The Big Limousine Disappeared!

"What the hell are you doing here Turner, this is a family occasion?" he demanded.

"This is a public place Reggie." I replied, trying my best to keep an eye on Reg's body language, and the positioning of all his oppos at the same time.

"Besides, we were invited, you want to see our invitation?" Sally added from beside me.

"You might have been invited Sal, but I know for sure that Turner here, wasn't!" Reggie fired back at her.

"Mrs. Parson and companion it says here, Reggie." Sally instantly retorted. "And Jeffrey is my escort and companion for the day; so you can stick that in your pipe and bloody-well smoke it!" Sally continued quite literally throwing her invitation into Reggie's face as she spoke.

It caught him right in the eye and his reaction; kind-of of spoilt his hard man act for a few seconds!

"It was damned inconsiderate of you to come here today Turner. You know full well that Alice's mother and I never did think that you were suitable company for Alice."

It appeared that George Arnold had decided to join in the verbal attack. I'm not sure if to avert my attention while Reggie regained his poise, or in an attempt to... well I'm not sure really, maybe to make sure that things did not degenerate into a physical free for all.

"But Frank Porter, Alice's real father, never shared your opinion of me, did he, George?" Was the best comeback I could think of, for that one.

Apparently it had the desired effect on George Arnold; because he then stood there with his mouth opening and closing as if he was trying to say something, but no actual words emanated from him.

But then Reggie said, "Someone should punch you on the nose, Turner!"

Rather an apt statement I thought, all things considered; but I somehow doubted that Reg's memory was as good as mine. Whatever, Reggie's body language was indicating to me that he was just about to attempt to become that someone.

My own body language must have told yet someone else, that I was well prepared for such an attack and I am sure that my first blow would have been the successful one. Although I'm not exactly sure what would have happened subsequently, because some of Reggie's entourage looked like they new how to handle themselves.

However it didn't happen; my left arm was stilled when someone took a firm grasp of it. And Reggie was stopped in his tracks when a voice said.

"Well hello there Jeffrey, long time no see! Where have you been hiding yourself away lately?"

There was a slight pause while Reggie, George Arnold and the rest of them, looked at the new arrival. Who had not actually given me the opportunity to reply, before he was addressing the Arnolds.

"DS Carter! You sir must be Mr George Arnold, and you the infamous Reggie. I've heard some of my colleagues talking about you in the past young man!

"George, you really do need to have a long talk with this son of yours... Confronting someone in the street like he just did... well to a bored police officer like me, and considering the number of brainless cohorts Reggie has with him today... Well, that could be classed as affray!"

George Arnold looked surprised, "But Reginald hasn't..." He blustered.

"Behaving in a manner likely to cause fear or apprehension in members of the general public, Mr Arnold. That is included in Affray, I can assure you!

"Now sir... I would suggest that you take that miscreant son of yours, and run along to the reception. Before we all have take a ride down to the police station and waste the rest of a very pleasant sunny afternoon."

George Arnold didn't reply, he took hold of Reg's arm and led him back over to where the Second Mrs. Arnold had been watching the proceedings. Reggie's little band of ne'er-do-wells followed in their wake.

"Now that was ruddy stupid thing to do, Jeffrey!" Sergeant Carter said to me once they were out of immediate earshot.

"Reg Arnold don't scare me officer!" I replied.

"So I could see, Jeffrey; but it ain't Reg you have to worry about. It's some of those Neanderthals that trail around behind him. From what I hear, someone taught Reggie Arnold that it's much healthier to let someone else do his fighting for him, when he was he was a very young man. Besides, like his old man, Reg likes to keep his hands clean. Reg might have looked like he was gong to rise to your bait himself; but I'm pretty sure that you'd have been blindsided by one those other idiots if I hadn't stepped in. Reggie's a dangerous boy nowadays Jeffrey, you steer well clear of the bugger."

"How come you're here anyway Sergeant? You surely didn't know that Reggie might get all out of shape over my presence. I doubt you knew I would be here anyway.

"No we didn't Jeffrey. Of course I knew that the bride today was the young woman that you got your knickers in a twist over all those years ago. But if you recall why I was interested back then, then you might understand what my colleagues and I are dong here today."

"Oh, Alice's father!"

"See, didn't take much working out, did it? There was the chance he might have tried to sneak into the church today, to see his daughter get married."

"And he didn't, I don't suppose?"

"Well, if he did, we didn't spot him! Not surprising really, none of us have ever laid eyes on the man; we've got a description and a few old photographs of him. You didn't happen to see anyone who might have been Frank Porter, did you?"

"Sorry officer, I wasn't even looking for him; I only had eyes for..."

"More fool you Jeffrey I'd have had my eyes a little closer to home if I were you. Sorry, but you are, young lady? Jeffrey hasn't introduced us, you'll have to pull him up about his bad manners."

"Sally Parsons, Mrs... widowed... Good afternoon Sergeant!" Sally said, for some reason taking hold of my right arm with both hands as she spoke.

"Good afternoon Mrs Sally Parsons; I'm sorry to learn of your loss. You live opposite the Arnolds, don't you?"

Sally confirmed that she did.

"Is Jeffrey staying with you? Because if he is, I think we'd better have the local car hang around later just in case. I'm sure Reggie Arnold won't have the nerve, but some of his cronies might well try to get clever to curry favour."

"No, Jeffrey insists on staying at a hotel."

"Silly boy! Okay Jeffrey the coast is clear now, I'll let you and... Mrs. Parsons get on and enjoy the rest of your day. Will we see you at young Emma's wedding, by any chance; whenever that happens? If ever it happens! Young Emma must be a right handful, pity the poor man she ever gets a rope on. You know Jeffrey, you might well have had a very lucky escape there my boy."

But the officer didn't give me time to reply to his question, a car had pulled to the curb near where were standing and after adding,

"I suppose we'd better get down to that reception, just on the off chance that Frank Porter shows up there... bye kids, don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

The Sergeant got into the car driven by one of his mates and was gone.

"Well that was exciting and informative, wasn't it?" Sally commented as we watched the vehicle disappear around the corner.

"It was?" I asked a little... surprised I think.

"Sure it was! We now know that George Arnold is possibly as bent as a nine-bob-note and that Reggie thinks his surname should be Kray."

"You reckon?"

"Sergeant Carter is a policeman, Jeffrey. He was trying to tell you that by inference... warn you to watch your back, I suspect. And I'm sure that he thinks that Reggie bears more than a slight grudge against you for chasing him all over town when we were younger."

"I never went after Reggie in my whole life."

"I know you didn't, but everyone else... including the police obviously, still think you did! It was a very strong rumour remember, and we did nothing to squash it."

"Who cares! What now, anyway?"

"A nice quiet drink somewhere and then you can buy me a real extravagant slap-up meal later. Then maybe a little dancing somewhere and only then may you take me home."

"Let's go then." I agreed and we walked off toward where I'd parked my car. Sally still hanging on to my right arm with both of hers.

But then something strange happened as we neared my car; parked as it was in a by then almost empty street. The road had been crowded with all the other wedding guests vehicles when we'd arrived, they'd all long gone heading for the reception, by that time.

Anyway something slightly disconcerting -- considering what the Sergeant had so recently said -- happened as we walked along the empty street towards my car.

A dark blue BMW with strongly tinted side and rear windows glided to a halt beside us. I glanced at it and noted that the two front seat occupants were staring... stiffly ahead, definitely not looking at either Sally or me. The vehicle remained stationary for maybe three or four seconds and then drove on again.

"Jesus who was that, I wonder?" I said to Sally, feeling a little... well concerned, for the first time that day.

"It would appear that your Sergeant friend has missed his quarry, Jeffrey. There was someone in the back of that car, and I'm betting that it was Frank Porter."

"By why would they just do that; stop just there and then drive away?"

"Maybe he was trying to tell you that he also thinks Alice has made the wrong choice today. Who knows?"

==========================-

Sally and I had a surprisingly enjoyable afternoon and evening. She certainly kept my mind off of thoughts of Alice. Actually we spent most of the time talking about ourselves, when just the two of us were together after Alice had been shipped of to that School and while Bill was doing his basic training. Well in actual fact Sally was reminding me of all the fun time we had together. And we laughed when I told her about the expression on Bill's face when I explained female menstruation to him. Boy he had looked even queasier than I had felt while Sally had explained it all to me.

Sally still did not tell me why she'd lumbered me with the job of explaining it all to Bill though.

It was well after midnight when I dropped Sally off back at her parents' house. And yes there was a police patrol car parked along the road. It was still there -- or another one -- when I called in at Sally's place the next morning to say good-bye; I was heading back down to the south coast that day.

However, when I knocked, her mother informed me that Sally was not in. She'd gone out for a walk about half an hour before I'd arrived. That surprised me some because Sally was aware of what time I had planned to leave.

"Where has she gone?" I asked her mother.

"I'm not sure; I didn't actually see her leave, Jeff. She might have gone towards town or she might have headed for the park and Country Club. Sally walks there alone quite a lot nowadays Jeffrey. I think remembering when all you youngsters were together there."

It was worth a try, so I went down to where the police car was parked and asked the officers in it if they'd happened to notice Sally go past.

"Are you Jeffrey Turner? The officer asked.

I confirmed that I was by flashing my driving licence at him.

He smiled and said, "Sure, she went into the park, about half an hour ago. No one followed her, and there's only a couple of little kids around that we've seen."

I thanked the officer and then went into the park myself. Not seeing sign of Sally anywhere, I headed for the highest piece of ground in the park, hoping that I'd be able to spot her from there. But still I couldn't see her.

"Damn if she's out on the Clubs Golf course I could easily miss her if I go searching." I thought to myself. But then I had a brainwave... a stroke of genius I thought at the time.

I strode off towards the copse that contained our old climbing tree. From the top of there I'd be able to see almost the whole of the Country Clubs golf course and the entire park.

Ignoring the new sign that said "Climbing trees is forbidden!" -- put there under the auspices of the local Council's "Health and Safety" department I should imagine -- I began to climb.

It soon became evident that very few had climbed the tree in a very long time. But there was evidence that at least one person, had been up there in the recent past. The odd broken young branch shoot here and there.

As I neared the top, a pair of jeans came into sight.

"That you, Sally?" I called out.

"Yes, you took your time didn't you? Getting slow at climbing trees in our old age, are we?"

"No girl, just a little more cautious. What the hell are you doing up here?"

"Thinking!" she replied, as I slid onto the top most sitting branch beside her.

"About what?"

You, me... Bill and Alice."

"Oh!"

"Yes... and assumptions, Jeffrey."

"Assumptions?" I echoed

"Yes, the assumptions people make about other people."

"You've lost me, Sally."

"Yeah, I know I did, and it was all because of assumptions."

"Jesus, what did they teach you at that ruddy training college. I have no idea what you are talking about."

"No, you wouldn't have, because you assumed like everyone else did!"

"Sally, I need some help with the translation here?"

"Okay, that Sergeant Carter, yesterday... he assumed, but he was wrong."

"He assumed, what?"

"That you and I were an item!"

"Yeah... possibly, but what difference does it make?"

"Oh, a lot Jeffrey, I can assure you of that. The difference between being happy and sad! The difference between getting what you want and... well, not getting it!"

"I'm still having difficulty with the translation here Sal; take pity on a mere male will you, please?"

"Jeffrey when we were young.... I don't know why, but even when we were so small... well, everyone assumed that Bill and I... well, that eventually we'd get married."

"Yeah. Well you did, didn't you?"

Yes but... I know that you might not believe this. But it was a case of second choice."

"I'm sorry Sally I'm..."

"Jesus bloody Christ Jeffrey, I panicked. You were so hooked on Alice and she was so much in love with you, that I sort of settled for Bill. You were both like brothers to me and I was so absolutely sure that one day you'd find each other; no matter what obstacles her mother and George Arnold put in your way."

Sally sat there staring at me, I think waiting for me to say something, but I still didn't have a clue as to what she was talking about. The only point she'd made that I could make any sense of was that she'd said that she'd settled for Bill and that didn't make any sense in itself, to me.

"You settled for Bill, what's that supposed to mean, Sally?"

"I thought I'd lost you to Alice, Jeffrey."

We sat in silence for a while again while I tried to understand the implications of her statement.

Then I ventured, "But you were always Bill's girl Sally, right from when we were little."

"That's what I've been trying to say Jeffrey. For some reason everyone always assumed that I was Bill's girl. I wasn't! You two were my bestest friends in the whole world; like two big brothers to me. But somewhere along the line everyone started saying that I was Bill's girl right from before I can even remember. Then Alice moved in next door to you and she very soon became my best girlfriend. Then all of a sudden she was telling everyone that she was in love with you and you were certainly taken with her almost from the instant you met her."

"Jesus Sal I was... what ten... eleven when Alice moved into the Vicarage. I didn't even know what girls were really. Well I'd never thought about... Bugger you know what I mean!"

"Yeah I know, and I'd been so young that I'd had never understood the implications of everyone saying that Bill and I were made for each other, when everyone started saying it. It was like a joke that got out of control. Then I suddenly came to my senses and found that Alice had stolen your heart while I wasn't looking. Well I was but... Oh Christ Bill, if I'd made it any clearer to you, I'd have broken up our happy little circle. Who was it that I always went to with my private personal problems? And who was it that I first told I'd become a woman? You have to admit that it wasn't Bill.

"Bill was great a big protective brother. I think that was the military in his genes showing through. But when I needed comfort and understanding it was you I turned to."

"So. What you are saying..."

"Not yet, Jeff. Please let me finish. Then one day Bill was asking me to marry him. Alice was gone but you had eyes and thought for no one else. I know, I was with you almost everyday. Did you ever make a move on me, no you bloody didn't. Why? Because you were hooked on Alice! So well, Bill asked me to marry him, I said yes. If I'd have said no, I'd have lost both of you."

"Second choice..." I ventured.

"That's right Jeffrey, Bill was honestly my second choice."

"Truly honestly?"

"Yes and I'd be very happy to be your second choice, if you'll have me. Alice is gone, Bill, but I'm still here, and I've been waiting for twenty-four years!"

"Damn girl, are you sure you like the idea of living on the south coast." I asked.

Sally threw her arms around my neck and kissed me.

"I'd go to the south pole for you, Jeffrey!"

"Well let's get out of this ruddy tree then and go tell your parents.

==========================

There is no more a Mrs Sally Parsons. But there is a Mrs Sally Turner and we have a couple of little Turners' to prove it. Sal has even suggested that a couple more might be a good idea, now that her parents have moved down to the south coast as well and can help with baby-sitting duties.

Alice and Emma?

Well Emma's an actress now and doing pretty well at it, or so I'm told.

Alice, well she is no longer of this earth, I'm afraid to say. I have no idea what happened really. Except that the newspapers said that a Brendon Vine had killed his wife Alice Vine in a furious rage. Stabbed her a couple of dozen times by all accounts, when she'd informed him that she wanted a divorce. I don't know why, but I knew the instant I saw the headline that it was Roger Vine, who for some reason had changed to using his middle name. They were living in Spain somewhere at the time. Actually the newspaper story mentioned the Costa-del-Crime; so one wonders exactly what Brendan/Roger was doing for a living down there, if you get my drift. He's in a Spanish prison now, anyway.

The rest of the Arnolds...? Nope, I've no idea about them. Although I do know that they cannot be living in the Vicarage anymore. Well, that place mysteriously burnt-down shortly after Alice was murdered. One of their old friends called to tell Sally's parents about it. Apparently there was a big fuss about what had caused the fire and it's rumoured that the insurance company refused to pay out. Seems that half a dozen or so modern matchboxes are going to be squeezed onto the plot now though.

Frank Porter? You know I sometimes wonder if the police ever did catch up with him. I've never seen mention of him in the newspapers anyway.

Life goes on

Authors Note: - If you spotted something familiar here, (and I'm not speaking of about the partner story) please drop DF a line and let know? If you did not and therefore don't understand this note, please don't let it worry you!