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Beat my bum with a rhubarb bush

last update Last Updated: 2022-01-27 23:43:18

Mild sexual content

'How long will this take. Sid must realise something awful has gone down. She’ll soon want answers. I’m surprised she had left the café with us without an explanation.'

'I’m doing my best, Millie.' I could hear he was close to tears. No police training can prepare you for the suicide of people you’ve known all your life. He coughed and pulled his voice back into shape. 'By the time you reach your house I’ll have something organised. Promise.'

He hung up and left me feeling I’d never manage the task ahead. In the distance I saw a police car draw up outside our house. I hurried to catch Vera and Sid.

'Something awful has happened hasn’t it?' Sid’s voice was steady and unemotional. 'You can tell me. I’ll cope,' she added.

'I’m not sure we are allowed to.' I took her arm and held it very tightly, but drew it into my body to try to reassure her. 'The

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  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   Grey dawns and bright sunsets.

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  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   End of the road

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  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   Tidying up

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Latest chapter

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  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   Not in the mood

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  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   Turmoil

    Day 64.Friday. I’ve slept on it and decided I’ll have to ask Vera for her version of events, woman to woman, two friends together. It’s the only way to lay the ghost of Sonya’s ramblings. Should I tell her the full Sonya version? We could have a laugh about it. I didn’t. You can’t laugh about the death of two destitute alcoholics, who had once been the kindest, softest villagers - according to village lore that is. I’d never known them and only spoken to them the few times this summer. The walk up to the House after work that day was the loneliest I’d known. I didn’t notice the late summer colours forming, the swifts collecting on the electricity cables, chattering and practising their departure, the squirrels hunting nuts, and the chill in the air as the autumn mists collected over the sea. It must have all been there. It’s there every October. This was the first October that I had carried such a

  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   Tidying up

    Day 64.Friday. Five to seven my phone went. It was Sid. 'Vera is in a state. I’ve tried, but she screamed at me. She is so scared of what may happen. Her husband has refused to go with her, which would have silenced a lot of tongues. Take a hairbrush, make-up and a can of hairspray. Maybe she’ll let you work on her.' Seven on the dot, Vera was outside our house. It felt like the old days. I realised how much I missed her company and doing things with her, although, when I view my diary, we did precious little. The day was blustery and I had run down our long path to the front gate, with my hand on my head, holding my beret down. Once in the car, I could see how dishevelled she was. This woman wasn’t coping at any level. I took a chance with my conversation opener. 'Morning sickness?' 'Not really. I suppose Sid told you.' She pulled away towards the A12. 'It

  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   End of the road

    Her message sounded very matter of fact. She was hard to understand, due to background noise and that confused me. It was five thirty in the morning on a lonely country lane in Suffolk. Where did the noise come from? My finger hovered over the delete button, but providentially Sonya came through the office door.'What’s it like to kiss a boy, Millie?'I was incandescent and finished her off as only siblings can.'Jesus Christ, Sonya. Right now, must it be?'Yes - this lad last term - before the holidays. He wanted to kiss me and now he’s going to ask...'I freaked. I shrieked.'Just go and kiss the stupid prat and find out for yourself, and shut the effing door after you!''Sorry,' she flounced, 'I was only asking.'She spun on her heel and headed back out the door.'Well it’s not exactly rhubarb-patch stuff, is it?' I shouted after her.She shut the door with a very loud and ostentatious bang th

  • Coming of Age the Fast Way   Grey dawns and bright sunsets.

    'Sorry about the state of the transport Vera. Not exactly your BMW, is it?'Who cares? I’m so pleased to see you. I thought I would have to pay for a taxi home. How much do you know?''Almost everything, except why are they doing this to you?''Larissa! She said she saw me. No problem. She may well have done. She described what I was wearing, which was nothing like what I was wearing and when I handed my clothes over for analysis, the police thought I had destroyed what I was wearing and substituted something else - obviously because I’m trying to hide the blood.''What were you doing at the cottage at five thirty?''What do you think?''How would I know? You had a motive for wanting him out the way. He was the one person in the village who knew about your miscarriage and subsequent charade, wasn’t he?''I thought only your father knew. I regretted having told you that, the moment I‘d said it. Now you have a ho

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