ℂ𝕃𝕆𝕊𝔼ℝ 𝕋ℍ𝔸ℕ 𝕐𝕆𝕌 𝕋ℍ𝕀ℕ𝕂

║SEVENTEEN║

      PACING UP AND DOWN IN THE OFFICE, Nicole placed her hands akimbo on her hips. Neil  cleared his throat noisily when he noticed she was not paying attention to what he was saying.
“Miss Harper are you alright?” he asked concerned.
Nicole smiled faintly nodding her head.
“I am here if you want to talk.”
“I am okay” she said with a faux smile. The truth is she wasn't okay. How will she focus when the event of what happened the last time she visited Alfred was still fresh in her memory?
“Alright then. Please pay attention.”
“Hmm,” she sighed silently, walking back to her seat and sat. “where were we?” she leaned forward, resting her elbows erect on the table and placing her chin on her palm.
“I said I overheard two men talking about Gary Baxter. They know him very well. They said so many awful things about him, he is a traitor, he is a liar, he doesn't keep to his promises… and so many more. I collected their numbers to contact them for more information. Their names are William and Kyle .”
“That's good. Do they know where he is presently?”
“No. They are looking for him, Kyle said if he ever set his eyes on him, he will kill him for being a traitor.” Neil chuckled and Nicole smiled.
“Oh really? So what do you intend to do now?” Nicole asked.
“Well, I think we should bring Kyle in for questioning because he said he had a dirty deal with him. He traded his gun for his motorcycle. We could ask him some questions on how the gun looks like.”
“That makes sense.”
“The questioning won't be done here. I don't want Kyle to know I am a detective. I would ask him where we could meet. What do you think?”
“I am okay with that.” After a brief silence Neil said,
“Deila and Freya came yesterday to the station to visit Roy in prison.”
“Why did they come?”
“Well, to inform Roy that his girlfriend is pregnant.”
“Holy moly! What are they going to do about the pregnancy, Freya is still in school?” Nicole gaped.
“Delia told me she has talked Freya into aborting it but Freya is scared to do it.”
“So what is she going to do then?”
“Keep the baby and give it up for adoption when she gives birth.”
“That sounds like a great idea but I would have preferred her to wash it away.” Neil squared her shoulder.
“Miss Harper! Do you realise what you're saying?! We are talking about life here not a thing.” Neil said astounded.
“I know. What's wrong with abortion?”
“It is totally wrong because it's a life we are dealing with. You are indirectly murdering a soul and it's a sin before God.”
Nicole laughed. “Pfft, you can't be serious Mr Darwin, the baby wouldn't have developed, they don't abort fully formed babies.”
“Fully formed or not, it is totally wrong okay? Just imagine everyday we arrest murderers  not knowing killing a baby is also an act of killing, whoever does that is a murderer and deserves to go to jail.”
“What about rape victims?” Nicole tilted her head, arching her eyebrows at him.
“That is a different scenario entirely. In that case immediately the incident happens the victim is expected to go to the hospital for clean up. Once it's past a month it's too late for the victim to wash it because it's now considered as an abortion.”
“Okay,  I have heard you Professor Detective Neil Darwin.” Nicole sighed.
Neil laughed.

     ☬                 ☬                ☬

      Alfred's mechanical workshop was where Nicole was driving to after she closed from work late in the evening around six o'clock. Her schedule was tight but she had to squeeze out time to visit him again because her mind has not been at rest since her last visit to his house. When she arrived at his workshop, she saw him talking to one of his workers. He saw her and decided to excuse himself to see her. He was looking better than the last time she saw him.
“My sunflower!” he grinned as he approached her. She frowned, a deep frown which made her forehead crinkle.
“I thought I had lost you forever.” Alfred said hugging her tight but she didn't return his hug, she was angry with him and she was almost on the verge of crying.
“Alfred we need to talk.” her voice was shaky.
“We really need to. First of all I need to apo…”
“There is no need for apology. I just want us to talk somewhere private.”
“My car then, it is parked at the back of the workshop.” he said walking to where his car was parked and she tagged along.  There was a long silence as they were waiting for who will start a conversation when they were already seated in the car.
“Alfred, I am sorry for how I reacted the other day. I was… I felt weird being that it's my first time.” Nicole said, starting the conversation.
“First time?” he asked rather shocked and Nicole blushed. “It's okay, I am sorry too that I couldn't control how I felt.”
“I actually talked to my mum about what happened…” she paused, waiting for him to say something but he kept silent starring at  his fingernails, removing dirt from it. “She gave me a piece of advice that will help our relationship. She said we should create rules and agree on them. Do you like the idea?”
“Yes, what rules do we create? No kissing?” he glanced at her before he continued what he was doing with his fingernails. Nicole felt heat rise in her cheeks.
“No kissing and cuddling before marriage.” she said.
“And?” he asked, he raised his eyebrow.
“No staying in secluded places alone because it can lead to temptation.”
“Then why are we here?”
“Why are we here? I don't understand.”
“You said we shouldn't stay in secluded places alone so why are we here?” he raised the corner of his lips with a faint smile on it.
“This place is not secluded, it's an open place. People can come here.”
“Okay. Any other rules?”
“I have been the one stating rules, why don't you say something?”
“Okay.…um, no hugging for more than ten minutes.”
“You can't be serious?” she scowled.
“I am serious.”
“Look Alfred, this is not a joking matter, you have to be serious.”
“I am. Hugging you for a long time has an  electrifying impact on me.  So to avoid what happened last time we should limit the amount of times we hug.” he stated factually.
“Alright.” Alfred leaned forward, opening the glovebox where Nicole sat on the passengers seat in his car and took out a nail cutter.
“You have a gun?” Nicole asked surprised, as she spotted a black hand gun in his glovebox when he opened it.
“Yes, why do you sound surprise. People use it for self defense.” Alfred said closing the glovebox back.
“Yeah I know.” Nicole said nodding her head slowly.
“How is work?” he said.
“Fine thanks. Uh, I came to your house last weekend.”
“You? When? I don't remember seeing you or even having a visitor.”
“That's because you were high. You were quite an eyesore.”
“I am sorry you saw me that way.” his  fair face flushed red in embarassment. “The truth is I don't drink all the time, I don't know what came over me that day. I was so depressed because I thought you were never coming back and depressed about other things too.” he said his eyes moist with tears.
“I am sorry.” Nicole muttered taking hold of his hand.
“I am happy you came searching for me.” he smiled bleakly and Nicole smiled back.
“Alfred?”
“Yes?”
“When I entered your room that day, there was something you said that made me confused, you called me Sally. You said ‘Go away Sally, I know you have come back to haunt me.’”
   “Oh!” Alfred laughed it off.
“Sally is the name of my sister.” he said.
“Sally, is it the one in Rome?”
“No. My older sister.”
“Why would she come to haunt you?”
“She is dead. She drowned.…”
“Oh no! Why?” Nicole gasped.
“My family and I went to the swimming pool for recreation. I wanted to swim badly because the weather was hot though I couldn't swim. I dived into the pool not knowing it was deep. My sister, Sally saw me struggling in the pool, she dived into the pool to rescue me. She couldn't swim too but she did it because she was afraid. An expert diver came to our rescue but he could only save me, before he could save Sally, she had drowned, she drowned all because of me…” tears trickled down his cheeks. Nicole rubbed his shoulder consoling him “When the diver brought her out, her body was already bloated with water, she was dead. My parents blamed me for her death. How can I forgive myself Nicole, how? Everytime I see Sally's image come to haunt me. I don't know, it's like am going crazy.” he cried uncontrollably in front of her.”
Nicole didn't know what to say to console him, she could only say, “You'll be fine.” she leaned in to hug him. She has to be here for him because he has gone through a lot, this young man needs her companion. How could an innocent, handsome gentle soul suffer this way? Life was indeed not fair at all. The hug lingered. Both of them crying, exultant to be back together.