Book 11: Tammy Interludes     "Ch-Changes" Part 4

 
Saturday 7th October 2017
 

Angela had arrived home the previous evening and talk over dinner had turned to the subject of Christmas. It seemed like it had been ages since the four had sat to eat together. Richard had an announcement.

"Your mum and I are going to Lausanne for nine days, flying out on the twenty-first of December."

Joan clearly knew of the plan already. "I finally agreed to let him take me there."

Tammy replied. "You'll like it, I went there with Dad a few years ago just before Christmas."

"So what are we going to do?" Asked Angela.

"We could spend Christmas with Suzie, go down to Trafalgar Square on Christmas eve, then find the bargains on Oxford St on Boxing Day?"

"That's a good idea Tammy, but you should phone your sister to make sure she hasn't already made plans?"

"Sure Dad."

Angela wasn't impressed. "Do I have to?"

"Well, this way I can give all the staff ten days off over Christmas. There would be no-one else here, so I hope you can look after yourself?"

"Oh. I don't have a choice, do I?"

"Angela, you always have a choice but don't just think of yourself."

"Okay. Tammy, how are we getting down there?"

"I'll fly us."

Richard smiled. "Tammy, as Pru has only booked the hotel so far, our flights are flexible. How about you fly all of us to London then we can get a direct flight from there?"

"I wouldn't have thought that would be a problem but I'll have to use Katie. Can you make sure Jim doesn't have a commercial booking for Katie at that time"

"I'll book the plane out to us for two weeks."

So Tammy was going to spend her Christmas in the Capital, it had been a few years since she'd stayed at their former Edgware home over Christmas but hadn't once gone into the West End to see the lights or down to the giant Christmas Tree in Trafalgar Square as her Dad was constantly working and her mother didn't want to risk using the tube, although Tammy still didn't know what the issue had been.

She remembered the first time she'd joined her father in Zurich just before Christmas: Tammy was thirteen at the time and hadn't had time to change before catching the coach to Inverness Airport for the first flight. Although, legally, she was still a schoolboy called Thomas, almost everyone at the airports, on the flights had assumed the kilt-clad school child with long white socks was a girl. Tammy had arrived in Zurich stressed, tired, and upset when her father wasn't at the terminal to meet her. That had resulted in a panic attack.

Tammy was back at the new house on Saturday morning and a knock on the back door brought Tammy back to the present. Her decorator, dressed in white dungarees, was waiting.

"Oh, hi Kate."

"Good morning, white with one sugar please."

"Eh? Oh, I haven't got any milk, or coffee, or tea, or sugar."

"But you have a kettle?"

"Yes, and a fridge."

"It's a start. I tell you what, I'll get set up on the top floor and work my way down, I guess you want your office done first?"

"Oh, I left something plugged in. I'll go up and sort that out, then I'll go shopping. Here's your key."

Tammy hurtled up the two flights of stairs, that was definitely going to be an aid to fitness, and powered down the security monitor before disconnecting the power and network terminations. She relocated the equipment across the landing into the designated store room, or was it now the guest room?

Tammy passed Kate on the stairs as the girl carried sheets and tools up towards the office, whistling as she went. Tammy picked up her shoulder bag and ensured her keys and phone were there before walking out of the rear door. She executed a couple of right turns and was heading North on Princes St. The small grocery store where she'd bought the SIM card wasn't far away and seemed to be the most sensible destination for her needs.

She walked slowly around the shelves and soon had the required milk, tea and coffee-making consumables in a bag, plus a packet of Hobnobs. It was noticeably dearer than the usual supermarket pricing, but was more convenient.

Back indoors twenty minutes after stepping out she stowed the purchases and filled the kettle with fresh water. Tammy then realised she had no mugs, teaspoons or any other crockery and cutlery. Setting up a home was very new to her. Despite reservations she drove over to the Thurso Tesco store. This was smaller than the one in Wick that had caused her trouble, but still big enough to have the household items she needed.

Tammy left there with a four place dining set, although she currently had no plans to do any dining, plus a full cutlery set and a set of kitchen utensils. She added washing up liquid and cloths, but soon decided she needed other cleaning materials. Halfway around the store she found the bakery and decided she needed to consider lunch.

The hand basket she'd picked up at the entrance was now totally inadequate, but the trolleys were inaccessible, this required a little lateral thinking. Her decision was to head for the checkout and pay for the items she'd already picked up, then stow that in the boot of her car. She returned with a trolley to continue her trekking around the store.

Tammy stopped in the middle of an aisle at one point; the realisation had dawned that she was twenty one and only now was she doing her first major household shop. When she'd stayed in the Docklands flat, two years earlier, it was already stocked with standard household items and all she'd needed was food and cleaning materials. At the time Tammy was grabbing lunch in the office then picking up a takeaway on the way home. It wasn't healthy eating and she resolved not to pick up those bad habits again.

Her shop of choice at the time had been the Spar store close to the apartment, it didn't have the range of the store she was in, but she'd coped. She pushed her trolley into the homewares section again and spotted an offer on rugs, Tammy picked up a couple without a clear idea on which rooms they'd go in. She still needed to get someone in to measure for carpets but Kate the Paint needed a head-start. An hour had passed by the time Tammy carried her goods through the door at ten thirty. Kate was drinking from a mug.

"I made a coffee for meself, good job I have me own mug wiv me."

Tammy's phone pinged, it was then she noticed a few messages had arrived.

RAMAIR CIC:
Please notify us of any tradespersons in the future. Her life was spared on this occasion, today's BOOM: aborted.

Tammy looked to a camera, "OOPS, sorry."

Tammy rinsed one of the new mugs and now made herself a coffee then set about distributing hand soap and toilet rolls to the two bathrooms, plus hand towels and tea towels to the correct locations. She had bleach, floor cleaner, a mop, bucket, a soft broom, dusters and cleaning spray. All of which needed to be put, safely, away.

She'd also bought a tape measure and now, with a notepad, went around each room to measure the windows. A decision was needed on whether to use blinds or curtains, or even both? Certainly for the office, a heavy net curtain plus adjustable blinds would be best. Maybe a security survey was needed as well, but how would she organise that?

By lunchtime Kate had finished the office and had moved onto the storeroom. The office looked brighter, cleaner, but thankfully didn't smell of anything much. As Kate had put lights on, Tammy didn't need to imagine how she might be seen from an adjacent building. The monitor and associated kit had now been placed in a corner. Tammy decided against setting it up whilst Kate was still on the premises.

Back in the kitchen she started ordering tables and chairs. The kitchen was big enough for a small table, but not big enough to work there if the table was in use. The solution was to order a couple of collapsible chairs and she enviosaged pushing the table against the wall when not needed.

She needed an office desk as well, plus a comfortable chair. That look longer but eventually she settled on a particular item, although the delivery date became the overriding factor. Finally it looked as if the items would start to arrive mid week.

Kate stopped at lunchtime to eat her own sandwiches and Tammy made up a couple of rolls then munched a banana, the result of a foray into the fruit aisle at Tesco. She washed up then told Kate she was going elsewhere for the rest of the day so to lock up when she was done.

Tammy drove around to her lock-up storage unit and let herself in. There were still several items from the air drop a few nights back that she hadn't closely looked at. Tammy opened the case marked as Personal Kit and inside she found cosmetics that matched the stock of her vanity case. A pressed powder compact and a blusher compact. There were five of each. At least a year supply, even if she touched up twice daily. Looking at the instruction diagrams she was able to open the hidden compartments. The pressed powder compact had six tracking dots with a lifespan of twenty-four hours and up to a half mile range. She would be able to track them using her phone and laptop.

The blush compact had audio bugs. A twenty-four hour battery and would pick up within twenty feet. There were ten bugs with a range of an eighth of a mile. She would be able to receive using her phone and laptop. Also included were four small plastic boxes the size of a deck of cards. The list described them as Survival kits containing wire, matches, fishing line, fish hooks, needles, thread, water purification tablets, foil and multi-function tool. The box was purported to confuse most airport metal detectors.

"So this is what they call a personal kit. Those trick barrettes top it all off."

She tucked one of each into her shoulder bag, put the others away in the case and went out to her car, but something caught her eye. Quickly she drove away, having checked there wasn't an alert from the security system. She drove just a few hundred metres then pulled over, checking her mirrors. Her phone was docked and it started to ring. She tapped a pin to accept the call.

"Hiya Tammy girl. We ran a trace on your painter. She's legit. Strange, but clean. One incident though. while in college at Dundee, she got popped for Lewd Behaviour. Sex in a pub's restroom. Hundred pound fine and night in the grey-bar inn. Nothing else. Seems to be a David Bowie fan, but she can't sing worth a damn."

"Oh, thanks, but ...."

"Tammy, you got a problem?"

"Not sure, Krystel, I thought I saw something?"

"Jus' a sec. Okay I now have access to your car's surveillance system, not bad. I'll go back a couple of minutes........ Got it."

"You found something?"

"Yes. Someone, someone was scoping your car while you were inside that building. I've got a face. Running recognition and sending it to your car."

Kyle's face appeared on the entertainment display.

"Damn. That's Kyle Fielding."

"The Kiwi that gave you dive lessons and now causing shit at Fort George?"

"Yes to both."

"Okay, then you have a new problem. He might have guessed that you have a lockup and now he knows where that is. He must not find out where the new place is, otherwise it's defunct, right?"

"Yes. I rent the lockup for cash so there's no trail to me."

"And now he knows where that is, so it's burned. Go empty it. Everything out of it."

"Yes, Krystel."

"Make the block and go back."

"Turn around? Okay."

"One other thing, your car is too distinctive."

"I don't want to lose it."

"I'm not suggesting that. How about getting a plain, anonymous, vehicle?"

"Okay."

"Now, go drive past your lockup slowly and take a look."

Tammy did as asked, turned the car around and headed back to the rear of the printshop. She needn't have worried. Tom Miller, the printer, had Kyle on the ground. Tammy didn't stop but could see that he had the situation under control. Kyle looked right at her, he was pissed off. Tammy couldn't resist the urge and flipped him off. She drove past and took a right to swing onto Mill Road and head back towards the A9 and the Thurso River, passing a police car on blue lights.

"I guess the police were called by Tom?"

"Confirmed Tammy, there's an active record of an intruder on the Police Scotland system. It's best you aren't involved. Unfortunately you should also now look for an alternative offsite storage facility."

"Agreed."

"Now, what's the deal with the painter?"

"She has a key and will be there for a few days. I bought new locks to fit as soon as she's done."

"Good, but don't forget about an alarm system?"

"What about using the same card system as my office?"

"No, separate, and make it look boring, not worth a second look. Out."

Tammy parked up and toured the town's furniture stores on foot. Tammy gained inspiration as she went between them, returning more than once but waving away the staff until her third trip to Highland Furniture on Traill St.

"I like that kingsize bed, do you have matching bedside cabinets and wardrobes?"

"The cabinets, yes, plus a wooden foot locker, but we can't currently get the wardrobes."

"I see, what wood is it?"

"Swedish Beech."

Tammy did like the look and feel of the bed, it was clearly well built, modern looking and heavy, very heavy.

"How is it delivered?"

"Two of our team will deliver and build it in situ, we need a week's notice."

"I see, how about ten or eleven days from now? I'll need the bed, two cabinets and the locker. Is there a single bed in the same design?"

"Yes."

"Then add a third cabinet and a second locker."

"I'll have to check with the supplier to make sure we can supply everything? There might be some items on back-order, but they're closed until Monday."

"I'm sorry but I need everything at once, and I'll have to go elsewhere if you can't confirm the whole order is deliverable?"

"I can't do that."

"Then you've lost my custom. Good day." Tammy turned and started towards the door.

"Miss Smart?"

The shop manager called after her. "I'm sorry Miss Smart, would you like to discuss this in my office?"

Tammy smiled, she'd done business with the store manager before; she stopped and turned. "Good morning Mr Harrison, I'm afraid I was effectively told that your store didn't want my custom?"

"A misunderstanding I hope, coffee?" He glared at the assistant. "I want two cups of the decent stuff."

"Yes, Mr Harrison."

Robert made a couple of calls, dropping into a dialect that Tammy had trouble understanding.

"Fortunately I have the direct numbers. We can have all of the items you need here by Wednesday of this week, when were you looking to install it?"

"A week later, the 18th."

"That won't be a problem. Now, I overheard that you asked about wardrobes?"

"Yes."

"He can't get a set of wardrobes made by Wednesday but he has a fitter who can build a fitted wardrobe on site to the same design."

"That sounds interesting."

"Normally there's a hefty charge for this, how about we pick up the extra and you just pay the cost of individual wardrobes?"

"That's attractive. I'm planning a bedroom and a separate dressing room plus a guest room."

"Is this for one of your rental places?"

"Yes, I'll be able to advertise it as ready furnished for short term lets, perhaps making it an Air BnB?"

"I see, so you are going for quality?"

"Of course. I have a painter in there at the moment, I've just had it rewired."

"We'll need the address, of course?"

"32 Princes St."

"The fishing tackle place?"

"That's it, although I'm looking into the history of an earlier owner, Kirk McDuff."

"That's a name from the past. He was at school with my eldest brother, they played Shinty together."

"I've found the fatal accident inquiry newspaper report, it was suggested it was natural causes?"

"Nach, no, he was fit. My guess is that he was given something that was out of his system by the time of the PM, and thirty years ago the doctors wouldn't have looked for something like a poison unless they had a reason."

"So you think it was a robbery?"

"Yes. There was a rumour he had a load of money but when the police searched the building they never found any of it. Have you found anything?"

"No, but it's been thirty years. Is there anything else you can remember?"

"He used to take himself into Europe a couple of times a year and would go on this long overland journey but would always fly back. Once he didn't make it back in time for a game. After that he never travelled during the shinty season, he never forgave himself for missing that one game."

Robert drew up an invoice but stated it would have to be paid on delivery, which Tammy was quite happy with. Lunch was next so she returned to Princes St, finding Katie on the floor of the basement, cross legged.

"Oh .... I forgot."

Tammy dashed back to her car and pulled three rugs off the back seats but couldn't carry all of them. She managed two for now.

"There, something to sit on!"

Her phone rang, it was the Colonel. Tammy took herself upstairs to the office, carrying a rug.

"Sorry Sir, but I have a painter on site."

"I see, I have a report that Captain Fielding was arrested today."

"I know, Sir, unfortunately I was compromised and he tried to get into a storage facility I have. I won't be using that facility again."

"Did you do anything to him?"

"No, I almost didn't see him, but the guy who owns the building caught him. There's some dashcam footage from my car if necessary."

"I see, can I suggest you stay out of it unless the police directly ask you to give a statement?"

"That's my plan. Can you resolve something for me, Colonel?"

"If I can?"

"My ID card was retained by the MPs and I'd like it back, if you still want me?"

"I will make enquiries. Now, what is going on with Corporal Staines?"

"She's on leave?"

"And her CO is demanding she returns to face the charges."

"We both know, Sir, that they will make a scapegoat of her, and she'll be marked as the cause of Captain Fielding's troubles."

"Unfortunately that may be true. What do you have in mind?"

"It would be a shame to waste her training, so can I suggest she gets an honourable discharge and we can then find her a role in Civvie St."

"You sound as if this has been planned?"

"No, Sir, and it still needs approval from another agency, but we have a place on a course for her and, if all goes well, she starts that course on Monday."

"I see, is she with you?"

"No."

"Where is she?"

"This is an insecure line, Sir, and that would not be appropriate. She is, however, safe and she is free to walk to a railway station if she wants to."

"And the future?"

"Let's just see, but please impress on the CO that she is a victim and he has helped make her further role in the army untenable at this time."

"Thank you Lieutenant."

"Indeed, Colonel."

Tammy turned around to find Kate in the doorway, wondering how much she'd overheard. Perhaps a buzzer on the stairs was needed?

"A colonel?"

"It's a pet name for one of my uncles, he thinks I'm in his regiment."

"Oh."

"You're not the first one to overhear a conversation between us and think it's real! To be honest I think he's losing it!"

"Yeah, it did sound weird, I wasn't trying to listen though."

Kate had finished the top floor and had collected the last of her dust sheets ready to continue on the level below. She wanted to know if Tammy had any last minute changes to her bedroom colour scheme.

"I've ordered beech furniture."

"It's a pale wood but that should still work with the lilac on the walls however you'll need a deeper colour for the curtains and the carpet."

"How about purple?"

"Yes, I'd suggest Mardi Gras or Pompadour?"

"How would you like to help me fit the building out?"

"Sure, when were you thinking of having it finished?"

"End of next week."

"That's tight. What's the budget?"

"Hmmm, I've got bedroom furniture on order, but the other rooms will need finishing off?"

"We'll need to get a carpet company in, best get one from Inverness. You need office furniture, dining room, lounge, bathrooms ... plenty to do. Give me five thousand to start with."

"Sorry Kate, but I'll handle the ordering and paying, but you can find me the best options?"

"I was just trying to save you some time and effort."

"I know, but it's no problem as I'll have my assistant back in a day or so and she can run my office so I'll be here."

"Okay, I understand."

 
Monday 9th October 2017
 

Tammy had relocated the contents of the lockup to the secure room in her existing office and the door was firmly locked. She'd have to speak to Tom Miller about paying up to the end of the month then terminating their arrangement. She had no idea where Kyle was, but for now had to use her own recognisable vehicle regardless.

She'd managed to speak to her father about that over the weekend.

"I need a small van for work, but I don't want it to say Smart Properties or anything else."

"I think the school is replacing one of the older utility vans the grounds staff use."

Tammy knew the vans. "It probably looks older than it is?"

"Indeed, you can always have it resprayed?"

"No, just remove any reference to the school"

"Okay, I'll speak to the Head for you."

"Thanks, Dad."

She made it to the office by nine, there was no need to rush. She called Heather as soon as she had shut the door.

"How did it go?"

"We flew up yesterday once everyone signed off on the plan. She thinks she's finished in the military."

"For now she is, but we'll work on that. Is she getting the standard induction?"

"Yes, she gets the security talk today followed by John Smith frightening her."

"She could handle nasty Sergeants so she'll cope, but what does she think she's doing?"

"She thinks she's moving back to Thurso and they're going to teach her your secrets!"

Tammy laughed. "I don't know what they are! What's she told her father?"

"That she's on an assignment. I warned her that RMP might be monitoring her father's line so we sent her call via Catterick."

"Good. I did kinda promise to go and see her, maybe collect her?"

"She has two weeks there and for the first week there's no outside communication."

"Ah, okay. How did you find her?"

"Hyperactive. When she calmed down we tried to explain the seriousness of the situation and then, yesterday morning, when Sir Thomas agreed the plan, we gave her the option of walking to Redruth Station and forgetting everything. The alternative was to join a merry band of misfits who do their best to keep this country safe."

"I guess she's Maid Marian, so, who is Robin of Loxley?"

"Sophie!"

"Really? Wouldn't she be the Sheriff? Anyway, do you have any info on Kirk McDuff yet?"

"No, but it was difficult to work securely when your pet Corporal was here."

---

Tammy opened her office safe and withdrew the grey envelope she'd found in the house safe. She turned it over and used her letter opener to slice it open. Common sense would have said to take it to her solicitor but Tammy didn't always follow that mantra.

There was a single sheet inside, which had one line of text:

CH10 00230 00A109822346

 
Tammy stared at it for a moment then realised what it was.

Her guess was that the account hadn't been touched for thirty years and the world had seen several boom and bust cycles in that time. She guestimated that Kirk may have had ten thousand pounds in the account at the time of his death so Tammy used an online calculator to work out compound interest. At 2% interest, a sum of ten thousand would have turned into almost two hundred thousand. Hmmmm, what did Kirk's last will and testament say? After all, this was his money. Did he have a girlfriend, or a boyfriend, at the time?

Tammy put that back in her safe, having sealed it into a new envelope, and wrote her own name on the outside, across the seal.

 
Wednesday 11th October 2017
 

Going back to college on Tuesday was almost a welcome relief, Tammy disabled the ringer/beeper on her phone so she wouldn't get interrupted. Joey had arrived that morning so she'd let herself into the office and was tackling the emails and calls, Tammy had received a text at break time with a couple of questions but so far everything looked fine.

On Wednesday Tammy first met the telecom guy outside the property.

"Err, Miss Smart, were you at St Andrews?"

"Yes, I was Head Girl for my last year."

"Did you take over the Macbeth for the English Highers module?"

"Yes, there was a staffing problem, Mr Wright left suddenly."

"I think you saved my boy from a scraped pass, he got a B when he started to put effort in, I don't think he liked the teacher."

"I don't think I can claim any credit, I simply put on a play."

"Well, I'm grateful. I was in the audience for the public performance and I saw you down at the Mill Theatre too, well done. If there's anything you need?"

"There is one thing, let me just go and get it."

The engineer ignored the old wires and ran a brand new unjointed feed back to the main cabinet. The run was several hundred metres of copper but she had an excellent internet connection by mid morning and the phone line was completely clean.

Following her plan she now fed the telecom router into the one she'd bought herself. She'd been using the backup 3g/4g connection but that was now disabled and the feed was taken from her landline. If that ever failed she would switch to the backup automatically.

The other part of this arrangement involved a VPN facility, and would disguise her location, moving it over five hundred miles South of her real location. That way Tammy really could truly be in two places at once.

Of course they'd had to work around Kate who was in the basement creating her art.

Tammy met Joey in the Castletown for lunch.

"You had your hair done?"

"Yes, Mum sent me the money. Who is she?"

"Who is who?"

"The girl who was here last week, who was staying with you?"

"That was business, Joey, and I can't talk about it."

"Strange as apparently the only thing she talked about, when she had her hair done, was you!"

Several eyes had turned and the staff were keeping their distance so no orders had been taken.

"Joey, it's a delicate situation."

"You replaced me."

"No, no I did not. She didn't do any work."

"I suppose she wouldn't have to, just flutters her eyelashes at you?"

"That's enough, Joey."

"Yes, I quit."

Tammy picked up her bag, apologised to Frances and walked around to the hairdressers.

"Hi Tammy. We can fit you in?"

"Sharon, I'd like to know what was said to Joey, she's just quit."

"We just mentioned the girl who was here last Tuesday."

"Apparently that girl has taken Joey's job! So thanks, but right now I have no-one."

Tammy walked out without waiting for a reply. She went to the office and had the security system cancel Joey's card, locked up then rode around to Princes St.

Kate was behind a pillar, crouched in shadows with a brush in her hand when Tammy flopped onto a bean bag, the latest furnishing to arrive.

"What's up?"

"I took my assistant out to lunch, and she quit on me."

"Oh, what's the work?"

"Property inspections, handling contractors, keeping the accounts, advertising vacant properties, that sort of thing. Her mum ran an agency so it was an easy job for her.

"So maths is needed?"

"Yes."

"Ah, sorry, I'd help you out but my maths ain't good."

"That's okay, Kate. I'll work something out."

Kate walked out of the shadow, completely naked apart from a small tattoo on her bum and a few splashes of paint.

"Oh, this is new."

"I prefer to work naked, it gives me freedom although it's not always possible. This space is wonderful - oh, I hope you don't mind but I used the shower yesterday and, I think I'll need another one today."

"Okay, whatever floats your boat!"

Tammy made it home for tea after going to Tesco to buy new towels, detergent and calling her electrical supplier to deliver a washing machine the following day.

"Tammy, Pru reports that there's alot of transactions going through the Smart Properties accounts but there's no new business. What's going on with that place in Princes St?"

Tammy couldn't object to her father checking it out, he was a director of the company.

"I'm moving out, Dad. That's my new home."

---

Ch-Changes concludes next episode.
 
 

The first Kindle publication of the Tammy series is a combined novel of Tom's Fireworks and Tamara's Debut. It's available from Amazon (UK) , Amazon (US), Amazon (CA) & Amazon (AU) .