***
At the police station, Pam explained her situation to the duty sergeant again.
“This woman, this Linda,” he asked, “did she show you any identification? Did she tell you how long she would be gone? Maybe her job is away somewhere and she will be back at the end of the week. I wouldn’t worry love, I’m sure there is nothing to worry about. Have you checked to see what’s in them? Perhaps there is a contact number for her or her boss.”
“I can’t look in her bags!” Pam was indignant. “That would be an invasion of her privacy. I don’t know what rules of etiquette you were brought up on, but I was taught not to delve into someone else’s belongings without their permission.”
The duty sergeant put his hands on the counter.
“Suit yourself, Pamela, is it? But I don’t have the room, or the inclination, to look after luggage here, particularly if I don’t know what’s in it. This is not a storage facility, it’s a police station. Now I suggest you take the bags back home and wait for their owner to return.” He closed the log book in front of him with a loud slap.
Pam’s ancient sedan barely made it back home. The engine sputtered and cut out at the top of the driveway, the car coasting to a stop as Pam applied the handbrake with a skilled technique. She sighed and got out, shoving the door closed. Pam heaved the bags, one after the other, onto the dining table.
“I need a cup of tea,” she decided. Pam selected the least chipped and stained of the tea cups and found a matching saucer. On the dining table, the bags lingered at the edge of her vision. They had outstayed their welcome and she needed them gone. Pam brought her tea over to the table, cursing under her breath as she tripped slightly on a loose floorboard, and set it down carefully. Pam moved slowly around the table. She tentatively poked at the duffle bag, which rewarded her with an interesting papery crackle in response.
“Curiouser and curiouser,” Pam muttered to herself. She ran her hand over the smooth vinyl of the suitcase and up to the catch. Testing it gently, she snatched her hand away in surprise when the catch sprang open.
“Well, if you aren’t even going to lock it,” she murmured. Her mouth dry and her heart thumping in her chest, she laid the suitcase on its side and lifted the lid. The contents of the suitcase were distinctly unremarkable. All Pam found were clothes, books about spirituality, yoga and growing vegetables, and cosmetics. All completely normal. Pam was about to close the lid and retrieve her dignity when a flash of colour—a surprise against the otherwise dull contents —caught her eye. Grasping the corner, she pulled a large yellow envelope out from under the clothes. It was full of money. Pam inhaled sharply. She had never seen so much money! Oh, the things she could do with that amount of money! When Archie died, she thought she would finally have some freedom. Pam hadn’t known about Archie’s love of the ponies, and after paying off his debts all she had to show for a lifetime of drudgery was quite pitiful. She supposed she was lucky to still have a roof over her head. Pam almost wept at the thought of handing the suitcase back now. It was a genuine Pandora’s Box.
There was a hesitant knock at the door. Hastily, Pam slid the envelope back into the suitcase, closed its lid and stood it upright on the table.
“Oh, go away!” she grumbled under her breath. It was Linda.
“Hello, Pamela,” she said, “I’m so sorry, I just got all your messages. I was so flustered when I was here the other day I forgot to tell you where I was going. There’s no mobile reception on site and I worked back to back shifts. By the time I got back to town it was too late to come ‘round. I’m so grateful to you for letting me leave my bags here. I hope they weren’t too much of an inconvenience?”
“Oh! Well, no, it’s been fine. I was just worried when you didn’t come back that day. Come in, they’re through here.”
Linda stepped inside and followed Pam into the living room.
“I can’t tell you again how much I appreciate what you did for me, Pamela. It was so kind of you. My whole life is in those bags.”
“Yes,” said Pamela, adding quickly, “So you said. Cup of tea?”
“Thanks, that would be lovely,” Linda sat down at the table, shoving the bags out of the way.
“Have you found a place to live yet, Linda?”
“Not yet. I guess that’s my next job. After I heard your messages I thought I better come here first and grab my stuff. I can leave them in a locker at the train station for a couple of days if I have to.”
“Will you be able to find somewhere in a couple of days?”
“It’ll be ok. It’s sweet of you to be concerned for me, though. I usually rent a room in someone’s house or apartment because I don’t have a bank account. I do everything on a cash-only basis.”
“No bank account?” Pam asked, “How do you get paid for the work you do, then?”
“There are plenty of jobs out there that will pay cash if you ask. They’re so desperate for hands at some of the sites I work at, they don’t ask too many questions. It’s a bit risky, I guess. You can get laid off without notice, or they make you work extra shifts, but it’s been ok so far. I just hate the way the government keeps track of us with its computer databases of this and that. They have access to so much personal information! I don’t want them to use my information, so I don’t give them any. I like to be 'off-grid'—”
“What about your mobile?” Pamela interrupted.
“It’s pre-paid,”
“Do you have a driver’s license, or passport?”
“Nope,” she smiled.
“But that’s like...like you don’t even exist.”
“Yeah, that’s sort of the idea.” Linda drained her tea cup. “That was lovely. It’s been ages since I had a proper cup of tea.”
Pam smiled at her. “There’s plenty more, let me get you another cup.”
“That’s ok. I've taken up too much of your time—”
“Sit down dear, I won’t be long.”
“Well, ok, as long as it’s not too much trouble. I guess I don’t have anywhere urgent I have to be.”
Pam came back to the table carrying Linda’s tea cup, stirring it gently. She smiled.
“Here you go. Tell me more about yourself. I’ve forgotten how nice it is to have company.”
Once Linda got going on her off-grid lifestyle, she was hard to stop. Pam listened, smiling every now and then, encouraging Linda to continue. She checked her watch. Perfect. Linda finished her tea and stood up to go. She swayed slightly and sat down heavily.
“I’m sorry Pamela, I should really go. I feel a bit weird, though. Maybe I’m coming down with something.”
Pam patted Linda’s hand. “Thank you, dear,” she said, “You have made my day.”
Linda tried to stand up again but her legs wouldn’t move. Her eyes widened in fear as darkness began to envelop her. She clawed at the table to stop herself sliding off the chair, but the shiny laminate didn’t offer her fingers any purchase and she slumped to the floor. Pam cleared away the tea cups, then reached down and felt for a pulse in Linda’s neck. She put the back of her hand close to Linda's mouth to see if she was breathing, just to be sure. Nodding with satisfaction, Pam opened up the suitcase and took out the yellow envelope. She hugged it to her chest and grinned. “Pamela, my love,” she said to herself, “we’re going shopping!”
####
Thank you for reading my story. If you enjoyed it, won’t you please take a moment to leave me a review at your favourite retailer?
Thanks!
Alison Carleton
About the Author
Alison was a scientist who spent long days hunched over a lab bench, moving bits of DNA around and grappling with experimental genetics. Now she spends her days hunched over a keyboard, moving words around and grappling with two of her own genetic experiments. This is her first self-published short story.
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