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Eleanor, Chapter 10This story may contain adult content. |
| Written by mick beville | |
| Tuesday, 05 August 2008 | |
Seven years would pass since his golden hour. And during that period Kevin would trade one Sally for another Sally. He would climb only slightly higher on the genius ladder at IBM and would put his share of the settlement with his former wife Natasha, into a mortgage on a three bedroom semi-detached in Surry.
It was a clear March sky above Carshalton as Kevin tightened the last of the bolts on the swing set on his back lawn. Sally would arrive home in less than one hour after picking up their four year old twins Sophie and Mary from Preschool. The swing set was a surprise birthday present and Kevin could already picture their smiling faces. He'd thought he'd heard the door bell earlier, but when he'd gone to answer there was nobody to be seen. This time as he hurried through to the front door was sure it was his bell. He opened the door to see a short well dressed woman, possibly in her sixties. In her right hand she held a slim briefcase and from her left shoulder a strap suspended a small leather bag His thought that she was some kind of Adventist, was quickly dismissed. And as he asked "How can I help you?" He thought that she looked frightened and awkward. "Are you Kevin Baker?" she asked in a soft American accent. "Yes... I am" he answered. "Mister Baker sir," she continued awkwardly, "we have never met. My name is Eleanor Adams and I think we should talk." The name Adams hit Kevin's ear with a bang, and while still in a state of shock he could hear himself inviting Eleanor inside the house.
Nervously clearing boxes and tools belonging to the swing set he sat Eleanor down at the kitchen table. "Can I get you a drink, tea, coffee?" He asked nervously. "No thank you" she replied, looking to a picture on the kitchen dresser. "That's Sophie and Mary; it's their fourth birthday today" Kevin volenteered awkwardly as he glanced out thought the window to the swing set stood awaiting thier arrival.
Eleanor took a deep breath. "Mister Baker, seven years ago my husband, Donald Adams, disappeared without trace. The day after his disappearance officials from the secret service stripped our home of filing systems, computers and telephone recording tapes. Every nook and cranny was searched and every scrap of paper seized. There were rumours circulated that my husband may have been involved in child pornography..." "Excuse me" interrupted Kevin, "Why are you telling me this?" "Because Mister Baker" she said, placing a manila folder on the table in front of him. "I believe that in some way you are connected to my husband." Kevin looked Eleanor cold in the face. What did she know? What could she know? She looked hard back at him with the accumulated determination of the seven years that had brought her to this point. His eyes lowered to rest on the manila folder. What was there inside the folder that would make his palms sweat so.His eyes lifted to see Eleanor staring straight back at him. His nervous body language was a far cry from the Kevin of seven years ago. He felt like he was a schoolboy again, caught in a lie where the only defence was to cry out "It wasn't me, it wasn't me." He opened the folder to see several large photographs. He recognised the first picture as having been taken at a restaurant on the embankment in London and even though the picture showed him self with Sally, Hilary and Mary, a circle had been drawn around only Hilary. A second picture showed Aaron and Carl at a bizarre, possibly taken in North Africa. On this picture Aaron had been singled out for the circle. All four remaining pictures showed Kevin and Mary at different locations around Baltimore but neither one had been singled circled. "Where did you get these?" he asked, as Eleanor arranged all six pictures on the table. "I believe they were the property of my husband." She replied. "It was while the Secret Services were stripping our home, that I managed to hide the folder amongst my canvases. About two years ago I hired a private investigator to help me make sense of them. The two people that are circled here," she continued while pointing to Hilary and Aaron, "appear to have died in suspicious circumstances. The blond," she now pointed to Mary, "works for a Washington newspaper. Mister Baker the last thing I want is to become a headline. My husband was not a good man, but as you will appreciate what's left of my family would not appreciate a scandal. Along with the photographs in the folder there are written details of correspondences by facsimile, which my investigator believes were coded instructions to a contract assassin." Eleanor stopped and reached into her bag for a handkerchief and fighting back the tears she continued, "On the day of my husband's disappearance it seems that he had prepared an instruction, that had it been sent, would have seen yourself and the blond being the targets of a contract.
"What exactly do you want from me?" asked Kevin.
"I thought that would have been obvious. I have spent the past seven years dreading the possibility that he would one day walk back through my door. Mister Baker, if you have any compassion please tell me that he's not coming back. Please..." She begged as she finally broke down and sobbed. "I just need hear you say he's not coming back." Kevin stood up and put his arm around Eleanor. Picking up the picture of the twins from the dresser he held it out for her to see "These girls are my life Mrs Adams, and I can tell you that on their lives, your husband is never coming back."
The End Copyright 2008 mick beville |
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