Tammy: Flying High Part 6: Aiming High & Low Shiraz Turvey & Alecia Snowfall

 
This story follows on from Tammy: Rank Stupidity and Snowfall's Butterflies, Asphalt & Insanity

Part 6: Aiming High & Low

Tammy heard from Heather on Thursday.

“Some good news, Tammy, I have located the plans for the farm site, including the subterranean spaces.”

“That’s excellent.”

“I’ll email them now, but even better, I have some keys for you.”

“Keys?”

“One is for the ground floor lift lobby and the other is for the stairwells.”

“Stairwells? How many?”

“Four, one of which is an emergency exit.”

“How big is it?”

“Over eight hundred square metres of floorspace.”

“Oh.”

“It would seem that the contamination was constrained in two small areas but it was exaggerated so that the entire courtyard, and all the barns, had the floor removed. From the air, apart from one wholly new barn, it’ll look much the same as before.”

“Which is why there were no rumours about a basement level?”

“The security was done really well, and best of all the local government in Caithness knows nothing about the basement, so it won’t be known there.”

“Which no doubt saves a few pounds?”

“Correct, so the site will be valued much lower than it should be.”

Very interesting, thank you, Heather. You mentioned keys?”

“I located them in London and had them sent directly to you yesterday.”

“That’s really useful, I guess I ought to try to work out how to buy it?”

“Indeed.”

Wider site plan

Enlarged

Basement

Tammy examined the plans that had arrived and tried to place the large underground spaces with the topside buildings. She recalled seeing locked security doors in the barns but one exit came out in the farmhouse cellar? She needed to revisit the site and to have a walk unhindered by Mary and Maisie.

Downstairs the doorbell rang. Tammy made her way to the kitchen door.

“Hi Dad, coffee?”

“Please, are you in a hurry?”

“No, and I can guess why you’re here.”

Tammy suggested they went to that house’s cellar and used the comfortable seating.

“Firstly, sorry.”

“Dad, that wasn’t your fault.”

“Sorry, Tammy, but in a way it was. I got home on Tuesday pretty wound up. There had been questions after you left the meeting, and I wasn’t able to say any more than you had already said. I got home and mentioned it, Joan then got me to tell her exactly what happened, but she was already wound up because of Suzie’s call at the weekend. I wish I hadn’t tabled that question?”

“We can all call upon hindsight but it never changes the past, Dad. She’s lost out, did you give her our news?”

“No, and I won’t. That’s down to you and Maisie still. How did Thomas take it?”

“Calmly and with a few questions.”

“The complete opposite of last night?”

“Yes.” Look, Dad, does Mum need some help?”

“Do you mean therapy?”

“Yes. Two of her daughters work for or with the security service and I work with other agencies. I’m going to have to report that Mum is a risk to us, as she keeps finding ways to blame me for something. This needs to be resolved before nasty things start happening.”

“I understand, do you think that’s a real risk?”

“Yes, and unfortunately that means I can no longer give you seemingly innocent information as there’s a risk it will be shared by mum.”

“I wouldn’t do that deliberately?”

“Even so, the risk is too high at present.”

“So I have to get Joan sorted before normality returns?”

“At a minimum, yes. Just remember, because of what Suzie and I do, because of the school and your financial history, Joan had heard us discuss small matters. We have to assume that she could repeat some or our words to a shrink in a coherent way that could be damaging to all of us.”

“So a normal NHS shrink isn’t a good idea?”

“Correct. If she agrees, but right now it needs to be voluntary, then we need to work together to get her the best help.”

“Do you have an idea?”

“Yes, and I used it once before, but I had to pull in some favours. It might not be so easy next time.”

“Understood. Please pass on my apologies to Maisie, is she out working?”

“Yes, she still has a full schedule and will do for many months. But mum mustn’t know that otherwise she’ll interfere – she could say enough for our baby to be removed immediately after birth by social services.”

“Oh. Is that a real possibility, Tammy?”

“With the amount of venom aimed in my direction, it’s definitely possible. If necessary we keep this pregnancy from her until well after the birth.”

“That’s a hard idea to agree with, Tammy.”

“Dad, I’m sure she says that I’m not her natural daughter, whilst Suzie is, so how much further would it be for me not to be natural in any sense? Tell that to enough folk and it becomes dangerous to live here.”

“You can protect yourself?”

“Yes, Dad, but I have no wish to kill anyone, again, and it’s best to avoid getting into conflict.”

“I’d forgotten about that horrible woman, Anita Gore, that was three years ago at David’s funeral.”

“I ended up going through the mill with the shrinks myself after that. I don’t need that little snippet of my history being raised, and that’s my own fault this time.”

“Look, Tammy, let’s keep in touch. Cathy is hosting a summer party the weekend after next, can you be there?”

“Mum will be there?”

“Yes, but would she make a scene at a party?”

“Dad, you know she would.”

“I suppose I do.”

Tammy’s phone rang barely a minute after Richard had left her home.

“Tammy, we need to talk about security.”

“Yes Lyssa, I know. Did you hear what was said last night?”

“I did, and you did well to constrain yourself, but your stepmother is a loose cannon. She has the potential to do a hell of load of damage to yourself, to Maisie, and everyone who is associated with you.”

“Lyssa, I know, and I don’t like shutting Dad out of my life but I can’t currently trust him not to say anything that she might use as a weapon.”

“You were right to be concerned about your baby.”

“I thought I was being harsh, but it’s a real risk?”

“Correct. Look, we value you, we have put a load of investment into you, but we will cut you loose and destroy you ourselves if the risk is too great.”

“Yes, Lyssa.”

“But if you can get your stepmother some help, that will help.”

“Yes, Lyssa. I’ll make enquiries.”

“Good, Paul Dannigan will see you on Tuesday.”

“Oh?”

“You have a conference scheduled, be there.”

The line went dead, and Tammy had been left with no illusions.

Tammy spent the next day back in the office and apologised to Joey for not being there much that week.

“I finished that research yesterday morning, so I caught up with everything else. Can I finish early today?”

“Sure, Joey, but first can you talk me through your results?”

“I have it all on paper?”

“Tell me about it.”

“Okay, there’s a four acre site to the South West of town that has old sheds on it. That’s got housing on two sides and businesses on the other sides, it’s also on a hill. That’s been on sale for six months so far.”

“So not level, near houses and needs site clearance?”

“Yes. Next one is up by your old school. It’s not in the school grounds but is adjacent, I think it was a radar site during the last war as it’s right on the coast. There’s nothing there apart from some concreted ground. There’s suggestion of an underground area but the agents say that’s all been sealed off. It’s being sold for the Ministry of Defence. That came on the market a year ago.”

“Very exposed and you would have to ensure the ground was secure. How close is it to the school?”

“Half a mile from the boundary.”

“Too close. Next?”

“There’s a small farm just off the Wick road, it was being sold for residential development. That is under offer at the moment.”

“Okay, so keep an eye on that one, and I’ll have a look at the paperwork.”

“Finally, there’s another farm, and it’s a huge site, but can’t be used for farming due to contamination. That came on the market just two days ago. It’s just off the A9 not far from Tesco.”

“Really? Does it have any residential buildings?”

“A farmhouse and some odd barn that looks out over, over nothing. As I said there’s contamination so there’s plenty that can’t be done there. It last changed hands in 2010 for a hundred thousand.”

“Who’s the agents?”

“Crown agents, in London.”

“Oh, okay.”

“What are you planning, Tammy?”

“Nothing right now, but I’d like to expand the business a little beyond rentals. It’s the right time of year to visit places like this.”

Joey put the pile of paperwork, including her notes, on Tammy’s desk.

“Feel free to take a look, but I can’t see a business plan there.”

“Maybe there is, maybe there isn’t, Joey? Did you want to go? Start your weekend now?”

“Sure, and that bonus you promised?”

“I paid it this morning.”

“Thank you, Tammy.”

Tammy’s phone rang as Joey was readying herself to leave.

“Good morning Commander?”

“Captain, you haven’t responded to orders?”

“I haven’t received any orders.”

“Well, they were sent?”

“Did you ensure everyone knew I was no longer suspended?”

“Ah.”

“I’ll see on Tuesday, I presume?”

“You said you hadn’t received orders?”

“I haven’t, but another source suggested I needed to be somewhere on Tuesday and I guess that’s Catterick?”

“Do we have a security breach?”

“No, because I trust that source. Regardless, could you please email me those orders?”

“I will, Captain. Out.”

The line went dead. Tammy looked around, finding Joey stood by the office door.

“That didn’t sound like an easy conversation?”

“It wasn’t, and I doubt I’ll enjoy that day out next week?”

“Why do you do it, Tammy, everything you do?”

“I don’t know Joey.”

“Then why continue?”

“Because there’s some aspects I really enjoy, I like helping people, I enjoy seeing new sights and I like being thanked.”

“Those are ups, what about the downs?”

“Other people organise my life, I seem to annoy people regularly, I’m taken for granted and being thrown into situations that I’m not trained for.”

“Just like me then?”

“Eh?”

“Tammy, what you just described is what passes as normal life? Earlier this week you threw some research at me unexpected and then just abandon me for a few days. I handle all the enquires and get the rough with the smooth. Okay I’m handing a desk, phones and a PC whilst you have all of those plus a plane and whatever else you can do?”

“So why do I do it?”

“Because you make a difference, you’re also not completely difficult to work with, well, not completely.”

Tammy suggested she and Maisie took a walk that evening, so Maisie instead suggested a run before they ate. Maisie’s idea won out but Tammy deliberately left her phone indoors as they locked the door.

They ran down to the river, crossed it and followed paths near the swimming pool. They took a break, at Tammy’s suggestion, and sat on a bench.

Tammy tried miming.

“What are you on about?”

Tammy tried again, this time Maisie took her phone out of her bum bag and turned it off.

“Okay, what’s all that about?”

“We are being watched, supervised, much more than I’m comfortable with and I want to bring you up to date without being overheard.”

“Okay, but who spooked you?”

“Lyssa.”

“You definitely don’t want to get onto her bad side?”

“Yes, and her beef was with my family, my step mum in particular.”

“Even though we’ve agreed not to tell her about our baby?”

“That and more, I now can’t tell father anything in case he repeats any of it to her.”

“But he was cleared?”

“Let’s assume, for now, he isn’t.”

“Damn. Where do we stand with my father?”

“He knows you’re pregnant but we don’t tell him anything our operational life, only that sometimes we’re away.”

“He was army, he understands deployments. He also knows when to keep his mouth shut.”

Tammy grimaced. “I know, and I used to think the same about my own father.”

“That’s not his fault, I can see that much. I saw the party invite, do we go?”

“Who knows you’re expecting?”

“Apart from Dr Adi, and the Colonel, just a few of my fitness clients, those for whom I have long term programmes. Plus my Dad, and yours.”

“How do we resolve this, Maisie?”

“I honestly don’t know? Is your mum having a breakdown?”

“Maybe, I don’t know, but she needs help before we’re out of commission.”

“Is that a risk?”

“Yes, and it needs to be resolved before I buy that farm site, otherwise I’m going to be sitting on the biggest pile of bovine excretion in Thurso.”

“Oh.”

“I’ll accompany you on Monday but I’ll want to have a look around whilst you are with Mary.”

“If she’s happy with you doing so?”

“I’ve been in touch with the agents in London and advised them that’s what I want to do, Mary should have been told.”

“Oh, so you’re moving forward?”

“For now, yes. I’m at Catterick on Tuesday so I expect I’ll have to give them a full report.”

“Am I needed?”

“Not unless you have received orders? Similarly I wasn’t told to bring Lizzie so I’ll go by myself.”

“Okay Tammy, so what about the wedding? Do we really need to fly everyone out to a tropical island?”

“Not really.”

“So why not have it here, in Thurso, and we’ll then just take ourselves off on honeymoon. It’s much easier to plan.”

“So long as my mum doesn’t ruin it just before we say ‘I do’?”

Maisie giggled. “True.”

“I’ll need help to plan this, so is it okay if I ask Cathy to help organise it?”

“So long as I can be there when you speak to her, and I can veto it?”

“You don’t really know Cathy?”

“I don’t, so don’t take it personally if I’m careful about who is going to make my, our, special day extra special?”

“I understand.”

“Good, because I don’t have a better plan right now!”

“Okay, Maisie, what about our honeymoon?”

“Is there somewhere on this planet we can go where we won’t be shot at or forced to do PT?”

“Maybe?”

Maisie pulled Tammy up, then kissed her.

“Sprint!”

They were back indoor under fifteen minuted later. The security panel was flashing a warning.

“Take your phone!”

“Can I have some privacy?” Asked Tammy out loud,

“No.” Responded the panel.

Tammy found Maisie in the shower.

“Sorry, Maisie, I was told off.”

“I thought that was my job?”