The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 2383 by Angharad Copyright© 2014 Angharad All Rights Reserved.

I spent the evening typing up my investigation and appended a copy of the copy of the receipt to it. It didn’t prove that the person who ordered the key was Vallance, and unless her card was used to pay for it. I checked the receipt again, it was paid by card. The court could ask to see her card statement and if it was her card, she could be in deep doo-doo. It is quite conceivable but highly unlikely that it was done by someone else called Vallance, but as it isn’t that common a name it seems unlikely.

Was the plan to just embarrass me, to have their counsel attempt to reduce my credibility as a witness? Or just malice to have me suspended, especially at such a busy time of year, when the marking schedule makes everyone’s life tough. Even Tom has to do some papers, usually PhD dissertations, and they can be mind numbingly boring—I know, I wrote one quite recently.

I took a break from my typing and considered what else was in the room, just a computer. Could she have nobbled the computer? I wandered up to Sammi and asked her.

“How long was she in there?”

“The caretaker said five minutes so that probably means ten or fifteen.”

“In that time I could have screwed with your system, introduced a virus or down loaded child porn.”

“Sam, that is awful.”

“If you want to screw someone up let the police do it for you.”

“But that is evil.”

“You did ask. The question is was that done to you?”

“I have no idea.”

“Want me to check?”

“It’s a bit late to go to the university now.”

“Doh—from here.” I watched as she got into the university system and then identified my computer and hacked into it. “Oh-oh,” she said.

“What’s the matter?”

“Me with dark hair.” She showed me a photo of her on my computer with all my children, during a phase where she dyed her hair dark brown. She continued examining my hard drive. “Thought so.”

“What?”

“Child porn.”

“What?” I gasped, and she laughed as she pulled up photos of the babies.

Moments later she shook her head, “They must really hate you.”

“Why?”

“I won’t ask you to look, really I should report this to the police.”

“What is it?”

“Someone has uploaded a whole pile of nasty photos to your pictures file, sorry thios is going to take a few minutes.”

“Can you remove them?”

“Oh yes.”

“Can’t they still find them—the police, I mean?”

“Not the way I delete them. I suspect this was downloaded from a memory stick so if you find any in your desk or filing cabinet, destroy them.”

“But I don’t know what’s on them.”

“Mummy, if they find anything like this on you, you are dead meat, even though you might be able to prove it was a set up, that could take months and the kids could be in care.”

I felt quite sick. I watched in morbid fascination as Sammi’s fingers danced over the keyboard and mouse.

“No one with less than my level of expertise will ever find those, now you need to find out who did it.”

“We suspect it was Emma, Vallance’s niece.”

“Okay, this your new password.” She scribbled on a piece of paper. The web cam built into your computer will record anyone using it and log it.”

“How did you do that?”

“We have ways.”

“So I see.”

The hearing was going to prove interesting. I went downstairs feeling more confused than ever. Why did Emma dislike me so much, I’d never done anything to her. Then again why did that idiot in the dress go for me unless he was paid to do it.

“What’s the matter, babes?”

“I despair about humanity.”

“Why this time?”

“Someone loaded child porn on my computer in work.”

“What—that’s disgusting.” He paused obviously revolted beyond words. “How d’you know?”

“I asked Sammi and she checked out my computer remotely, she also removed it or overwrote it or whatever they do.”

“Who did it?”

“The woman technician who was involved with the group who tried to discredit me was in the university although suspended. We think it might have been her.”

“You going to inform the police?”

“And get myself investigated, possibly suspended and fired, not to mention arrested and find the kids in care.”

“That was a dirty trick, just not cricket.”

“Well sticking with the leather on willow theme, I’m hoping that if they bring the matter up, the police won’t find anything and thus wonder how they came to make the accusation.”

“Tell Jason, he’ll have them regretting it.”

“I will, I was happy to work towards some sort of conciliation but if it was them, I think we need to work towards future prevention.”

“By what means?”

“Extreme prejudice, I believe is the term the US military use.”

“I like it—don’t forget to tell Jason—perhaps you’d better borrow Sammi tomorrow just in case the pictures were networked around the university.”

“Oh my god, they wouldn’t do that, would they?”

“You call Jason, I’ll tell Sammi.” Which is what we did. Jason was horrified and sighed audibly when I told him how Sammi found them and deleted them permanently. I also told him Si was loaning her to me to check out any other computers I use. He thought that was a good idea.

The next day Si took the train by himself and Sammi came to work with me wearing jeans and skimpy top. She spent the morning checking computers, using my office while I used Tom’s office as he was out on meetings all day. When we told him about the porn he was completely disgusted and then very angry. As soon as the hearing with the judge was over, he was personally going to sack Emma.

Locking my office at lunch, I took Sammi and Daddy to the restaurant and we ate our usual meals after which I stopped at an ironmongers and bought a hasp and staple, plus heavy duty padlock. Then as Sammi finished her check and we discovered a memory stick in the bottom of my filing cabinet drawer that I had no knowledge of, she took it with her. I fitted the heavy duty hasp and staple plus padlock to my door. It meant that the cleaners couldn’t get in there to clean it, but they didn’t do much anyway.

By which time it was near enough finishing time at the school and we went and collected the four wise monkeys. Back at home I discovered the hearing was to be next Monday. My response—bring it on.