AFTERMATH
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Seven in the morning, the doorbell rang and Celia Standford answered the door in her dressing gown and slippers, cameras flashed and microphones were shoved into her face. Stunned into silence and lost for words the door slammed as she rushed back inside leaning against it with all her might. The children as usual were not immune to all the commotion and rushed down the stairs to investigate.
“Mummy, mummy,” called Ellen to her mother who was by now looking very distraught.
“I don’t know darlings, there are so many people out there, perhaps they’ve found out your daddy is missing or something else has happened.” They peered through the as yet unopened curtains in the lounge and the crowd was still there growing larger. Celia was even more worried now than she was when Lewis went missing and the strain was showing in the lines forming under her eyes and on her cheeks.
“I’ll go and see what they want mummy.” Ellen said closing the curtain as another camera flashed into her sleepy eyes.
“No we’ll stay here and wait until the General gets out of bed, he must have heard the noise by now.” Jonathon was already on his way to the Generals bedroom.
The telephone rang with Celia not in the frame of mind to answer it, afraid of who it might be. Ellen picked it up to the flustered voice of Major Wilton-Braid.
“Mummy, it’s the C.O. and I think he wants to speak to you or the General.” She took the phone from her daughter.” Major would you begin again, I never heard a word you said.” “Mr’s Standford, have you read the papers yet this morning? It’s all about your husband.”
“Oh dear, what has he done now? I wondered why there were so many people outside the house.”
“They must all be reporters,” he said, “Apparently your husband stopped a burglar and then saved a child’s life on the same day almost getting drowned in the process. All the papers have got wind of it and there’s even a photo in one of the tabloids.”
“My god! my poor Lewis the brave man. Where is he now Major, is he at the camp?”
“We understand he will shortly be returned here though we still don’t know exactly where and why he went. We’ve had contact with the Colonel at Fulford near Salisbury, he went there on some sort of investigation that only he and colonel Williams knew about. The Colonel must have forgotten about it his last days. Anyway he went there and got whatever investigation he was on sorted and cleared up doing a good job of it, whatever it was. By the way I’d better warn you he had a woman with him there in what capacity I don’t know but the papers think she was his wife. Don’t get alarmed until we’ve interviewed him and don’t put too much into what the papers say.
The phone was replaced though not for long.
“This is the sun newspaper could we talk to you about your husband? We wish to buy his story and pay quite a tidy sum for it.”
“He’s not here!” she slammed the receiver down again.
Another ring, “The mirror here!”
“No!” she again screamed down the phone.
RING! RING! RING! It just would not go away and in frustration she took it off the hook and sat down for a good cry. Brigadier General Wayland-Down was fast descending the stairs to investigate what all the commotion was about. She began to tell him what she knew and it was he who decided to open the door to the reporters who crowded onto the front lawn ruining the immaculately laid and tendered grass.
“Ladies and gentlemen we shall be pleased to furnish you with an interview this afternoon after the Lieutenant has given his report to the military.” The General had taken command as he always did whether he was needed or not. The door was slowly closed to more flashing cameras and his next move was to the drinks cabinet to pour himself a large brandy and a gin and tonic for her.
Ellen and Jonathon left the noise of downstairs to listen on their talking computer, receiving and answering calls, in their element talking about their parents, some good, some bad. They’d answered the sun and agreed a price for the interviews and stories they were to tell about their father but not until the money was transferred to the account they’d set up through the Internet some time ago.
“Fifty thousand smackers,” they cried together, “we really are going to be rich now.” Whether r not the paper would pay out was a different kettle of fish but they made it certain there would be nothing until it was all in their account. Whatever was to happen now they at least were sure to have had a good laugh.
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The camp at Fulford was buzzing with rumours as the realization of recent happenings were coming to light and a conference of all senior officers was urgently set up.
“Captain Webster is of now relieved of all duties and responsibilities as he is retiring from the regiment.” The colonel told his assembled men. “he has been shipped to the military hospital in Aldershot for observation due to his ill health.” All the camp knew he’d been carted away, suffering a breakdown they were told but they knew it was for other reasons. This though was not the main reasons for their concerns. The colonel carried on, “Lieutenant Standford, whilst here carried out two investigations with my consent, the first as you know concerns our unfortunate Captain and the second more serious one was concerning drugs. Sergeant Boggs and private Raine are in custody concerning this and are at the moment on their way to Whitenead police station to face questioning and several different charges. They will most certainly under no circumstances be returning to this Regiment. Captain Sword will be our new Adjutant until another permanent officer is assigned to us.
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The police station had at last quietened down after the last evenings escapades and the two soldiers were tucked up into their separate cells as was the businessman and Eric Waite. Debriefing was about to take place in the same room where it all began with the first one not so long ago. The debriefing should have been down to Inspector Last but due to his demise in the brambles he was still under sedation as he will be for several days to come.
The two M.Ps. Lieutenant Standford and corporal Johns entered the room to a tumultuous roar of applause and cheers, almost enough to turn Lewis to tears. The chief inspector was the leader and the loudest of all present. Lieutenant Inches and the men he bought here with him were amongst the crowd though he and one of his men were looking badly bruised and tattered in borrowed clothes. Lewis stared at them as yet not knowing how they got into this mess. One of the policemen was out of his mind seeing Goblins and dragons flying the thermals after having a lick of several cocaine coated stamps. His trip began several hours ago and was expected to last a lot longer than it already had done so. The chief inspector took charge again.
“Ladies and gentlemen, in all we have so far collected eleven pounds of Moroccan black cannabis and several ounces of cocaine as well as a few thousand coated stamps, these are being counted at the moment, from one property belonging to Mr. Waite. The full amounts of everything are still being counted but we’ve got enough to put them away for a long time. There was also a small amount found in the barracks but that will be taken care of by the military.
The best haul was found in Wales where a detective sergeant headed the raids on several properties and so far we understand that about three hundred pounds of cannabis and over ten thousand tablets believed to be speed have been uncovered. Five men and two women over there have been arrested and are in custody. Sometime today they will be transferred here under our control, the centre of the investigation. So far the total haul is three hundred and ten pounds of cannabis, thirty-five cocaine and a lot of speed. A rough estimate of a million and a half quid’s worth, possibly quite a lot more after the final count. We’ve also acquired half a million in cash.” A loud gasp followed a long silence as astounded police and M.Ps. alike carried on listening in deathly quiet. “All this is as you know is due to the hard work of Lieutenant Standford and Corporal Johns, both of whom we are indebted and extremely grateful.” Again there was a roar of applause accompanied with shouts for Lewis who was at this moment lapping in the glory of it all and for what he knew was to come.
“A press conference is also organised for two this afternoon when I hope the Lieutenant will be there with me to answer questions to the press.”
The meeting was brought to an abrupt end after the Chief Inspector asked Lewis and Johns to join him in a drink, leaving out the intrepid Lieutenant Inches and his men who had to sit and wait in a small anti room much to his detriment and disgust.
In the office Lewis was handed an envelope with, after checking it’s contents found it to contain fifty thousand cash in readies, as well as an assurance that all charges against him were dropped and no longer standing. This delighted Lewis as for one thing Elenora would have her reward and his record would not be criminally tainted. After arranging to meet the Chief at one forty five both the Lieutenant and the corporal shook hands with him and left the office glowing with a kind of success.
Lieutenant Inches suggested to Lewis that the return home as soon as possible but after being told of the press conference had to remain as Lewis was for now the hero.
“Don’t forget,” said Lewis, “you can’t return to Cosmorth without me so you’ve got to go along with events as they are happening here. Anyway, What would the Major say if you turned up without me and in that state? Don’t you think you should get properly dressed and cleaned, make yourself up to be the officer you are meant to be.” He knew reluctantly he had to remain but decided to send all the rest of his men back with his version of events, the one that would be as detrimental as possible as he could make it for Lewis unaware of the events already spread over the nationals concerning Lewis.
Johns diverted lieutenant Inches attention giving Lewis respite and time to visit Elenora, giving her half of the money as if she needed it then spending just a short whole reminiscing over the events of the past few days and the adventures they’d had. She was surprised how much she was given, much more than even he had asked for as a reward. He’d enjoyed his time here and hoped Elenora had also, yes! Indeed she had but unknown to him it was for completely different reasons.
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Celia and the General gathered the children together, they’d not been sent to school because of all the publicity and press and Celia was still wondering how the reporters had managed to obtain all the personal knowledge they seemed to know about the family. The information they had collated plus an amount of personal photographs that had just been shown on the mid-day news was beyond her comprehension and belief. Most of the photographs shown were in her private album and the General didn’t know where that was so it couldn’t be him. She would never know and would remain ignorant to the fact that they could have been sent through the computer by her young children and there was no doubt that they would say if she asked them.
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The press conference went ahead, a beaming Lieutenant with his sidekick Johns sat to one side of the Assistant Chief Constable with the chief inspector on the other. Too late for the Military top brass to stop it even if they wanted to.
“We should have at least a Colonel there,” they said, “instead of an idiot Lieutenant who could make us all look fools.”
Lewis hardly spoke; mentioning only that it was mainly due to Colonel Williams that the drugs ring was uncovered and that it was such a success. Lewis was pleased to mention him and was sure that it would do no harm to the Colonels promotion prospects either. All the top brass were watching this live interview and took what Lewis said the wrong way.
“If we don’t promote the colonel now we’ll be a laughing stock, him as well, the whole country will be after our blood if we don’t and I’m damn sure the honourable Gordon Standford his weedy father would have something to say in parliament as well.”
His uncle, Brigadier General Wayland-down was showing great joy.
“At last my boy’s making something of himself, I knew he was doing something for the good of the family.” Hours ago he thought the opposite; sure that Lewis would drag the family name through the mire.
The member of parliament, his father had no desire to watch his son on television; he as well thought Lewis would make a mess of things.
The briefing over the Lieutenant left with Johns in a blaze of glory from the flash cameras and the bright arc lights used for the television interviews. His point had been made, they were on the road to better things and real investigations as well as the road back to Suffolk with a sick looking Lieutenant Inches.
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Major Wilton-braid was waiting the return of his M.Ps, 6pm they finally arrived and it seemed the whole camp were paraded on the square awaiting the return of a hero. Most duties in the camp were normally low key but Lewis had stirred up a hornet’s nest and blown the lid off this one. The Major was none too pleased.
“Why didn’t you say where you went and what you were doing? Then, why did you go in the first place? You could have done extensive damage to the Regiment though in the circumstances you were very lucky indeed.”
All Lewis could reply was “Yes sir.” several times over before telling him that he’d have his twenty-page report ready in the morning. Finally he was excused to cheers of the assembled company as he headed for the comfort of his home.
Finding his way through the ring of reporters who were still encamped outside his house trampling on his prized lawn and flowering plants he ran for the door. Celia almost toppled him jumping into his arms while the General began to hold another short press call as both the children collided with each other rushing to greet him giving him hugs before he passed through into the lounge.
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Lewis was so exhausted he and Celia retired to bed earlier than usual, in the bedroom sleep went out of his head, it was time for them to get to know each other again giving him a chance to experiment with some of the ideas given him by Elenora. Tomorrow he thought he would do some shopping in the new sex shop that recently opened on North street.
The general stayed up watching the news bulletins not missing a single one while the children were in Ellen’s bedroom surfing the net, doing their usual thing reading and checking the adult pages. Suddenly Jonathon recognised a face. “Look it’s daddy,” sure enough there was Lewis going great guns with Elenora in the sumptuous surroundings of her bedroom using all the same kind of artefacts and torture implements as the reverend used with their mother.
“There you are,” said a joyful Jonathon to Ellen. “I knew you were wrong, I told you that daddy was religious. There’s your proof. Right in front of us all the time.
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THE END
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