To put it bluntly, I did not enjoy even a moment of the slightly more than three hour trip home, all I wanted to do was scream.

The problem was that we kept hitting crosswinds, and every time we did, the helicopter would rock a bit, causing me to shift in the seat. That caused a certain very tender part of my anatomy to rub against the surface of the seat through my jeans and underwear.

Let's just say that, by the time we landed at their home base near our camps, I was in a fair bit of pain. No, make that a lot of pain.

CHAPTER 27
I really don’t know where that year went, but the school holidays were soon on us and so was our boy’s first ever trip abroad. We had taken a load of pictures of him, trying to get something suitable for his passport, and in the end the best we could manage made my son look rather like a white Malteser.

We flew from Cardiff this time, meeting the others at a coffee shop before check-in. It was slightly odd, as I remembered Vicky from the trial, but had never really got to know her husband Kevin, and then there were two hyperactive children to engage with, Tara Elaine and Kevin Twm. Bags dropped, kids supplied with amusements, queue through Security, and then sit and wait, then wait some more.

I arrived a few minutes late for work to find the squad room a scene of what can only be described as organised chaos. From the looks on everyone’s faces we’d picked up a new case. I headed for my desk and after slipping off my coat I sat down, started to get my bearings and waited in vain for anyone to remark ‘oh you are back then?’ or some such greeting.

I was just returning from three weeks holiday and I was already feeling slightly miffed that none of my colleagues had even noticed that I’d returned to work.

As I am second-guessing my ability to manage operations as president after today, I am given more reason to doubt. The alarm begins to blare out, and the ship’s computer spoke two of the scariest words known to humankind: “Emergency: Code White”.

If I should die before I wake...

They came from the same direction we had come from, more of the huge green things than I could count. Gunshots banged out from our side, but they had firearms, too, monstrous pistols like the one we had found for Trike.

 

Gaby Book 16 - Sweet Sixteen

Sweating on the Line