Chapter 5
Helen
picked up the telephone and dialled her friend, Claire’s office number. They
had been at university together and Claire was also handling Nikki’s appeal.
She waited to be put through, her fingers idly drumming on her desktop. The
lifers’ meetings over the past couple of days had been hard going. Much to her
surprise, Nikki had attended them but had taken no active part and had only
spoken when she was addressed directly. When she had seen her about the prison,
she always had Catherine Thomas in tow.
“Hello,
Helen,” Claire’s voice came on the line.
“Hiya,
Claire. Hope I’m not interrupting anything but I wondered if you fancied coming
round for a drink tonight,” she asked cheerfully.
“Yeah,
great,” she agreed. “There are a few things I want to discuss with you about
Nikki’s appeal anyway.”
Helen
frowned. “But she told me she wasn’t going to carry on with her appeal.”
“Well,
I haven’t heard anything to the contrary, so I’m pushing ahead. Although, she
didn’t do herself any favours by escaping, I’m still confident the CCRC will
review the case. Sorry, Helen, I’ll have to go,” she said apologetically.
“There’s a call on the other line. I’ll see you tonight about eight. ‘Bye.”
“’Bye,
Claire,” Helen replied, deep in thought.
“OK,
guys, listen up.” Karen looked around the assembled officers and waited until
their chattering had stopped. “I won’t keep you long but I’ve some news I
thought you might be interested in. Unfortunately, some of it isn’t good.
Dominic has handed in his resignation and won’t be coming back.” She waited
until they had digested the information before continuing. “Apparently, his
mother is finding it difficult to cope with his dad so Dominic has taken a nine-to-five
job. Don’t we all sometimes wish we had one of those,” she added wryly. “On the
good news front, Dominic’s replacement will be starting on Monday, as will the
new prison doctor. The doctor’s name is Alex Gilbert and I’ve heard, ladies,
he’s quite a dish. Right then, I’ll leave you to it.” She went out of the office,
closely followed by Jim Fenner.
“Karen.”
She
turned at the sound of her name. She’d been trying to avoid Jim since the
allegations Nikki Wade had made but she obviously couldn’t hide forever.
“I
wondered if you’d like to come out for a drink tonight,” he smiled down at her.
“Sorry,
Jim, I can’t,” she replied stiffly.
“Have
I done something wrong, Karen? You called off our date the other night,” he
said accusingly.
She
tried to smile reassuringly. “Of course not, Jim. I just want to spend some
time with the kids, that’s all.”
“Some
other time then.”
“Yeah,
some other time,” she answered evasively. She watched as he strolled off. She
had chosen to ignore the rumours that he was having an affair with Dockley but
now she wasn’t so sure. There were too many accusations circulating about him
for her to be able to trust him anymore.
“Come
on then, Helen. What’s all this in aid of?” Claire looked at her friend
suspiciously as she indicated the snacks and expensive bottle of wine on the
coffee table. “The last time I was summoned at such short notice, you’d just
dumped Sean.”
“Can’t
I just enjoy a quiet drink with a friend without having an ulterior motive?”
she asked innocently. Claire looked at her knowingly. “Oh, alright, then. This
time, I’ve been dumped!”
Claire
gave a surprised laugh. “I didn’t even know you were seeing anyone.”
“I
haven’t actually been broadcasting it,” she smiled wryly.
“Nikki
Wade?”
“Christ
Almighty!” she exclaimed. “Does everyone and their father know about me and
Nikki? How the hell did you know?”
“By
the way your face lights up every time you talk about her,” she teased. “The
way you break all the rules for her. Shall I go on?”
“You
don’t miss a trick, do you?” laughed Helen.
“Not
if I can help it,” Claire agreed. “So, what went wrong?”
“Everything,”
she replied. She quickly filled Claire in about the events after Nikki’s
escape. “So, you see, she thinks I betrayed her and nothing I say or do will
convince her otherwise.”
“Give
her time, Helen, I’m sure she’ll come round,” Claire told her friend
sympathetically.
“That’s
just it, Claire,” Helen mused. “I’m getting to the point where I don’t care
whether she comes round or not.” She drained her glass then refilled it before
offering the bottle to Claire, who shook her head.
“Do
you love her?”
Helen
smiled. “Yes, I do or at least I thought I did before she started playing silly
buggers.” She gave a world-weary sigh. “I’m not sure of anything, anymore. A
year ago I had a whole future with Sean mapped out then I fell for Nikki and
everything changed. It was like uncharted territory.”
“And
what about Nikki? Don’t you think she had her future with Trisha mapped out?”
she demanded. She thought the world of Helen but she could sometimes be a
selfish cow! “Helen, they had been together for nine years. Neither of us have had
a relationship that lasted that long. When she was sent to Larkhall and Trisha
dumped her, her whole future became uncharted territory, as well. There’s no
wonder the poor bloody woman finds it so difficult to trust anyone!”
“I’ve
never looked at it like that,” Helen murmured.
“Maybe
you should,” she retorted. “It might make you see your own future in a
different light.”
“Well,
it’s all by the way, now. Nikki has made her feelings about me very clear and
she seems to be happier without me,” Helen told her sadly. “Every time I see
her she appears to be joined at the hip with a new woman on the wing, though I
wouldn’t have thought she was Nikki’s type.”
“Well,
a year ago you wouldn’t have thought Nikki was your type,” Claire reminded her.
“What’s wrong with her? Two heads?”
“No,
she’s very pretty really,” Helen was forced to admit. “Bit podgy, though.”
“I
remember someone else being very pretty but podgy when I first met her at Uni.”
Claire’s eyes danced merrily.
“I
was not!” Helen exploded then her face broke into a grin. “I was a bit, wasn’t
I?”
Claire
raised amused eyebrows in agreement. “Anyway, as I said, I would like to
discuss Nikki’s case with you. If you’re still interested, that is?”
“Of
course I’m still interested.” Helen looked at her in surprise. “Why wouldn’t I
be?”
“I
just thought now you are no longer an item, you might not be so eager about her
appeal. I mean, if you don’t love her anymore there’s no rush to get her out,”
she replied pointedly.
“I
didn’t say I’d stopped loving her,” Helen retorted. “It’s just so difficult,
what with all the secrecy and trying to snatch a few moments of privacy
together. To be honest, as much as I love her, I don’t know if I can cope with
it for the next ten years!”
Helen
tore round the corner. She’d been working on her case notes until the early
hours of the morning then she’d staggered into bed and forgotten to set her
alarm clock.
“For
Christ’s sake, why don’t you watch where you’re going!” she exclaimed as she
collided with a man rushing from the other direction and the files she had been
clutching to her slid to the floor.
“Maybe
you should take your own advice!” Came the angry retort. “Instead of dashing
about with your head in the clouds!”
She
scrambled to pick up her files. She was already late for a lifers’ meeting and
this was making her even later. The man proffered her the files he had picked
up and she snatched them from him and dashed off without a word.
“Thanks
very much. You’re welcome. Don’t mention it,” she heard him call sarcastically
after her.
“Oh,
piss off!” she mumbled to herself, grumpily.
As
Nikki left the lifers’ meeting, Helen looked dismally after her retreating
back. She had hardly spoken and offered no input in the meeting but had just
sat there in polite indifference. She exhaled noisily and started to gather her
belongings together.
“Helen
Stewart?” a voice spoke behind her.
“Yes,”
she replied without turning round.
“Still
got your head in the clouds, I see,” the voice mocked.
She
turned round. There was a stranger standing in the doorway. Tall, dark-haired
and very good-looking, she noted. “Sorry?” She looked at him enquiringly.
“We
literally bumped into each other earlier.” He smiled and came right into the
room.
“That
was you? Sorry, I was late for a meeting,” she said by way of an apology. “Forgot
to set my alarm.”
He
held out the file he was carrying. “This belongs to you and I think you have
one of mine.”
She
took the file from him then went through her own and found the one that didn’t
belong to her. “There you go, Mr…”
“Alex…Alex
Gilbert,” he informed her. “I’m the new doctor.”
“Oh,
yeah. Karen Betts said you were starting today.” She gave him a friendly smile.
“Welcome to Larkhall.”
“Thanks.”
He smiled down at her. “I gather you’re in charge of the lifers’.”
“For
my sins,” she grimaced.
“Well,
I’d better go. See you later…Helen.”
“Yeah,
see you.” She watched him leave, appreciatively. She might be in love with
Nikki but she could still appreciate a nice, tight butt! Karen had been right
when she said he was a dish. The inmates had nicknamed his predecessor ‘Dr
No-No’ but Alex Gilbert was definitely ‘Dr Yes-Yes’!