Free Guardian by Dan Gleed Page A

from the kitchen, arms spattered with flour and the cheerful sounds of the kitchen workers rolling about her like a comfortable mantle.
    â€œHi, darling, welcome home.” She rounded the plain oak dining table and gestured towards the heavy old sofa where most of the family business took place. “Dad told me you were walking home. Did it help?”
    Roz looked at her Mum and, with courage gained from the still-fresh memory of what she had already come to regard as a profound and significant spiritual experience, decided she had to confide her decision and risk a possible confrontation. After all, without her parents’ consent, she couldn’t even raid her bank account and unless she could buy a train ticket, there was precious little she could do.
    â€œMum, I can’t stop thinking about Paul. Why hasn’t he contacted anyone – his family or even me? Suppose he’s hurt and can’t get to a phone? Suppose – suppose he really is dead?” With the dam broken, the words continued to pour out of her. “I’ve been so worried and Bob Moncton obviously won’t do anything, and Paul’s mum is too afraid. Someone has to try something – find him, or at least discover what happened. The police obviously think he killed those two Askaris and that’s awful. I just know he’d never do anything like that. So it seems to me that if I don’t do something, no one else will. I’ve got to find him, warn him, before the police get to him. What if he doesn’t realise quite how serious they are and tries to run if they find him? The way they’re advertising this crime, they might well shoot him. If that happened and I was just sitting here doing nothing, I couldn’t live with myself.”
    Vera looked carefully at her eldest child and saw in the set of her jaw and the force of her gaze something of herself at the same age and her heart went out to the grieving young woman, who at just nineteen was barely old enough to leave home, let alone antagonise the police. But it was clear she was already maturing beyond her years. Even so, she would have said something, but, with barely a pause, Roz rushed on.
    â€œWhen I was walking home I stopped in the church for a bit. I needed to get things sorted out in my mind and it just seemed the right place to be. Mum, while I was sitting there I had the strangest feeling. I was sure someone good was there with me, watching and listening, even though I didn’t speak out loud. I didn’t feel afraid or anything, I just knew that whoever it was understood me. It felt so right. Anyway, I’ve made up my mind. Paul could be anywhere between here and Mombasa, but the chances are he’s gone right down to the coast and so that’s where I’m going to start. He told me once it’s where he’d go if he ever needed to get away from everything and if I don’t find him there, I’ll work my way back up country to Nairobi. Somewhere, someone will know something about him. He can’t just vanish into thin air. But, Mum, I need your help. I need you and Dad to let me go. I’ve got some money saved up, so I can pay for my ticket and it won’t cost you anything. Please say yes.”
    Vera sighed and reached her arm around Roz, knowing it was pointless to try to stop her. “OK. Your father won’t be any happier than I am, but I’ll fix that. We’ll get you to the station in time for tomorrow morning’s train. Now get on and pack while I talk to your father.”

Chapter 15

    The long drawn-out squeal of brakes and erratic banging of wagons as they caught up with each other brought me abruptly round from yet another exhausted catnap. Right through that long night beyond Nairobi I had drifted in and out of consciousness. Hungry, thirsty, I remained unable to find any relief from the increasing pain of my tightly bound limbs as they chaffed against the ropes restraining all