Running Rings Page 8

  The Police had arrested the man with her bag by the time she’d caught up to them and he was being put in the back of a car. “Thank you so much, Officer.”

  “Can you come down to the station and make a statement, please?” the Police Officer asked.

  “Um, is that necessary? I have my bag back,” Verity replied.

  “He needs to be charged and your statement will help,” the Officer replied, “He’ll go in the car with my colleague but we can walk rather than waiting for another car. It’s only a few blocks.”

  “Okay,” Verity sighed. She walked with the Police Officer down the street and wondered what being inside a Police Station was going to be like. She had spoken to a few Police Officers but they had been kind enough to visit her in hospital and at her apartment. The Police Officer hadn’t spoken to her as they walked, except once to say that it wasn’t much further. She walked up the steps of the Station and turned around. She knew where she was now and hadn’t really paid attention to the fact that there was a Police Station there. It was good to know. She walked up the steps and in through the automatic doors, noticing it was rather old inside and looked like it could do with some fresh paint. Officers looked at her as she passed by and she wondered if they thought she was a criminal.

  “Everything okay here?”

  Verity turned around to see who had spoken from the doorway of an office. It was Adrian. She felt ridiculously happy to see him, and smiled big.

  “Yes, Senior Sergeant, just taking a statement,” the Officer replied.

  “Are you sure she’s not a criminal?” Adrian replied, “She looks a little shifty.”

  Verity smiled again and Adrian winked at her.

  “No, definitely not,” the Officer said, “She almost lost her bag but we were in the right place at the right time.”

  “There’s nothing especially useful in there, but it’d be sad if I lost my novels. I was going to start one tonight and the bookstore would be closed before I got back there,” Verity said, “And obviously losing any way to purchase said novels would not be good either. Or losing my keys, I need those to go home. And my phone… okay, there actually are some especially useful things in there after all.” She couldn’t believe how dumb she just sounded.

  Adrian smiled at her, and Verity shrugged.

  “Right this way, ma’am,” the Officer said.

  Verity followed him down the corridor and turned back to see if Adrian was still there. He was, so she smiled at him again. He was too cute. The Officer led her into a room and sat her down at a table. He asked her to complete a form and he’d be back with some photographs. Verity thought this was quite an elaborate process for a bag that hadn’t been completely stolen, but she did as she was asked. So far it was just demographic information.

  “Sorry about the wait,” the Officer said, entering the room again, “I have some photographs here. I have to print these fresh every time, you know, change up the numbers and things.”

  “No, no idea, this is my first time doing this,” Verity said, “But I find it interesting. I like watching Police drama shows, and reading novels about crime and mystery.”

  “They’re not always accurate, but they can be entertaining,” the Officer said.

  “As a previous victim of crime, I’m aware of that, and I have absolute respect and admiration for the work you do,” Verity said.

  “That’s lovely,” he said, and smiled at her.

  Verity looked at his face and thought he was nice looking. He had a nice smile. She looked at his badge, “It’s true, Constable Roberts. Now what would you like me to do with your photos?”

  “Right, well, I’m just going to put this here, and I’d like you to tell me which man took your bag. Don’t worry about whether you’re right or wrong, just look carefully at the pictures and tell me the number below the one you think it is.”

  Verity nodded and looked at the twenty four black and white pictures on the A4 sheet of photo paper. “It’s number nine.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, number nine.”

  “Excellent, you are absolutely correct. It was number nine,” Constable Roberts said, “Next I’d just like you to answer the questions on this sheet that I ask. Don’t leave any gaps or spaces.” He slid the piece of paper across the table towards himself and picked up a pen.

  Verity watched him write on the lines and then hand the paper back to her. She read his first question. “Did the assailant say anything to you? Yes, he did, he said –”

  “Sorry, I want you to write it down on the paper,” Constable Roberts said.

  Verity laughed, “Yes, you did just say that, didn’t you? Sorry.” Verity picked up the pen and wrote her answer.

  “You’re a lefty,” he said, “Me too.”

  Verity smiled and slid the paper back to him, and they repeated this process a few more times. Constable Roberts took a different piece of paper from the desk drawer and wrote on it. He slid it across the table and Verity picked it up. She read the piece of paper and looked across the table at him. “Should I write the answer down for this one, or say it out loud?”

  “Either way is fine for this question,” Constable Roberts replied, “Even though I could be in a lot of trouble for asking.”

  “Yes, I would,” Verity said.

  Constable Roberts smiled, “And this is your correct phone number on your witness statement?”

  “Yes it is,” Verity replied, “I wouldn’t lie to the Police.”

  “You’ve been extremely helpful, ma’am,” he replied, “I’ll just show you out.”

  “Thank you,” Verity replied, standing up. She watched Constable Roberts walk around the table, open the door and gesture for her to go out. He followed her down the hall and she wondered if he was checking her out. She hoped so. Being checked out by a handsome Police Officer was something she’d be happy about. She walked by the offices and was mindful not to look in the doors. Constable Roberts escorted her out the automatic doors and down the steps where he stopped and looked around.

  “So, when would be a good time for you?”

  “I work until five, Monday to Thursday, and I have no other commitments.”

  “Could I take you to lunch on Friday, maybe?”

  “Sure, just give me a call or a text and we’ll work it out,” Verity replied.

  “Thank you,” he nodded, and looked around again. He smiled and walked back up the steps of the Police Station. He turned around at the top and smiled at her again.

  Verity couldn’t believe that an attractive Police Officer had just asked her out. She now knew two attractive Police Officers. She looked around and reorientated herself to where she was and which direction she needed to go in order to go home. Walking down the street, Verity wondered if the fact that she was already in love with someone meant that she shouldn’t be seeing other people for meals or admiring how nice they were to look at either. She hadn’t seen him since October the year before last. She had expected him in December for their graduation, but he never came. By February she was a hostage, by May she was released, in November she had her first job and now it was January again. She’d kept the same phone number. It wasn’t hard for him to pick up his phone and call her, unless he’d lost her number. Maybe he lost her number. He should know her number. She knew his mobile number off by heart. No one ever answered it and then it was disconnected, but she knew it.

  “Wait up.”

  Verity turned around and someone was hurrying towards her. “Constable Roberts, did I forget something?”

  “No,” he said, “I got them to let me off my shift a little early. I thought if you were free we could go out somewhere now instead.”

  “You’re very keen,” Verity said, “And I see you changed some of your clothes.”

  “It’s not every day that I meet a woman so pretty with a hint of attitude and an interest in crime,” he said.

  “Thank you, I think you’re handsome. I don’t know anything else about you ye
t, not even your first name.”

  “Sorry, it’s Brandon, Brandon Roberts.”

  “Okay, Brandon, so where would you like to go?”

  “Somewhere quiet so we can talk and I can get to know you a bit, see how it goes. There’s actually a little Thai place not too far away, but it might be in the wrong direction for you. Um, Italian?”

  “Sure, I like Italian,” Verity replied.

  “Great,” he said, “This way.”

  Verity walked along beside Brandon and they talked about movies and books. Brandon said that he liked playing chess, but didn’t get to play it very often. He asked if she was familiar with the big chess set in the park that the council had set up. She wasn’t. He asked if she liked to play. She said that she hadn’t played in a few years, but could give it a go.

  After a few street changes, Brandon stopped outside an Italian restaurant and opened the door for her. Verity inhaled the scent of garlic and tomato, and it made her hungry. She followed him to a table and admired the tablecloth. She thought it was funny that it actually had a red and white tablecloth. Brandon ordered the pasta special for two and a bottle of lemonade.

  “So, Verity, what do you do for a living?”

  “I currently work at First Bank as a teller, but I have a degree in commerce.”

  “Are you good with numbers?”

  “I hope so. Otherwise they may take my degree back and set fire to it.”

  Brandon laughed, “I like maths, which is nerdy, I know, but I like numbers. They don’t lie, right?”

  “I’m not sure if that’s always true. I think scales can be pretty inaccurate. They tell you you’re fat when you don’t feel it.”

  “You’re not fat, you’re actually quite thin. But I hope you have a good appetite because the meals are huge here.”

  “I do have a good appetite, and I do feel thin. I have trouble putting on weight for some reason. I never used to, but I do now. And what I meant about the scales is that people are told they should fit a certain weight range for their height, but the fact is that particular weights don’t necessarily suit all people of the same height. Some people carry it differently.”

  Brandon smiled, “I like that attitude. I think that people should definitely not be type-cast or made to conform to an ideal. I’m an identical twin, but I’m thinner than my brother.”

  “You’re an identical twin? That must be so much fun.”

  “Yeah, it can be. People expect us to be the same, but we’re really different. I mean, sure, we look basically the same, but as people we’re different. And I say basically the same because he has a different nose to me due to misadventure.”

  Verity laughed, “Yours or his?”

  “His,” Brandon nodded, “He broke his nose badly and so it’s broader across here than mine.”

  “I’ve had my nose broken. I can’t really tell much difference but I think side on there’s a bump there that wasn’t there before. A friend of mine broke his twice and definitely ended up with a different nose than he started with,” Verity said.

  “Brandon?”

  Brandon and Verity looked at the woman beside the table.

  “Jen, hi,” Brandon said.

  Verity looked at Brandon and back at the woman.

  “How have you been? I haven’t seen you for ages,” the woman said.

  Brandon stood up and hugged her, “I’m good. How are you? You look terrific.”

  “I feel terrific,” she said, “Are you on a date?”

  “Yes, I am,” Brandon said.

  “Oh,” Jen said, “Sorry. I’ll just go back over here and get takeaway. You should give me a call sometime. Hang on, I’ll write my number down for you.”

  Verity looked at Brandon. He was watching Jen walk away. Verity turned to look at Jen. She knew what Brandon was looking at, and it looked nothing like what she had. “Brandon, if you’d prefer to have dinner with Jen, it’s fine.”

  “Sorry, no, I just haven’t seen her in a while. We went out for a bit. It’s not easy being a Police Officer, the days on rotation, the shifts, she was cool with it, but she went off to do a course somewhere or something. She gave pretty good … Sorry. I went off on a tangent there. Back to you, so are you going to continue working in the bank?”

  “No, I’d like to get a job in the financial district.”

  “You have to wear power suits and shoulder pads to work down there, don’t you? From what I gather it’s pretty competitive.”

  Verity nodded, “Yes, I think it is. I have to start somewhere though. Banks are obviously related to money, so it’s useful experience.”

  “Here’s my number,” Jen said, putting a piece of paper in front of them, “Call me any time.”

  Brandon nodded and put the piece of paper in his pocket. He watched Jen walk away again and looked back at Verity. “This is embarrassing. Has that ever happened to you? You’re out with someone and someone you weren’t expecting shows up and stuffs everything up?”

  Verity smiled, “No, but it might one day. Listen, I think that you’re enjoying the rear view of Jen a lot and thinking about whatever great thing she gave you, so maybe you two should spend the evening together.”

  “No, no, sorry, no. That’s dick-thinking. She has a big arse and she gives good head, but there’s more to a relationship than that. If you want to have a serious relationship with someone then it needs to be formed on something better than that. We already stopped seeing each other a few times. If she starts getting possessive, it cools off. We only catch up if we need a shag and nothing else. I just hadn’t seen her in a while. She’d probably be up for it, and I have her number again, so back to you.”

  “Does that work out?” Verity asked.

  “Which part?”

  “Having a friend that you can have sex with but not expect to have a relationship with. Like if there was a man I wanted to have sex with but not cramp his style, could I just tell him straight up that I wanted to have a relationship like that?”

  Brandon smiled, “I’m happy to be that guy.”

  Verity laughed, “That’s sweet, but I thought you were looking for a serious relationship.”

  “I am. I’m trying to find someone I could marry and have kids with, but in the meanwhile it’s nice to have someone that you can be physically close to. The only trouble is if one of you starts falling for the other one and you have totally different expectations about where the relationship is going. That can end in tears and ruin a decent friendship. I’ve had that happen before.”

  Verity looked at the pasta as it arrived on the table. It was certainly a generous helping. “Do you, um, do you know that other Officer well?”

  “Which one?”

  “The one who spoke to us from his office,” Verity said.

  “Yeah, I do. He’s a funny bloke, very disciplined. And fit like you wouldn’t believe. He probably would have caught that bag-snatcher faster than me today and I’m bloody fast. I was a State Champion. He sprints though. I reckon I could beat him over a longer distance.”

  “He’s also hot,” Verity said, and put her hand over her mouth, “I just said that out loud. That was dirty thinking, wasn’t it?”

  Brandon laughed, “Not at all. I was checking out a woman’s arse in her micro skirt. Now if you said he had a nice dick and you wanted to ride it, that’d be a little dirty.”

  Verity smiled, “Do you think he’d go in for a relationship like that? He’s not married or anything is he?”

  “Isn’t he a bit old for you?” Brandon asked, “He’s over thirty.”

  Verity shrugged, “That’s not old.”

  “I think he can get sex whenever he wants to, just like you could, so why would you want to just do that with one person if you had the opportunity to get it anywhere? You could try all sorts of people, and find out what you like and what you don’t, and start narrowing down your search.”

  “I guess so. It was just a question. He’s nice looking, but also really sexy.”

&n
bsp; “Yeah he is, bastard. He’s had more women than I’ve had hot dinners. I don’t think he can walk down the street without seeing someone he’s boned. The man has a gift that makes the rest of us jealous.”

  Verity smiled and nodded. She had thought maybe they had a spark or something, but it was just a one-night stand and she should accept that. It was her first one-night stand and she hadn’t thought about the fact that it might not be his. It had been nice to see him again though. She’d felt happy and excited just looking at him. She could tell that he was genuinely a nice person, and the way he treated her was more than just so he could get sex because he was also happy not to have sex that night. Verity realised that if he did that kind of thing all the time, it was obviously nothing special on his part despite how much it had meant to her. She listened to Brandon’s way of thinking as they ate, and they had some similar views. During dessert she advised him that she was not looking for a serious relationship, she’d like to be his friend, but she would consider his offer about hooking up for sex and let him know.

  Chapter 9

  There were currently some interesting people in Verity’s life. She chatted to the people at work during breaks and had befriended some staff in the local cafés. She went out with Nicole who she’d met in the rape counselling group and had met some of her friends who seemed like fun-loving people. She’d been going out socially with both Brandon and Brad for two months now too, and they were completely different people with no similarities at all. Brandon was a perfect gentleman and even though he made the occasional joke about sex, it was never in a sleazy way. He was going to be a good husband one day based on what they talked about. Brad on the other hand seemed to have some weird ideas about love and sex, and he’d directly asked her for sex regularly. She’d taught him how to be a much better kisser and he said he was happy to just come and watch a movie or talk and kiss a little. She didn’t want to be in a relationship with him, and she’d told him that several times, but she had trouble saying no to going places with him because he kept buying her gifts and pleading with her. She thought he was hopeless in a way. He always called her his girlfriend, but she wasn’t. Then he joked and said she was a girl and she was his friend. He was in her apartment right now, and announced that he had another present for her. She watched him walk to his backpack and come back with a box, put it on the coffee table and smile at her. She looked at the box and back at him.