of the aisle. Then his own face begins to change into that of his wife. She has an expression of disapproval on her.
In a nagging tone his wife’s reflection says to John, “People don’t notice nobodies, you know, you’ve got to impress yourself on them,” she says, sternly.
John suddenly snaps out of the dream he was in, and becomes aware of the train, and the others in the carriage. He slowly glances around. In front of him, to his right, sits a smart-looking man of about thirty-five who has slicked-back black hair. The man in wearing a dark suit, a white shirt, and a tie with small checks on it. The man’s head is nodding with the motion of the train.
To his front-right there is a woman of about twenty-five who has long, straight, brown hair. She’s wearing a thick white polo-neck jumper and she has a medium-blue wool coat on. There is a “No Smoking” sign just above her head. Right next to her is a bearded man in his mid-fifties who’s got a dark casual jacket on. John is wondering if these people are more significant than he is; more striking or important than him perhaps. “Are they making a bigger impression?” he asks himself.
He quickly takes a look at a younger man, standing, near the carriage door, to his right. This man seems to have self-confidence, he’s got curly hair, which is longish, but neat, and he’s wearing a thick polo-neck jumper under his dark coat. As John slowly turns his head away from the younger man he sees his own dour face reflected in the carriage window again, sitting there, with his dull over-coat on.
John decides to stand up in the train-carriage to avoid looking at his own, furrow-browed, reflection. Now, fully stretched, his hands are above his head as he hangs onto a strap at either side, and stands upright in the aisle, trying to keep his balance. He glances, again, at the young woman with long, light-brown, hair and the man with the beard.
He’s still uncomfortable, and so he walks forward out of the carriage and stands in-between carriages, next to the automatic door that swings open at a station. He looks down at a prim-looking women, with black hair, nearby, who has glasses on. She’s in her forties and is sitting in a twin-seat reading a newspaper. John bends right over in front of the lady. She doesn’t even look up. John looks uneasy. He was very close to her but she just kept on reading as if he wasn’t there. John goes to the other side of the aisle and peers over another lady’s shoulder and tries to read her newspaper. There is no reaction from her … (full story available in printed form)
24. NO TOMORROW
(1)
Katy Turner was a 30-year-old Canadian Police Officer with an exemplary record. She was a good-looking young woman with longish blonde hair and striking blue eyes. On the morning of the 22nd of September 2018 she was reported missing by her dispatch unit, based in Colchester, Nova Scotia. They requested a missing-person’s investigation - to be carried out immediately - after she failed to show up for work for the first time in her 7-year-long career.
She had not once been late, and was known as the “go-to colleague” for filling in last-minute shifts and late assignments. Jim, her patrol-partner, described her absence, and lack of communication, as “very out of character” and immediately went to check her apartment with a spare key she had given him. He testified that he found her alarm-clock ringing and nothing out of place.
Katy Turner’s credit card was traced to an Uber-driver at 3.40am the night before. The driver was located by the police and he testified that he picked up a male and female from the Ale Bar and dropped them off at the end of a street just 6 minutes away. He also stated that he could sense tension between them during the short journey.
The Ale Bar’s security cameras were then checked and the police discovered Katy talking, kissing, and dancing with a man, who at the time, was unknown and unnamed. The closest point of surveillance to the Uber-destination was the rear parking-lot of a leisure-centre situated about 50 yards from the street where they were dropped off from the cab.
Investigators checked the CCTV recordings from the night before and saw a bare-footed character dragging a large wheeled-bin shortly before 5am. Then, 7 minutes later, the same figure is seen dragging the bin, with some difficulty, because of the weight, in the opposite direction. The same man is then traced and seen dragging the bin to a location underneath the Mackenzie Bridge. When he emerges from the other side, the security-camera footage shows him dragging the wheeled bin more quickly as it appears that it has been emptied. This area was immediately searched and Katy’s lifeless body was discovered at 3.30pm.
Katy’s lifeless body was discovered at 3.30pm on the day she never turned up for work. She had two black eyes, a broken nose, and her cause of death was ruled as asphyxiation, most likely due to strangulation. As forensics got to work on Katy’s body at the crime scene, the police strengthened their operation and declared the figure of the man in the CCTV footage as their priority.
Just over 48 hours later they had found out the man’s identity. A member of staff at the Ale Bar testified that it was Christopher (“Chris”) Gardener who had worked at the Ale House, as a doorman, in 2014, four years earlier. The following Tuesday-night, Chris was spotted, on the same surveillance camera that covered Mackenzie Bridge, driving his girlfriend’s car. He was seen driving up to the location where Katy’s body had been dumped, presumably after noticing the body was gone. He was located, and arrested, at his apartment, on the early hours of Wednesday morning. He was immediately subjected to interrogation.
(2)
The grey-walled interrogation-room is small in area, and it has a low ceiling. The lighting is stark fluorescent white-light. The only furniture, apart from three chairs, is a plain and functional table that has many 10x8 inch or A4-size photographs spread over its entire area. Chris sits adjacent to the table, with his back to the grey wall, on a stool which has wheels, allowing it to move on the floor, and a back-support; a standard office-chair.
Two detectives sit facing Chris, on similar stool-chairs. They effectively make a barrier which prevents him from walking to the exit door. Two cameras, bracketed on the wall, are recording events, and there is also a continuous audio-recording being made. The interrogators are employing the “Mutt and Jeff” technique, or Good Cop/Bad Cop.
Facing Chris, on his right-side, is a stocky-built man in a grey suit who has a full, and thick, set of grey wavy hair which neatly just brushes the collar of his crisp white shirt. To Chris’s left, there sits a pleasant-looking woman, with her fine-light-brown hair, tied in a pigtail at the back. She has a light-blue thin top on, and black slacks and flat sandals. She is adopting a casual and approachable posture. The woman detective (the Good Cop) is leaning forward towards Chris and is stroking his left arm to comfort him. The man-detective (the Bad Cop) has positioned himself, also, in close proximity to Chris and he, too, is leaning forward, while holding a steady gaze on Chris.
Chris himself sits facing them both. He has his arms folded tightly across his chest. He is pressing back on his back-rest, but his head is pointing downwards. He is not making any eye-contact. Between his spread-open legs, on the chair, is a plastic bottle of water. Chris looks about thirty. He has close-cropped black hair and is wearing a short-sleeved black T-shirt which shows his upper-body and arms to be strong and muscular. He looks like a gym-guy. He has black sports-leggings on.
The female Good Cop is slightly-built compared to Chris, and she sits very near to him, side-on, with her legs-crossed over, and in a relaxed, non-threatening, posture. The suited-man Bad Cop, with the wavy grey hair, has a similar “chunky” build to Chris, and he sits back a couple of feet, leaning forward, and is face-on to Chris who’s shoulders are hunched inwards as he leans forward and looks down towards his knees.
When confronted with the surveillance images, Chris instantly broke down but alluded to nothing and asserted that his memory was blank on the night of the incident.
(3)
“Are you still saying that you can’t Chris?” the male detective gently asks. Chris says nothing and just sniffs, as if he has a cold, or he has been crying. Chris’s head shakes in a tremor but he says nothing. “There’s either I won’t, or I will, or I don’t want to. Which is it? You don’t want to?” The detective gently presses Chris who says nothing in response and just keeps on sniffling. “I’ve just talked to some people upstairs. I know what you had in your car.” The detective is referring to a tarp, gloves, rope and gasoline.
When Chris was arrested they had found a big tarpaulin, some thick rope, a pair of black gloves, and a large can of gasoline, in the car he was driving at the time. The police assumed that the tarp would have been used to wrap up the victim’s body to transport to a secluded location, to be dowsed in gasoline, and then set alight, as a method of eliminating evidence.
Chris remains silent in his chair, but raises his head up to meet the eyes of the male detective. He carries on sniffling. His head is visibly shaking.
The male detective carries on. “Chris, the people that we interviewed, that were with you this weekend, said that you did not show any remorse. They said that you were your regular old self. No issues. Your Dad came in, but he wouldn’t give us a statement. He found out through the police. The police called him.”
The detective leaves a pause. Chris shakes his head from side to side and starts to sob. The female detective reaches out and gently pats Chris on the shoulder in a comforting manner. Chris makes high-pitched sobbing sounds and continues to shake his head from side to side. “Chris, you’ve been sitting here saying, ‘I can’t, I can’t, I can’t.’ Life is about choices right now…” The male detective raises the tone in his voice and begins to point at Chris. “…just like the choice you made to go out on Thursday night. She paid for the cab.” The detective jabs at a photo on the table from the cab camera. The detective stabs at the photo on the table again for emphasis. “She paid for the cab Chris.”
Chris turns his head to the side to look at the picture, on the table, of Katy and himself in the back of the cab. The detective remains silent. Chris lingers on the photo on the table. “Do you remember that?” the male detective sternly asks, pointing at the taxi-cab photo. Chris shakes his head in a “no” gesture while still keeping his arms tightly folded over his chest. “You don’t remember, or you don’t want to remember?”
“I don’t remember,” Chris replies, in a squeaky and pathetic-sounding high-pitched tone.
“What do you remember?” The male detective taps at the photo again, impatiently. “After she paid for the cab, what do you remember?” The male detective uses the power of silence to increase the pressure. Chris sighs and sobs.
The female detective strokes Chris’s arm and, in a soft voice, gentle whispers reassuringly, “It’s ok.”
“Chris, do you see what’s going on here?” the male detective asks, and then leaves more silence. The detective now tries an alternative question as a tactic. “When you put her down, were you really hoping someone would find her?” This is a subtle technique used to get an indirect confession out of a suspect. Answering “yes” would appeal to Chris's higher morals and the detective is hoping this will swerve his thought-processes from the fact that it would also distinguish him as the culprit in the victim’s death. Again, more forcibly, the male detective asks, “Chris, when you put her down there, were you hoping someone would find her?” Chris sobs and sniffles and shakes his head in a “no” gesture. The technique fails.
(4)
The male investigator now switches to the “ego-down” approach which is, essentially, the opposite of the “ego-up” approach he had just attempted. The detective now attacks Chris’s sense of personal-worth in the hope that, by doing so, the subject will voluntarily provide information in an attempt to vindicate himself and redeem some of his pride.
“How can somebody … I mean … if I ran over a dog …” The male detective raises his hands and makes chopping motions for emphasis. “… if I ran over a dog I’d feel bad. How can somebody do something like this and all weekend you act normal, have sex with your girlfriend, go to your father’s birthday party, and everybody says you were acting as always. Then, you’re driving around … you were gonna go and do something with her body …” The detective leaves a pause.
“I don’t know what I was gonna do,” Chris says.
“Ok, the stuff you had in your car, what was that for?”
“Well … I had my bags … I was not sure if I was going to leave or not”.
By “leave“ Chris means skip Town, run away. In his bag was a passport, enough clothes for a week, and all of his savings in cash, which amounted to just under $3000.
"The stuff you had in your car, what was that for?" asks the detective.
"Well … I had my bags … I was not sure if I was going to leave or not."
“And what else?” The detective prompts Chris.
“Ah … eh … the tarp and gas … they were for … eh … one or two things …” Chris then clams up and starts sniffling.
“Which were what?” The detective prompts him. “That’s what I’m saying Chris, what did you have these for?” The detective adopts an upward-palms, open arms, gesture and puts a pleading tone in his voice as if to say, “Come on, you can tell me Chris.” Chris just sniffs away with a blank look on his face. His forearm is shaking with the tension.
“You know what you had them for. You were going back down there … to get her?”
“I thought about it,” Chris says, while nodding his head.
“Yes, you were,” the detective confirms.
We have a breakthrough. This is Chris’s first incriminating statement, although it is not a full confession. However, this is an example of good, low-key, detective work. But it is not nearly enough, yet, for a guaranteed conviction that would stand up in court. The words “I thought about it” could be transmuted, in a number of ways, by a defence team. Yet the suspect has essentially identified himself as the man who was dragging the bin and therefore insinuating to the crime of interfering with a dead body. The highly-skilled detectives will use this breakthrough as a foundation to frame their next set of questions in order to increase the pressure for a full confession.
(5)
“What were you gonna do with the gasoline Chris?” The detective sweeps his hand in an arc to emphasis his question. Chris moves his head from left to right in a “no” gesture.
“I don’t know.”
“Chris, stop playing this game, ok? Seriously. You knew what you were gonna do" The female detective sits very still and maintains a steady gaze on Chris as the male detective continues. “If there hadn’t been anyone around there you would have went down there and did that …”
“I don’t think I could have.” Chris sounds feeble. “I drove by there before.”
“Yes I know you drove by there before,” the male detective says to Chris, while nodding his head in the affirmative. “I appreciate your honesty, ok?” (using the “Ego-Up” approach, giving Chris a reward for being truthful). Again, “I appreciate your honesty.” Then the detective leaves a pause.
“I don’t know what I was thinking,” Chris says in a pathetic voice, while shaking his head from side to side.
“Chris, you had your girlfriend’s car, too, right? Why … why would you do that? Because you didn’t want …”
“No, no, I didn’t have a lot of gas left and I thought I would have to go further away … to try to get away …” Chris says in a weak voice.
“Ok, that’s reasonable.” The detective waves his hand in acceptance of the lame reasoning.
“I didn’t want to lie to you.” Chris’s voice is whinny and he grips himself tightly with his arms.
“Ok, you don’t have to lie to me,” the male copper says gently and kindly. The female cop reaches out and pats Chris on the shoulder to reassure him they care about him and he is with friends in this room. “Tell me this, was she … tell me this … was she still alive when you put her in that bin?”
Chris’s arm is trembling. His right leg is rapidly moving up and down on the seat. His foot is tapping away on the floor. “No,” he says.
Chris has now confessed to the “felony” of interfering with a dead body. It is no longer insinuated, it is now confirmed.
(6)
“She didn’t suffer in there? She didn’t suffer when you threw her over that bank, she was dead? How do you know she was dead?” The male detective presses Chris, in a serious tone.
“I think she was,” Chris replies. His right-leg and arms are trembling markedly. Chris should really have legal counsel at this point. He has just admitted that he did not know if the victim was already dead before the attempted disposal over her body. There was a chance she could still have been alive, but instead of taking her to a hospital, he left her underneath a bridge in the middle of the night. Disclosing lack of morality in such a manner will be brought up by the Prosecution at a trial.
“How did you know that?” the male detective asks. “Are you telling me she was not alive when you stuffed her in there?” Chris sniffs. “How did you know she was not alive?” The detective taps the table for emphasis.
“She wasn’t moving,” Chris whines.
“You’re a paramedic,” the detective states. Chris was, in fact, a salesman for a fire-suppressions company and a part-time personal trainer. He briefly served as a volunteer fire-fighter and underwent emergency medical technician training which is what the detective is referring to. “How do you know she was not alive?”
“She wasn’t breathing,” Chris says.
“She wasn’t breathing? Like, how did you know that? Did you get down to feel for a pulse? Did you get close to her face, you know, because you are a paramedic, some people might have faint breaths?”
“I don’t know,” Chris shakes his head and sniffs.
The victim not moving, or appearing to be breathing, is now Chris’s acumen for recognising her death. He has just admitted to not checking for a pulse, or using his CPR training, to try and save her life. The female detective now grips Chris’s left hand in her own, tightly, to bond and comfort him in his time of intense stress.
(7)
“When you put her in there, she wasn’t alive, 100 per cent, you’re telling me 100 per cent she wasn’t alive?”
“I think …” Chris shakes his head from side to side and grips the female detective’s hand tightly.
“Was she making any noises?” Chris replies with a shake of the head.
“Did she suffer? Did she suffer Chris?”
Chris sighs. “I don’t think …”
The male detective continues. “I can understand how some of those other things happened … but …”
This is a cunning and calculated tactic by the male investigator. He is now focusing his disapproval on one element. That is, the victim still being alive inside the bin, overly emphasises the wickedness of this single misdeed while he downplays, and partly justifies, all the other infractions that haven’t been confessed to yet.
“Please tell me she was not alive Chris. I need to know. Everybody needs to know…” The detective taps the table. “…you’re telling me she was …” The detective leaves a pause hanging in the air. “…and you said she wasn’t breathing?”
“No.” Chris shakes his head.
“She wasn’t making any noises?”
“No,” Chris says.
“Did you check her pulse, or anything like that?”
“No.”
“You didn’t? Because if you had told me that she was still alive when you did a thing like that I don’t know if I could still be in the same room as you Bud. Okay? So did she suffer? How do you know she didn’t suffer?”
“I don’t know,” Chris sighs.
“I guess what I’m saying is, if you’re telling me that she’s dead, that you’re certain that she’s dead, when you put her in the bin, then how do you know she didn’t suffer? How did it end? Was it over quick?”
This is the first indirect question relating to the suspect, Chris, being present at the time of the victim’s murder. The detective is very good at stating the essential wording of the question at the end of his sentences in a very quick and casual manner which disguises the condemnatory nature of the inquisition.
“I think so,” Chris says with a sigh.
“Chris, how did you know it was over quick?” The detective pursues further admission. “You’re a paramedic, you’re a fire-fighter, you know anatomy, you know how people’s bodies work?”
Chris sighs and sniffs, then composes himself. There is now a slightly stronger tone in his voice. “She wasn’t moving, and she wasn’t breathing,” Chris says with certainty. This is not the answer the detective was hoping for … (full story available in printed form)
25. TRAIN OF THOUGHT
(1)
Long train-journeys in the mid 70s seemed to take forever. This was especially the case for a young and attractive woman. She was going to be spending the weekend with some friends. Joan was heading to a pretty little village and she was assured that she would like it. Her friends were supposed to be meeting her at the station that late winter evening.
The papers said that “They hadn’t caught him yet”. All the more reason for her to be extra careful.
Three girls had been assaulted on this train-line in as many months. And, in each case, it was a lot more than just assault. One girl nearly died too. They said that there was nothing to worry about because they’d catch him sooner or later. However it was Joan who was doing the travelling on this line that winter evening.
The Papers said they were “looking for a man with short blond hair.” Joan had shoulder-length, straight, dark-brown hair. She had an air of class about her and was well-groomed. The train stopped at a station. The next stop was were Joan was to get off. So not long to go.
Joan picked up a discarded newspaper that had been left on a nearby bench-seat in her small compartment. She was engrossed in it when someone entered the cabin and sat down opposite her. Joan glanced up from her paper to see a man of about thirty staring directly at her. He had short-cropped blond hair.
The attractive-looking man in the checked-jacket, sitting opposite Joan, had a pleasant smile on his face. His pale blue eyes were piercing, almost hypnotic. He was well-dressed and had a confident and relaxed presence. He stopped staring at Joan and politely looked away.
Joan hid behind her paper, glancing over it now and then, revealing her wide eyes. The blond man rattled his fingers on the seat as if he was getting a bit agitated or impatient. It was just the two of them in the small cabin, sitting opposite each other on the bench seats.
(2)
Joan glances up at the alarm-chain above her. The notice says:
ALARM
Pull the chain
Penalty for improper use £25
Joan glances over to the blond man. He smiles. Joan then realises she is crossed-legged and her skirt has risen up at bit. She sits herself upright, pulls her skirt down, and tucks her open beige jacket over her red blouse. The blond man looks at her legs approvingly. Joan is now feeling very self-conscious and she shifts around on her seat.
The man pulls out a lighter as if he is some sort of a magician. It just appears in his hand. He stretches out his arm in front of himself as if for dramatic effect. He rapidly flicks the flint of the disposable lighter creating lots of sparks. Joan’s eyes widen a bit as she locks onto the lighter. She looks to the man to see that he now has a big wooden pipe in his mouth. But he still has those gleaming eyes fixed upon her.
Joan turns her head slowly and looks at the triangular red notice on the window. “No Smoking” it states. Her concerned eyes are reflected in the window. The train speeds along though the darkness of the night, gently rocking their carriage. The lighter may have just been for dramatic effect because the blond man now produces a big box of Schiff Hamburg matches. The matchbox has a tall clipper ship on the label. He strikes a match on the side of the box. It immediately bursts into flames. He lights his pipe; smoke temporarily engulfs his face. He tosses the match to the floor and holds his gaze on Joan.
With his pipe in his mouth, and both hands now free, the good-looking blond man sits upright, then slowly and deliberately, he leans forward. He stretches his hand out towards her. Joan shrinks back into her seat.
The blond man picks up the newspaper that was next to Joan. She sighs in relief. His outstretched arm was not a threat, he was merely reaching for the reading material.
He sits back and holds the Times over his face, occasionally peering over it to meet her eyes. The train carriage jerks and sways. Joan is thoughtful. She slowly reaches for her leather handbag while keeping an eye on the man behind the newspaper. She delicately puts the strap over her right shoulder and begins to make motions to get up and leave the small compartment.
She stands up, and then looks up at the luggage-rack, above her head, where her big case is lying. She stretches her hand upward and touches the case handle. With a start, she feels his hand over hers. He stands behind her and he grabs the handle. She slowly sits back down. He hands her the case. She accepts it with a frown and dashes out of the compartment. He looks on with a serious expression on his face as he caresses his pipe. He is no longer smiling.
Joan gets off the train at the next station. She walks over the platform, carrying her case, and into the station ticket-office. She looks around. There is no-one there to meet her.
(3)
She stands in front of the ticket-bureau window and looks inside. There is a lamp on but no-one in the office. A big wooden wall-clock above her shows the time to be 10.45pm. Looking through the ticket-office window again, she flinches at the site of a wooden pipe sitting next to the ticket machine. It is silent all around, and the clock above her head ticks away.
She feels a hand from behind, touching her shoulder. She jumps and lets out a subdued cry of fright. And then she spins around.
“Miss Stevens?”
“Yes,” she answers warily.
The grey-haired Station Master peers over his glasses at her. His face is friendly and helpful. He is in uniform, with crisp white shirt and dark tie, and he wears his official cap of authority. His moustache is greying and his hair at the side is long and straggly, giving him a slightly dishevelled appearance. His voice is polite and clear as he looks over his gold-rimmed reading glasses at her.
“Your friends called me,” he says.
“What?” she nervously flicks her hair back.
“Mrs and Mrs Hunt were on their way back to town and their car broke down. So they’ll be delayed and so they want you to go on and let yourself in.”
Joan looks a bit anxious.
“They key’s under the mat” he informs her. “This way miss” he gently puts a hand on her back and guides her out of the station building and into the dimly-lit forecourt. “Turn right, out of the station, and it is the first house that you see” the man says helpfully. “About quarter a mile” he says, then pauses. “Everything alright Miss?” he leans towards her and shows genuine concern as they both stand face-to-face in the dark forecourt.
“Yes, thank you,” she says with composure. Joan briskly walks off.
A few seconds later a tall blond man, wearing a smart checked-jacket, over a light-coloured polo-necked jumper, walks through the station building and past the ticket office. He stands in the forecourt and looks around keenly. His eyes searching.
“Just a minute,” a voice of authority says. “Can I have your ticket please?” the Station Master asks. The blond man spins around to look at the source of the voice behind him.
(4)
Meanwhile Joan is now out of the station and quickly walking uphill. She keeps glancing back towards the station lights. The road is dark and she briskly walks on the tarmac but not actually on the pavement itself.
The blond man is now emerging from the station and walking her way. Joan quickens her step while glancing back often. She crosses a road of traffic, dodging the speeding headlights. Her case is becoming heavy and cumbersome. Her face shows anxiety as she is well aware that she is isolated and vulnerable in this dark, late, evening light. She is not even familiar with the surroundings.
She steps onto the pavement as a car approaches. The car headlights momentarily blind her. As the car sweeps by she looks back at it to check the registration-number on the rear plate. The car has now travelled another 50 yards, or so, and its headlights illuminate the shadowy figure of a tall man behind her, walking along the pavement.
There is an intense beauty in the vulnerability that shows in the eyes of Joan as her polished heels click-clack on the pavement in the stark white shadowy moonlight. And there is a strength in those eyes too. A resilience.
(5)
Joan reaches the Big House. She finds the Yale key under the doormat. She glances back at the path to check if there is anyone following her. She quickly puts the key into the lock on the door. In her haste, she pushes the door open, walks inside, and slams it shut. But she leaves the key, still in the lock, on the outside of the door. Her attention is now fully focused on surveying the dark and empty house she has just stepped into.
Joan walks further into the dark house. Standing by a window she looks out into the moonlit night. She sees that the big white gate across the track to the house is not closed properly. There is a gap where the fences should meet. The curtains are wide open on the window she looks through but, so far, she has not put any lights on inside the house. She walks to the hall and flicks the light switch.
Her eyes see into the house. She turns slightly to her left. Bracketed on the wall, just two feet away, are two solid axes, crossed over in an “X” shape. It suddenly occurs to Joan that she has left the Yale key in the lock on the outside of the door. She frowns. Then her eyes widen with the realisation. She spins quickly and heads towards the front door. She opens the door and looks out.
Standing outside, just a few feet away, is the blonde man from the train compartment. He has a gentle smile and nods his head in greeting. He stretches his hand out and his palm is almost touching her face.
Standing outside the house, just a few feet away, is the blond-haired man from the train compartment. He has a gentle smile and nods his head in a greeting. He stretches out his hand. Joan, bares her teeth, and lets out a high-pitched scream of terror, as the shadow of the blond man’s hand covers her face.
(6)
The next morning is cold, but bright and sunny. A cream-coloured Rover car, registration PFA 324H, speeds along a stretch of dual-carriageway. Inside the car a middle-class couple in their mid to late thirties are chatting. The dark-haired man is driving. The good-looking woman in the passenger-seat, with the neat fringe, subtle pale-blue eye-shadow and streaked-blonde hair, has a big fur coat on.
“She’ll be furious. Absolutely furious,” Susan Hunt declares, slightly theatrically, in her cultured voice. She glances over to her husband to gauge his response.
Keeping a tight grip on the steering-wheel and sounding slightly irritated, Jeff Hunt replies to his wife, “Remember darling, it wasn’t our fault,” with his voice sounding a bit strained. “It wasn’t anybody’s fault.” On both occasions he emphasises the word “fault”. Jeff has fine short black hair and looks like he needs a shave. His wide sideburns are neatly trimmed. He looks like a professional man who can handle responsibility. His even-featured, handsome face, looks pasty in the harsh winter light coming through the car window.
“It’s your car,” she mildly accuses him. “Men are supposed to look after their cars, to make sure they don’t break down.” She looks at him mischievously to see if he is rising to the bait. Jeff handles this by saying nothing. He concentrates on his driving.
Jeff keeps tight-lipped for just a short while. Susan breaks the silence. “Poor Joan,” she sighs. “We were supposed to meet her last night, but now look at it.” She quickly glances at her watch. “It’s … it’s tomorrow.” Susan looks at Jeff as if to challenge him a bit. Jeff puts on a calming tone.
“She probably made herself some supper and went quietly to bed,” he says, reassuringly.
“But I had to sit by the roadside and freeze all night.” Susan puts on a slightly perturbed look.
“Just who are you worried about, Joan, or yourself?” Jeff says with a smirk.
“Both of us, of course,” Susan has concession in her eyes as Jeff takes a bit of command.
This is all play-acting.
“Both of us had an absolutely beastly night,” Susan says with a warm grin. Jeff is grinning too. “All because of your wretched car,” she teases. They both now have wide smiles.
“But you love me,” Jeff says with confidence. Susan pushes her big fur collar up over her neck and face, and peers over the top revealing just her alluring eyes.
“Maybe,” she says.
(7)
Jeff and Susan arrive at the entry to the driveway of their big country house in their cream “H” registration Rover. Susan gets out of the passenger side-door, takes a few steps forward, and opens up the white wooden gates to allow the car access. Jeff drives the car through and parks it next to the house, stiffly yanking the hand-brake on before exiting from the driver's side.
They both walk along the paving-stones of the path still mildly grinning at each other. Susan’s thigh-level leather boots make an impressive clumping sound on the stone path. She squats down and lifts up the door-mat to check. There is no key.
She stretches her arm out towards Jeff and makes a beckoning motion with her hand as if to say “the door-key please.” Jeff picks up a couple of full milk-bottles from the ground, swiftly transfers both of them to his left hand, and uses his free right-hand to place a set of keys into Susan’s palm. Susan puts the keys into the Yale lock, turns them, and opens the front door.
“Jeff!” she shouts in a high-pitched voice.
They both stare into their house. In the hallway they see tables upturned, cabinets tipped over, and books scattered all over the floor. As they look around they see picture-frames smashed on the floor and stools lying horizontally. There are bloody, hand-marks and finger-prints, on the walls, and large streaks of deep-red blood in places. One of the short axes is missing from the display.
They stand there in shock, frozen. Jeff holds a milk-bottle in each hand in front of him. Susan’s dark-brown leather hand-bag dangles loosely off her left hand.
“Joan!” They both shout, in unison, at the top of their voices. A bloody hand begins to emerge from behind the plasterboard of the wall-corner about 20 feet away from them. The disembodied hand moves slowly, and is about three feet off the ground, as it creeps around the corner of the wall.
They hear the sound of sobbing. Joan gradually appears from around the corner of the hallway. She is on her knees and she grips the wall, to steady herself, as she rises slowly into a standing position. This takes all her strength of will. Joan is battered and bruised and her clothes are torn. She staggers and falls into the arms of Susan, who has rushed forward to catch her. Jeff grabs the telephone that is sitting on a small table nearby.
The police are on their way. Their blue lights are flashing and their sirens are loudly wailing.
(8)
“Surely just one minute,” the plain-clothed Inspector demands, with his face contorted. He stands at around 5ft 10. The knot of his tie is loose and bulges out of his dark-blue suit as it attempts to grip the collar of his check-patterned shirt. His craggy face, furrowed brow, and big moustache, mark him out as a tough guy with experience. His receding, but still lively, dark-red hair and huge sideburns give him an imposing appearance.
“The answer must be no,” states the tall and distinguished doctor in the white coat. The surgeon clears the height of the copper by at least two inches. His voice is steady and firm.
The Inspector and the Doctor both look over to see the limp body of Joan being placed down on a hospital bed by two orderlies.
“Half a minute then?” the Inspector pleads, and attempts to use a softer approach to persuade.
“No.”
“Look, you’re doing your job Doctor, I’m just trying to do mine.” The Inspector points at his own chest for emphasis. “She saw the man, she must have. Maybe she can give us an accurate description?” he tries to convince.
“Not now please.”
“Look Doctor …” The Inspector gestures for them both to go out into the corridor. When outside the room, the Inspector raises his voice to a shriller pitch. “If we don’t catch him, he’ll do it again.” The cop stares directly at the tall man in the white coat and challenges him to concede. The Doctor comes back robustly.
“Potential victims are your concern. Mine is that girl.”
The Inspector pauses for a second, realises there is no compromise and then says, “I’ll be back tomorrow then,” before quickly walking away. The Doctor calls out and the Inspector stops in the corridor and looks back.
“Don’t you realise it is her mind that is affected? The state she is on now she may never make any sense”.
“I’ll be back tomorrow,” the copper mutters under his breath and then walks away.
(9)
Joan is lying on the hospital bed, unconscious. She’s just been given an injection to sedate her. The tall doctor in the white coat comes into the private room to check on her. He leans over the bed. Her eyes are open, but she doesn’t see the doctor, she sees the blond man looking at her.
“Take the man away,” she whimpers. She sobs and cries. “Take the bad man away.” The doctor moves away from the bed and whispers some instructions to a nurse. Joan grips her pillow and carries on wailing and sobbing.
Meanwhile, Susan is down on her knees in the hallway, cleaning up the mess at the house. She scoops up broken glass and has a vacuum-cleaner sitting next to her. Some pieces of furniture are still tipped over. The big cream phone, sitting on the small table, begins to ring. Susan glances up with concern and looks over at the ringing phone. She is dressed in a thin black polyester top and long black trousers. Jeff, still wearing his checked shirt, which now has the collar wide open, walks over and picks up the phone handset.
“Yes, I see. Thank you for ringing,” he says into the phone, using subdued tones. Susan looks on in anticipation, with worry on her face. She has both hands placed on her thighs, and from her kneeling position on the hardwood floor, she looks up at Jeff who has placed the phone back on the hook. “It’s the hospital. No change,” he quietly informs her.
In the hospital, Joan is lying quietly now. She has a pretty floral gown on. Joan is awake but her eyes are in the distance. The Inspector is standing at the bottom of her bed. He has a friendly expression. “Miss Stevens” he says quietly and gently. His face looks softer and more approachable than the day before. His tie-knot is now tighter, and neater, over his fine-checked shirt. He looks quite smart in his blue suit.
“Miss Stevens,” he repeats softly, inflecting his voice to a slightly higher, questioning, tone. Joan stares but is unresponsive. He moves in close and leans over the bed and is about two feet away from Joan‘s face. “Look …” He shakes his head a little with impatience. “I just want to find the man…” He puts on a grin for her. She stares at him, wide-eyed. Joan almost looks like an innocent baby as she lies there.
The Inspector continues “The bad man…” He nods his head to her, gently trying to get her cooperation. The man you’ve been talking about …” Joan stares at him with her innocent and glassy wide eyes. "You are going to help me find …” His voice trails away and his head goes down a bit. He tries again.
“Miss Stevens, you don’t have to be frightened of me … I’m a police officer …” He takes out his I.D. from his jacket pocket and places it firmly in front of her eyes, just six inches, or so, away. “See”. The unfolded card has an emblem on it and it says COUNTY POLICE. It gives names and numbers, and it is signed. Joan looks a bit more relaxed. She slowly moves her head up to look at the man who is holding the I.D. card. Joan sees the blond man; the bad man. She lets out a hysterical scream of anguish. The copper shrinks back and looks bewildered. The doctor enters the room and instructs the Inspector to leave immediately. Joan carries on screaming intensely.
* * *
(10)
Later on that day ...
The Inspector is peering closely at the remaining axe which is still hanging on the wall-bracket. There is an empty slot next to it, where the twin was. His craggy face is screwed up in concentration and he strokes his moustache with his thumb. He steps away from the wall.
“You haven’t found it yet,” Jeff states with a sigh, and a flat tone of disappointment in his voice. He stands a few feet away from the Inspector, by the window. Jeff’s wearing a light-blue plain shirt which is open at the neck, and darker blue soft trousers that flair a bit at the bottom. Both his hands are in his pockets and his shoulders are hunched up. He’s clean-shaven but his thick, straight, black hair is looking a bit too floppy. He could do with a good haircut.
“Nah. The axe … nor him,” the Inspector replies. “Funny though …” the Inspector continues, while shaking his head. “I thought we would have found it.” He walks forward to stand in front of Jeff. “Judging from the injuries, he didn’t use the axe on her. I thought perhaps she took it to defend herself.”
“Well if she did, it didn’t do much good,” Susan buts in impatiently. She had been within earshot listening to them both. She is standing upright, about twenty feet away from them, leaning on a wall, with her arms tightly crossed over her chest. She’s wearing a light-coloured floral dress.
The Inspector paces around slowly and continues with his analysis. “Probably put his prints on it during the struggle … eh … what he did … he ran out though here …” He points down the hall “He remembered the axe … and, eh, came back for it.”
“How do you know that?” Jeff asks with incredulity. He is now standing behind Susan and has his arms loosely around her.
“I don’t know, I’m just guessing,” says the Inspector, but he doesn’t sound very convincing though. He looks at the floor. “But there’s mud on this carpet …” His voice trails off. “I wonder why he didn’t kill her?” The Inspector hangs the question in the air. Jeff and Susan both fix their gazes on him.
“I wonder why he didn’t kill her?” the Inspector conjectures.
“Well he might as well have.” Susan looks stressed. “They’ve taken her to Corby Hall.”
“I know,” the Inspector confirms, with a slight grin.
Susan is perturbed. “She’s not mad is she?”
“Not mad, maybe disturbed, but that’s understandable after what’s happened to her. As a woman you should understand that,” the Inspector says with a wide grin. Susan is now close to tears.
“When I think of Joan in that place …” Susan’s eyes are glassy. Jeff grips her by the shoulders.
“Now darling it isn’t … a place like that.” Jeff puts on a comforting tone.
“Corby Hall’s the best in the country.” The Inspector has a uplifting tone, and a grin on his face. “And expensive.” The Inspector nods to Jeff, who is clutching Susan’s shoulders.
“The Americans are showing their customary generosity. The Embassy is paying all the bills,” Jeff states.
Joan had just arrived in the country to take up a position as a stenographer. Her train journey was the first time she had travelled on a British train. Because she was so well brought-up and educated Joan only had the mildest accent which she could take away, at will, if the context required this.
She’ll soon be well enough to talk to me,” says the Inspector, confidently, “…and then … I’ll nail him.”
* * *
(11)
Later …
It is a cold and overcast day at Corby Hall. Joan wanders around aimlessly on the immaculately-mowed lawn next to the water-fountain. She is wearing a long grey coat over an ankle-length white, floral-pattered, gown and her footwear is loose-fitting scandals. Her arms are wrapped across her body, tightly, in an effort to keep out the chill. A nurse, in uniform, walks towards her to check her welfare.
Jeff, Susan, and a psychiatrist, are standing on a balcony of the grand house. All three are observing Joan, who is below them, at a distance, talking to the attendant nurse. Jeff and Susan gaze down, looking concerned. The psychiatrist stands back a bit and has a look of professional detachment.
Jeff is wearing a light grey suit and blue shirt and dark tie. His hair, while still full of body, looks neater and trimmed. Susan is wearing a patterned tweed jacket over a bright yellow polo-neck jumper, and she has matching flared yellow trousers. The psychiatrist wears a fine-quality dark-blue jacket, a crisp white shirt, and a conservatively-striped tie and buttoned-up waistcoat. He stands upright, with his hands behind his back, and his fine grey receding hair, and slightly tanned skin, give him an air of authority. He looks to be a man in his early fifties.
“I understand she has no family,” the psychiatrist states with perfect diction. He has the slightest of accents.
“None to speak of, a couple of distant aunts…” mutters Jeff in a low voice.
“It is important she doesn’t feel lonely … isolated in any way,” the psychiatrist states, drawing out the word “lonely” in a commanding way, almost as if he is a high-level government-official advising a Minister of State. His manner irritates Jeff a bit.
“Yes of course,” Jeff says snappily. “We come every weekend …” His voice trails off.
“Can I go and talk to her? Susan asks.
“Yes, but only bright things please,” the psychiatrist instructs, in his superior tone, as he paces away with his hands behind his back. They all walk inside. The psychiatrist heads over and sits behind his polished wooden desk. Susan and Jeff begin to walk out the office door.
“Not you Mr Hunt.” The psychiatrist’s voice booms out and echoes of the walls. Jeff pauses, turns around bemused looking, and meets the eyes of the psychiatrist. “For the time-being it is best she only has female contact” the psychiatrist then looks down and carries on writing busily, without looking up. Jeff is a bit taken aback and so is Susan. Jeff glances at Susan as if to say, you carry on and I’ll deal with this. Susan walks away out of the office. Jeff walks back in and closes the door. He paces around for a while but says nothing. The psychiatrist doesn’t look up. Jeff is uncomfortable. He rubs his hands together and sighs a bit.
Jeff moves over to stand by the desk. “Doctor Warder,” he says in a quiet voice. Jeff is now wringing his hands. Warder carries on writing for a bit, then he looks up at Jeff. He says nothing. Jeff walks towards the window and gazes out into the bright-white daylight. He briefly points out of the window and then he gently asks, “How long is this going to take?”
“Progress will be slow, but over the next few months I hope that she may …”
Jeff spins around from his window-gazing and cuts in. “A few months?” he says with a surprised tone while looking directly at Warder.
“I’d say six at least.” Warder spins around on his chair to look at Jeff.
“But then she will be completely well again?” Jeff asks, with concern on his face.
“Well, the experience she has been through, there must be scars of course.” Warder has spun back around in his chair and he looks away from Jeff, in a detached way, thinking abstractly. “But she will be a perfectly normal and healthy young woman again,” Warder states confidently, with his voice resonating.
* * *
(12)
Meanwhile ...
The Inspector is sitting behind his untidy desk, scribbling away intently with his black ballpoint pen, on a sheet of cream paper which is part of the contents of a manila-coloured cardboard file. His desk is functional, and probably too small, as there are many sheets of paper covering the whole surface. His two black telephones sit under a desk-lamp at his right-hand corner. He’s wearing a sleeveless, thin-grey, ribbed-patterned, v-necked jumper over a fine-checked blue shirt. His dark tie is fairly tight to the collar. On the blue wall directly behind him there are some notices and a big map. There is a purposeful knock on the door.
“Yes,” he acknowledges, absent-mindedly, while still annotating his document.
“Detective Constable Wallace, Sir,” a female voice announces.
The inspector carries on muttering to himself about his analysis of his notes and then pauses and slowly gazes up from his desk. At his eye-level he is facing the crotch of a set of blue female jeans about two feet away. The belt of the jeans is soft-grey/blue and studded with beads. The buckle is an ornate face with blue-beads for ears. Just above the belt-line is a horizontally pin-striped fashionable blue casual top. His eyes dilate involuntary as he continues to slowly raise them upwards to reveal a glamorous young blond-haired woman wearing a decorative necklace. The Inspector’s expression is frozen in surprise for a second as he clutches a piece of A4 paper, and then a wide grin appears on his face. He looks upwards from his desk at this tall woman, standing there, with approval in his eyes. He rises up from his seat and takes a few steps around to be at the other side of the blond woman from his desk.
“Well now constable Wallace, what I want from you is …” The Inspector’s eye-level only meets the woman’s chest-level. She towers over him. The Inspector looks distracted at what he sees just two feet away. Slightly embarrassed, he gestures with his hand. “Why don’t you sit down”.
* * *
(13)
Later ...
I’m very pleased with you Joan, very pleased indeed.” Doctor Warder leans forward over his desk. “Cure is a two-way process.” Warder’s eyes gleam with self-satisfaction. “We can lead, offer, direct, but ultimately it must come from you.” Warder speaks in his confident and formal manner. Joan sits on a hard chair, opposite him, at the other side of the desk. Her head is slightly bowed forward and she is fiddling with a string of paperclips she has assembled. Joan is wearing a medium-green open-necked top with lots of buttons running up the middle. She doesn’t look up at Warder, she focuses her concentration on adding more clips to her chain.
Warder slowly reaches over the desk to touch her hands to get her attention and to stop her fiddling away. “You are doing very well …” His voice booms out. Joan flinches at his touch and lets out a cry. Warder gives her a stern look. “But perhaps the most important factor of all … is time.” Warder maintains steady eye-contact on Joan. “Time to forget. Time to re-adjust.” Warder speaks with force, almost as if he is trying to hypnotise his patient.
* * *
(14)
Meanwhile ...
Susan stands in front of a full-length mirror, combing the neat fringe of her straight blondish hair. “I’m sure it’s going to be good news.”
“Don’t build up any hopes.” Jeff can be heard from the other side of the room.
“They said be prepared for a surprise,” says Susan, with a smile of optimism.
“I know, but don’t build up any hopes,” Jeff repeats. He has moved forward and is now standing behind Susan, fixing his cuffs. He, too, has a smile on his face.
“You’ve already said that about half-a-dozen times.” Susan turns around to look at him. “Darling, you’re beginning to sound like a needle stuck in a groove.”
“Well that doesn’t half date you. I always did go for the older woman,” he teases, and then he gives her a cheeky smack on the bottom. Susan spins around fast and swipes at him. Jeff ducks down at lightning speed and her attempted blow completely misses the target.
“I’m sure we’re going to see a great change in Joan.” Susan’s wide smile is bright. Jeff puts his arm around her as they walk, together, out of the house … (full story available in printed form)
26. PAST TENSE
It was a long drive to Taradale, on the edge of Loch Maree. It would probably take me four hours to get there. I was busy with other work for Trade Fairs, and the like, and so it felt like an inconvenience. This shoot was taking me well away from base. And so just as well the money was good.
I packed my road map and headed for the most remote part of nowhere, and Fionn Lodge. The house had finally found its way onto the market. Just about everyone in the North West had heard of the place and all that had supposedly gone on there - not least the staff at Chisholm and Sons, the Inverness Estate Agency, in receipt of my services, and now encumbered with the property’s future. It was an odd story indeed.
Mary Fraser, was an elderly spinster in her late nineties. She had resided at the Lodge for over half a century, before taking her own life just a month ago. She had left a note saying that her wish was to be with her long-dead son, Donald, and that the Loch would decide her fate.
Her body was never recovered. A verdict of death by suicide was recorded at the inquest. It was concluded that the old woman, burdened with grief, and advanced dementia, had leapt to her death from Slioch Broch, right on the edge of the Loch. That should have been the end of it. But then the stories began to emerge.
The local stories. Stories of a mother, Mary, and of her son, Donald, living in the big house together over many decades. They were reliant and self-contained, until Donald finally met, and proposed, to the woman of his dreams, in the nearby settlement of Poolewe.
Just a few days before they were to be married, Donald disappeared and was never seen again. The rumours quickly spread. The locals whispered that Mary had killed Donald in a frenzied rage of jealousy. She had never wanted him to leave the Lodge, and so the old woman had made sure that he never would.
Thereafter, myths evolved into predictable tales of ghostly sightings in the mists on the edge of the Loch, and lost souls wandering aimlessly, trapped in limbo, in an otherwise, deathly silent, brooding house, haunted by its past.
Following the inquest, Bruce and McKenzie -- an Ullapool-based solicitor’s practice handling the probate and settlement -- instructed an estate agent in Poolewe to sell the property. However, fuelling rumour and speculation further still, the agent refused, stating that there was no market for Fionn Lodge and that, even if there was one, he would have no hand in its sale. Subsequently, Chisholm and Sons, became involved and, in turn, my services procured.
But I had no interest in any of the ghostly stuff. My brief was simply to photograph colour and black & white exteriors shots of the Lodge. And the sooner it was done the better, as far as I cared. And so, after three and a half hours of travelling, on a dull and grey overcast day, I was now approaching the Lodge on the Loch. I was eight miles from Poolewe.
I entered the gravelled driveway and made my ascent to the house itself. At that point the sun appeared from behind thick dark clouds, beaming golden light through the spruce trees to either side. I was glad of this. I had been concerned that the photographs, especially the monochromes, would appear flat and lifeless in the absence of any bright and direct light. I knew, from experience, that the best shots would be dampened without the warmth of sunlight on the brickwork.
I parked the car and then I walked around to the front of the Lodge. I found the grass freshly mown. Someone had obviously made headway already to ensure that the property was as presentable as it could be. As I stared at the big house a cold breeze brushed across my face.
For a brief moment I had the feeling that someone was standing directly behind me but, when I turned around, there was nobody; only the house, standing silently against the backdrop of the Loch and Slioch, the 3200ft Mountain, in the distance.
The house was abandoned and paint-cracked. From another age. The forgotten past. Though it was just past midday, the paint-flaked sash-cord windows on the upper floors looked darker than night. I had to admit that the isolated Lodge was an intimidating sight. A part of me could only admire its desolate beauty as it stood bathed in the late autumn sunlight against the blackening cloud.
I used a neutral density filter to photograph the exterior. This allowed me to stop down the lens to capture long exposures that would be drawn out to over thirty seconds each. As the low-level stratus clouds were moving relatively quickly across the grey sky, I knew that this would create a blurred sense of movement in the skies, that would give more prominence to the Lodge itself as it stood silent and motionless in the foreground. My Olympus OM4 was firmly fixed to my Manfrotto tripod to ensure that the house itself was recorded tack-sharp.
By angling the camera-view slightly, and changing to a 28mm lens, I could also capture Slioch in the frame, ten miles in the distance, at the other side of the deeply grey Loch. I shot two rolls of black & white and one of colour, and that was my work complete. I packed away the camera gear and prepared to drive away. But before leaving, I couldn’t resist peering through the windows on the ground floor.
Inside, the rooms were sparse and unfurnished, dim and void of life or character. In one of the rooms, at the front of the house, a solitary wooden chair sat in the middle of the floor, facing the window. I imagined the view of the Loch from that position. (available in printed form)
27. DROWNING IN THE CITY
The City has expanded rapidly, since the Industrial Revolution, into a gigantic powerhouse of production. Hungry and desperate souls flock here in search of employment. The infrastructure has evolved to cope with the pressure … (full story available in printed form)
28. TWO LOST SOULS
(1)
Dampness permeates the night air. Across the water, in the darkness, a police-siren sounds, and a church-bell tolls. The lights of the City flicker in the distance. Cold waves brush the stony shore, illuminated by the pale and bright moonlight. A distant boat-horn groans and wails. And then there is the sound of ungainly footsteps on a muddy track.
A container-ship slowly makes its way along the river, watched by a middle-aged lady with dark, straight, shoulder-length hair. She is standing at the river’s edge, slightly smiling, as if in anticipation. A full moon shines through the broken clouds. The wind begins to pick up, and it whistles through the trees. A lighthouse pulses across the way. The lady takes a breath and then walks away from the shore.
Walking through the night, and through the woods, the lady comes across an isolated cottage. She looks cold, and her jacket is zipped up to the neck to keep the chill out. There are no lights on in the detached house. She pauses, and then heads up to the front door. The moonlight casts a sharp shadow of the lady onto the wooden frame.
The woman takes out a Yale key and opens the door-lock. The moonlight hits her face, as she glances back over her shoulder, before entering the house.
The house has two levels, and it looks in a well-maintained condition from the outside. She walks into the living room and switches on the light. The décor is modern and the house appears to be lived-in. She turns on some lamps, and the radio, and then she begins to have a look around.
(2)
After her walk outside in the wind, Carol looks a bit dishevelled, as she stands there, in the lamp-lit living room, but she’s, by no means, an unattractive woman. She’s probably about five foot six inches in height and she has a full, rounded, figure and ample bosom. Her face, has even features, and she has dark brown eyes, and a pale complexion of smooth skin. Carol is dressed casually, wearing blue jeans, and a dark-blue long cardigan, which is hanging wide open, over a green top of soft material which has six tight buttons leading up to a wide open-neck. Her chest pushes out of the top of her blouse, just enough, to draw attention.
As she flips through a photo-album, that she has picked up from a shelf, a news bulletin broadcasts from the radio.
Carol flips through a photo-album while, in the background, a news-bulletin broadcasts from the radio.
Male Radio Announcer voice: “… it’s also extremely grim out there so please do take care on the roads this evening. Gale force winds are forecast for the rest of the night and severe weather warnings remain in place across the Southwest and surrounding areas. It is really not very pleasant at all. Stay with us for updates on the weather situation every 15 minutes …”
Carol picks up some framed pictures from the bookshelf and takes a close look at them.
Announcer: “…and the headlines once again for the Southwest. The search continues for a missing patient who escaped from the Riverview secure unit earlier today. The resident, should not be approached …”
Carol is holding a small silver frame and touching the glass with her fingers. The picture is of a wholesome-looking male-and-female couple in their early forties. He stands tall, wearing a wool jumper and shirt; she is about four or five inches shorter and has shoulder-length straight dark hair.
Announcer: “… and is described as being …”
At this point there is a buzzing sound and the mains electricity cuts out. The living room becomes dark.
The radio had been plugged into the mains and so the living-room is now silent. Carol, lets out a sigh, and walks over to the wall light-switch and clicks it back and forth. There is no power. Some moonlight is shining through the gaps in the window-curtains however; just enough for her to make out the outline of a small, circular, wooden table which has, what appears to be, four glass candle-holders. Two of them are opaque and star-shaped, while the other pair are round and clear.
There is an electronic lighter on the bookshelf. She picks this up, flicks it, and lights up all four of the candles. One of the star-shaped candle-holders is deep blue, while the other is dark green. The remaining two are clear and show a golden flame. The candles all glow-away nicely on the small wooden table which Carol has moved over to sit right next to a big, comfy, sofa-chair which has wide, soft, arms. There are folded wool-blankets hanging over back of the chair, and the candle-light casts a wavering shadow of Carol’s head onto the plain wall directly behind her. She looks over to the face of a ticking-clock, sitting on top of the bookcase. The hands display a time of twenty-five past midnight.
Carol sits back on the sofa, rests her head on the blankets, and tries to relax. Her legs are crossed, and her left-foot sandshoe twitches up and down. The strong wind howls through the trees, shaking the branches. Eventually, Carol doses off. Her eyeballs move slowly, back and forth, under her eyelids, as she begins to dream. Outside, there is the sound of twigs cracking, under the force of footsteps.
There is the sound of footsteps approaching the cottage. Carol continues to dream and is unaware of this. Then, there is a loud, single knock, on the door. Carol’s eyes snap open wide. The handle of the door now rattles, repeatedly. Carol rises up from her chair, looking fearful.
(3)
Carol stares at the outside door, and then her gaze fixes on a stand next to the fireplace. The door-handle rattles impatiently. Carol’s brow is deeply furrowed and her heart is pounding in her chest. She steps, quickly, to the fire-stand and grabs a thick, iron, poker. She holds it with both hands.
Carol now stands at the outside door, poker in hand. A young-sounding voice of a man shouts “Hello! Can you let me in?” His voice sounds urgent, but not unpleasant.
“No, go away!” Carol shouts back, with strain in her own voice.
“Please, I need help!” the man pleads.
“Well, who are you?” she asks.
“I’m hurt, please!” he says. “Can I just use your phone, or anything, just for a minute. Please!”
Carol is in a dilemma. She huffs, and puffs, and sighs. But she also keeps a tight grip on her poker. Finally, she releases the bolt, and opens the door, slightly, and peers out. Standing, at a lower level, down a step, is a man of about twenty, who has thick, short, dark hair.
“What do you want?” she asks, through the gap in the door, while holding the poker up in front of her. “Do you know what time it is, for God sake, what are you doing here?” she says, firmly.
“Please, let me in,” he says. “I fell. I think I’ve busted my arm. Please.”
Carol hesitates.
“Okay, well, hurry, before we both freeze to death.” She opens the door, and the young man follows her in, along the short hall, and into the living-room. He is carrying a small backpack.
As the outside door clacks shut, the draft blows out the candle-flames on the table, and now they both stand in the living-room in near-darkness. Carol, still holding her poker at chest-level, takes a good look at the young man. He stands a few inches taller than her and has an athletic-looking, strong, body. His small backpack hangs over his left shoulder and he has his right arm tucked up, and wrapped around his torso as he winces in pain. He doesn’t look that threatening and his eyes don’t hold steady contact with hers. Instead, his uncomfortable gaze moves back and forth, from her face to the poker she is holding. As he stands there in the dim light, hugging himself, he appears more vulnerable than dangerous.
He appears more vulnerable than dangerous and Carol quickly concludes this. And so she puts the poker down as he is no threat to her. Her tone changes.
“Here, put that down.” She gestures to the bag he has over his shoulder. Her voice softens a bit. He puts his bag down on the floor. “You’re freezing, you poor thing,” she says, in a mothering type of way. He awkwardly sits down on a big armchair. She gets a blanket, spreads it wide, and wraps it around his shoulders, as he lets his weight fall into the chair. Carol then stares at the blown-out candles on the table. She holds her gaze on them and seems a little bit perturbed for some reason.
Carol stands above him, looking down. “I’m sorry there’s no electric,” she says, “the lights went out with the storm earlier.” Carol speaks with good diction and some authority. She sounds educated, perhaps middle-class. She has the sort of voice that commands attention. “Hmmm, they’ve been flickering on and off for ages but I think they have finally given up the ghost,” she says, casually and clearly.
“Ah, I don’t mind,” he says, sniffling and shivering, “it’s better than being out there.” his speaking manner is polite, and eager to take instructions for his own good. It is the voice of a boy, in a sense, rather than that of a man-of-experience. The time on the clock says twenty-five to one am. Carol sits back on the arm of the other chair and looks at the lad, wrapped in his blanket, and gently sighs.
“What the devil are you doing out, on a night like this, you’re lucky you didn’t catch your death?” she asks, slightly scolding him, but with a caring tone.
“Thanks for opening the door,” he says, gratefully, in a shivering voice. “It’s fucking freezing out there”
“Yeah, precisely,” Carol is sitting just a few feet from the lad, and looking at him sympathetically. Her open-neck blouse, revealing her chest cleavage, is at his eye-level. Carol then gets up from her sitting-position, on the chair-arm, and heads out of the living-room. “I’ll find you another blanket,” she says, as she walks out of the room. The lad sits on the chair, yawning tiredly, and clutching his sore arm.
Carol heads into a nearby bedroom, picks up a blanket off the bed, and then pauses to think. In the living-room, the lad looks towards the door to see if she is coming back, and he also takes the opportunity to glance around and get his bearings. With signs of pain in his face, he reaches out and picks up his rucksack from the floor and carefully places it next to him on the big armchair. Meanwhile, Carol is standing in the bedroom, clutching a blanket, and speaking to herself. “It’s fine, it’s all fine, I’m fine” she says, reassuring herself, and then she lets out a sigh.
"It’s fine, it’s all fine, I’m fine." Carol tries to reassure herself, and then she lets out a sigh of frustration and doubt. She actually has a thick towel in her hand, not a blanket.
She walks back into the living-room. “Found a towel. This will do, won’t it?” Carol places the bath-towel over his midriff and legs. She then freezes and fixes her gaze on the now-lit, and glowing, candles on the table. After a pause, she picks up a clear, round, candle and holds it very close to his face. He looks a bit perturbed at this, as he sits there wrapped up.
“Do I know you?” she whispers to him. She is only about a foot away from his face. Very close.
She keeps staring at him. Finally, he grunts in pain, and this breaks the spell.
“What have you done to yourself?” she asks him, as if talking to a child. “Let me see.” She folds back the blanket hanging over his shoulder. “Don’t be a baby,” she tells him, “I used to be a nurse … well … I wanted to be.” He groans in pain.
“I helped the nurses,” Carol informs him. “Anyway, let me … see. Well, do you think it’s broken? When you fell, did you feel it break, or hear it snap?”
“Fuck knows,” he says, with a pained expression. “I heard something, but it could have been the bits of wood or twigs I fell on.”
Carol puts her hand out to his arm. “I really need to …” She grips his arm. He winces in pain. “Fuck!” he says.
“Hmmm, can you move it at all, your fingers?” He twiddles his fingers a little bit.
“I don’t think you’d be able to move it at all if it was broken. I remember when my little boy broke his arm. And I think you’d be in a lot more pain …”
“More pain?” he snaps back at her. “It hurts like a bastard already.”
“How did you fall?” She puts a questioning tone into the word “fall.”
“I was running, I don’t know, and then I tripped over a fucking tree stump, and bam down, I fucking went.”
Carol puts her hand over her face in a gesture of angst. She then meets his eyes directly. “Look, I know you’re in pain, but I really would appreciate it if you wouldn’t swear quite so much. My husband always swore, and I hated it. I am sure it’s not that necessary,” she says, sternly.
“But it hurts like … a lot”. He moderates his language.
“There. That’s better,” she says, putting on a face of approval.
“So, we’re looking at it, just above the elbow. I think we need to take the weight off it for a start.” Carol looks around. “There’s a scarf I saw somewhere, we can use it as a sling.” She walks out, through the door, and then “Oh!” she exclaims, and comes back in. She picks up a candle, from the table, and then leans forward to just be just a few inches from his face. “I can’t see a flaming thing,” she tells him.
Carol heads into a dark bedroom with the glowing candle. She places it on top of a mirrored clothing-chest. She opens and shuts the drawers, in search. She finds a set of spectacles, and tries them on. Now on his own, the young man looks about a bit. His curiosity draws him to a small picture frame on the library shelf.
He looks over at a framed-picture of a male-and-female couple in their forties. The man is wearing a wool jumper and shirt; she has shoulder-length straight dark hair. And then the lad thinks his eyes are playing tricks on him. The lady in the picture begins to look like Carol. He lets out a gasp of disbelief.
(4)
In the bedroom, Carol takes the specs off and places them down on the cabinet top. She holds out a long scarf in her hands and starts to twist it around and play with it. She starts to feel a buzzing sound, and whispering voices, in her head. She wipes her brow, and shakes her head a little, as if to brush-off a strange feeling or memory. Meanwhile, the lad is shifting around in his chair, grimacing in pain. Carol waits in the hall, and peers through the gap in the door at him for a while. Watching him closely. He starts to get the creeps. He calls out “Hello?” in an unsure tone, to check where she is. She stares, through the gap, for a while more, but doesn’t answer him.
And then she finally enters the living-room again. “Why are you shouting? I’m just here,” she says, reassuringly, with a slight smile on her face. But he looks a bit disconcerted.
She starts to get slightly bossy. “Now, let’s pop this off.” She removes the blanket from his shoulder. “Right, just lift your arm up a little bit. Pop this through there …” She starts to sing a lullaby to him and hums away. “There, how’s that, better? She has slinged-up his sore arm. He looks slightly worried, in reaction to her motherly manner.
“That’s much better, thanks,” he says, politely.
“See, told you I used to be a nurse.” He gives her a little smile of gratitude. She flops back onto the main couch. “I would phone for a doctor, but the phone is dead.” Carol holds a cordless handset to her ear. She laughs. “What’s silver, and doesn’t work?” she asks him, with a giggle. She then stands up, moves forward, and puts the handset to his ear. “This telephone,” she chuckles. And then she flops back onto the couch, giggling.
He produces a mobile phone from his pocket and starts to tap it. She looks a bit disconcerted at this action, and her giggling face falls. Her tone gets serious. “I doubt you’ll be able to get a signal, in the middle of nowhere, or hadn’t you noticed?”
He produces a smart-phone from his pocket and checks the screen.
“I’ve got no battery left anyway,” he says, with a shiver. “It’s ok, just let me warm up a bit, rest, and I’ll get out of your way.”
“You wanna go back out there again?” she says, sharply. “In this? You wanna break your neck as well?” The living-room lights come back on.
“And then there was light!” she announces, in a shrill voice, with her arms splayed.
Carol has a big beaming smile on her face. “Yay!” she says, as stark white light fills the living room. He chuckles at her reaction. “Ah, thank goodness,” she says, laughing. And then her face goes stern and she stares at him.
Her sudden change of mood spooks him. “Are you okay?” he gently asks her, warily. Carol sees a vivid picture, in her mind, of a young boy, in a striped T-shirt, playing outside in a garden. The boy, in her mind, is playfully waving a bottle and there is a jet of water spraying out of it. And then the lights snap out again.
“Oh!” Carol slaps her hands on her knees and lets out a groan of frustration. “What a bugger! Or as you might want to say, what a fucking bugger.” She glares at him with hostility.
He laughs at her ‘joke'. “Oh well, it looks like we’re stuck here for the night. And, if that’s the case, I for one, would like to know your name.” She puts out her hand to shake his. “I’m Carol.” He can’t shake back with his right hand as it is in a sling. There is an awkward pause, and then he says, with a wince, “I’m John.” She grips his other hand a bit, to complete the ritual.
“That’s a lovely name,” she says, gently, looking at him with care. “Always liked it.” He looks down, not meeting her eyes. “It’s nice to meet you John,” she says, more formally. He gives her a bashful smile. She looks a bit wistful.
There is an awkward silence, between them, for a moment. And then she says: “I’d prefer more candles, if I can find any.” She stands up, holding one burning candle in her hand, and stares, somewhat transfixed, at a star-shaped candle, and a round one, sitting together on the circular table. His rucksack then falls down on the floor. A thick roll of £20 notes drops out of a side-pocket and momentarily lies next to the bag. He quickly puts it back out-of-sight into the sack. Carol heads into the dark kitchen with the small, clear, candle.
Carol finds a big, thick, candle in a kitchen cupboard. “How far from town are we?” John shouts from the living room. Carol, puts the lit candle under her face, to make herself look creepy, and comes back into the living-room. She makes her eyes stare and puts on a ‘Cornish’ accent.
“Ooooo, many many miles, John. Many many miles. ‘Tis a very lonely ‘ouse you found ‘ere. Very lonely and very … dark.”
John looks decidedly unsettled at this ‘stunt’.
She then snaps back into her normal accent, as she places the candles down onto the round table. “I’d say about 10? 11? Miles to the village. She lights the big, thick, candle. “Although, it’s easy to go round and round in circles at night in the dark and so you could end up walking 20. I’ve been lost walking, loads of times, out there in the middle of the night.” She sits back down on the arm of the chair so that her chest meets his eye-level.
John looks at her. “What?” she says, sharply.
“Why were you out walking in the middle of the night?” he asks, cautiously.
She makes a small laugh. “Well, you know … it’s nice to go walking … at night. It’s peaceful. There’s lots of reasons to go walking at night. Walking the dog? They always need walking. That’s enough reasons to go walking at night, isn’t it?” her voice is going up in pitch.
“Have you got a dog?” he asks.
This question ruffles her. “No, of course I haven’t got a dog! Do you see a dog?” She picks up some cushions to ‘check’ for a hidden dog, and then bangs the cushions back down in a strop. “I’m just saying, if you had a dog, it would need walking … at night.”
She carries on, in a shrill voice. “Besides, I can walk anywhere anytime. I don’t need permission, I am allowed. Young John, with the 20 questions. Huh, who’s in charge here?”
“Sorry, I … didn’t mean to upset you,” he says, apologetically. “I just think I may need a doctor, for my arm, that’s all.”
Her voice is still stroppy and she shakes her head about. “Yes, I know, your arm, your arm. You poor thing.” She calms down a bit. “I’m sorry.” Her voice becomes softer. “It’s so late. I’ve hardly slept, with this blooming weather and … what with the lights flickering on and off, it’s enough … enough to drive anyone up … up the wall, isn’t it?”
“You must be tired,” John says, sympathetically.
“Yes, I am, very. Just have to make the best of it. Sit it out ’til morning.” She walks over to the curtains, draws them back, and presses her face to the window. The wind howls outside and the full moon, dramatically, lights up her face. “It looks freezing out there. Not much better in here. I used to love watching storms, as a child, from the window.” She turns away from the window. “How old are you?” she demands, in a high-pitched voice. He doesn’t answer. She turns back to the window. “When I was 11 there was a storm, huge. Hellish.”
“I’m 19” he says. She doesn’t acknowledge this.
(5)
Instead, she turns back to the window, puts on a serious face, and begins speaking in a melodramatic tone. “When I was 11 there was a storm, huge. Hellish. No-one would let me watch it though, I was too little. Stay away from the window girl, it’s dangerous. They were all at the bloody window though, both my parents and my older brother.” She looks over to him, to check that he is following her story. “There was a massive bolt of lightning and the window was struck. My father was killed instantly, and my mother lost an eye. My brother was cut badly, but nothing more.”
She turns towards him and smiles. “Hey, it’s fine. My mother wears an eye-patch now and my brother, well, he recovered with only a few scars. Oh, my father … didn’t like him much anyway. So it’s all good!” She says, cheerily.
“Now I can do what I like. I can watch any storm I want from the window. Though frankly, there’s not much to see, is there. Just a lot of leaves blowing about. Don’t know what all the fuss was. Certainly not worth losing an eye over.” She closes the curtains over. Carol then flops, horizontally, over the back of the sofa, and stares at him.
John becomes uncomfortable. She then slinks over towards him, sits next to him, and puts her arm around him. She starts to stroke his neck. “So, what am I going to do with you, John?” She rubs his hair, and then grips his shoulder. “I mean, what can we do to while away the hours on this long dark night. Any ideas?”” She strokes his hair.
“What do you mean?” John says, nervously. She stares at him. “Look, I’m only 19,” John gulps. “You’re okay looking … I mean … you’re really pretty for your age, but you’re just … so much older than me,” John stutters.
Carol takes her hand off his shoulder, and looks appalled. “What are you blithering on about?” she says, with annoyance.
“I just think you’re a bit too old for me.” He doesn’t meet her eyes. “And … my arm really hurts…”
“What!” she leaps up and stands over him.
“I’m not interested in you!” she scoffs. He’s taken aback. She laughs, loudly, at him. “Goodness, that’s hilarious.” She spreads her arms out, and looks to the heavens, in a display of scorn. “I’m not Mrs Robinson,” she sneers.
John looks really embarrassed.
“Oh, you’ve no idea who I’m talking about, do you,” she says, mockingly. “She’s what you might call the ultimate cougar. Which I am not!” Her voice is high-pitched. “The very idea! And besides, you need to have two fully workable arms to have any chance with me. Oh gosh!” she cackles, “you’ve made me all coy now.” She fans her face with her hands, and then covers her face with her palms. Johns looks away. “You’re so naughty.” Carol then walks out of the room, giggling, and leaving John dumbfounded.
Carol goes into the dark kitchen and sits on a bench, still giggling. She talks to herself. “He’s young enough to be …” Her face becomes serious. Meanwhile John, wrapped up in the blanket, sits and listens out for her, in the candlelight of the livinroom. He takes the blanket off of his shoulders, with difficulty, as he grimaces in pain. John then removes the towel from his lower half. He stands up, and puts the rucksack over his left shoulder. He wanders around a bit, looking at pictures on the wall, and objects lying about. Carol is keeping silent, and watching him, through a gap in the door.
While John is having a look around, Carol is keeping quiet and watching him, through a gap in the door. John walks over to the window and folds the curtains back a bit to have a look out. She makes her move.
Carol rushes into the living-room. “Oh, look what I’ve found!” she declares, in a strident voice. She holds a pile of board-games in her out-stretched arms. “Monopoly, Scrabble, even a jigsaw. Although I hate jigsaws, don’t know why I brought that out. Keep us occupied for days."
Carol takes the board-games over to the table and starts to set them up. John sits down on the chair, reluctantly. “Em … I’m pretty thawed out,” he says. She gives a small, dismissive, laugh and carries on setting up the pieces. “I’m a bit warmer at least, might be able to get going soon. What do you think?” Carol says nothing. “Perhaps you could give me directions?”
“For goodness sake,” she says. “What’s the rush, John? I’m not going to jump on you. I thought we’d just established that. Uh! There’s no dog.” Carol exclaims. “I’m always the dog.” Her face screws up and she lets out a big sigh. She throws the pieces back into the box, in disappointment, shaking her head.
With great effort, and a lot of painful grunting and groaning, John lifts himself up from the chair and moves onto the wider sofa, for comfort. “Okay, Okay, I know, your arm,” she says, in an annoyed voice. “I’ll drive you to the village when it gets light.” she says. “As soon as my husband gets back in the …” Her face freezes.
"As soon as my husband gets back in the …in the … em…"
In Carol’s mind she sees a mental picture of a car pulling up towards the cottage. It is bright daylight, and calm, in her mind-image. The kind voice, of a mature man, then says “How are you feeling?”
“Good,” Carol says, in her mind. “I’m feeling really good,” she answers the man, with a lift in her voice. She then snaps out of her dream and is back in the candle-lit living room. “When is he back?” her voice now sounds unsure, and her face looks confused. “Morning is it?” John just looks at her. “Yes, yes, the morning, of course silly woman.” She gives herself a row. Her voice goes unsure again. “Maybe it’s the afternoon he gets back? I’m sure he wasn’t going to go for long.” She shakes her head. “I mean, he … he didn’t pack very much, not very much at all.” She begins to stammer, and her voice becomes shaky. There is concern on her face. “He should have told me though. Let me know, you know.” Her voice becomes sad.
(6)
“He’ll be back, don’t you worry,” she states, unconvincingly. She catches a grip of herself. “Anyway, whenever he’s back, I’ll take the car, and you’ll be returned to civilisation, how’s that?” she says, matter-of-factly.
Johns, nods his head. “Great,” he says, with a smile.
“Nice though, you have a husband.” John nods his head towards the photo-frame of the couple, on the shelf. “The man in the photo.”
“Yes, he’s my husband, we’re married, we’re very happily married.”
“I’m sure,” John says. His face doesn’t look too convinced, however.
She gives him daggers. “Oh, you’re sure, are you?” She puts on the mocking voice of an idiot, “nice that you have a husband” she shakes her head about in mockery.
John takes a deep breath. “Just glad you’re not out here alone,” that’s all. His voice has gone up a pitch.
“Alone? Out here?” she fires back at him. “How silly. Alone? And besides, I’m not the one running around, in the middle of a forest, with a bloody broken arm, am I John?”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.” John’s tolerance of her is being pushed now.
“Have you got any pain-killers?” he asks. She makes him squirm for a bit, and doesn't answer.
Eventually she says, grudgingly: “As you are in such pain, I’ll see if I can find anything in my cupboards for it." Carol walks out of the living room … (full story available in printed form)
29. FARE ENOUGH
Working the night shift, on a wet Sunday evening, John was driving past the graveyard in his taxi-cab. He noticed a young girl standing on the edge of the pavement. She hailed him down. He turned around on the quiet street and stopped to let her into the car. She hurried herself in, to get out of the lashing rain. The girl was wearing a dark winter-coat that had a deep hood, raised forward over her head. Inside the hood the girl’s hair almost completely obscured her face … (full story available in printed form)
30. A HERO'S WELCOME
Michael was a keen swimmer. He went for a dip, every day, in the loch near his house, in the Great Glen. Usually, he was the only person around, as he swam early in the morning, when the water was very cold … (full story available in printed form)
31. THE DANGER OF A STRANGER
Two Scottish men were travelling in Texas, on business. They were coming to the end of their short stay in the US. And so they decided to have a night out on the town, to celebrate the end of their successful trip … (full story available in printed form)
32. DRIVER FATIGUE
A good few years ago, a bus driver was working the Sunday night-shift. It had been a long shift, and he was tired. He was driving his empty double-decker along his usual route from the centre of the city out to the suburbs, when he saw something unusual … (full story available in printed form)
33. FIRING ON ALL CYLINDERS
Donald and Archie were a pair of seasoned poachers. Police officers from Fort William were alerted after they were notified of a crashed vehicle located in a remote part of the Cluny Estate. After arriving on the scene the police ascertained that the pair had been travelling back to Kintail following a successful hunt late at night, when their truck's headlights had failed and so they couldn't continue … (full story available in printed form)
34. LIVING FOR THE WEEKEND
The year is 1967. The location is France. It’s Saturday, and the time is 10am.
“Hurry up, or the motorway will be jammed,” says Jean-Paul to his wife, Mimi, as he briskly walks towards their car. There is a kid, dressed in a native Indian costume, complete with toy bow-and-arrow, firing plastic arrows at Jean-Paul’s classic car.
Without removing the cigarette dangling from his mouth, JP runs at the boy, aggressively. “I’ll show you!” he says, as he chases the lad away from his parked car.
Meanwhile, Mimi is sorting out her handbag on a nearby wall. “Get a move on!” he shouts over to her.
Unperturbed, the kid comes back. “Hey, mister,” the boy says, cheekily, “What make is this banger?”
“Get lost,” says Jean-Paul, as he gets into the driving seat.
As JP closes the car-door, the kid shouts out, in a shrill voice, “I know what it is, it’s a clapped-out Facel.”
Jean-Paul lowers down the roof of the cabriolet as Mimi is getting into the passenger side. The kid walks around the front of the vehicle and confronts JP’s wife. “As clapped out as your wife,” the boy shouts, in a falsetto tone. Mimi reacts to this by slapping the lad, fiercely, on the back of the head, several times, as the boy tries to run away. Mimi then gets into the passenger seat.
Now standing further back, at a safer distance, the kid shouts, “A clapped-out Facel!”
As the adult couple reverse out of their parking slot, the kid follows along and continues to badger them. The lad keeps whacking his bow off the bonnet of the Facel as they reverse back. There is a loud crunch as the Facel makes contact with another parked car.
“They’ve damaged the Dauphine!” the kid shouts.
Jean-Paul gets out of the car and gives the Renault Dauphine a few kicks on the bumper. “It’s ok,” he declares.
“Mom, they’ve damaged the Dauphine!” the kid shouts, in a high-pitched voice, as he runs after JP.
“Particulars must be exchanged,” cries the boy.
“I’ll kick your particulars!” replies Jean-Paul, still with the fag hanging from his mouth. And then he runs at the lad.
“Dad!” the boy calls out for help.
“Fancy some money?” Jean-Paul offers a bribe to the lad. He hands over a few notes. “Now, shut up!”
“Merci,” says the lad, while grabbing the cash.
The boy’s mum appears on the scene, carrying a few tennis rackets, and a kit-bag.
“Hey you! 8802! I’ve got your number!” she shouts, as they drive away in the Facel.
Jean-Paul comes to a halt.
“See what you’ve done to my car?” she says.
“Your car’s all right,” he replies, dismissively.
“The bumper’s dented.” She gestures over to her Renault.
“Bumpers are made to be dented,” he replies. He gets out of the car. The kid circles around the Facel and keeps whacking his bow off of it.
“Just because your father-in-law owns the block…” JP says.
“Just because you’ve got a dress from Chez Dolores,” retorts the tall lady, in the tight blue dress, as she glares at Mimi.
The lady in the blue dress grabs the door of the Facel open. “Give me your details!” she demands.
Jean-Paul, tries to get back into the driver’s seat, but she pulls him back out.
The fashionable blue-dressed tennis-lady, and mother of bow-and-arrow-boy, puts Jean-Paul into a neck-lock, and tries to throttle him.
“Give me the pistol from the boot, Mimi!” Jean-Paul cries.
As Mimi opens up the boot, the lad takes the opportunity to whack her behind with his bow.
Mimi quickly passes the gun to Jean-Paul and then grabs both arms of the blue-dressed lady, from behind, and twists them up her back.
“Get off me, you toffee-nosed bitch!” the blue-dressed lady shouts.
While Mimi is restraining the lad’s mum, Jean-Paul blasts her with a water-pistol, until she is completely drenched.
The blue-dressed lady manages to get her arms free. She steps over to her kit-bag, which had been dumped on the ground nearby, and picks up a tennis racket.
Meanwhile, the boy keeps on hitting Mimi with his bow. “Stop it. That’s enough!” Mimi shouts at him.
The blue-dressed lady, picks up a few balls and makes some first-class serves off of Jean-Paul’s head, as he ducks for cover.
At this point, the boy’s father appears in the distance, with a double-barrelled shot gun. There is an ear-splitting bang as he shoots, directly, at Jean-Paul.
Under attack, Jean-Paul sprints towards his open-top Facel. The blue-dressed lady continues to serve tennis balls at him.
As well as a shot-gun, the Father has a little dog on a lead. He passes the leash over to the boy, which frees up his hands. As the Facel drives off with screeching tyres, and burning rubber, he takes some pot-shots at the vehicle.
“Get that shit-heap out of here!” the Father shouts, as the Facel speeds away. “Bastard! Communist!” he shouts, with anger.
35. GAY PARIS
You are in Paris and surrounded by interesting architecture and beautiful people, and you have your camera with you. Your battery is fully charged and your memory card is empty. You are about to take some photos. Because that is what you came here for.
You whisper to yourself, “I’m going to get some great shots if I get cracking. I can see amazing opportunities all around me”.
And then you spot an elegant street lamp, still glowing in the dim early morning.
“This looks perfect,” you think to yourself.
But you suddenly freeze. How do you capture this street lamp creatively for maximum impact? Do you shoot it up close, or from a distance? Do you include the other street-lamps down the row, or shoot this one on its own against the sky? Or, do you climb up the nearby stairs to get an higher-level perspective, or more interesting angle? One street lamp; infinite possibilities.
You could maybe shoot every possible combination and just hope for the best. But that’s no guarantee of a final great photo. And, don’t forget, you have an entire city to explore. You can’t really afford to waste time. Perhaps you should follow one of the proven rules for composing a photo? These rules come from the knowledge of what the human eye finds attractive. You can use these basic rules anywhere, on any subject. Classic painters have used them for hundreds of years. Think, the Golden Section, or the Rule of Thirds.
But then you look up from your camera and discover that, rather disconcertingly, you are surrounded by a SWAT team of military police with live guns pointing at you. You quickly get bundled into an armoured-vehicle and rapidly get taken away, and locked up, for being a threat to the Free World. (available in printed form)
36. FLY PUFF
This man hangs his head in shame because he’s a smoker. James is hard-working. He drives off, around 7am every morning, and usually doesn’t get back until 8pm. As the manger of the branch he comes back from work, every day, in a different, flashy, pick-up truck. Ten years ago he was put on the Register for a minor misdemeanour. Perhaps he still feels guilty about this blot on his character.
At 10.30pm every night, this decent guy wants to enjoy a fag, to wind down at the end of the day. His wife, who is a gym and health freak, kicks him out of his own house. He often stands in the rain, while indulging in his light relief.
37. BICYCLE GUY
It was 4am in the morning and dark and wet outside. Dave wasn’t looking forward to his five-mile cycle-trip to work at the Aerodrome. And so he comforted himself with a piping-hot mug of coffee while he watched the weather outside…(full story available in printed form)
38. PAGE THE ORACLE
Richmond Pager was a Senior Scientific Officer. He lived alone. After a twelve-hour shift he would come back to his flat and peer out the window to observe the New Romantics. He disapproved of them, and their flamboyant ways. But he dearly wished he could be one of them.
He knew everything about nothing. And I called him The Oracle (in my mind).
Later that evening, he would have a glass of port and put on some Debussy. He was a Hi-Fi buff... (full story available in printed form)
39. MIST YOU
Big brother, Tommy, is a genius. He inadvertently invents a device that amplifies paranormal activity. It brings spirits into the Physical World.
The boy, Robert, is practicing holding his breath, under water, in the bath. The mist seeps in and engulfs him.
40. HIDING IN THE SHADOWS
This man’s biometrics have failed. He cannot work because he is not allowed to enter the building to get to his desk, and so he hides in his flat because he is too scared to show his face.
He has also been blocked from working, and will now be out of a job for life and also lose his home. His crime was that he clicked on the BBC website and was caught. This means he will be sent to a labour camp and his family will be punished…(full story available in printed form)
41. 1978
Cyndi mixes with the unsavoury, and that is how she makes her income. She is a significant member of the underground underclass. It’s 5am in the morning. Cyndi has had a nightmare. She wakes up totally alone and heads to a phone-box to call a friend, but then experiences her rejection. They had already split up. But Cyndi had no-one else to turn to at this point in her unstable life.
“Give me one last chance,” she pleads down the line. Cyndi feels lost and terrified and abandoned. Her friend, Ann, has just told her that their relationship is over and that she has to sober up and deal with reality. Cyndi collapses in despair.
It is a wake-up call for Cyndi. She seeks enlightenment and a new way of life. It’s not too late… (full story available in printed form)
42. SHE CAN DANCE
Susan is a ballet student. When she arrives at the Dance Academy another student, Patricia, is fleeing in terror. The person on the intercom refuses to let Susan into the School. And so she returns to Town.
Patricia hides at a friend's flat, where she reveals to Susan that she has discovered something terrifying hidden within the School. Susan returns to the School, where she meets an instructor, Miss Tindell, and the headmistress, Madame Blanchette.
This is the beginning of Susan’s nightmare. New students are being ritually sacrificed for the pleasure of the Elite. Anyone who speaks of this meets a violent and gory death. A year later Susan leaves smiling, and the Academy is destroyed in a fire witnessed by The Blind Man.
43. BEHIND THE MASK
Their Headquarters are located at the top of a hill just outside Hopetown, situated right under a 100 foot broadcasting mast.
Zanu, the woman leader of the Masu Cult, leads a group of new recruits to the Conditioning Chamber where they all live together in a claustrophobic atmosphere of control … (full story available in printed form)
44. BEYOND THE DUSTY DOOR
The morning sun painted the sky with hues of gold and pink as I stood before the weathered facade of the Dusty Door. With the time ticking at 8:30 AM, I felt a mixture of curiosity and apprehension tugging at my senses.
Pushing against the creaking handle, I stepped into the dimly-lit interior, and was greeted by the musty scent of age, and the soft glow of the dawn, filtering through cracked and broken windows. Armed with my vintage camera, I embarked on my journey into the depths of this abandoned building. Each room held secrets … their own story waiting to be unearthed. Faded photographs adorned the walls … ghosts of the past. Antique furniture stood silent sentinel amidst the dust.
As the morning progressed, the whole building seemed to come alive with the whispers of history. Shadows danced in the shifting light, and the air whispered with the echoes of distant voices.
It was then that I heard the faint strains of a musical melody, drifting through the empty halls, a haunting refrain that made me shiver. Mesmerized, I followed the sound to a forgotten parlour, where a grand piano stood, cloaked in shadows.
With trembling fingers, I reached out and pressed down on the keys, the music filling the air with a melancholy lament. It was as if the very soul of the building had been stirred from its slumber, its secrets laid bare for those receptive and willing to listen.
As the day wore on, the shadows grew longer and the air became heavy with anticipation. The clock on the nearby church tower chimed 12:00 PM, marking the passage of time, as I continued to explore the hidden corners eyond the dusty door.
As the afternoon waned, and evening approached, the surroundings took on a new aura of mystery. The shadows deepened and darkened, and the air was now thick with an eerie stillness.
The clock struck 6:00 PM, its toll echoing through the empty halls like a portent of things to come. With the passing hours, the building began to reveal a latent malevolent energy. Shadows twisted and writhed, and the air turned cold with a palpable sense of dread.
As the night descended in earnest, the time ticking at 9:00 PM, I felt a chill run down my spine, a sense of unease settling over me like a heavy blanket. The once-familiar rooms beyond the dusty door now seemed alien and foreboding, their secrets hidden in the darkness that lurked within. The piano's melody had turned discordant and haunting, its notes echoing through the empty halls with a sinister edge.
As midnight approached, the building seemed to pulse with a malevolent energy, its walls closing in around me like a vice. With a sense of mounting terror, I realized that I was not alone…that something sinister lurked within the shadows, waiting to claim me as its own.
As the clock struck twelve, the building erupted into chaos. Shadows twisted and contorted, and the air filled with the anguished cries of the past. With my heart pounding in my chest, I fled from beyond the dusty door, the echoes of its horrors haunting me long into the night.
And though the dawn eventually broke, casting its golden light over the deserted street, I knew that the darkness would linger in my mind forevermore, a testament to the horrors that lurk within the shadows of the past.