The Weekly Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 3330 by Angharad Copyright© 2021 Angharad

---

This is a work of fiction any mention of real people, places or institutions is purely coincidental and does not imply that they are as suggested in the story.
####
On Sunday after breakfast Sarah told me she had spoken to Peter. Apparently, the police had discharged him under caution. Andy had also told him to be grateful that none of us wanted to press charges.

Peter also told her that Andy had known me for some years and that I had rescued several transgendered children who no one else wanted to foster or adopt, so he thought I was a life saver and also a very good mother. Peter said he thought the same until he spoke to Sarah's mother who convinced him of her version of events.

He also told her that he had to come to get his car and would like to apologise for his stupidity of the night before. He'd mentioned this to Andy Bond who agreed to meet him here at 11.00am. He was warned by Sergeant Bond that if he tried anything stupid, all the charges that were not processed last night would be so and he could expect a custodial sentence, which would obviously affect his job and future employment prospects.

Sarah asked if he'd been seen by a doctor? He had and the conclusion was it probably wasn't a concussion, more just a case of shock though he was given the usual advice about feeling sick and headaches to contact A&E immediately.

Sarah said he told her he felt better after a night's sleep except for his behaviour which had left him feeling terminally embarrassed.

"Good," said Simon, adding, "perhaps it'll stop him being a prat next time."

"There won't be a next time," I said firmly, "I will tell him not to come to this house again after he collects his car. I won't stop you seeing him, Sarah, but I would urge caution if you do."

"I'm still fond of him, Auntie Cathy, but I think it will take some time for him to earn my trust again. I'm not sure about my mother either after she seemed to set him up, so I'll have to find somewhere to live when I start my degree."

"You can stay here. Normally, I can't have much to do with students, but I don't teach first years very much these days, I leave much of it to Debbie and the junior lecturers."

"Seeing as I know Debbie, would that be a problem, Auntie?"

"No, you're employed by me, I made you the offer to sit the exam and win a place on the course. I won't be involved in examining you, so it's all above board."

"Thank you, Auntie Cathy, I really do wish you were my mother."

"Right well, that's not possible," said Simon ending the conversation, "So you'll have to make do with adopting us as aunt and uncle."

"Can I ask Professor Agnew if I can call him gramps?" she asked looking close to tears. I felt rotten but she is an adult albeit like many transgender ones, rather socially inept and naïve because they don't have a chance to grow up in their preferred gender. I know I was always making gaffes when I transitioned until I learned how to avoid them. It's amazing that you think you should know these things because you've had interactions all your life, but they're different for different genders, different social status and so on. I know that as a Professor or Lady Cameron, my standards of behaviour are expected to be much higher than just plain old Cathy Watts because of my status and all of these things have to be learned.

"That's between you and Professor Agnew, sweetheart, he's back tonight so he's missed all the excitement, but give him a day or two to recover." I knew that Tom would probably allow her to call him Gramps, at the same time he'd been away on the Vice Chancellor's conference so would be tired, we forget he's not a young man anymore though he keeps going like one most of the time, but every now and again, I see him look exhausted and quite grey.

At just before eleven, Andy Bond, in uniform, drove into our drive and parked next to Peter's car. He was on his own. Minutes later a taxi pulled up and Peter walked up the drive and spoke briefly to Andy.

"Right, I'm going to invite them both in, so, Sarah make some teas and coffees, Danni help her please."

"How many, Mummy?" asked Danni.

"Just Andy, Peter, Simon and me, and Sarah, so five. Better wait to see what people want."

I invited them in and we sat around the dining table, orders for tea and coffee were taken by Danielle and a few minutes later, Sarah, who was looking very smart in a skirt and top, brought in the three coffees and two teas. The men had coffee we girls, the teas.

"Before we go any further, I must remind Peter that Sarah is twenty years old and thus an adult in her own right. She is an employee here and lives in. Peter, I'm afraid after your behaviour last night, I must say that you are no longer welcome at either my house or at the university. I'd like to make that informal rather than seek restraining orders."

Peter looked very shamed faced and nodded. I asked him to verbally agree so Sergeant Bond would be in no doubt of the agreement. "I agree," he said realising that he could lose contact with Sarah, but also one of the biggest purchasers of his products.

He looked rather sad but I tried not to have any sympathy because he'd betrayed my trust yesterday and potentially endangered Sarah and members of my family, so I may never forgive and forget.

Peter asked he could speak. We all agreed and he began. "I saw my sister, Sarah's mother yesterday, she asked me to go and see her because she was worried about Sarah being in my house. She claimed to have seen an article about how, as couldn't have children of my own, I inveigled several from perfectly happy families, enticing them with expensive gifts, even changing several of them into girls against their will, including conspiring with a young disturbed youth to damage them so badly on their genitalia that they had to have remedial surgery and were converted to females, all against their will."

"You don't happen to know what the article was in, do you?"

"I think she said it was on the internet," he replied to my question. I would ask Trish to find it and we'd take legal action against the site and the author. I'd also ask Sammi to drop a cyber bomb on them.

"These are pretty serious allegations to make, Mr Dominic," said Andy and I know, having been involved with Lord and Lady Cameron on numerous occasions in the course of my duties, that they are all wrong."

Peter shrugged. I looked at Sarah, "Please ask Danni to send in all the children one at a time. Don't tell her why, just to send them in but individually." She gave me a perplexed look but went as I asked.

Two minutes later Trish came in. "You want me, Mummy?"

"Yes, sweetheart." To Peter, I said," ask her how I enticed her and changed her gender."

"No, I won't upset her, you've made your point."

"Trish?" asked Andy Bond, "could you tell Mr Dominic how you came to live here?"

"Why?" she asked looking less than happy. She continues to have a fear of being removed from here despite me saying it would never happen.

"You're not under any threat, young lady, but it's an interesting story and I think Mr Dominic would appreciate hearing it."

Trish sighed and looked at me, I nodded and she sighed again. "My mother got rid of me because she wanted a boy and I was a girl. I was put in a children's home where I was bullied by one boy in particular and he also raped me. He pushed me down the stairs when I said I would tell on him. I woke up in hospital and my legs didn't work. They sent me back to the home but my legs still didn't work and no one believed I'd been pushed down the stairs except Dr Rose at the hospital, they all thought I fell.

"In hospital, I met Meems and her legs didn't work neither, she got hit by a van. Her mother dumped her on Mummy supposedly for a short time, but they disappeared in a foreign country. Mummy, who is really an angel, made her legs work again and Dr Rose asked if she could try with me. She helped me to walk again as well and I can run and play football as good as anyone.

"I was fostered by Mummy and Daddy at first but they were adopting Meems and I asked the judgeman if I could be adopted as well? He said yes, and I love my Mummy and Daddy, they're the best in the world," she flung herself at me and I wrapped her in a hug and she sobbed for several minutes.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, that was very brave of you."

"They're not going to take me away, are they?"

"No, never, not as long as you want to live here, you may."

"Okay, Mummy," she accepted the tissues I gave her and I asked Sarah to see her out and for Danni to stay with her and no to send anyone else in.

"She was also abducted by her mother after she'd been with us some time, she'd forgotten that. All my children are damaged in some way, Livvie was staying for a weekend with us when her father murdered her mother and killed himself. He instructed his lawyers to ask us to look after her. Need I say more?"

Peter was sniffing back tears after hearing Trish's testimony. "I am so sorry, Cathy, I should have known after what Sarah had said that you loved these children and they were happy with you and Simon. I don't know why I believed my sister, I think she's jealous because she wants Sarah to revert to being a boy, even though we all know that isn't going to happen. But she's jealous because Sarah feels that you're more like a mother than my sister, and hearing what Trish said, I appreciate that more than I did before.

"I can't undo what I did last night, I wish I could and I am sincerely sorry for what happened. I just don't know what came over me. It won't happen again and I doubt Sarah will want me anywhere near her."

Sarah had returned to the table and listened to her uncle, she was silently weeping as well.

"I'm sorry, I put Trish through that," said Andy, "but I knew her story and I knew she was capable of telling it coherently. I didn't realise she was still so upset about it seeing as she's been with you nearly ten years."

"It's very deep seated stuff, Andy and even we have to be a little careful with her. You know when you jokingly threaten to send them to the cat's home if they don't behave, Trish gets really upset, she is terrified she could be sent away again, despite my vows to never do such a thing.

"Danni came from the same home along with Billie, my little girl who died, she, Danni that is, was taken by an officious social worker and dumped in a boy's home despite Danni trying to prove she was a girl. She was upset for weeks and I took the social worker and the department to court. She lost her job and was struck off the register, the council made a very large donation to a children's charity.

"Danni, despite appearing beautiful and fearless was with me when we happened across the woman in a supermarket, she attacked us and Danni was very upset. The woman tried to infect my computer in the university with child pornography, but we were able to prove it was a set up."

"The two detectives involved were so prejudiced against Lady Cameron that the police were only able to carry out an effective investigation after they were removed from the case by which time Cathy had solved the case for them. One of the woman's family had infiltrated the department as a technician and tried to plant the porn on the computer. They were all prosecuted and got some jail time."

Peter looked even more sad if that was possible. "I had no idea this sort of thing went on. It makes feel even sicker when I realise the injustices done to you and your girls by people with such malice in their hearts. I am so ashamed of what I did last night. I've lost you as a client, as a old school friend and I've probably lost my favourite niece as well." He burst into tears and we all sat feeling very uncomfortable witnessing his catharsis, I noticed Sarah was weeping silently, then she got up and walked to me and buried herself in my hug, now sobbing inconsolably.

I felt like saying to Peter, 'You probably have done all that and more because you betrayed us and we will never know if we can ever trust you again.' I didn't, I just nodded at Andy, who said it was time they left. Leaving Simon and me to clear up the mess.

I shouldn't have allowed Andy to question Trish and it took me several hours to calm her down. Sarah was also very upset and she called me Mummy several times during the day. She may have been twenty physically, but she was much younger emotionally and I asked Stephanie to come to dinner and why. She sorted them out and also tore a strip off me, which I accepted.

Later that evening as Sarah was going up to bed, she asked again if she could listen to me lecture the next day. I couldn't say no after the weekend she'd had, though I did wonder if I'd be up to my usual standards the next day. Somehow I was in sparkling form and both Debbie and Sarah watched me perform. It was basic ecology and I used some old tricks and gimmicks I hadn't done for a few years and because they hadn't seen it before, it went down rather well.

Am I the teacher I used to be? Occasionally, but the responsibilities of office tend to restrict that energy and opportunity, which is sad but apparently necessary.