GOING HOME

Briony has more adventures.

 

Chapter 4

GOING HOME

 

Briony and Alden were back inside her car with Briony driving. She felt quite confident on the road because she knew it from travelling up to the village. She said to Alden, “I think all that business with Jasper could have been a trick to get me away from the flat.”

“To burgle?” replied Alden.

“I don’t know.”

“Just leave me at Grandfather’s house, please. Are you sure you wouldn’t like to stay the night?” Alden asked her.

“I’m going to the motel to refill the car before heading off for home. I hope to make the journey in four hours. I want to drive all through the night.”

“I’ll see you then, when I go to town. Bye.”

 

As Briony was leaving the village where Alden’s grandfather lived, she recognized the signpost to Magician’s Leap, and drove all through the night as she had told Alden, and only stopped for petrol. She had calculated it might be possible to be home in three hours.

Once she was back on the main road she found there was more traffic. There was only one thought on Briony’s mind, and that was to get home and sleep in her own bed. The snow had taken on a blue sheen and the vehicles were all with their headlights switched on. Nobody fancied stopping in such a cold and desolate countryside. The car radio broadcast light music that was meant to liven up those who were out on the roads at night. Briony wished to forget all about her recent experiences, and start all over again.

Briony got to the motel at eleven and had the tank filled. She promised herself that when the journey was over, it would be a long time before she got behind the steering wheel again. The atmosphere that night became really horrid. Every shadow, every light, and every movement hid something evil. Briony wasn’t going to stop for anything. She was nearing the town that she was always complaining about, but in the countryside she was petrified.

The last toll-gate on the motorway had been passed, which meant that Briony would be home shortly. A man driving fast wanted to overtake her. She braked, and the vehicle hit the metal barrier violently. Briony drove around, in order to throw off any stalkers.

 

It was three a.m. when she entered the car park of her building. The boys were still awake, “Have you seen or heard anything unusual?” she asked them.

“No, nothing. We rang the hospital, and they told us the same as they had told you.”

“What’s your opinion?” Briony asked Michael.

“The story is really rather silly.”

 

Sometime later, Briony received a phone call from Alden, who made it clear he wanted to meet her, but she declined, saying she was very busy. Alden managed to convince her by saying he had something to tell her about Jasper. Briony was put out by Alden’s insistence, but he went on and on, till in the end she agreed to meet him. It hardly ever snowed in the town, nevertheless it was freezing cold, so they sat in Alden’s car, which he had parked outside the Town Hall. Briony asked him to get it over with.

 

Alden’s story was, that after Briony had left him at his grandfather’s, he had noticed a couple of cars that had already followed them from the hospital, continued to be behind Briony. Alden had begun to think about everything they had gone through when they had gone to the hospital, and found out that Jasper had been picked up by an unknown person and had subsequently disappeared. Alden even thought that the person in the accident hadn’t been Jasper - but another man. Briony couldn’t understand why the situation should be so dramatic, after all, Jasper had left the year before. The only news she had been given about him, was when the police had told her about the car crash. Alden said that what had aroused his suspicions was that there had been no photos of Jasper, and the police hadn’t shown one to Briony. All they knew was that a man called Jasper Tello had been admitted to hospital.

 

The day after Briony had gone home, Alden had gone back up to the hospital. Nora had told them she had seen Jasper getting into a car. Alden had waited for Nora to finish work and drive off. He had got into her office, because he had a set of skeleton keys. He got into her computer, and copied down all the information regarding any men - other than Jasper - who had been admitted on the same day or thereabouts. There was no information about Jasper Tello. Not even his name. He had then gone to the site of the accident and the local police station, where he was told another man was looking for Jasper, and he was given the man’s name and address. Alden said that the man called Donald Ericsson lived behind the dog track. Briony was worried what they could possibly say to the said Donald Ericsson. Alden wanted to know why he was looking for Jasper.

 

Later that evening, when they assumed Donald Ericsson would have eaten, they paid him a visit. The dog track lighting cast a cold glare over the district. Alden parked his car in a dark street in order not to attract attention. They walked up to Donald’s house and rang the doorbell. A man with a nasty expression on his face, answered. “If you’re selling, I’m not buying,” he said.

Briony told him that she was Jasper Tello’s abandoned wife. The expression on Donald’s face changed, and he invited them in. Briony told him Alden was a family friend. Briony handed Donald an envelope containing the last photos of Jasper before he had gone out of her life.

“It’s him. That’s Jasper Tello. He did you and your children a favour by leaving. He’s a bad man.”

“Why did you want to find Jasper?” Alden asked.

Donald got up out of his chair and went over to a sideboard and opened a drawer and took out a photo album. “Here’s the answer as to why I’m looking for Jasper Tello. The lady in the photos is my wife, Zoë. We were happy - or so I thought.”

Donald showed them photos of Jasper and Zoë together, taken a few months before. Jasper hadn’t aged a bit in the photos and was easily recognizable. Briony and Alden noticed how happy and relaxed both Jasper and Zoë were in the photos. Donald told them the photos had been taken at a ski resort the other side of the village where the hospital Briony and Alden had visited was. Donald had discovered from a friend of Zoë’s, who loved skiing as much as Zoë, that Jasper and Zoë were up there. Then Briony asked, “How did you find out about the car crash?”

Donald told them that he had business interests in the mountains and often had to go up there for that reason. Briony asked Donald for Jasper and Zoë’s address where they lived when they were in town.

“I’ve often been there recently, and waited outside, but have never seen either of them enter or exit. The doorman said he was sure they would eventually return, because they had left suitcases in the flat.”

Briony and Alden decided to leave. They had got what information Donald was able to give them, so they bade him goodbye.

 

The doorman of the building where Jasper and Zoë rented a flat, only worked during the day, so Briony and Alden went up to the flat without him and Alden used his skeleton keys once more. To all appearances, Jasper and Zoë still lived there. Jasper’s name was on the mailbox, and inside the flat were the aforementioned suitcases. Alden suggested opening the suitcases. Briony went to the cupboard and went from drawer to drawer, and then removed the bed-cover. “Take a look at this. No one has slept in this bed, and these sheets have just come from a laundry.”

They entered the bathroom, and touched the taps and the bath - everything was dry. Alden checked out the living-room and the kitchen. “Briony, I suspect that neither Jasper nor Zoë have ever visited this flat.”

“Let’s open the suitcases.” Briony said.

Alden opened the two matching medium-sized suitcases and saw they were full of newspaper. They were dated two weeks before, when Briony had received the visit from the police. “This is a set-up. We’d better tell Donald, as he was the one who led us here,” Briony said.

 

They went round to see Donald, who let them in rather reluctantly because he was already in bed. They told him about their illicit visit to the flat where Jasper and Zoë were supposedly living. Donald said that every time he found a way of trapping them they vanished.

 

They left after a few minutes, because Donald had to get up early.