Jan

Chapter 15

Helen took a deep breath realising she hadn’t thought this through rationally; she had just reacted…over reacted even. First she asked for Rebecca Morgan to be brought to her then changed her mind and wanted the police. Supposing she had got it all wrong? Shit! She thought impatiently. Her secretary was going to think she had lost it completely. “Sorry, Molly. On second thoughts scrub that. Just forget I bothered you,” she apologised then replaced the receiver with a clatter. How could she go to the police when she couldn’t get things clear in her own mind? She picked her bag up from beneath her desk and stood up decisively then hurried out of the office.

At the same time, on G-Wing, Reb turned away from the phone, blind fury in her eyes. The interfering bitch Stewart had been to see her mother!

Helen knocked on the door of the Morgan house feeling slightly stupid at her earlier hasty departure. She smiled apologetically when a surprised Mrs Morgan opened the door. “Mrs Morgan,” she began hesitantly. “Would you mind if I came in. This time I really do need to speak to you.”

When they were once more seated, Mrs Morgan looked at her with a smile. “I won’t offer you a drink this time. I’ve been told I don’t make a very good cuppa but no one has dashed off before they’ve even tried it,” she remarked with sarcastic good humour.

Helen smiled sheepishly before replying. “The thing is, there’s been some trouble at the prison and we think Rebecca might be involved in it.”

“She’s not been hurt…”

“No, it’s nothing like that. This might seem strange Mrs Morgan but could you tell me about Rebecca’s father?”

“Her father?”

“I noticed a photograph on the shelf… the one in the small frame…of a man…I thought I recognised him. Is it Rebecca’s father?”

Mrs Morgan went across to the shelf and picked up the frame Helen had indicated and looked down at the picture distastefully. “Yes, it is. His name was Jimmy. I was only seventeen when we started seeing each other. We went out for a few months but when I got pregnant, he dumped me. . This was the only photograph I had of him.” She went and sat back down. “Rebecca pestered me over the years about who her father was then last year she said she was going to look for him but a few weeks after she found him he was killed.” She gave a deep sigh. “Rebecca had always been a good girl but it hit her hard and she seemed to go off the rails after that and get into no end of trouble.” She held out the frame for Helen to take. “Where do you think you know him from?”

Helen took the frame as if it was red-hot. She knew now for sure that Rebecca was Jim Fenner’s illegitimate daughter!

“Miss Stewart?” Mrs Morgan broke into her reverie.

“Jimmy…Jim was a prison officer at Larkhall. The day he died he had been suspended for attempting to rape a prisoner. I think Rebecca is for some misguided reason avenging her father’s death.” She saw a troubled look cross the other woman’s face. “What’s wrong?”

“She didn’t go into any details about how Jimmy had died but she did say that she was going to make whoever was responsible pay for what had happened.” She put her hand to her mouth in horror. “She hasn’t been hurt has she…the prisoner, I mean?”

Thank god Nikki had been out of Larkhall or she could easily have been the one who was hurt, Helen thought then said aloud, “No, the prisoner had already been released before Rebecca came to Larkhall but the Wing Governor who had been involved was stabbed a few days ago.”

“Is she…?”

“No, she’s fine. She’s returning to work next week.” A thought suddenly struck Helen. “You didn’t know about any of this? It was in the papers.”

“I had a breakdown…my husband, Rebecca’s stepfather…left me for a…another woman and I was in hospital for a long while,” Mrs Morgan told her quietly. “Apart from Rebecca’s visits I didn’t have any contact with the outside world. She was hardly going to tell me anything disparaging about her father, was she?”

“Hardly,” Helen agreed as she stood up to leave. “Thank you for your time, Mrs Morgan. Would you do me a favour and don’t say anything to Rebecca about my visit.”

The woman grimaced. “She rang me earlier and I told her you had been to see me.”

Helen sighed. “Oh, well. It can’t be helped.”

“Would you keep me informed about what’s happening?” Mrs Morgan asked anxiously.

“I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about,” Helen tried to sound reassuring even though she knew it was a lie but she didn’t want to add to the woman’s what must already be fragile mental health.

Now what? She mused as she started up her car.

Just after lunch, Tommo was sitting behind the counter at the bookshop waiting for a solitary customer to make his selection when Helen walked in. “Hiya, Helen. Nikki’s not here,” she informed her pleasantly. “She’s gone to a book sale.”

“Again!” Helen muttered tetchily then sighed, impatient with herself. Nikki had a job to do as well as she did. “Sorry, I just wanted someone to talk to.”

Tommo glanced over her left shoulder then her right. “Pity there’s no one else here,” she said with a teasing smile.

Helen’s face too relaxed into a smile. “Sorry.”

“Care to share your problems with me?” she invited. “You know what they say ‘a problem shared…lets someone else do half the worrying’.”

Helen laughed then her face became serious. “I’ve just found out that Rebecca Morgan is Fenner’s daughter.”

“Bloody hell!” Tommo exclaimed. “Do you think she…?”

“Stabbed Karen,” Helen finished for her. “Too right I do.”

“Have you told the police?”

“Told them what? That the daughter of a man I despised is an inmate on G-Wing. Hardly conclusive evidence is it?”

“Suppose you’re right,” Tommo mused. “And being Fenner’s daughter she’s not going to admit to anything is she? Bloody hell!” she said again. “Right old mess, isn’t it?”

They stood in silence, both their brows furrowed in thought. Suddenly Tommo snapped her fingers. “I have a cunning plan,” she announced in a phoney foreign accent.

“Hope it’s better than your accent,” Helen retorted.

“Listen closely,” Tommo continued unabashed. “I vill say zis only vonce.”

Helen walked into Larkhall feeling more confident than she had in days. She went through to her office, telling Molly as she passed her to have Rebecca Morgan brought to see her.

She sat looking at the door, head erect and smiled faintly to herself when she saw two figures appear through the frosted glass.

After a cursory knock the door opened and Sylvia Hollamby ushered Reb in.

“Thank you, Mrs Hollamby. That will be all. I’ll call you when I need you.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Sylvia replied before backing out and closing the door.

As Reb stood looking defiantly at her, Helen was reminded of how Nikki used to be when they had first met but this young woman stirred none of the feelings in her Nikki had. Now she knew her parentage she could see that she had the same disregard and contempt for human life that Fenner had.

“Sit down, Rebecca.” She indicated the chair the other side of the desk then waited until Reb was seated and she had her full attention before continuing. “You’ve settled in alright?” she enquired forcing a pleasant smile.

“Yes, thank you, miss.”

“It’s just that sometimes inmates find it difficult to settle because of…bullying, shall we say, by other inmates and unbelievably by certain members of staff.” She looked the other woman squarely in the eyes. “You’ve never been bullied by inmates or staff have you?”

“No, miss.”

Helen laughed softly then stood up and walked behind Reb. “It’s a good job you weren’t here a few months ago. I don’t suppose I should be telling you this but we had the biggest bullying bastard of an officer working here. Fenner his name was.” She saw with some satisfaction that Reb’s shoulders stiffened at her words. “No woman was safe near him. The ones he couldn’t subdue with his fists he abused…mentally, verbally and even, would you believe, by raping them!” She saw Reb’s hands grip the chair arms and smiled but she wasn’t finished yet. “Luckily for us, someone as psychotic as he was put him down and do you think anyone mourned him? Not a chance! We were glad to see the back of him. The man was a vicious, bullying, murdering animal and…”

With a strangled cry Reb leapt from the chair and flew at Helen. Too late, Helen saw the glint of metal and realised the woman was armed but as Reb drew her arm back to strike, the door flew open and a pair of uniformed policemen rushed in and grabbed her from behind.

“I’ll get you one day, Stewart, and next time Betts will die!” Reb shrieked the threats as she was dragged away.

Helen breathed a sigh of relief. That was almost too close for comfort! She looked to the elderly man standing in the doorway. “Well, Inspector?”

“You sailed a bit close to the wind there, Miss Stewart,” he replied wryly. “I was worried she might cry ‘entrapment’ until she said that about Miss Betts.”

“But she did so you’ve got her.”

“Yes, we have. Now, don’t you think you ought to sit down before you fall down?”

Helen choked back a sob. She hadn’t realised how much she had been shaking. She sank down into the chair Reb had vacated and sat with her head in her hands.

“I’ll get your secretary to bring you in a cup of tea and, Miss Stewart, thank you,” the Inspector added begrudgingly.

“Are you out of your tiny mind?” Nikki exclaimed incredulously. “Fancy confronting Fenner’s homicidal daughter on your own!”

“I wasn’t really on my own, the police were waiting in the outer office,” Helen countered. She was home safe in her own living room but the anger Nikki was directing her way made her wonder if she wasn’t better off facing Reb’s wrath. “Anyway it was Catherine’s idea…”

“She is getting the bloody sack tomorrow!”

“But you need her.”

“You can have her job, that way I can keep an eye on you and make sure you’re safe.”

Helen cupped Nikki’s face with her hands. “With you around I’ll always feel safe but I’ve got a better idea to keep me out of mischief…let’s have a baby!”

One year later

Nikki sat on the edge of Helen’s hospital bed and looked down in wonder at the baby nestling in Helen’s arms. This was their newborn daughter, hers and Helen’s.

“What do you think to her?” Helen, looking tired but beaming proudly, asked.

“The poor little sod looks exactly like you,” Nikki teased then added lovingly, “She’s the most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Can we come in?” Claire spoke from the doorway then entered closely followed by Tommo, Sarah and Lucy.

“Have you guys thought of a name for her yet?” Tommo enquired as they all cooed over the baby.

Nikki and Helen looked at each other and laughed. “It’s ‘Catherine’ actually.”

This is definitely THE END

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