by Tim O'Rourke
With those tears threatening again, I climbed into my beat-up old Mini and headed through the rain toward training school.
Tom
I straightened my tie and stood back from the mirror. Running my fingers constantly through my messy-looking hair, I jutted my chin out and inspected it for any patches of stubble I might have missed while shaving. I wanted to look my best. I wanted Sergeant Phillips to see that I was a good copper and worthy to stay in the force. I couldn’t get kicked out. Not today. Not ever. The thought of doing so and having to go back to my mother’s and father’s house with my tail between my legs made my heart sink. I wanted to do something for myself. I had wanted to make my own way in life without their help. I wanted to prove to them – to myself – that I could make something of my life without their constant help. In my heart I knew that I could’ve never wished for better parents. They had given me everything – they had given me too much. I could just carry on taking from them but I wanted them to be proud of me. I wanted to do something special with my life that would make them proud. And in my heart I knew that’s why I had wanted to be a copper. It stood for something, didn’t it? To be able to protect and help those in society who could least help and protect themselves, was something to be proud of. That’s all I had ever wanted to do. And working with Kiera I was starting to believe that I was doing something worthwhile with my life. For the first time I was doing something that would make my parents proud. So the thought of having to return home and tell them I had failed – been kicked out of training school for failing to obey orders made my heart ache. I could see the look on their faces already and it made me wince. But that wasn’t the only reason my heart ached as I put on my tunic for the last time. I knew that once I’d been kicked off the force there was little chance I would ever see her again. There was no way Sergeant Phillips would bin Kiera. She was way too bright. She was going to make a brilliant police officer. She would stay and I would go – go back home. Maybe that was for the best. The best for me. In my heart I doubted I could really stay friends with someone I had fallen in love with. It would hurt too much being around her knowing that she didn’t feel the same way for me. So perhaps being kicked off the force was the best thing to happen. It would force a break between Kiera and me. My heart was already breaking, so perhaps if some distance was put between me and Kiera, those breaks would slowly start to heal?
I left my bathroom and waded through the discarded cheeseburger wrappers and empty Coke cans that littered my room. My PS3 was still set to pause where I had sat up all night playing. I had been unable to sleep. I picked up the hand controller from off the sofa and hit the play button. A zombie lurched forward on the screen, its eyes wild and blood red. I shot it straight in the face.
“Take that, Phillips,” I smiled to myself and turned off the PS3.
I left my flat, darting through the puddles to my car. I climbed inside and headed toward training school.
Kiera
Two uniformed officers stood on either side of Sergeant Phillips’ office door. The officers’ backs were so straight I feared that their spines might just snap at any moment. I sat on one of the chairs in the sterile corridor. I looked up at the officers but they just stared straight ahead like mannequins. I looked down at my watch. 08:56 hours. Where was Tom? He daren’t be late. Please, Tom, hurry up, I prayed. I didn’t want him to get into any more trouble than he was already in. I sat nervously strumming my fingers against my knees. There was a sound of footsteps and I glanced right. Tom was heading down the corridor toward me. He looked so smart in his police tunic. He carried his police helmet under one arm and with his free hand he tried to straighten his wayward hair.
He dropped down onto the seat next to me. “I’m not late, am I?” Tom sounded out of breath.
“No, but you’ve cut it pretty fine. Where have you been?” I asked.
“Killing zombies,” he smiled at me.
Although he smiled, I could see that he was nervous. We both were.
I looked at him and he stared back at me.
“Kiera, I just wanted to say whatever happens today I want you to know…” Before Tom had a chance to finish whatever he wanted to say to me, Sergeant Phillips’ door swung open.
We both shot to our feet. Phillips nearly filled the open doorway. His grey hair was swept neatly back from his brow and his light blue eyes looked sharp. The silver buttons down the front of his uniform gleamed like stars, as did the toecaps of his boots.
“Hudson and Henson, in my office,” he snapped.
We stepped inside and he closed the door behind us. Phillips walked around his desk and sat down. Both Tom and I stayed standing, our backs now as straight as the officers who stood outside. Several beige coloured folders lay open across the desk. Phillips thumbed through them, then looked up at us.
“So whose bright idea was it to disobey the order I gave both of you to stay apart?” Phillips asked, the tone of his voice brusque.
“It was my idea,” I cut in.
“No, it wasn’t, it was my idea,” Tom said. “I texted you first, remember?”
“You two really don’t understand how much trouble you are in, do you?” Phillips said. “Or is it that you both just don’t care? It doesn’t really matter who did what to who or when or where. I know what you’ve both been up to.”
“I’m not sure I understand,” Tom said.
I really hoped he wasn’t going to start getting cocky with Phillips. With the mood Phillips looked to be in, I wouldn’t be surprised if he started bouncing Tom off his office walls.
“Let me refresh both your memories,” Phillips barked, picking up one of the files and tossing it across the desk at us. Sheets of paper flew from the files and fluttered about the room like giant butterflies. “What about the priest – Father Rochford?”
How did Phillips know about that? Who would have told him? Who could have known?
“A dangerous criminal who was already wanted for kidnapping and imprisoning young girls ends up dead himself at the foot of some well.”
“Dead?” I gasped.
“We didn’t kill him,” Tom cut in.
“I didn’t say you killed him,” Phillips snapped back at Tom. “But you let him get away and he must have slipped and fallen down that well and broke his neck.”
“He didn’t get very far then,” Tom said.
Phillips shot to his feet and pointed one long finger at Tom. “Don’t push your luck with me, Henson. Thanks to you two I’ve had the Superintendent all over me like a rash all last week. Instead of having a break over Halloween, I’ve spent my time combing the countryside looking for you two and trying to limit the damage you’ve caused.”
“Damage?” I frowned. “All we wanted to do was help.”
“Help!” Phillips scoffed. “What planet are you from, Hudson? You walked away from the scene of a murder. You left an innkeeper to explain to the police how that woman Melinda Took was murdered. You had a duty to stay and explain how that woman had been killed. But instead you went running for the hills with your boyfriend.”
“Tom isn’t my boyfriend,” I reminded Phillips. “We’re just friends.”
“I couldn’t give a toss if you’re a pair of identical twins!” Phillips roared. “You’re both finished!”
My heart began to beat faster. I glanced sideways at Tom and the colour had left his face.
“What does finished mean?” I asked Phillips although I suspected I already knew the answer.
“It means you two are being separated permanently,” Phillips said. “After this meeting, Henson, the two officers outside will escort you back to your room here at training school. You will gather your belongings together and then report to Superintendent Cooper at Force Headquarters first thing tomorrow morning. You will finish the rest of training there. Should you be able to keep your nose out of trouble, and when you have completed your training, you will be posted to the town of Marsh Bay.”
“But headquarters is miles a
way…” Tom said, glancing first at me then back at Phillips.
“That’s the whole point,” Phillips cut in.
“What about Kiera?” Tom asked.
My stomach was somersaulting with anxiety.
“Hudson will stay and finish her training here,” Phillips said.
“But…” I started. I was grateful that neither Tom nor I was being kicked out of the job, but I didn’t want Tom to be posted miles and miles away. We would never see each other again.
“No buts, Hudson,” Phillips scowled. “This is the last chance saloon for you two. You’re nothing but trouble when together so you’re being split up. I don’t think you realise how lucky you two are.”
“How’s that?” Tom asked. “I’m losing my best friend, aren’t I?”
“Well, start making some new ones, Henson, because from this moment on, if you two so much as share the same breath of air, you’re both off the force. No more chances. There were some who didn’t want to give you this chance. This was my idea to save both your arses. I only did it because I happen to think you are both good officers. Probably the best recruits I’ve ever had. But you’re both trouble when together. Not only are you going to fuck things up for yourselves, but for me and the rest of the force, too. Henson, go away to headquarters, keep your head down and become the great cop you’re meant to be.”
“But…” Tom started, glancing sideways at me again.
“Take it or leave it, Henson, your choice,” Phillips said. “But what will your folks say when you arrive back home? Isn’t your dad some hotshot lawyer? He’s not going to be very proud, is he?”
Tom dropped his head. He looked crushed.
I wanted to reach out and take his hand in mine. I wanted to tell him everything was going to be all right.
“And what about you, Hudson?” Phillips asked, dragging me from my heartbroken thoughts.
“What about me?”
“Didn’t you say at your interview that the reason you wanted to join the police was so you could investigate your mother’s disappearance?” he said.
I lowered my gaze and nodded.
“You’re not going to investigate anything claiming unemployment benefit,” Phillips warned.
I didn’t want Tom to be sent away. I didn’t want us to be split up. But I didn’t want to be kicked off the force either. I had a promise to keep to my father.
“So do we have an understanding?” Phillips asked, his voice calmer now, some of the anger gone.
Both Tom and I glanced at each other in the same moment.
“Stay and find your mum, Kiera,” Tom smiled at me. “You’ll never find true happiness unless you do.”
“And what about you?” I whispered, fighting the urge to reach out and touch him one last time.
“I’m going to go and make my mum and dad proud of me,” he smiled, but I could see no happiness in it.
Slowly he turned and left the room. He closed the door without looking back. I could feel those tears building in my eyes again. I didn’t want Sergeant Phillips to see them. So I lowered my head.
“I know it seems hard,” Phillips said, taking his seat again. “But it’s for the best, trust me.”
Could I really ever trust the man who had just sent my friend away?
As if being able to read my mind, Phillips said, “You’ll make new friends. In fact, there is an officer who would benefit from working alongside you. He’s made a slow start but I know you’ll be able to help him catch up.”
“Who’s that?” I asked, still looking down at my shoes.
“Constable John Miles,” Sergeant Phillips said.
“Sparky?” I said, glancing up at him.
“I know he can be a bit of a slow learner,” Phillips smiled, “but with your help, Kiera, he could become a great cop, just like you.”
There was a long silence. I didn’t know for how much longer I could hold back the tears which threatened. “What now?” I whispered.
“Take the rest of the day off,” Phillips said. “Come back tomorrow. Things will seem a little better then. It will be a whole new day. A whole new start for you. Forget about Henson.”
I turned and opened the door. Before leaving Phillips’ office, I looked back at him and said, “You told Tom that when he completes his training he is going to be posted to a town called Marsh Bay.”
“That’s right,” Phillips said.
“So where am I going to be posted?” I asked him.
Phillips looked down at the notes spread across his desk. With a broad smile on his face, he looked back at me and said, “You’re being sent to The Ragged Cove.”
I left his office.
Tom
The two uniformed officers escorted me to my room just like Sergeant Phillips said they would. Both stood in silence and watched me pack my belongings together. What choice did I have but to leave? I could have refused to go, but then I would’ve been sacked. What then would I have done? Hung around Havensfield in the hope that one day Kiera might change her feelings for me? What was the point? Phillips was right, I should go to headquarters, keep my nose out of trouble, pass my police exams, and become the bloody good copper I knew I could be. With my kit bag thrown over my shoulder I let the two officers, who flanked me on each side, lead me silently to my car.
I threw my kit bag onto the backseat, climbed in, and drove away from the training school for the last time. I looked back in my rear-view mirror? Why? Because perhaps I hoped I would see Kiera Hudson one last time. I looked front again and headed for my rented rooms in Havensfield.
It was still raining when I pulled up outside. I went in and started to pack my PS3 and games away. I rented the flat furnished so there was very little of my own stuff to box up. I spent the rest of the morning cleaning out the old cheeseburger wrappers, pizza boxes and Coke cans. When I had the flat looking like it had the day I first moved in, I called the letting agent and said that I was leaving and would post the key back through the letterbox. I ended the call and looked down at my contact list. Kiera’s number sat staring back at me.
Should I text her one last time to say goodbye? My thumb hovered over her number. Instead of texting, I deleted her number from my phone and left my flat. With my belongings jostling about on the backseat, I drove away from the kerb at speed, my vision blurred where tears had suddenly gathered.
And as I drove away, I couldn’t help but think that perhaps I should have found the courage to tell Kiera how I felt about her, even if she didn’t feel the same. But that moment in time had been lost forever and there was no point in ever going back.
Kiera
With my arms wrapped about me, I made my way through the wind and the rain to my car. I had made a detour to my room in the training block, hoping that I might see Tom one last time. But the door to his room was open and his stuff was gone.
Climbing into my car, I started the engine. With it ticking over, I pressed down hard on the accelerator to drown out the sound of my sobs. At that moment I hated Sergeant Phillips. He had torn me and Tom apart – he had ripped my heart out. I didn’t want to stay without Tom. Training school wouldn’t be the same and I didn’t want to mentor Sparky. I wanted to be able to go on solving mysteries with Tom. But there was one mystery I would never solve if I walked away from training school and the police now. And Phillips knew that. Phillips knew that I had to stay if I wanted to find my mum. But what about Tom? He had left not knowing how I truly felt about him. How had I let him leave without me telling him how I felt? Did it really matter that he didn’t feel the same? Why hadn’t I found the courage to do so? Would it be something I would regret for the rest of my life, just like I would regret walking away and throwing away the chance of finding my mum?
With my head thumping and heart aching, I drove out of the car park and headed to my flat. Rain lashed against the windscreen, making visibility almost impossible. The windscreen wipers worked overtime to drive the rain away. I turned slowly into my street, drawing to a sto
p at the pavement outside my rented rooms. I killed the engine. As I pushed open the door to climb out, I saw a huddled figure sheltering from the rain outside my front door. My heart began to race.
“Tom!” I yelled, racing through the rain toward him.
At the sound of his name, Tom looked up. He ran toward me. We threw our arms tight about each other, our faces cheek to cheek.
“Why did you come back?” I whispered in his ear, tears and raindrops running down my face.
“There is something I need to tell you before I go,” Tom whispered back.
“There is something I need to tell you, too,” I said, looking into his eyes.
“Is it about some kind of mystery?” Tom smiled through the rain at me.
“The greatest mystery of all,” I said, taking his hand in mine. I led him to my front door. Smiling, we stepped inside.