by Fin C Gray
Robert hands Benny the radio and throws a duster at him, then goes to the small kitchen behind the desk area, turning the kettle on before returning to Benny’s vacated seat. He frowns at the two computer screens in front of him. The one to the right is labelled HOTEL LOBBY ACCESS AREA and the other has RECEPTION AND STAIRWELLS printed on top. Robert can see Carlos walking down the stairs on the second monitor before he appears at the front desk. Carlos walks through the open half-door and reaches for his coat on the hook behind Robert.
‘Thank you, Mr Robert, for letting me go home early,’ he says, smiling.
Robert returns his smile and waves him away as he sets both monitors to rewind to the start of the previous night’s shift. He grows bored of watching the comings and goings of the residents and confused hotel guests who have taken a wrong turn, and heads back to the kitchen area to finish making his coffee.
Returning to the monitors, the screens show human traffic is dying down and the time stamp has moved on to 1.35 a.m. He sips his coffee, keeping one eye on the screens while he clicks fast-forward on both. Nothing very much happens most nights after two a.m., and he yawns as he watches no motion on the screens, apart from the intermittent sight of Carlos with a broom, occasionally carrying rubbish bags down to the basement.
Suppressing another yawn, he clicks fast-forward, hoping to speed this task out of his day. He plans to delegate this responsibility to Vince in future. Allowing the yawn to escape, he slumps back into the chair. He begins to sympathise with Benny for giving up on such a dull evening and calls him back to the desk, telling him to get his things and go home.
‘G’night, boss,’ says Benny, heading away from the desk. But before he has the chance to walk more than a few steps, Robert calls after him.
‘Hang on a sec, Benny…’
Robert now sits upright and peers more closely at the image he has frozen on the screen.
‘C’mere a minute and have a look at this,’ he says.
Benny sighs and wanders back behind the desk, positioning himself behind Robert. The time stamps on both screens show 4.05 a.m. and gradually creep back as Robert rewinds the video feed. There is a figure moving backwards from one screen to the other, as Robert increases the rewind speed. Benny takes his spectacles from his pocket and puts them on, squinting at the monitors as Robert sets the play speed back to normal, with the time now showing 3.55 a.m. on both screens.
‘Look at this, Benny.’ Robert points to the screen labelled HOTEL LOBBY ACCESS AREA. ‘In a second, you’ll see someone appear from there.’
They both peer at the screen and Benny lets out a small gasp as a man wearing a thick, dark overcoat and a hat comes into view from the hotel corridor. He has a long beard and is carrying a backpack. The man stops outside the service lift and presses the call button, appearing to be looking all around as he waits for the doors to open.
As they watch him enter the lift, Robert says to Benny, ‘Try and see what floor he gets off on. I can’t make it out.’
‘He’s gone to the basement, boss,’ replies Benny. ‘I can see the down arrow clearly. He definitely went down rather than up…’
‘How come you missed this last night, Benny? That was four a.m. Who was manning the desk at that time and who was doing the patrols?’
‘Erm, I think I was on the desk, boss, but maybe I was making a cuppa when that guy came in. I got no idea who that is.’
Robert rolls his eyes. ‘Well, look at the second monitor. At about 4.07 a.m., you’ll see him appear again and make his way up the residents’ staircase. How long does it take to make a bloody cup of tea, for Christ’s sake?’
Benny watches intently as the man appears again, this time hatless, revealing long dark hair. The man seems to look directly into the camera before ascending the stairs adjacent to the reception area.
‘He’s got summat on his face, some tattoo or summat, it looks like. He don’t look familiar, boss. I don’t think I seen this guy in the building before.’
‘I’ve told the residents’ committee at every bloody meeting for the last three years that they have to extend the CCTV to the other floors here,’ said Robert. ‘If any of the flats have been burgled, Benny, you’re out of a job. I can’t believe you missed this. What the fuck do you think you’re being paid for here?’
‘I’ll go and check every single flat right now, boss. I’m so sorry about this. I won’t leave until I’ve checked every last one.’
‘Too damn right you won’t,’ says Robert.
As Benny makes his way up to the first floor, Robert studies both screens, letting the film advance at regular speed, desperate to catch another glimpse of the curious stranger. He picks up the desk phone and starts to dial the hotel reception next door, but puts the phone down again before it starts to ring. There would be nobody sensible to talk to at this hour. He would have to wait until the duty manager came on at eight a.m. Robert continues to study the CCTV footage until he sees himself appearing at the desk before he threw the water over Benny. He wishes he hadn’t done that now. He can’t erase any of the feed now that there is something that might need investigating.
‘Why you looking so glum, Rob?’
Robert looks up and sees Vince standing before him. He looks at his watch and says, ‘Christ, Vince, I had no idea it was that time already! Come in, put the kettle on. There’s a lot to tell you.’
‘Righto,’ says Vince, hanging up his coat. ‘Just let me put my uniform jacket on and I’ll be right with you.’
Just then, Benny appears, looking weary.
‘Hellfire, Benny! Shouldn’t you be back in your coffin by now? It’s light outside, you know?’ Vince grins at the old man.
Benny shrugs his shoulders and says, ‘You don’t wanna know, mate, you don’t wanna know.’
‘Enough chit-chat, Benny,’ says Robert. ‘What did you find?’
‘Nothin’, boss. Not a bloody thing. I’ve checked every single door of every last flat in this place, and not one has any sign of forced entry. And you know them security locks can’t be picked. God only knows what that creep was doing in the building. Anybody’s guess, if you ask me.’
‘And you checked the basement too?’ asks Robert.
‘Yes, boss. None of the storage lockers’ve been touched, and all the bikes are where they should be. It’s a friggin’ mystery.’
‘It’s a mystery, alright,’ says Robert. ‘And the biggest mystery of all is this: where is that fucking scrote now? There isn’t a single trace of him leaving the building, not by the stairs or either of the lifts. You sure you checked everywhere? The bin stores? The emergency exits? Are the doors to the roof secure?’
‘I ain’t checked the bin stores, but yeah, the roof doors are all locked and have no sign of tampering, and all the emergency exits are alarmed.’
Robert turns to Vince. ‘Go with Benny and check every floor and every bin cupboard together. Don’t miss a single square inch. I’ll go next door and go over the hotel CCTV as soon as Nadjib comes on duty and takes over the desk. Ralph should be on reception next door in a few minutes. He’ll help me go through the hotel footage. I hope to hell we can see something of this guy leaving. Then maybe we can put this thing to bed. Benny, fill Vince in on everything as you go.’
Ralph smiles at Robert as he approaches the hotel desk.
‘Morning, Robert,’ he says. ‘We don’t often see you here first thing. I’ve only just come on duty.’
‘Yeah, mate, morning. It’s been a busy old morning for me so far. There’s been a strange-looking geezer wandering around our building in the early hours. As far as I can tell, he got in through the hotel, so I was wondering if I might have a glance at your CCTV.’
‘Sure thing,’ said Ralph. ‘Come through.’
Ralph waves to his colleague to cover his post as Robert follows him through the door behind his desk. There, Robert sees a much more sophisticated set up than he has next door.
‘I know I keep saying it, Ralph, but I bloody w
ish I had even half of what you got here.’
‘What time frame are you interested in, mate?’
Robert tells him when he’d first seen the man. Ralph types ‘03:45’ onto the keyboard and presses a few other keys. The bottom row of ten screens all jump to that time, simultaneously.
‘That’s impressive,’ says Robert.
Two of the screens show either end of the street outside, including Robert’s building. The others display each of the entrances to the hotel, the lobby, restaurants and the connection passage to Buckingham Court. Ralph presses some more keys, and each screen starts to move forward. The screen definition is much clearer than Robert has next door. He keeps his eye on the two screens showing the street.
When the time moves forward to 3:56 on all of the screens, Robert spots the man on the street near the main entrance to the hotel.
‘Pause it! That’s him. Can you print that picture? It’s so much clearer than the one we have on our monitors,’ he says.
‘Sure thing,’ says Ralph, pressing more keys.
The feed starts to move on all screens again, and the figure keeps walking past the main entrance, then pauses at the double doors that give access to the restaurant lobby and from there to the residents’ corridor leading to Buckingham Court. Robert watches the figure look all around before he pushes the doors open and enters.
‘Those doors are normally locked after the restaurant and bar close,’ says Ralph. ‘I’ll have to have words with the night manager.’
Robert keeps watching the man on the screen, studying his every move. The man walks confidently through the lobby to the door that leads to the residents’ passage before he opens it and disappears.
‘You need a residents’ key fob to open that door, don’t you?’ says Ralph.
‘Usually,’ Robert says. ‘But the panel’s been knackered for weeks. I did ask Benny to lock it at night until things gets fixed. Hardly any of the residents use it anyway, unless it’s raining. I’ll get back onto the firm when I get back next door.’
‘Looks like we both need to up our security measures,’ says Ralph.
‘Let’s have that printout, please, Ralph. I want to ask around my staff and see if anyone has seen this guy before.’
Ralph pulls a few sheets of paper from the printer and hands them to Robert.
‘I printed a few different shots of him. Unfortunately, there are no close-ups, but at least you have some head-on and profile shots of the guy.’
‘Thanks, mate. I appreciate it.’
Robert takes the printouts and heads back to his building through the passageway. This intruder has to know something about the building. Not many people, beyond the residents, know of this particular route into Buckingham Court.
Back in reception, he tapes the images of the man around the CCTV monitors. Benny is still at the desk, looking sheepish. Robert ignores him and sits at the computer desk, adjacent to where Vince is sitting.
‘Nadjib has just called in sick, Robert,’ says Vince. ‘That’ll leave us short- handed. I can do a double shift if you need me to.’
‘Bugger,’ says Robert. ‘Thanks, Vince, I appreciate that. I’ll take you up on it, if you’re sure?’
Vince nods and Robert turns to Benny. ‘Go home and get some sleep, Benny. But I want you back here at three p.m. sharp. Vince’ll need a break if he’s doing a doubler, and you can work through to tomorrow morning. I’ll get Carlos to give you an hour’s break around midnight.’
‘Right, boss.’ Benny hangs up his uniform jacket and pulls on his anorak, heading out of the building, looking miserable.
‘Keep a close eye on those monitors, Vince. I’ll have to leave you on your own for half an hour. I have a meeting with the chairman of the residents’ committee about the gutter repairs. I’ll keep it short.’
‘I’ll do my best, Robert, but you know it gets busy after nine – post and all that.’
Robert leaves, mumbling, ‘Just do your best.’
Vince keeps his eyes on the screens through all the comings and goings of residents and doesn’t even get up when the postman comes with that day’s mail at around 10.45 a.m. Where the fuck is Robert? Half an hour, my arse! Vince could do with a break. His eyes are starting to sting. A cuppa wouldn’t go amiss, either. Just before eleven a.m., the lift doors open and old Mrs Heath wheels herself out in her wheelchair. Vince grimaces.
‘Morning, Vincent,’ she chirps. ‘Help me down the ramp, will you? There’s a good fellow. Mr Heath is at his club.’
‘Certainly, Mrs Heath, one second.’
He dials Robert’s mobile, but gets his voicemail. Slamming down the phone, eyes still on the monitors, he gets up. It can’t be helped. He goes around the desk and out into reception where the old lady sits smiling.
‘No speeding now, Vincent,’ she says, her eyes twinkling.
‘Slow and steady as always, Mrs Heath. You’re in good hands. Give me a moment to flatten out the revolving doors so we can get you through.’
By the time he has her out on the street and has reconfigured the doors, it is 11.23 a.m. He sits back at the displays, cursing Robert.
Robert returns just as Big Ben strikes twelve thirty p.m.
‘Half a fucking hour?’ says Vince. ‘I’ve been run off my feet here, I’m bursting for a piss, I haven’t had anything to eat and I’m going cross-eyed watching this thing.’
‘Sorry, Vince, sorry. The chairman just wouldn’t shut up. Of course, he pays my wages, as he loved to keep telling me every time I tried to leave. Go have a break and get some lunch. See you in an hour.’
Vince gets up, waving his arm at the chair in front of the consoles. ‘All yours,’ he says.
As Vince heads towards the front doors, he turns and sees the desk is unmanned. Robert is making himself a cup of tea or something in the back. So much for keeping our eyes glued on the CCTV. He snorts and pushes through the revolving doors to the street. What a load of old bollocks this all is, anyway.
Chapter Ten
Then
Tom put the phone down and turned towards Alison. She was lowering herself into the sofa with the help of the Zimmer frame; she had resorted to using it all the time now, even though there had been an angry scene with the Macmillan nurse where Alison had screamed at her to take it out of her sight. That was the day the nurse had brought it round for her, promising it would make things a little easier.
‘This disease is turning me into an old-age cripple,’ she cried to Tom after the nurse had gone. Tom hated seeing the twisted pain in her face every time she pulled herself up and down with its help.
‘I’m afraid it’s bad news, darling,’ he said.
‘I don’t need any more bad news, especially not this close to Christmas,’ she replied. Her voice was cracked and weak.
‘I know, darling,’ said Tom. ‘This is only a fly in the ointment, not bad news as such. That was the builders; they’ve had to push back the completion to early February. The house won’t be ready before then.’
Her eyes glimmered under the tears that were forming fast. Tom sat down beside her and put his arm around her.
‘But they promised we could move in the first week in January. I don’t think I can… I wanted to see you and the kids in there before… Oh, Tom. It’s too cruel.’
‘Don’t be silly, Ali,’ he said. ‘It’s just a few weeks later. The weeks will pass by quickly. We’ll be in there before you know it.’
Alison seemed to crumble beside him. She looked small and helpless, and the wig that had slipped to one side of her head made her look like a damaged doll.
Tom straightened it up for her and pulled her closer to him. She winced and pulled herself away.
‘Shall I get you some painkillers?’
‘Call the nurse,’ she said. ‘I think this is going to take a morphine shot to get rid of it.’
She’d never asked him to call the nurse before. Not once. Was this set-back with the house making her feel the pain more? He picked up hi
s mobile and was about to dial when she let out a hoarse cry of agony. Her face was grey, twisted and tainted with suffering.
‘Darling, I’m calling an ambulance!’
Alison grabbed his wrist, and he felt her nails digging into his skin. ‘No!’ It was a shout that came out like a weak rasp. ‘No, Tom. The nurse. Just the nurse.’
It felt as if he was losing her. Tom dialled the district nurse’s line. He was grateful when she picked up almost immediately.
‘I’m less than ten minutes away, Mr McIntyre,’ said the soft, reassuring voice. ‘Press a cold cloth to her face in the meantime. That’s a good way of confusing the pain. Wrap a bag of ice and place it on top of the cloth. If you have no ice, frozen peas – anything light from the freezer – will do. I’ll be there as quick as I can. Don’t worry.’
Tom put down the phone.
‘She’ll be here soon, darling. I’m just going to get a cold flannel for your face—’
‘Stay, Tom!’ Her voice was racked with pain.
Tom could feel his control leaving him. Panic coursed through him and he tried his best not to show it. He took her hand and squeezed it gently. Her face twisted in a way he’d never seen. Alison always did her best to hide her pain. She denied it to herself, and she denied it to him and the kids. He’d heard her crying behind the bathroom door, the taps running at full pelt. He’d seen her grimace every three weeks when the nurse had prodded and poked the veins in her hands, searching for a viable vein to insert the cannula for the brutal chemotherapy drugs. How much of her pain had he missed all these miserable months? Had he denied it to himself as she had to him?
Alison looked so much older than her years. Forty years old, and the Zimmer she used didn’t look out of place. Her skin was dry and flaky; what were once laughter lines were now deep, pitted crevices in her face. Her rosy cheeks were gone, replaced by skin like dry, cracked clay. And her hair: beautiful, brown, shiny and lusciously curly, now just a few tufts of grey fluff. Although the nurse had told them it would grow back quickly after her first round of chemo, it had never had a chance. An angrier, aggressive form of the cancer took hold and the doctors put her on another, more vicious drug just weeks after the end of the first sessions. There was so little left of the face he loved so much. Now her personality was gradually disappearing too. The woman he loved was creeping further and further into the distance. There was nothing but this terrible disease between them.