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Chapter 51
"Hi Barry!" Gerda's voice sounded guarded. I'd expected more enthusiasm and I'd also expected to be let in straightaway but she was keeping me standing with my face pressed against the speaking unit of the door answer phone.
Behind me, the traffic roared its way through the side streets of Fulham and halfway up the building, Gerda seemed distant and reserved.
"I'm off to the south of France on holiday and thought I'd come round and say goodbye before I went."
"I hope you enjoy your holiday!" She sounded formal and cold; not the friendly Gerda I was used to.
"Er, that's very kind of you. Can you let me in so we can talk a little more easily?"
"Why do you want to come in? If you're off to the south of France, hadn't you better get going?"
"I've come round to see you - won't you let me in?"
The large black shiny door that I was leaning against suddenly opened catching me unawares. A gray-suited businessman hurried down the steps and avoided my eye as I struggled to recover my balance.
The blonde haired lady that had let him out was wearing a loose fitted robe and little else and almost got the door closed before I squeezed my way inside. But Gerda who had anticipated my move, met me halfway up the stairs and sent me back down again.
As I exited the door, a teenage boy in jeans and sweater was coming in and took the steps two at a time to be welcomed by a brunette on the first floor landing. The social life here seemed pretty busy. It was just me who wasn't welcome.
Gerda's hair had changed. It was very short now and spiked with gel. The black T-shirt and jeans suited her but the black eye make-up was a bit extreme. The colors of her clothes apparently reflected her mood.
"I'm sorry Barry, you can't come in. There's been a lot of fuss about you. Bruno could come around at any time and I don't want you here."
"What sort of a fuss?"
"When you did the job for Bruno, your assistant took one of the video tapes and subsequently sold it to his friends all over London. Bruno is not pleased and he's coming round to tell me so. Since I recommended you, he's holding me responsible and you can imagine what that means. You've really dropped me in it."
Gerda's eyes were flashing and she was practically hissing at me like a snake. It dawned on me that she was genuinely scared.
I swore gently. "That idiot Lopey Lopez. The video he took was supposed to be for his personal use."
"If you are off to France, I would go as fast as you can. Bruno's not going to be content with just taking it out on me, he'll want to settle the score with you as well."
I mumbled an apology but knew from the look on her face that if the ground opened up beneath me and the sewer rats set about gnawing at my bones she'd probably have cheered them on.
"Would the offer of a free trip to France make you feel better?"
"Right at the moment, there is nothing that's going to make me feel better except you off my doorstep and out of my life. You're just a waste of space. I tried to help you but you won't be helped. You've got a death wish. Just get out of my life and don't come back!"
"So a coffee round the corner in that bijou little cafe is out of the question?"
"Go ... away!" She screamed and tears were running down her face as she slammed the door.
I glumly caught the underground train to Jennifer's, pondering on Bruno's new friendship with Ron and worrying about what would happen to Gerda. Perhaps in some way Bruno was connected with Ron's new knowledge of the Internet and Web site design.
On the other hand, I couldn't really see Ron and Bruno in a partnership. Ron might be stingy but he was an honest Scrooge. As the train bumped and rattled its way through London's underground bowels, I wondered whether my life like the train was about to come off the rails and whether things could get much worse with my visit to Jennifer.
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