Gods and Monsters

IX

Mary Quinn's office - Brentwood, Essex

A few days had passed since the Purple Vice Exchange and there had still been no sign of Eugene. Mr Smith had been informed of the tear in the wall at the pub and was currently close to locating the family. In the meantime, the boy was being looked after in a safe house with some of Mr Smith's top assistants. Peggy hadn't been too sure about the boy being with strangers, but both Charlie and Mr Smith had assured them that her assistants would take good care of him.

With no further progress on either of those fronts, Peggy had decided to return to Mary's offices and continue their sessions. She lay back in the sofa as Mary moved round to the opposite side of her desk like before.

"So, Peggy, how have you been?"

"Well, as good as can be expected considering recent events. I've kept clean if that's what you're asking."

Mary smiled. "That's fantastic news. Have you had any further thoughts about the method of loci which we discussed previously?"

"Actually I did. I looked into it further and decided on a place for my 'mind palace'."

"Brilliant. What did you choose?"

Peggy felt her cheeks burn red as she went to answer. It wasn't particularly embarrassing, but she still felt slightly uncomfortable at the prospect of sharing this information. "I...I choose an aeroplane."

Nodding her head and scrawling something in her notepad, Mary didn't laugh or pull a face as Peggy had expected her to. "If you don't mind," Mary asked, "What made you choose an aeroplane?"

"My mother was in the air force apparently. I never knew her, but my dad told me she had been a pilot when they first met."

Mary seemed to have picked up on Peggy's embarrassment as she noticed the red cheeks and fumbling with her hands. "That's lovely, Peggy. You don't have to be embarrassed; each person will visualise something unique to them. Something that is quite interesting is that a plane has the potential to 'eject' cargo from the rear. I'm not suggesting that you do, but it's something you could learn to do with your memories."

Peggy nodded. Since their last session, the thought of ejecting all memories of Nick had been something she had considered. It was a huge decision as they had shared so much, however she knew it may be for the best in the long run.

"I think it would be wise for you to attend some drug addicts anonymous meetings. I know, I know, the name makes it sound worse than it is, but it will allow you to speak with people in similar situations. With regards to the memory palace, I'll give you these information booklets to study as it could take a few sessions for you to get a good understanding of how to get the most of out of it. But for now - "

Mary was cut off as Peggy's phone rang. She stood up from the sofa and apologised to Mary before stepping out of the room quickly to take the call.

"Parker." She answered.

"Hello Detective Parker. This is Sergeant Miller."

Not someone Peggy was familiar with. "How can I help you, Sergeant?"

"Well Ma'am, Jack Canterbury has handed himself in here at the station," the youthful sounding Sergeant said, "he's requesting to speak with you."

Peggy's heart skipped a bit as the sergeant said this. She didn't completely understand what this meant, but it was too big a break to pass up on. "Let DCI Yates know that I'm on my way. No one is to engage with Mr Canterbury until I arrive."

"That's just it Detective Parker. DCI Yates hasn't been seen all morning. All attempts to get in contact with him have been unsuccessful." Peggy knew that something was definitely going down now. Had Yates been rumbled and made a run for it? She needed to get to the station and find out as soon as possible.

Peggy stuck her head around the door but Mary was the first to speak. "It's alright. You go save the world. You can tell me about it in our next session." She zipped back around the door frame and nearly ran into who she could only presume was the next person to see Mary; a large Carribbean man in an immaculate suit.

Watching Peggy leave, he entered the room and sat down on the sofa that she had been in moments before. Mary glanced down at her notepad before looking up and speaking to the gentleman. "Hello Mr Kingston. It's been a long time since you've been here," she said with a pleasant grin. 

Continued in Part 10...