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Ride On 93

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CHAPTER 93
Giggling. It’s what girls do, apparently, and it was certainly what Chantelle did. There were moments, though, especially when Albert moved suddenly, that the startled rabbit appeared.



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This story is 29 words long.

Ride On 92

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CHAPTER 92
The next morning was the usual post-party nightmare of half-eaten food and filthy glasses, not to mention a mild hangover. The Woodruffs had stayed over, and the girls, but everyone else had made their way home by cab or shanks’ pony. There were things to do, and fortunately there were young people to kick out of their sleeping bag who could be made to do it. I don’t think I look terrifying in a pair of fluffy pink slippers and a terry dressing gown, but I did my best.



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This story is 91 words long.

Sunlight and Shade

 

SUNLIGHT AND SHADE

 
I was rehearsing the words in my mind as I walked in. Supermarkets were so different now to what they had been when I was younger, so many more things to buy, so many more to dream of. I had been through the big Asda store with the lies, and now it was time for Tesco. Pretty…there were dresses and tops, skirts and shoes, boots and bags, and unless I could gather the courage I would walk out lacking them all.



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This story is 85 words long.

Ride On 91

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CHAPTER 91
It had to be a big do, of course, but nowhere near as big as I was frightened of. What stunned me was the sheer number of people I was now thinking of as essential to my life, and that was thrown into greater relief by the close shave I had passed through before Ginny had moved in.



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This story is 59 words long.

Ride On 90

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CHAPTER 90
We had to wind down in the end, and separate, with fierce hugs and promises to be home more often, and that word suddenly rang true to me. Home had become a simple concept: wherever I was with Eric, that was my home. Our house in Surrey, a tent at Shrewsbury, they were all I had believed I needed.



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This story is 60 words long.

We're all goin' on a...

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Those competitions...I am ploughing ahead with an entry for the 'Summer Romance' one, and OF COURSE it involves bikes and forn parts. At the same time I am writing Annie's story, so if there are delays, or if Annie suddenly changes her character completely, aye, blame nobody but me.

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Ride On 89

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CHAPTER 89
Arwel was steering the male conversation around to the relative merits of bass and tenor balance in male voice choirs, and I half expected him to give a demonstration, but that would have been frivolity. Man’s voice was made for giving praise to the Arglwydd.



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This story is 47 words long.

Ride On 88

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CHAPTER 88
The next day was an attempt to get some space in my head, and as the two boys went off on some silly 200km ride, Steph and I kept it down to half that distance. No, Eric, I am not riding up to the top of THAT and down the other side, because it would mean having to get up THAT twice more than necessary.



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This story is 66 words long.

Ride On 87

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CHAPTER 87
There was a pub round the corner, and I watched Merry as she walked with us. There were hints in there of the young girl I remembered fuming when her favourite bra and three pairs of knickers had disappeared from the washing line.



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This story is 44 words long.

Ride On 86

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CHAPTER 86
We took the new bridge, of course, which to me lacks the drama of the old one by Aust.



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Ride On 85

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CHAPTER 85
It was odd how easily I drifted into my new role as a ‘housewife’ and woman. Kirsty had been right, it was me, far more than Adam had ever been. Eric and I had a few differences of opinion, as couples do, but I got my way, as women mostly do, especially in redecorating the house.



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This story is 57 words long.

Ride On 84

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CHAPTER 84
We stayed long enough to give both couples a hand tidying house and garden and then made our way back to our own place after seeing everybody else off.



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This story is 30 words long.

Ride On 83

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CHAPTER 83
In the end I walked back with Polly and the Woods to their place, for a quick check as the kids settled down.



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This story is 24 words long.

Ride On 82

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CHAPTER 82
Sarah was a seriously good dancer,



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This story is 7 words long.

Ride On 81

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CHAPTER 81
She stood there, framed by the two and clinging to Polly’s hand, flinching every so often as a couple came near. I brought the tune to an end as quickly as I could without it seeming rushed, and then had a quick word with Steph, who understood immediately. A quick decision:



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This story is 53 words long.

Ride On 80

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CHAPTER 80
It was too easy to get lost. All I had to remember, really, was that if he was a big man, and its name didn’t start with a D, he was from Sarah’s entourage. Her husband included, they really were stupidly big, and I could see where Elaine got her looks from. She wasn’t fat, just square, and apart from the look around the eyes and mouth, Sarah was very different. I have to admit that I lost track of the names of the kids.



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This story is 89 words long.

Ride On 79

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CHAPTER 79
Yes we went shopping, yes we bought a ring (joint account…I think I was missing a trick there) and yes it had to be paraded around work. Kirsty was insistent that it be worn “Otherwise some scrote of a punter will try chatting you up”



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This story is 47 words long.

Ride On 78

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CHAPTER78
Fortunately for us, the Super’s little speech grabbed their attention, and we managed to scuttle off to the train.



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This story is 21 words long.

Ride On 77

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CHAPTER 77
I left it for a couple of days as the trial wound down, but I made sure I was there when the last of the witnesses was finally dismissed and the summing up was given by Her Honour Justice Wetherby. It was neat, it was simple, and it was brutal.



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This story is 51 words long.

Ride On 76

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CAUTION:REFERENCES TO CHILD ABUSE

CHAPTER 76
The ride up was as dismal, the walk across the tram tracks and up to the grey bulk of the courtroom serving to depress me further.



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This story is 32 words long.

Ride On 75

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CHAPTER 75
What I think of as February weather hit us mid-January, those days without end that are grey and miserable and unfailingly damp.



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Ride On 74

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CHAPTER 74
I woke that morning sandwiched between the two and bursting for a pee. There was no way I could use the bottle, it would have freaked Darren too much, so I elbowed Eric to move and went out his side.



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This story is 41 words long.

Ride On 73

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CHAPTER 73
It is as strange as I hinted, how Christmas passes like a train in the distance when you are working, but we had managed to distribute some oddities and soddities to our friends, and Ginny and Kate, Stewie and Sally, made it for an unChristmas Dinner on an off day, for which Ginny and I prepared a Thai banquet with some Vietnamese twists, including spicy omelette eaten wrapped in lettuce leaves with fresh lemon grass. Well, that was as unChristmassy as we could imagine.



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This story is 85 words long.

Ride On 72

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CHAPTER 72
Steph was intrigued by Simon’s proposal.

“I know he’s a good bloke, but with all this ‘excellence’ towards us abominations, is he perhaps trying to snare us for his sky pixie? Find some really top-class sinners to save?”



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This story is 41 words long.

Ride On 71

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CHAPTER 71
We found the house, in the end, after a couple of false starts, and it was in a quiet back street in Horley. Not the most wonderful of areas, or houses, not at all like the one Steph had inherited, but it had three bedrooms, a very large garage, a reasonably spacious conservatory and a garden shaded by some huge mature horse chestnut trees. Only five miles from work, as well, for both of us, the route identical as far as the nick.



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This story is 84 words long.

Ride On 70

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CHAPTER 70
He grinned to take the edge of the old joke, and I realised as his eyes went over my shoulder that the old joke was more for the benefit of Steph than me. I felt her hand come down on my shoulder, and I put mine over it.



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This story is 49 words long.

Ride On 69

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CHAPTER 69
Now I know that all the claims for chocolate’s powers of healing and mimicry of sexual excitement blood chemistry are rubbish, but there is one simple, undeniable fact: having it is better than not having it.



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Ride On 68

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CHAPTER 68
There were a few places that could work, but we realised there was going to be a lot of legwork ahead. We made a long-list, then a short-list, both of places and of estate agents that seemed at least a little less reptilian than the norm.



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This story is 47 words long.

Friendship

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I was out today, on the bike, walking around a nature reserve with friends, and for the first time ever we were able to discuss the elephant in the room. I was, I am, in such a position that I needed reassurance, and to talk my life over.Now, I know they are friends, and they know about me, but for the first time I was reminded why I write supportive characters. As 'normal' as can be, married, two kids, they were totally without reservations in supporting me, and I realise I am actually blessed. Don't want to go into too much rambling, but I am now smiling.

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Ride On 67

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CHAPTER 67
I stumbled out of the bathroom straight into Den, who almost picked me up as he moved me out of the door in obvious urgency.



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This story is 26 words long.

Ride On 66

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CHAPTER 66
I went into the kitchen a little later, to help Naomi clear some of the debris from the cheese plate she had insisted on bringing out, and the coffee, and the biscuits, and all the other snacks she had somehow conjured up. Kate followed me, and I realised Ginny must have had that chat.



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This story is 55 words long.

Ride On 65

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CHAPTER 65
Monday came, and it turned out that Kate had managed to pull some strings of her own and get the night off, along with the following Tuesday. Eric and I were staying with the Woodruffs that night, as riding half-cut through Crawley at pub closing time is never sensible.



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Ride On 64

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CHAPTER 64
We walked down to tea hand in hand, to a knowing smile from Naomi.

“Darren, dear, the special biscuits?”



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Ride On 63

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CHAPTER 63
I walked out into the middle of the floor and looked around.



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Ride On 62

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CHAPTER 62
The deed poll was something I had been thinking about for some time. It could be said I had been doing so all my life, as my first memories were inextricably linked to feeling wrong, and as I had gradually found out who I was, the name had been obvious.



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This story is 51 words long.

Ride On 61

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CHAPTER 61
Some day I would have to ask how far Kate and Sal went back, but for now it was enough to gather my man from his interview and confirm where I stood.



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This story is 33 words long.

Ride On 60

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CHAPTER 60
Afterwards I asked him how the day had gone on Sunday. I knew there was an awkward time ahead, particularly with Darren.



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This story is 23 words long.

Ride On 59

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CHAPTER 59
Den just said, with a flicker of his eyes, “I will tell you a story one day, yeah?” and was off. The night was absolutely dead, work wise, and I spent large chunks of it nattering with Jim. I had, of course, noticed the civilian support staff flicking glances at my girls, but nothing worrying. Jim was at least open about things.



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This story is 63 words long.

Ride On 58

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CHAPTER 58
I heard him singing in the kitchen, something silly and happy, and I waited until he brought me a very naughty bacon sandwich and a cuppa.



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This story is 27 words long.

Ride On 57

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CHAPTER 57
Eric was down at the weekend, just as I switched to night shifts. He arrived early Friday evening, as I lay in bed trying to get a few hours sleep before going in, and the first I knew was when a warm body slipped into bed with me. I grunted a bit, then made my complaint.



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This story is 57 words long.

Writing

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I shall be heading up to see my mother, an invalid, in two days and spending about five days in total with her, for her 77th birthday. I am hoping my brother may come out for the meal, but as he hasn't spoken to me in years those hopes are a bit feeble. As a result I will have no time or link to put up any more of Annie's story for a few days after this weekend.

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Ride On 56

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CHAPTER 56
I was beside the old Rover at three thirty, the drips sounding like hammer blows, and then awake, knowing I had shouted but not remembering what.



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Ride On 55

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CHAPTER 55
As I prepared yet another disgustingly healthy breakfast for us, the phone rang, and it was Naomi.

“Good morning, my dear, I wanted to catch you before you went out today, and let you know how Darren is”

“There are no problems? I mean, no new ones?”



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This story is 48 words long.

Ride On 54

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CHAPTER 54
I was crapping myself as I did the final touches to my eyes and lips.



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This story is 16 words long.

Ride On 53

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This part contains references to the sexual abuse of minors. There is nothing graphic here, but the situations depiceted may upset certain people. The particulars will have been expected by those who have followed the story this far.



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This story is 38 words long.

Ride On 52

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CHAPTER 52
There was silence in Custody at that, and I turned the radio off. Jim came back a few minutes later, looking spent.



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Ride On 51

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CHAPTER 51
Eric and I rode home after exchanging hugs with a tired Steph, and once there I disappeared into the bathroom to get out of the support I had been wearing for nearly eighteen hours.



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This story is 35 words long.

Ride On 50

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CHAPTER 50
Richard took Kirsty into the interview as a witness, along with Polly, and I had to explain to the boy why I couldn’t stay with him.



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Ride On 49

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CHAPTER 49
Kirsty was reviewing the pictures as I wrote down the number, and I heard what sounded like “Oof-four” from her as she saw the state of the kid. The phone was picked up on the third ring.



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