Zodiac's toy by John Jones (best free ereader .TXT) 📖

her computer sighed with exasperation as she spoke on the phone to Mrs Mullins as she had plenty of times before. One of those customers that was never satisfied. Wanted refunds, wanted perks and privileges because she had seen an offer somewhere.

It was nearly five o'clock. Caroline looked at the time in the corner of her monitor. 16.58. Nearly time to go home.

"Mrs Mullins I've told you plenty of times, your credit card details are not sold on to third parties. They are secure with us, but your payments are not dealt with by us. It's another company, and all online payments are at your own risk, not our responsibility".

"Then why am I getting emails from companies I've not dealt with. Emails about garden centre offers. Where else could they come from other than from you?"

"Nothing is guaranteed. Sometimes your details are picked up by others who use them to send you adverts".

"Picked up by others, how? You don't think I've been hacked do you? That's a matter for the police". Caroline sighed with despair down the phone, then realised what she had done and hoped Mrs Mullins hadn't picked up on it. It seemed she hadn't.

"D'you think I should call them?"

"No Mrs Mullins, I don't. You've just been targeted by adverts".

"Nothing to do with you? because you hold my details on the computers, so you can't guarantee that you haven't been hacked either".

"No, we can't, but I can email you our data protection act if you like. It tells you what we hold on any individual customer". There was silence on the other end.

"Yes, I think I would like to see that, but don't email, post it to me, you've got my details".

"Post it. You want a print-out?"

"Yes, I'd like to go through it. I can't do that on a computer". Caroline saw the time turn to 17.01.

No chance, Caroline thought, I'm not printing that off now.

"Alright," she said. "I'll get that in the mail as soon as possible".

"Yes, you do that. I'll expect it in the post tomorrow," she then clicked off. Caroline just looked at the receiver as though it was a strange object.

She had taken over the desk of the previous manager who had retired but had left it rather messy and didn't even take a framed photograph of him and his daughter smiling together in a theme-park. It was as if they had left and only taken their coat.

Caroline leaned back and stretched, shut down the computer and left the office. She said her goodbyes to those she passed along the way, including a work-experience student she had only seen once and was soon in her metallic blue Rover reversing out of her parking place.

It had been a hectic day. There was a meeting that went nowhere, several other phone-calls like Mrs Mullins, and two staff that wanted their shifts altered, and one that was having problems with the till. She would be glad to get home, forget about all that, have a cheese pasta bake and watch reality tv, but as she drove home along a dual-carriageway, a text message pushed that back.

She looked down at the message and drew in a panicked breath. The car swerved slightly but other vehicles were sufficiently far away enough to not be affected. It was from Wayne:

'I think we should break-up. Don't come and see me. I'm sorry'.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 9

 

The car screeched to a halt outside Wayne's parent's house where he lived. She knew he would be home because he only worked part-time.

She wasn't so much angry, although that was part of her emotions. Anger, confusion, and lack of understanding caused her to march up the pathway and bang on the door. Something she had never done before. Love, or lack of it, could cause people to behave beyond their normality.

"Wayne!" she shouted, "Wayne, answer the door". It was her confused father who answered, and sheepishly, Wayne knew there was no hiding, so he appeared behind him.

"It's okay dad," he said.

"You're not breaking up are you?" his father said with wide eyes. Wayne closed the door on him. He pointed to the car.

"Let's go to the car. My mum and dad will only eavesdrop".

Soon they were sat on the back seat, Wayne looking dejected, slumped as though he was running on low battery power.

"I'm having cold feet, and I can't see you anymore".

"Wayne," she said, "You were so excited about us getting wed. You've practically organised half of it, and the date is set for next month. I don't get it..."

"Like I said, you know...cold feet. Look, I can't be seen with you, so please just leave, sorry".

"You can't be seen with me. According to who?" Wayne ran a hand through his hair.

"Look, it's alright, I can't be seen with you, so I need to go".

"Don't you dare get out of this car. Why can't you be seen with me? Says who?" Wayne was quiet, but inside his mind was racing, and feeding out into his face by him flushing red, avoiding eye-contact and one side of his lips twitching. He looked to be on the verge of telling her everything, but Caroline told him, as though she could read his mind.

"It's Ray isn't it," she said.

"Cold feet..." he muttered.

"You are a bad liar Wayne. What's Ray said to you?". As if his bottled up emotions couldn't be contained any longer, they spilled out in machine-gun verbiage:

"AmancameinthecafeandhestartedsmokingweedandItoldhimhecan'tsmokeinhereandhewarnedmetostayawayfromyousaidRaytoldmetoorhe'llcomebackthecaffeeandsmashitupanddomeinbutIdon'tknowhesaidkeepawayfromCarolineofcourseIwanttomarryyouyouknowIloveyouhewarnedmetokeepaway..!"

"Wait hold on. A man. Not Ray, warned you to stay away from me. A man Ray asked to warn you. He sent his mate Lee who’s just got out of jail". Tears escaped from Wayne’s eyes.

"Look," she continued, "I'll deal with Ray...we're getting married and that's that".

She left Wayne to slink back to his parents who would no doubt have a thousand questions to throw at him, and before Caroline drove home, she formulated a text to Ray on her smartphone.

‘Don't you dare come to the house, or my wedding!’. Send.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 10

 

"Turn that up," said Shane, pulling on a cigarette, nodding to the sound of drum ‘n’ bass from an old hi-fi system. Victor reached over and highered the volume. They were in Lee's flat in the living room. Shane stood by the hi-fi as if he was an 'old-skool' raver but had lost all sense of hedonistic behaviour because of the effect of years of tobacco and alcohol use adapting into his system, causing his movements to slow, so as the music blasted out, all he did was nod and move his shoulders. Victor did nothing at all, except lay on the sofa smoking a strain of cannabis he had never had before, 'Red Rooster'. Every now and then he would puff out a smoke halo, smiling as he watched it travel and disperse.

Lee was coming up the stairs, found Victor and Wayne with their eyes closed in his flat, but found Ray in his own place.

"Job done lad. I did what you haven't got the balls to do while I was out. I warned that fucking hippy off your sister. So if he goes back to her then it's tough shit, I'm not doing it again". He left and went into his own flat.

Ray put his hands to his face. Okay, he thought, walking to the window and running a hand over his hair. She'll be upset. I'm gonna have to console her.

Down in the car-park, he saw a police car pull up. That's got to be for Lee, he thought, then turned and ran out and through into the other flat.

Lee had decided to count the money again, and had put it in neat piles on a table in the corner of the room. Occasionally he would look up at the other two and shake his head in slight despair.

"Police!" Ray shouted. Lee looked up from counting twenty pound notes. "The police are here". Lee understood, then stood up.

"Turn that off," he shouted at Shane, louder than the music. Shane didn't need to be told twice. "Where's me bag?"

"It's the fuckin' cops," said Ray, still loud, and Victor and Shane found a sudden burst of hidden energy and scrambled around as if it was their parents about to catch them smoking.

Lee found his bag and stuffed all the money in and shoved it at Ray.

"Keep that in yours". Ray took it and hurried into his own flat. Shane and Victor soon followed behind. Lee came out into the corridor and heard the door below open and close.

"When's someone gonna fix that door?" he hissed, "it was the same before I went inside. Anyone can just come in..." he heard footsteps then went back into the flat and closed the door. A few seconds later there was a knock. He knew to expect this. He had had enough dealings with the police to be a veteran, but still there were always those that got under his skin, that extracted things from him that got him arrested or fined.

The fear of the unknown was especially high when visited by the police. Even if you took a library book back a day late, and the police turned up, you could have visions of being locked up, key literally thrown away, left to rot in solitary confinement. So Lee knew he always had to be on his 'A' game when it came to the law.

Another knock came, and rather than suddenly answering it, he walked around for a few seconds, took a deep breath, then opened up.

There were two police constables there, man and woman, the man looking younger, almost as if this was one of his first jobs and the police-woman was observing, seeing how he fared on the job.

"Mr Lee Sherwin," he said.

"Yes,"

"My name is PC Stillman, and this is PC Jordan, we need to question you about a recent post-office robbery. I need to see if I can eliminate you from the suspects".

"There's been a robbery! you're joking".

"Can I come in?" Stillman said and without waiting for an answer stepped inside, followed by Jordan.

The others were all huddled by Ray's front door trying to listen, but not venturing into the corridor incase they came out.

"Can you hear anything?" asked Victor. They could indeed hear slight muffled voices because Lee had left the door open, but no words could be made out.

Ten minutes later they emerged. Both police were smiling.

"...like I said, I'm sorry to have disturbed you".

"You're a good lad, for a copper," said Lee, "but it would be really stupid wouldn't it. Robbing a post-office on the day of my release," Stillman nodded.

"Yes, yes..anyway," They reached the top of the stairs and Stillman stopped and looked towards Ray's flat. Jordan continued down the stairs.

"Ray, you're in your sister's bad books," he said loudly. "You see, Aquarius was right about you, you're a fucking idiot". Lee just stared at him, and as the policeman made his way down stairs, he shook his head slightly, as though trying to rid himself of an unwanted thought.

“Why did I say that?” he muttered. Lee saw him to the door and they waved good-bye as though they were friends.

He turned and strided up the stairs. Ray's door opened.

"Fucking coppers believe anything," he said, "and they send around PC Pussies. They were easy. And now I'm not a suspect". He went and grabbed his bag. "What the fuck was that about Ray, when he knew you were there?"

"I dunno," he said, shrugging his shoulders, "something about my sister. I'll have to go and see her, she'll be upset probably".

"...and something about Aquarius, and you being an idiot. He got that right. Anyway I'm gonna start counting again," he said, hefting the bag and walking out and through into his own flat, followed by Shane and Victor.

Ray rummaged in his coat over the back of a wooden chair to find his Nokia mobile phone. An old version that only did text and phone-calls. He switched it on intending to ring her, but when it started up, he found he had a text