Sally had left to play tennis by the time Dave had dressed and eaten breakfast. He sat in the kitchen thinking about the revelations from the previous evening. On Wednesday, he would have to give a presentation based on the information he had gathered. Standing in front of some of the decision makers of the MOD held no fear for him, it was the content that worried him. There was going to be a lot of disbelief and shock, the facts couldn’t be sugar coated.
He had the background information to write and his talk before hand to prepare, some of it would be easy, other parts much more difficult.
Picking up the list Sally had left him he went off to Tesco’s. The place was huge and much too busy for his liking. He haphazardly pushed the trolley round the store, adding in the items from the list, the aisles all appeared the same, in the end, he took to asking staff members where items he hadn’t found were located. All that was left were wine and flowers. Dave spent some time over his choice of wines then added a pack of Stella for good measure. When he found the flowers, he bought two lots, one for Sally and the other for Olivia. Having coped with the checkout and a ‘how much’ moment when the total was announced he pushed the trolley out the store and back to his car.
He tried to store everything away where he thought it should go. The stuff he didn’t know where to put, he left on the table for Sally to sort out. Not knowing where there was a vase for the flowers, he put them in the downstairs toilet.
It wasn’t long before Sally returned, “will you make me some lunch while I have a shower.” When she came back down the stairs ready to go back out, there was a plate of salad with ham and cheese waiting. “I can’t see any flowers, where are they?” “I couldn’t find any vases so I stuck them in the toilet, I left the seat up so you would see them.” She looked at him, “here’s your flowers Olivia, sorry they smell, Dave put them in the toilet and I peed on them. There are vases in the cupboard under the stairs.”
With her lunch eaten, she dashed back out to the hairdressers. Dave retrieved the flowers, found a vase, filled it with water and put both bouquets in. It was 16.30 when she returned. “That’s a lot of flowers, a smaller one would have been OK,” “It’s two bunches, one is for you.” She bent down to where he was sitting, and kissed him, “thank you.” “What time do we have to leave by,” “Can you book a cab for 19.00, I want to be there before 19.30 so you can meet Michael and Olivia before Sam and Peter arrive.
At 18.45 Dave was sitting waiting, it hadn’t taken him long to shower, shave and dress, Sally had been at it for ages, it was worth it when she came into the living room. He had only seen her in casual clothes and the uniform she wore for work, she looked stunning, “God your beautiful,” She was wearing a blue silk dress that fitted in all the places that showed off her body. He kissed her, “are you sure you want to go, we could stay here and have a better evening?” “No, and be careful, don’t smudge anything.” They heard a beep outside, Dave picked up the flowers and two bottles of wine. “Let’s go,” At 19.20, the taxi dropped them off outside a large detached house in one of the villages close to Loughborough. “Nice house,” Sally walked up to the door, with her arm through Dave’s. Olivia greeted them and kissed Sally, “you must be Dave,” she stretched up and kissed him on the cheek. “Come in,” he handed her the flowers, “thank you for inviting us.” “Come and meet Michael.” He was in his early forties, had once been athletic but Dave thought his passion now was food. He gave him the wine, “I didn’t know whether it would be red or white, so I brought both.” They shook hands, Michael kissed Sally. “How are you, we haven’t seen you for a few weeks, is this the reason?” He nodded towards Dave, Sally replied with a “yes.” Olivia left the room to check on the food, Sally followed her into the kitchen, “Bloody Hell Sally, he’s huge, is that all muscle?” Sally nodded and giggled, “there isn’t any fat on him at all.” “When you said he was an Uber driver, I didn’t know what to expect, not someone like that.”
In the lounge, Michael was asking Dave what he wanted to drink, “Whisky please, with a little water.” “You don’t look like a cab driver,” “I’m not any more, my former employer has asked me to take over a research project they don’t want done internally.” “Who did you work for before you came to Loughborough?” “The Army, I was based in Whitehall.” “I won’t ask any questions about what you did.” Dave wanted to know what Michael did for a job. “I have a business in Leicester, we rent out knitting machines to small knitwear companies across the city to help them cope with extra demand. It works well for us and our clients. They trust us, rather than other companies who do the same. Our machines are serviced when they come back to us and we offer a two-hour response to any breakdowns. Reputation is everything in this business.” They both heard the door bell, “that will be Sam and Peter,” he rolled his eyes, “Sam is lovely, what she sees in him I’m not sure.” Peter came into the lounge, Sam had gone off to the kitchen, he was mid-thirties slim, smartly dressed and stunk of aftershave. “Hello Michael,” he then turned towards Dave, “you must be the taxi driver,” he offered his hand to Dave. Taking it, as he shook it, he gave it an extra squeeze, “My name is Dave,” he could see the pained expression on his face. “You must have spent a lot of times pushing broken down taxi’s to get muscles like that.” Dave took an instant dislike to him, he wouldn’t speak to him again unless he was spoken to more civilly. He wanted to bury his fist in his face but this wasn’t the time or place, instead he leaned across to him and whispered in his ear. “Talk to me like that again and I’ll put my fist down your throat and rip your fucking larynx out.” Peter stood back and stared at him, “no need for that mate, it was only a joke to break the ice.” “Well, I didn’t find it funny.” Michael stepped in, he had just been able to hear Dave’s whisper, inwardly he was laughing, “Peter what would you like to drink, Dave, will you have another one,” Peter wanted a vodka and tonic, Dave had another whisky. The women came into the room, Sam was introduced to Dave, he bent over to kiss her. The three were all about the same age, members of the tennis club and played each other regularly on a Saturday morning. Michael poured more drinks, the conversation flowed easily, Peter kept away from Dave, just after 20.00 Olivia said they should go through for dinner. The dining room table was round, there was a name on each of the mats. Dave had Sally on one side and Olivia on the other, Michael was next then Sam, Peter sat beside Sally. In front of each person was a cold starter, before anyone ate, Michael poured wine into each glass. “I would like to propose a toast to welcome Dave, ‘it’s great to see you here this evening, I hope it is the first of many enjoyable evenings that you and Sally share with us.’” They all raised their glasses to Dave. Feeling embarrassed, he thanked them all. Olivia said to get started, there was the noise of cutlery on plates as everyone ate. Between courses there was a lot of talking, most of it aimed at Dave, only Michael was aware he was no longer driving a cab, when asked he gave the same story to the rest of the table. Peter asked what rank he was when he left, Dave said with pride that he was a sergeant. “I thought you might have been an officer, didn’t you make the grade?” Dave was furious, but neither his voice or expression changed, “twice it was suggested I apply for officer training, and twice I turned it down, I preferred to be with people I could trust rather than some career orientated officer who would turn and run when the going got tough.” Dave asked Peter what he did for a job. He replied that he was the sales manager in a car dealership, “We are the busiest dealership in the group, we also make the most money.” “That must be very interesting,” was all Dave could think of as a reply. He felt Sally’s hand on his leg. She was gripping what she could of it, Olivia cleared the main course away ready for the sweet, she had made an apple strudel, there was warm custard to go with it. Only the men wanted to eat, the women sat and talked as they ate. Finally, it was cheese and biscuits, two coffee pots were put in the middle of the table. French doors into the garden had been opened slightly to let some cooler air into the room. The cheese was tasty, Dave washed it down with several cups of coffee. Peter, he had decided was an obnoxious bore who wanted to be the centre of attention. What he said next had Dave wanting to strangle him. “How many people did you kill when you were in the Army then?” A silence fell across the table, no one looked at Dave. “There are some questions you never ask anyone who has served in the forces. That was one of them, if you will please excuse me.” Dave walked out the French doors and found a place to sit in the garden. It was dark, he could see back into the house, but he wasn’t looking. Sally came out to find him, she called his name, “I’m over here,” “are you all right?” “No,” she sat beside him and held his hand. This big strong man next to me is as vulnerable as the rest of us, “I’ll be all right, can you leave me for a bit, I will be back in soon.” She kissed him softly on the lips and went inside. He wasn’t sure how long he had been there. He saw Michael coming towards him, he had a glass in his hand, “Drink this,” the tumbler was almost full of whisky, “He’s gone, you can come back inside now.” “I’m sorry to have upset the evening,” “We’re better off without him, it’s getting cooler out here so come in.” Dave stood up and walked with Michael back into the house. They had moved from the dining room back into the lounge. Olivia and Sally were sitting on a sofa, Dave could see she had been crying. Michael asked Dave if he could tell them what he had said to Peter earlier. He nodded, Michael relayed the whole tale from when Peter had arrived until the point where he had whispered in his ear. The others laughed, “it’s a pity you didn’t,” Olivia was laughing as she said it. At 01.00, Sally said it was time for them to leave. Dave again apologised for spoiling the evening. Michael said it wasn’t his fault and they would do it again but without Peter. There were kisses and handshakes as they left. The journey home in the taxi was silent, nothing was said until they were in bed. “Sit up please,” Dave did as he was asked, she sat astride him. “Do you want to tell me about it or is it very private?” “It is private, it gnaws away at you, no one understands, they’ve seen it on the TV or in a film, James Bond makes a flippant comment when he has killed the villain. It isn’t like that in real life. Very few soldiers shoot the enemy now especially close up, the last time there was a lot of shooting was in the Gulf War. Those killed were usually done at a distance, I have had to do mine close up.” His voice had gone a lot quieter, “do you want to stop?” “I remember each one, I can see it as clearly in my mind as if it was yesterday, it never goes away.” There were tears running down his face, “I’m not proud of what I have done, I’ve never made a witty remark when it has happened. I’d just taken a life. I have to think that it would have been me dead if I hadn’t been better. It was part of the job, I knew what I was doing, there was plenty of training both physically and mentally. I thought I was ready, but the first time is the worst. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.” Sally wondered how many there had been, she stretched over to reach a tissue, wiping away the tears she kissed him, “Lie down and go to sleep,” he was sleeping within seconds of his head resting on the pillow. Several time Sally was woken by Dave tossing and turning, he might be sleeping but she thought he must be reliving some of the past.
Neither of them wanted to leave the comfort of the bed in the morning, it was 11.30 before Sally thought they had been there long enough. She came back with coffees and her phone, her expression let Dave know something had happened. “I’ve had loads of texts and missed calls, I put my phone on silent when we went out last night and forgot to turn it back on.” She was now back in bed scrolling through the texts. “Sam has left him and gone to her mothers, they had a blazing row after they got home, he hit her and she walked out.” Sally was reading more texts as she was speaking. “Sam and Olivia want to come round here this afternoon to talk.” “I’ve got loads to do, I will keep well out of your way.” Sally messaged back saying any time after 14.30. “I took an instant dislike to him, the moment I saw him, I liked her, almost as much as you,” teasingly he carried on, “if you were all standing in a row, I’m not sure which of you I would choose.” “I can run faster than the others, I would have got to you first.” She climbed back on top of him, sitting in the same position she had last night. “Seriously now, are you OK after last night, you were very restless when you were sleeping.” “I’m fine, it’s not usually a subject I want to talk about, as I said last night, I’m not proud of what I have had to do.” She slid further along his legs and kissed him, they stayed like that until she slightly pulled away, she moved her head and whispered softly in his ear “I love you.” As soon as she said it, she got out of bed and went into the bathroom closing the door behind her, He could hear her sobbing, when she came out, there were no signs of tears, “what was that all about?” “Girl stuff,” he pulled her on to the bed, she buried her face in his chest and started again. He lifted her gently until he could see her face, “What is it?” “I’m in love with you, I didn’t want to be, but feelings have taken over from the physical attraction. I had come to enjoy being single, not having to think about anyone else, but you came along and it has all changed. I don’t know how long this will last, will I come home one day and you will be gone, you might go out one day and lose a fight, never to return. I’m not sure if I can cope.” “Would it make you feel better if I said I loved you?” “Only if you meant it.” Sally waited, “I love you, you are beautiful, fun, clever, a great person to be with and you have a fantastic body.” She turned into a position where she could kiss him. “I like it here, I’m not going to disappear. Does that make you feel better?” She nodded as tears again rolled down her face. “When this job is finished, perhaps we could have a holiday, spend some special time together.” Dave looked at the clock, “If you don’t want to be opening the door naked, then I suggest you start getting ready. It was now after 13.00, Sally kissed him once more “I will have a shower and get ready, once you have had yours, can you make some food for us.” She left the shower running as she came out. Dave was quickly in and out and wrapping a towel round his waist he went down to the kitchen. He put rashers of bacon under the grill, by the time Sally joined him, he was just cutting the sandwiches, a mug of coffee was steaming, ready for her to drink. As they finished, Dave said he was going to dress before her friends arrived. Too late, the bell was ringing, “I’ll let whoever it is, in, as I go upstairs.” “Don’t answer the door like that,” he was already there and turned the Yale lock to let whoever it was in. “Jesus,” it was Olivia, “could you come round and open my front door like that?” “It’s not a service I offer to everyone, she’s in the kitchen.” She hugged Sally when she saw her, “no wonder you’ve always been tired lately.” Sally smiled and said nothing. “I hope he’s not one of those people with a huge body and a tiny dick.” “Olivia, quiet, he might hear you.” “Well?” “I’m not complaining.” Before Olivia could ask any more, the bell rang again. “Fucking Hell,” was all Sally could say when she opened the door. She hugged Sam who was in floods of tears, Olivia came to see Sam. “The fucking bastard,” The whole of the left-hand side of Sam’s face was bruised, her eye was black. In the living room, Olivia tried to console Sam while Sally made coffee. She waited for her to return before asking what had happened. “After we left and were at home, we had a huge row, I said he had been rude to Dave and the he should have apologised, he said Dave was just a fucking taxi driver and shouldn’t have been there. I told him he was arrogant and ignorant and that he couldn’t talk to people the way he did. He told me to shut up. He said my job was to agree with him and be a dutiful wife. I went into the kitchen to make myself a coffee. He wanted to know why I hadn’t made one for him, He said it was my job to make him coffee. I told him to fuck off, that’s when he hit me the first time, he slapped me hard across the face. I fell to the side, a chair stopped me falling all the way, when I got back up, he waited until I was steady and then punched me, this time the chair slid away and I ended up on the floor. When I got back up, he wasn’t there, I walked out the front door and went to my mum’s. He came round this morning all apologetic, my stepfather told him to fuck off or he would call the police.” All during this, she had been crying, a now dressed Dave opened the door apologising for interrupting, “I’m just getting a coffee and then I will be gone.” Sally came into the kitchen, “will you check out Sam’s face, see nothing is broken, she won’t go to the hospital.” As the kettle was boiling, he returned to the living room. Sally said to Sam to let Dave look at her face, “that’s quite a bruise you have there, may I examine it?” His voice was soft and reassuring, she nodded, Olivia got up to let Dave take her place next to Sam, “can I touch your face?” He felt along her jaw line and round her eye socket, “sit on the edge of the sofa, I want to compare one side to the other.” His hand was on each side of her face, He paid particular attention to round her eye, it was more difficult as the bruised left eye was half closed. “Nothing is broken, he hit you twice I guess, the damage done is too large for one hit. The bruising on the side of your face will be gone in a week, your eye will probably take two to three weeks to get better. I suggest you wear sunglasses to cover your eye.” He left to return to the kitchen. This time it was Olivia who followed him in, “will you have a word with Peter,” “what would you like me to say?” “You know what I mean,” “this isn’t the time to do it, if I sort him out, and then Sam goes back, she won’t be happy if he is all messed up. Let’s wait until it all calms down and then we can talk again.” Now with a coffee, he left them to it.
In his mind, Dave had gone over his introduction many times, each time it changed, writing it down would give him a document he could then alter until it was correct. He wrote it out by hand and then typed it up on his laptop, Bits were added, words were changed, part removed, by the time Sally came upstairs Dave thought he almost had it.
“They’ve gone now, Sam has decided she is not going back, her first job tomorrow is to find a solicitor.” “I saw Olivia follow you into the kitchen, what did she want?” “My body I think,” smiling as he said it, “that’s not funny, given half a chance, she would be trying it on with you.” “Sorry, she asked me to beat Peter up, I said now is not the right time.” “Will you do it?” “I’m not sure, if he told the police it was me, then it would mess things up, there is too much going on at the moment for me to be distracted by him, he’s not worth it.” “Shall we eat,” “Yes, I didn’t realise what time it was. Why did it take you so long to decide he was a bastard and Sam should divorce him? Blokes would have sorted it out in ten minutes then gone down the pub.” “We have to talk endlessly about these things.”
In bed that night Sally said that Olivia wanted to know if you were big all over, “what did you tell her?” Lying, “I said to her that I had seen bigger,” she was laughing as she said it. “When?” Dave wanted to know. “The picture on Friday night, where they were all standing in a row, one was massive.” “I’m not sure it would be like that if you were standing next to him.” She turned to face him, “kiss me, and hold me tight.”
© 10210ken 2024
