involuntary
baring of teeth and snarling or tingling and loss of feeling in the
limbs. No-one expected the fixed stare, drooling, biting or extreme
aggression of the later stages which foreshadowed the gradual and
prolonged decomposition of the body.
After three
days in the south London hotel, the fugitives neared the end of
their quarantine period. It was seven in the evening and they were
settling down to a final dinner before being released after
breakfast the following morning.
'Where's
Steven?' Janet said, looking around the dining room. The escapees
were taking their seats at a large oval table previously used by
the hotel for weddings and birthday parties.
'Steve's in the
TV lounge,' Alex said.
'Didn't he hear
the dinner gong on the PA?'
'Sure, I was
right next to him but he wanted to see the last five minutes of
some science programme we were watching.'
'Well, I would
be grateful…'
'I'll get him
at once, Mrs Reynolds.' Alex left the room as the waitress began
serving starters.
Five minutes
later Alex hadn't returned.
Janet sighed
and put down her spoon. 'This is becoming just a little tiresome,'
she said.
Maisie glanced
at her friends Fred and Rachel. 'Do you want us to, like, go and
find them, Mrs Reynolds?'
'I think we've
got quite enough young folk wandering around, thank you!'
'I'll go,'
Sarah said, jumping up. 'My starter's a cold one anyway, you eat
your soup.'
Within a
minute, Sarah's voice broke from Janet's walkie-talkie. 'They're
not here, Janet. The place is in a bit of a state, actually.'
Janet stood up,
her napkin falling across her bowl, a dark stain of tomato soup
spreading from one corner. She grabbed the walkie-talkie and
squeezed the talk button. 'State?'
'Coffee table
turned over. Cups, cushions on the floor.'
'Graham, call
them on the PA, if you would.' Janet ran to the TV lounge along the
ground floor corridor, past reception with its four armed guards
and locked outer doors. One of the guards fell in behind her.
Graham's voice crackled out of the hotel PA system and echoed
around the empty hallways, ' Steven, Alex! Report in immediately
please.' He repeated the message three times but there was no
response.
Back in the
dining room, Bill looked across at his wife and rolled his eyes.
'What's the panic? We've all seen the way Steve and Alex look at
each other the past couple of days.'
Karen shrugged.
She lifted Janet's napkin out of the soup and returned to her paté
on toast.
Janet found
Sarah standing outside the TV lounge looking back and forth down
the corridor. The room was in a state of disorder, not the way her
son would have left it, or the responsible Alex.
Taking in the
scene with a practised eye, the guard spoke through his
walkie-talkie to his men. 'Full alert!' Turning to Janet he said,
'Looks like we've had an incident, here.'
'Incident?'
Janet's voice was shrill.
'Yes, ma'am.
I'm sorry ma'am, it looks that way.'
Dinner having
been at least temporarily abandoned, Sarah and Janet joined Fred,
Maisie, Rachel, Bill, Karen and Graham in the bar area next to the
dining room.
'Found them?'
Graham said, walking towards the two women.
Janet's body
language said it all. Her only words were, 'Not yet.'
'Why'd they go
off like that with no warning?'
'The sergeant
says he thinks there was a fight of some sort in the TV
lounge.'
'Steve and Alex
were, like, fighting and ran off?' Maisie said.
'No, if they'd
gone anywhere by themselves, they'd have at least let us know. The
worrying part is the TV room being all messed up, it's making me
think someone got in and took them.'
'Got in past
the soldiers?'
'Kidnapped? No
way!'
'Who would do
that?'
'The press?
Some paper trying for an exclusive story?'
'No chance,'
Bill said, 'Not since the hacking scandal in twenty-eleven.'
The waitress
appeared behind the counter where drinks were served. 'Is there
anything we can do?' she said, referring to herself and the
chef.
'A small
brandy, I think, dear,' Janet said, using
baring of teeth and snarling or tingling and loss of feeling in the
limbs. No-one expected the fixed stare, drooling, biting or extreme
aggression of the later stages which foreshadowed the gradual and
prolonged decomposition of the body.
After three
days in the south London hotel, the fugitives neared the end of
their quarantine period. It was seven in the evening and they were
settling down to a final dinner before being released after
breakfast the following morning.
'Where's
Steven?' Janet said, looking around the dining room. The escapees
were taking their seats at a large oval table previously used by
the hotel for weddings and birthday parties.
'Steve's in the
TV lounge,' Alex said.
'Didn't he hear
the dinner gong on the PA?'
'Sure, I was
right next to him but he wanted to see the last five minutes of
some science programme we were watching.'
'Well, I would
be grateful…'
'I'll get him
at once, Mrs Reynolds.' Alex left the room as the waitress began
serving starters.
Five minutes
later Alex hadn't returned.
Janet sighed
and put down her spoon. 'This is becoming just a little tiresome,'
she said.
Maisie glanced
at her friends Fred and Rachel. 'Do you want us to, like, go and
find them, Mrs Reynolds?'
'I think we've
got quite enough young folk wandering around, thank you!'
'I'll go,'
Sarah said, jumping up. 'My starter's a cold one anyway, you eat
your soup.'
Within a
minute, Sarah's voice broke from Janet's walkie-talkie. 'They're
not here, Janet. The place is in a bit of a state, actually.'
Janet stood up,
her napkin falling across her bowl, a dark stain of tomato soup
spreading from one corner. She grabbed the walkie-talkie and
squeezed the talk button. 'State?'
'Coffee table
turned over. Cups, cushions on the floor.'
'Graham, call
them on the PA, if you would.' Janet ran to the TV lounge along the
ground floor corridor, past reception with its four armed guards
and locked outer doors. One of the guards fell in behind her.
Graham's voice crackled out of the hotel PA system and echoed
around the empty hallways, ' Steven, Alex! Report in immediately
please.' He repeated the message three times but there was no
response.
Back in the
dining room, Bill looked across at his wife and rolled his eyes.
'What's the panic? We've all seen the way Steve and Alex look at
each other the past couple of days.'
Karen shrugged.
She lifted Janet's napkin out of the soup and returned to her paté
on toast.
Janet found
Sarah standing outside the TV lounge looking back and forth down
the corridor. The room was in a state of disorder, not the way her
son would have left it, or the responsible Alex.
Taking in the
scene with a practised eye, the guard spoke through his
walkie-talkie to his men. 'Full alert!' Turning to Janet he said,
'Looks like we've had an incident, here.'
'Incident?'
Janet's voice was shrill.
'Yes, ma'am.
I'm sorry ma'am, it looks that way.'
Dinner having
been at least temporarily abandoned, Sarah and Janet joined Fred,
Maisie, Rachel, Bill, Karen and Graham in the bar area next to the
dining room.
'Found them?'
Graham said, walking towards the two women.
Janet's body
language said it all. Her only words were, 'Not yet.'
'Why'd they go
off like that with no warning?'
'The sergeant
says he thinks there was a fight of some sort in the TV
lounge.'
'Steve and Alex
were, like, fighting and ran off?' Maisie said.
'No, if they'd
gone anywhere by themselves, they'd have at least let us know. The
worrying part is the TV room being all messed up, it's making me
think someone got in and took them.'
'Got in past
the soldiers?'
'Kidnapped? No
way!'
'Who would do
that?'
'The press?
Some paper trying for an exclusive story?'
'No chance,'
Bill said, 'Not since the hacking scandal in twenty-eleven.'
The waitress
appeared behind the counter where drinks were served. 'Is there
anything we can do?' she said, referring to herself and the
chef.
'A small
brandy, I think, dear,' Janet said, using
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