Chapter 12: A Challenge

Katie lay on her bed on Sunday night, free for a change of the lonely fears that had dogged her lately. She gave thanks for the Angela's reassuring presence. Why had she not turned to her before?

"I must have known she'd jump at the chance of helping me, just as I would never, ever let her down. Dear lovely girl. I'm so, so, so very, very glad we're together again"

The bedroom door opened and Angie crept into the room and got onto the bed. She started to caress her friend and then her body stiffened and she spoke, sharply and angrily.

"What's this with no bedclothes!"

"I just don't like them any more" said a puzzled, disconcerted Katie. "What's the problem?"

"I slept last night in a lovely warm bed, when I'm supposed to sharing everything with you - that's the problem. You wait till I get you on the beach, next Saturday, I'll flay you for this!! "

"Calm down, darling Angie, I'm so sorry, I had already made up your bed before you arrived and I just didn't think" She got off the bed, switched on the light and stood there before her friend and her arms at her side.

"Come on, my sweet. Give me a good hard belly punch and let's get to sleep!"

Angie obliged, doubling Katie up with a wicked blow to the solar plexus and adding one more for good measure to the jaw.

When the girl had finally recovered, Angie hissed at her "There, that's just for starters - you wait till Saturday. I'll finish you then and finish you good!"

And these two very strange, but inseparable buddies fell into each others arms and kissed each other good night.

BACK TO WORK - DON'T WE ALL JUST HATE MONDAYS!!

Katie's loyal secretary (Can anyone have a better boss than I, she thought - and why did I say those things about her in the pub, that day?) went into her chief's office and gasped. Katie was there looking through the open window, stark naked.

"Hi, Jean, sorry to frighten you, but I can't stand being dressed right now. I've just got to let the earth and air talk to me, and I've got a lot to say to them. If these people value my services, they 'll just have to put up with a litttle madness from me! I could leave this job right now and be glad. Any way did you have a good weekend?"

"Thanks, Katie. You've an appointment with Lord Sandwood in a few minutes."

"That old creep. Put him off!"

That gross asinine and pompous twit of a superannuated Trade Union leader! Bloody dinosaur. Sort of person who had ruined this country with all their militancy and pig headed stupidity, now fobbed off with a life peerage and trying to ape those betters he had once tried to defeat. What an unmitigated arsehole!

"Sorry, Katie, you'll have to see him and NOT like that. Try and take a day off, Katie, don't be a cunt all your life!"

An amazed and infuriated Katie was just going to bawl out the girl, but she then roared with laughter instead.

"Oh, my lovely, sensible Jean! Where would I be without you?. I'll be ready for him in a minute. Mind you it could just be a good idea to let him see me like this! Might give him heart failure and we'd be rid of at least one fat parasitic arsehole!"

"Yes Ma'am" and a laughing Jean withdrew. Gosh, but it was fun working for this new, crazy Katie!.

The pointless interview with the half literate Union leader over, Katie looked despairingly down at her notes.

"Just how do I produce anything half-way coherent or grammatical out this unutterable garbage? Maybe I should strip off and jump out of the window. Just think of the headline ' Distinguished Journalist's Naked Death Leap Blamed on Sandwood's Atrocious Grammar. The Price of Ignorance'."

Chuckling over this thought, Katie picked up the telephone.

There on the end of the line was Jim Peterson from the Crown Prosecution Service. "Hi, Katie, I suppose you saw the news on Saturday?"

Oh, yes. Katie had indeed seen the news, despite Angie's tongue in her ear (and elsewhere, but this is a tale for all the family!!).

"I know! You can't proceed, because of lack of evidence, against Charles Ford Sir James Evans, Bt. and persons both fat and unknown, because of lack of evidence. Thanks a million!"

"Sorry, Katie. If it's any consolation, I think they're both Guilty as hell and so do the police. You can have protection and we'll keep the file open and under constant review."

"Thanks, but no thanks", said Katie, "Call the bloodhounds off. It might scare the bastards away, and I wouldn't like that!. I want these guys, and I'm going to get them! Don't fret. I won't break any laws."

"Good show, Katie." and the phone went dead.