Chapter 5
Although they knew she wasn't blind it was another thing going to Billy with that. What if they were wrong. Francine was convinced that she was not wrong but even still she did not want to be the one to blow the whistle. Ashley continued on working at the office. She would type letters and hand them off to others to proof read. Often there were so many mistakes they would just type them out again. She had gotten a huge pay out from the company, that and the whip round from the staff meant that she now had a state of the art car adapted for a blind person with sensors to help her in traffic. It was all done by sensors and voice commands. It was such a beautiful vehicle and meant that she no longer had to depend on Francine to bring her to and from work. In fact she no longer looked to Francine at all. She was starting to suspect that Francine knew something and gave her a wide berth. There was a junior in the office, a young girl of eighteen who gladly took on the job of personal assistant to Ashley. The youngster was very hard working and it was just as well as Ashley was becoming quite demanding.
It was worrying for Amanda, surely they should tell Billy but then they couldn't prove anything. Francine told Amanda about the shopping too. Would her mother have gone out and bought her six inch heels given how she couldn't see. No that just didn't make sense. Of course blind people could walk in six inch heels but it's just not what a mother would do. Amanda was pondering this when Greg came up to her. He had just come back from his holidays in Spain and he was wearing a big Spanish hat.
"Here Amanda, stick em up." She frowned at him as he pointed a fake gun at her. He clicked it and a small neat flame appeared.
They both jumped as there was a scream from behind them.
"Oh I'm sorry," Ashley wailed, "I'm so sorry."
Billy had heard the scream from his office. He came out and was by her side in seconds.
"Now what," he snapped looking accusingly at Amanda.
"It's ok honey, are you alright?"
"No I'm sorry, I'm ok now. I thought that was a real gun. I guess I'm still traumatised from the bombing." She said, fanning her face with a flapping hand.
Her hand suddenly stopped, she looked sideways. "I heard the sound of a gun and I thought it was real. Maybe I should just go on home. I'm getting one of my headaches."
Billy must have suspected something as instead of his usual fatherly care he looked at her for a long time. "Ashley maybe you should come into my office," he said
"No, I'm going home. I've had enough for the day. I'm worn out with this place. I'm sick of you and this pokey little office."
She quickly got her bag and coat and stormed out letting out a stream of vulgar language that would make a sailor blush.
Lee was so sorry he missed it. In typical guy style he just found the whole thing hilarious. Ashley was never seen or heard from again. Everything connected with her job within the company was handled behind closed doors and the staff knew nothing about it until they all got envelopes containing the exact amount they had donated in the whip round. How the organisation knew the exact amount each had donated was a mystery but they were happy to get it. Amanda was able to bring her sons to Palm Springs after all.
The End
