Whatever Happened to Charley's Aunt - Chapter 06 of 10

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It started as a simple, if strange, request: "I want you to play the part of my great-aunt," said Charley Hawkins, the sexiest girl at Seacombe University.

It turned into a hunt for Charley's Aunt, who had disappeared almost fifty years ago.

This story is complete and will be published in ten chapters at approximately daily intervals.

Author's Note: This is a light-hearted, cross-dressing mystery story, written in my normal style, which I hope you enjoy. It does contain references to adult themes, and some of its characters have little sympathy with the Catholic Church. Please don't read if you feel this will upset you.

CHAPTER 6
MONDAY

"I went to Seacombe Secondary Modern, rather than the snotty Girls' Grammar School," Doreen said, "so I didn't know Samantha until we met on a CND coach going to the Aldermaston march. That was in 1963, the last of the Aldermaston marches, and we became instant friends. Amazingly, so did our mothers who were like chalk and cheese, and they were always going round to each other's houses for tea, whilst we were at school."

"So you were all in the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament?" Sam asked.

They had met up in a fish and chip café in Seacombe for lunch, and he was already regretting wearing another minidress, and having to endure the leering looks he was getting from most of the male clientele.

"Not Sir George, obviously," Doreen said.

"Why obviously?"

"Didn't you know about his company?"

Sam cast his mind back to the previous lunch time. "Er, EPCC – The English Punch Card Company?"

"They became Epic Computers by then, and they had a contract with the Ministry of Defence to supply computers for the Polaris submarines."

"So he was supplying equipment for Britain's nuclear deterrent," Sam said, "whilst his wife and daughter were in CND. That must have been embarrassing."

"He kept quiet about his company's involvement to his family, and probably vice-versa, until one evening Samantha quite innocently looked for a pen in his briefcase and found an MOD contract there. The shit hit the fan."

"When was this in relation to her disappearance?" Sam asked.

"A couple of weeks before," Doreen said. "Samantha was livid, whilst he took the line that she had been quite happy enjoying the money he got from contract, including that lovely little Lotus that you arrived in just now." They both glanced outside to where it was parked at the kerb opposite.

"Obviously, Samantha told all her CND friends, and that must have got back through the Special Branch spy they had in every CND group." Her eyes took on rather a glazed look as she added, "You can't believe it now, but the establishment was terrified by a load of harmless pacifists in duffel coats.

"Anyway," Doreen continued, "they obviously regarded Samantha as a security risk, and were terrified she was going to make some kind of announcement at the debutante presentation. They got Sir George and Edward out of the way on the day, and as soon as Mrs Harper went into town, they knocked on the door and arrested her. Samantha would have gone quietly, thinking that a few words from Daddy and she'd be released. Of course she didn't realise that was the end of her life."

"Was there a trial?"

"Who knows? If there was, it was all held in camera. It was obviously imperative that Sir George knew nothing about it, as everyone was aware how he doted on Samantha. If he realised what had happened to her, he'd have torn up the Polaris contract and to hell with the consequences. Which meant that the first Polaris submarine would be delayed and Britain would be under a continued threat from the Russians – in their eyes.

"Of course, we all told him what had happened and he thought we were just mischief-making at an incredibly sensitive time."

"So what do you think happened to Samantha?"

"She was either secretly imprisoned for life, or she was executed."

"But you don't have any evidence of this," Sam said.

"That's what Sir George said, of course, but don't forget that meeting set up on the Saturday morning was with the MOD civil servants. Can you possibly imagine civil servants meeting on a weekend? With it being the same day as Samantha's presentation, Sir George must have tried like crazy to delay the meeting but they wouldn't let him."

"Or perhaps," Sam suggested, "there was some important problem with the Epic computer which had to be resolved?"

"That's just what Sir George said," Doreen replied. "He just refused to see the truth."

***

That evening, Sam told GG about Doreen's ideas, and asked for his reaction.

He shrugged. "Fifty years ago, I thought it was all poppycock. We British simply didn't behave like Doreen was suggesting. I thought she was out of her mind."

"And now?" Sam asked.

GG shook his head. "I don't know. There have been too many guilty secrets discovered over the years. Now, we all know that is exactly how the establishment would behave. Did they behave that way to my daughter? I hope to God they did not. Being raped and murdered by a sex maniac would be preferable to that. But, whatever it is, I really hope you get to the bottom of it. It's time for closure."

He hesitated for a second and then said, "I have a confession to make. It was my idea to prevent you going back to your family for Easter. I asked Charley if there was any way she could delay you and she came up with this idea of a special gel. I know it was underhand, but I'll make certain you're recompensed."

Sam smiled and walked over to him. "You know, I thought yesterday that you didn't seem at all surprised about me being stuck like this for a couple of weeks. Any innocent person would have been asking questions and demanding to speak to Charley and telling her to sort it out.

"Am I mad at you?" Sam continued. He leant over and gave GG a kiss on the cheek. "Being here is a hundred times better than being at home in an empty house, with nothing to do except boring course work. So thank you, Daddy, for making this happen for me." He gave GG a kiss on his other cheek.

"What I would like to know, though," Sam continued, "is why you had a debutante presentation for Samantha in the first place. The queen had ceased the ceremony a decade previously; the sixties were all about what was fashionable then, rather than looking back to the fifties; and you don't appear to me someone who is wedded to outdated traditions. So why did you hold it?"

"A good question," GG replied. "I think Veronica Makepeace originally suggested it to Samantha. She'd had one a couple of years previously, before she went to college and it had been great. So Samantha took up the idea and I went along with it, simply as a good excuse for a party."

"On Saturday," Sam said, "three of the 'girls' being presented were clearly contemporaries of Samantha; I've met Christine Walters and Doreen McCallum but I can't even think what the third one looks like. Who was she?"

GG snorted. "So often people grow up in the image that goes with their names. The third debutante was Mildred Brown. Mary knew her mother, Maureen, through the church, and she insisted that Mildred be invited. I think Samantha had probably met her a few times at Catechism classes – that's the Catholic equivalent of Sunday School ¬¬- although she didn't go to them for long."

"This was at the Catholic Church in Seacombe?" Sam asked.

"That's right," GG said. "St Joseph's. Maureen Brown used to be the cleaner there, so Mary was perpetually meeting her, and often her daughter was there as well, which is why Mary invited her to the debutante presentation. Maureen retired years ago and Mildred took over her job. If you wanted to speak with Mildred, going to the church would be the easiest way to find her, since she's there every morning."

Sam nodded and said, "Perhaps I'll go over there tomorrow morning."

"It might be better if you're going to church," GG said, nodding down at her dress, "to wear clothes which are a little less revealing. I know Samantha didn't really do modest clothes, but you could probably find something with a higher neckline, and perhaps a hat?"

"OK," Sam smiled. The things girls had to continually think about.

"Incidentally," GG said, "I've ordered a credit card for you. It's a company card so I can get it in your new name without having to produce ID. It should make buying things a lot easier. It will probably arrive sometime tomorrow. In the meantime, here's a couple of hundred pounds to be going on with. You're on expenses now, so let me know when it's about to run out. OK?"

"Well…" Sam was embarrassed at taking money, but GG was rich and Sam was working for him, "Thank you. That's really helpful.

"There is someone else I would like to see," he continued. "Steve Baines. Do you know how I can contact him?"

"He's an estate agent," GG said. "So it's anybody's guess where you'll find him. Even if he's supposedly at work, there's little guarantee you'll find him in the office. Best thing is to give him a ring at Peacock and Baines, the estate agents, and arrange an appointment. Before you meet him…" He tailed off, leaving his statement unfinished.

"Before I meet him?"

"There's something you should know about him, Barry Jones and you," GG said. "Something I haven't told anyone before."

Sam's interest was piqued. Something GG had never told to anyone? "What is it?"

Thank you enjoy.jpg

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