That evening, Will was in his room doing some light reading. He was elegantly slumming it on the bed, the book raised high catching the light on the ceiling. The window was open slightly ajar for some air. His thoughts then turned to the day's events, but in particular the person he was giving chase. He sat up straight on the bed, the book he was reading lying opened face down next to him. He wondered whether that was the same person he noticed was loitering around outside the church… Will stood up to retrieve the picture from the drawer to look at it again. His mind seemed to drift backwards, back to his life before he arrived. It got slightly too much and he laid the photo back to rest, shutting the drawer. He then picked up the paper Geordie gave him and thought back to the girl he met at the house. He picked up a pencil and began jotting down what she told him. Will read back what he had written and the original scribble silently. Then something clicked. He jotted down a location in the top right hand corner.


The rain came down the next day – a complete contrast to the day before. Some would say this would be a typical Monday morning greeting. People with brollies scurried along the streets whilst cars drove carefully by in order not to cause too much splashing of water from the puddles on the roadside. Leonard Finch made a face as he watched the water trickle down the window from the living room, a cup of tea in his hand. He turned as Will walked by and called him. The young vicar stepped inside and noticed the look on his curate's face. He said nothing however, the tension between them still huge despite his earlier efforts at peace, and he walked into the kitchen. Sylvia was inside making preparations for lunch. She looked round upon hearing some shuffling and greeted Will in her usual way.

"Good morning, Mrs Chapman," he said politely.

"Bit late for you, vicar!" Sylvia placed a teapot and a plate in front of Will as he sat down. "Lucky for you I saved you some breakfast."

"Thank you." Will beamed at her as she brought the warm frying pan from the oven. She couldn't help but crack a slight smile as she served up.

"Eat up, vicar. It looks quite a chilly one out there today." She poured some tea out for him and placed the milk and sugar bowl in easy reach. Will grinned as he began to eat.

"Mrs Chapman?"

"Yes, vicar?"

"My sermon. About family."

"It was a lovely one, vicar."

"Thank you." Will poured some milk into his cup and stirred it with a teaspoon. "What I said about God's acceptance into the family, that no matter who they are or what their beliefs, His love outweighs everything?" Will suddenly felt like a hypocrite, despite his words holding some kind of resonance. Sylvia, her back to Will as she stood in front of the sink, stopped what she was doing. She stared out of the window knowing the direction Will was going but said nothing. Will continued to eat. "Sometimes we may not agree with what our loved ones do," he continued, "sometimes with good reason, but they are still family. They deserve the love from us God gives them – He doesn't judge."

There was silence. Outside, Leonard was standing by the doorway listening in. Sylvia cleared her throat and carried on washing up the breakfast things, still not responding. Will finished his breakfast, and placed the cutlery neatly on the plate before bringing them over.

"I know you only came back because I asked you to," he said to her in a low voice. "But please try." He became aware of a familiar shadow hanging about outside the doorway. "Thank you for breakfast," he said loud enough to be heard. "I am off out into Cambridge today. Leonard is here. He may want someone to hear his sermon for Sunday." He smiled at Sylvia before walking away. Leonard looked at Will as he left the kitchen and watched as he took up his blazer before leaving.


The dead body was lying face down in the murky waters of the River Cam. The Bridge of Sighs was visible in the distance to the left, slightly covered by the footbridge in front and the mist caused by the damp of the earlier rain. Geordie didn't like what he saw but had no choice but to have a good look. Sean and Larry were standing around the body doing their own investigative work. Will finally arrived at the scene only to politely stop a couple of inches away, head down in prayer. He finished and walked forward. Geordie was crouched down as the body was recovered and laid to rest on the wet bank. He studied the features of the deceased whilst his colleagues were jotting down their own notes. Will suddenly noticed something and bent down to collect it. Geordie now had his attention as Will stood up to look at the item. The expression on his face said it all.

"Will?" Geordie asked. Will settled the item on the grass on top of a handkerchief he had on his person. He reached into his pocket and took out a similar object settling it down next to the one he retrieved. Geordie studied the two small, circular items and looked at Will, the troubled look on his face getting increasingly worse. He took out the piece of paper and straightened it out. It had a diagram of the object he found alongside a passage taken from a textbook. Geordie noticed Will's handwriting and scolded him discreetly for tampering with evidence. "Aren't you going to tell me?" he asked. Will looked at him, glanced at both Sean and Larry who were looking in his direction, but said nothing except collect the paper and his own object before walking up the bank. Geordie told Larry to bag the remaining one before following Will. The young vicar was looking in the distance towards The Bridge of Sighs, his hands in his pockets. Geordie stood next to him. "Will?"

"Sorry, Geordie, I can't tell you. You just have to trust me on this one."

"What about the body? He's one of yours."

"I don't know him." Will made his move towards the footbridge.

"The Archdeacon will have to be told…" Geordie watched as Will stopped in his tracks.

"I know!" He raised his voice suddenly. "Sorry." He paused. "The piece of paper…"

"It doesn't matter," Geordie told him. His concern grew. He didn't know much about Will, he was still getting to know him, but the look on the young man's face was worrying. He had already seen the brunt of his temper on many an occasion, and this looked like turning into another one of those moments. Something he then noticed concerned him. "Do you know what that object is, Will?"

"Yes," Will replied. He suddenly looked at Geordie, his eyes boring into him. It was a look that scared Geordie somewhat. "Take me off the case."

"You know him, don't you?"

"I said I didn't."

"Then what is going on?"

"Nothing!" Will was on the verge of losing it. He gave Geordie the object from his pocket. "You will find out from this. Just promise me one thing." He turned to look at him. "Go easy." He glanced at the two detectives behind Geordie who were still looking at him before walking across the footbridge. Geordie turned and told Sean and Larry to get a move on.


Will and Geordie dodged a few cars as they crossed the road. Cambridge was busy as per normal. The ground was damp but with no rain. The two new friends walked at a medium fast pace towards a grand looking building, a few youths running past them in a rush. As they stepped inside and looked around them, it became obvious that this was one of the college buildings. Students were milling about the grounds huddled to keep out the sudden chill. The dull chime of the clock indicated the top of the hour. Will and Geordie wandered about trying to find an entrance or some sort of indication they were on the right track or even the right location. They noticed an open door and ran towards it, a few students running past them on the way to a lecture. Will and Geordie stood inside watching the hubbub in front of them.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" he asked.

"Yes. Positive," Will replied. He noticed a board on the wall beside him and took a look at the room listings. "Down the corridor." He began to walk ahead. Geordie followed, still unsure, but also thinking he was going to be led up the garden path. They stopped outside a classroom door, which was opened ajar, and took a look inside.

The desks were positioned in neat rows, around two or three. The classroom walls were full of what looked like formulas or diagrams. The windows on the opposite side were closed shut. Will noticed one student on her own towards the back, her head down studying from a textbook. She looked up suddenly and a look of recognition came over both of them. Geordie, now at a complete loss, took a look at the two of them, his head going from side to side. The student smiled warmly and waved. Will smiled and returned the compliment. Geordie now was getting impatient – not for the first time.

"Who is that?" he asked in a low voice.

"A friend," Will replied.

"Is that the girl…?"

"What are you doing here?!" A shrill voice interrupted them. The student lapsed into silence and went back to her reading. Will and Geordie turned and saw a rather strict looking woman staring at them in uproar. She was quite short and plump, her greying hair tied tightly at the back of her head. Will and Geordie stepped back politely and respectfully, the younger clearing his throat.

"My name is Detective Keating, this is…" He wondered how to introduce Will beside him.

"A priest?" the woman answered for him.

"Vicar. Will Davenport." He put out his hand, only to let it drop when the gesture wasn't returned. The woman just stared at the two men in front of her, her eyes nearly out of their sockets. She slammed the classroom door to make her point perfectly clear.

"You can't just burst in there all guns blazing!" she exclaimed, her voice nearly rising an octave. "What do you two want anyway?"

"Excuse me." Geordie was now fed up with her attitude. "Who are you?"

"Who am I?!" The woman was incredulous at the question. "Who am…? Do you know what would happen if you two are caught? You are lucky it was me who spotted you!" She began to march down the corridor. Will and Geordie looked at each other. "Aren't you coming, you two?!"

Geordie walked up to Will. "Vicars!" He walked off after the woman. Will, still affected by the dead body, decided to look in again at the student. He opened the classroom door a crack and took a look inside. The student, whom he recognised as the same one back at the house, was studying hard on the verge of engrossment, a pencil in her hand making notes. Will watched as her scribbles grew faster, at around the same pace as when he saw her at the blackboard.

"Good luck," he called out. The girl looked up and smiled.

"Thank you," she said politely. Will waved goodbye as he closed the door.

"Vicar?" Her voice interrupted his actions. Will opened the door again and stood by the doorway.

"Hello," he replied. The girl sat up and waved him over. She smiled again as Will stood beside her. He sat down at the edge of the desk and took a note the girl handed to him. Will read it to himself with interest. "Really? Are you sure?"

"Very," the girl replied. "She is expecting you." They looked at each other as if they understood one another. Will smiled and stood up.

"Thank you," he said giving her back the note. He took a look at the exam notes on the blackboard and turned, crossing his fingers. The girl chuckled as Will departed. He turned to look at her one more time as she placed her finger to her lips. Will this time copied her and closed the door. His attentions then turned to Geordie but chose instead to head in the opposite direction.


He walked out of the building, through the grounds and out on to the main road turning right. He continued before turning into a side street not far away. There was a black painted door in the distance, clearly visible, and Will approached it with some kind of caution, the girl's voice still in his mind. He raised his hand to knock and stepped back to wait. The sound of a chain and the bolt from inside was heard followed by a creak as the door opened.

"Will Davenport?" the voice asked.

Will looked at the person in the doorway.

"Yes, are you..?"

"Inside. Quickly!" Will made no hesitation in entering, the door closing with urgency behind him. He followed the person down a very dark looking corridor and into a room, which was as basic as you could get. There was a small table with two chairs to his right hand side by the wall and a small sofa not far away. Will noticed a pretty looking tea set on the table. "Did she tell you where I was?"

"I'm sorry?" Will snapped out of his thoughts and watched as the person sat down at the table. "Yes. Yes, she did." He watched as the figure poured what looked like tea into a cup. "Would you like some, vicar?"

"No. No, thank you." Will smiled politely. He continued to stand until the person gestured the chair opposite. Will thanked her and obliged.

"What can I do for you?" Will looked at the person. It was a female with short dark hair and amazing watery blue green eyes. Will reached into his pocket and took out the all familiar piece of paper. The female took it and read it to herself, a look of recognition coming over her face. "Surely, you do not need me to explain this to you?" She had a look of amusement. Will blushed. The female took pity on him. "Where did you find this?" she asked kindly as she placed the cup to her lips.

"A friend of mine found it," Will replied stretching the truth slightly. "Apparently, it was left in the street somewhere. I went to the campus house to return it…"

"You didn't, did you?" Slight panic came over the female. She realised how she must have sounded and smiled with a sigh. "You met him, didn't you?" She placed the cup gently on the table and looked straight at him without flinching. Will smiled his answer and looked around the small room. He noticed a few certificates on the wall and a few on the mantelpiece on the other side of the room. "May I?" he asked.

"Of course." Will stood up to take a look. He turned round suddenly.

"May I ask how old you are?" The female let out a small laugh.

"Impolite to ask that question by a man of the cloth." Will blushed again. He was finding this encounter a little too familiar for his liking. The female stood up and walked over coming to a halt beside him. To Will's surprise, she took his hand and wrote something on the palm with her finger. Will's eyes widened and looked at her. The female smiled and winked. She walked back over and picked up the paper. "You will need this back," she told him handing it over. "It will benefit you more than I." Will placed it back in his pocket. "If you need help," she continued, "you know where I am." She sat back down at the table again. Will took this as his cue to leave.

"Thank you, Miss…"

"You're welcome, vicar." She smiled and watched as Will left.


Will closed the door behind him and walked back in the direction he came from. This encounter was very bizarre indeed for him, if not overly familiar. His mind was in a daze when he bumped into Geordie, the detective looking less than impressed. Will looked at him, still a million miles away.

"And where have you been?" he asked. "I've just had an earful from madam over there!" He realised he was asking a stupid question.

"The girl we saw, the student," Will began as they paced down the main road. "She gave me a lead. I just went to see her. She knows about this paper."

"Anything concrete?"

"No, not really."

"What about the dead body?" Will walked a few steps ahead. Geordie knew what that meant and rolled his eyes in frustration.

"She's not a nun, is she?" he asked as he caught up. Will nearly laughed.

"No, she's not." Will stopped suddenly as he saw the same figure he came across standing on the opposite side of the road. He called across and the figure ran off upon seeing him. "Sorry, Geordie." Will sprinted down the street, this time not letting this person out of his sight. The figure kept looking over its shoulder as it ran, jumping over various obstacles in its way before turning a corner. Will was keeping tabs quite easily until he came to a clearing with two pathways ahead, one going to the left and the other to the right. The figure had disappeared and Will once again was foiled. He crouched down to get his breath back before standing back up. He waited a few minutes before giving up and leaving. The figure meanwhile poked its head around from the left hand corner and watched as Will became a dot in the distance. It turned only to see the same tall person it saw the very first time.

"Hello again." The person smiled only to catch the figure as it nearly collapsed to the ground.