The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 2672 by Angharad Copyright© 2015 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.
------------------------------------------

We were up early the next day as I whipped them through the showers like a car wash, then I combed, brushed and styled hair helped by Julie who realised I would struggle to do it all on my own. A lot of the time she seems to do her own thing and I begin to wonder if she still lives here and then she steps in and helps without my asking. Perhaps she’s just more aware some days than others.

We got them all tidied up and dressed—oh, I’d been up and showered and dressed before I started on the girls, so it felt like lunch time to me by the time we had breakfast. Then I struggled to get all of them in the car, before we went off to school. Normally I drop the girls off but this morning I went in with Hannah and we met the headmistress. Hannah was shaking as Sister Maria came down the corridor to us and I put my arm around her.

“So this is Hannah, how d’you do?” she said shaking hands with the child. “Gosh and your hands cold and you’re shaking.” We went into her office and she called for cups of tea. I didn’t really have time but I could hardly leave Hannah there to entertain the headmistress on her own.

“She’s concerned that you have exams next week and not having done your curriculum, she might not do well and you think she was less clever than she actually is.”

“Lady Cameron, you can rest assured that we’ll use the exams simply to get an idea of the things she’s done in her previous school. She won’t be penalized by us whatever her exam results.”

“Feel a bit better now?” I asked her and she nodded.

I walked with the headmistress into the classroom where Trish and Livvie were. The whole class rose. The headmistress said, “Good morning, girls.”

The response was, “Good morning, Sister Maria.”

“We have visitors, Lady Cameron who I’m sure some of you know and she’s brought us a new girl, Hannah. What do we say to our visitors?”

“Good morning, Lady Cameron, good morning, Hannah.” Most of them said that except two who said loudly, “Hi Mummy, hi Hannah.”

I waited for a few moments while they seated her next to Trish and she began to look less terrified before I left and went on to the office where Delia was entertaining two police officers. My tummy flipped.

It was Andy Bond and his tyro colleague, who lacked even the most basic of people skills. Asking Delia to make some teas, I led the two coppers into my office. “How can I help you, PC Bond?”

“We’re still investigating the assault on Hannah’s mother.”

“You’ve spoken with her twice.”

“I know, and for her age she was quite a competent witness, but we’re not sure if she understands the complexities of adult relationships.”

“I think you’ll be quite impressed with what she does understand.”

“Oh, I stand corrected.”

“She knew what was going on and that when they started beating her up, she had the nous to run for it and call for help. She is still traumatized and I’ve already agreed to report anything I hear which might be of use.”

Delia brought the teas in and we chit chatted while we drank them as if nothing had happened between us a week or so back. Then I was asked once again to report anything Hannah said which might help a prosecution against the two men.

I asked if they’d heard anything from the hospital about Ingrid. “A little birdie tells me she’s off the critical list and that you’d been to see her.”

“Yes, I took Hannah so that obviously made her feel better.”

“Talking to neighbours, we discovered that she possibly wasn’t the best mother that Hannah might have had.”

“What d’you mean?” I challenged even though it possibly paralleled my own thoughts.

“I suspect you know what I mean.”

“Do I?”

“Lots of shouting at the child. Things being broken—they say she smashed the kid’s computer because she couldn’t hear her soaps.”

“Oh, do they?”

“Lots of drink or empty bottles in the recycling.”

“That’s surely circumstantial evidence at best. A chance for payback by any neighbor who had a grudge against her.”

“Of course, but after a while, you get an idea of the person you’re investigating. I’m sure you do it in your research as well.”

“Andy, there’s a golden rule in scientific research, you amass your facts or data then theorise from that, not form your theory and bend the facts to fit it.” The two police left and Delia came in.

“I nearly died when they arrived and you weren’t here, I thought for a moment you’d had an accident.”

“No they’re still digging around the assault on Hannah’s mother. I took her to school with my four this morning.”

“How’d she get on?”

“She was so nervous, bless her, but she seemed to settle in before I left. Trish got a chance to play big sister.”

“So will you be working your normal hours?”

“That’s the idea—now what have we got…?”

The day flew by and before I knew it, it was time to collect the mouseketeers. It appeared that Hannah quite enjoyed her day and she said she wanted to revise with Trish and Livvie that evening. I left them to it. She did go and show her uniform to David, who gave her a huge hug and they both ended in tears. She went and changed with the others but didn’t return to the kitchen. David was quite upset.

He went home before it was time to serve dinner so I had to do it, helped by Stella and Jacquie. The girls went back to their revision and I caught the occasional sight of Trish and Livvie trying to explain various bits to Hannah. I’m not sure if it was helping her or making her more confused.

Finally, they adjourned to their lap tops and she had hers up and running, so Sammi’s work was still excellent. Me? I was next to useless in doing other than the basics. Even Simon was cleverer than I with computers. It was only with bicycles that I had the better knowledge and skills, though he could just about mend a puncture—if I could wait that long for him to do it. I could be off again in fifteen minutes, he took two to three times as long.

Before they went to bed, we took Kiki for a walk, then they had a quick glass of milk and a biscuit and after cleaning their teeth, I saw them all into bed. Hannah complained about being on her own, so with Simon’s help we moved the bed into the girl’s room and she settled down quite happily with the others. I just hope social services don’t ask to see her room again.