White Phantom: Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

Maggie took the phone book to the kitchen table with a pen and note pad. She held the pen between her thumb and index finger and tapped it against her teeth. She didn’t immediately thumb the book to find the listing she wanted, she was thinking.

Why was she bothering with this? It was none of her business. She didn’t even know what exactly it was that she was hoping to find out. She just knew, instinctively, that something was very wrong. She was hurt that Beth had turned on her so completely. They had been lifelong friends and yet Beth had changed beyond recognition, into somebody that Maggie didn’t want to know.

But she was still Beth and Maggie still loved her. She had no idea what was wrong and Beth wasn’t giving anything away. That in itself was so very wrong on so many levels. They shared everything, always had done. Or they had until very recently. Everything changed the day that Jennifer appeared on the scene and whether Beth wanted her help or not, Maggie couldn’t just sit by and do nothing if her friend was in trouble. Trouble was something that Maggie associated with young people and married people. Certainly not the likes of Beth who had never even been caught smoking as a child.

Beth wasn’t the type of person who ever had trouble, caused trouble or got into trouble, but the word was relentlessly thumping in Maggie’s brain and it wouldn’t let up.

She found the listings for Brown in the telephone directory. Luck was on her side, there weren’t that many. Maggie was sure that sod’s law would have turned against her and that every Brown, nationwide, would have decided to move to the Lake District when the book was last updated. As it was, it was doable and with a bit of luck she wouldn’t have to call too many people before she struck gold.

‘Er, hello. Yes. Is that Mrs. A Brown please? The thing is, I was wondering, do you know a Jennifer Brown? Is she may be your daughter? I’m a friend of a friend and I’m trying to locate her family. No. Okay. Thank you. Sorry to bother you.’ She hung up and keyed the next number.

‘No, no, sweetheart it’s not Nana. Can you get your mummy or daddy for me, please? Daddy’s gone away? Oh I’m sorry to hear that, love. Does she? Oh, well, I’m sure Mummy’s just a little bit angry with him if she calls him that.’

Another call. ‘Listen, buster, I already told you, I don’t want to sell you anything. I’m a friend of a friend of hers. Do you know her? Bastard, you didn’t need to hang up on me.’

And another. ‘You’ve just moved to the area? No, I’m sorry, I can’t help you there. Dorothy Perkins? No, not in Ulverston, but I think there’s one in Barrow, but it might have shut down now.’

Twenty-two calls later she had spoken to the last person listed in the phone book. She had left messages on four answer machines and had five ring-outs that she’d call back later, but if the calls she’d already made were anything to go by, she was going to be out of luck. She only needed that one call to be successful, though, and maybe she could locate Jennifer’s family and get to the bottom of this mess.

Plan B needed to be put into operation and Maggie rang the hospital and spent five minutes on hold waiting to be transferred to the personnel officer. ‘Hello. I wonder if you can help me. I’m trying to get hold of one of your young nurses and I wondered if you could give me her number, please? Her name is Jennifer Brown. Of course, I understand that it’s privileged but it’s an emergency. I’ve had some bad news. It’s her granddad, you see. I really need to contact her as soon as possible.’

The woman on the other end of the line sighed and asked for the name Maggie was looking for.

‘Jennifer Brown. A trainee, I think, or maybe one of those care assistants, auxiliary maybe. I’m not entirely sure. I think she works on Ward Four.’

‘She doesn’t work here. I know all the staff personally. We did have a Jennifer Reid but she left to have a baby.’

‘She must work there. It’s not Jennifer Reid and I’m pretty sure she’s never had a baby.’

‘You must be mistaken, then.’

‘Yeah. Thanks for your help.’

Maggie disconnected the call and re-tried the ring-outs, managing to scribble a line through one of the numbers on her list. She had drawn a complete blank. Beth was the most honest and truthful person she had ever known. She must have had a damned good reason for saying that Jennifer worked at the hospital when she doesn’t.

Maggie wanted to help her, but lies only made her curious. Why would Beth lie to her?

Next she placed a call to the only high school in Ulverston and was put through to the school secretary. ‘Shelly, hi. How are you?’

‘I’m fine,’ Shelly said, pausing to figure out the voice speaking to her. ‘Yes, good, thanks. How can I help you?’

‘It’s Maggie Johnson here, Jess and Ben’s mum.’

‘Oh, hello. Is something wrong?’

‘No, no, not at all. Well, that’s not true. I was trying to be polite.’ She put on a feeble voice. ‘There is a problem, actually. It’s all been very upsetting, you see, and I was wondering if you could help me. It’s our Jess, she’s terribly upset.

‘Oh dear, really? What is it?’

‘It’s not exactly a problem at school. She’s being bullied. Very badly bullied. Too frightened to leave the house, bullied. It’s terrible.’

‘That’s awful. Poor Jess. Is it somebody in her form?’

‘Ah, well that’s the trouble, the ring-leader of this gang is a bit older, eighteen-ish maybe, and I don’t think she’s the sort to still be there doing A-levels unless they’ve brought out an exam on intimidation. But with you being there forever and knowing everybody, I hoped you could give me something to go on. Give me an address or maybe just tell me something about the family. You know, are they the approachable type? That sort of thing. I thought I might just give them a knock, see if we can sit down, civilised like, and sort it out between ourselves without having to involve the police and such.’

‘I can certainly try. What’s her name?’

‘Jennifer Brown she’s called. Might have left school last year or maybe the year before. Her and her henchmen are making Jess’ life a total misery. Her schoolwork’s bound to suffer and what with her GCSEs and stuff going on.’

‘Jennifer, you say?’

‘Brown. Weird looking thing, she is, all black clothes and self-mutilation, you know the type, gothic and a nut short of a squirrel stash. Strange appearance. Ugly, if you ask me. I blame the parents. Not for the ugliness of course, the bullying. Mind you, she didn’t get those piggy little eyes from Asda.’ Maggie chatted on, trying to lead the secretary into gossip, but her eyes were shrewd, pen poised ready to write as soon as she gleaned any information that would be useful.

She heard some keystrokes, Shelley on her computer, and then the secretary said, ‘No, nothing. I’ve never had the pleasure of having that particular duck in my pond.’

‘But she must have gone to Vic High, it’s the only high school in town.’

‘Are you sure that’s her name?’

‘Yes, I’ve got the right name. Jess talks about her all the time. You’ve had absolutely no school leavers of that name in the last five years?’

‘Sorry, love, none, and we’re a small enough school that I know them all.’

‘Okay, thank you.’

‘Your best bet is to ring the police.’

‘Yes, I will. That’s going to have to be the next step. No, I’m sure there’s no need to worry the head about it. So busy. Oh yes, I know you do, yes very seriously. Absolutely, I hold the school in the highest regard. I’ll pass your best wishes on to her. Yes, yes, thank you now. Goodbye.’

The hospital had never heard of her, neither had the school. Maggie looked down at what she’d scribbled on the pad in a looped and uneven scrawl. Phantom -- ghost-like -- able to pass by unnoticed. She had underlined the name Jennifer Brown. The rest of the page was blank.