Thanks again for the reviews, here's the next chapter :)
It was a bitter cold Monday morning and Rebecca had been in her shower for the past twenty minutes, trying to find the strength to step out from under the scorching hot water. As she stood with the water pouring down over her face, the young police officer wondered what her day was going to bring. Superintendant O'Karo was planning on joining the morning briefing to tell everyone the truth about who Rebecca really was so she was feeling quite nervous. Yvonne, Smithy, Adam and Gina were the only remaining officers who knew the truth but Rebecca started worrying what her other colleagues would think. Would they still like her when they found out who she was? From the moment everyone leaves the briefing room, Rebecca would be known as PC Young.
Inspector Gold walked in the briefing room, sipping on a large mug of hot coffee. Superintendant O'Karo and Sergeant Smith followed Gina into the room and joined her at the front of the room. Rebecca and Yvonne walked into the room giggling and took their seats, choosing to sit in a row with Honey, Gary, Nick and Tony. They had a few minutes to talk amongst themselves while their bosses talked at the front. After glancing around the room, Smithy fixated his eyes on Rebecca, who was laughing about something with her friends sitting close. A strange feeling overtook Smithy and he realised, he was so nervous about hearing Rebecca's real name being called out.
"Okay everyone can I have your attention please" ordered Adam O'Karo.
Looking to Rebecca at the back, Adam smiled after Rebecca nodded at him to continue.
Taking a deep breath, Adam stated
"I have an announcement to make. As you all know, Gabriel Kent has been sent to Longmarch to serve a life sentence for a number of different offences, one of which is the murder of the late PC Kerry Young..."
Smithy lowered his head and felt a lump in his throat. From her seat in the back row, Rebecca looked at Smithy and felt sorry for him. Yvonne turned her head to face Rebecca and, seeing how nervous she was, reached for her hand and held it tightly.
"Chief Superintendant Roberts from New Scotland Yard knew that Gabriel was the culprit but also knew of other crimes Gabriel had carried out. He realised that if he planted someone into the station with a fake ID, they could get close to Gabriel and work on getting the truth out of him..."
Everyone started to whisper amongst themselves, trying to work out who it must be but was quickly silenced by O'Karo.
"Excuse me! After weeks/months of work, secrets being revealed and evidence being found, Gabriel Kent finally got sent down. The persons work was completed but, it was a little more complicated..."
Pausing to look at Rebecca, he continued when once again, she nodded at him.
"The person who was planted here was...Rebecca Jones, CS Roberts' niece but...before you all judge, there's another part to this story. Rebecca was put through the right course to become a police officer, the same course that everyone in this room has also been through so, after a lot of thought, Rebecca has decided to stay at the station. However, Rebecca will not be known as PC Jones, she will be known as..."
As Adam paused for breath, Rebecca, Yvonne, Smithy and Gina all took a deep breath.
"PC Young"
A few officers turned to look at Rebecca but she decided to keep her eyes on, of all people, Smithy who realised that she was very nervous so keep his eyes firmly on her too.
"Rebecca, is Kerry's sister. I know this might be a shock for some of you, especially those of you who were close to Kerry but let's not forget that Rebecca's been through a lot in the last few weeks so, please be respectful. I'm sure if you do have any questions then Rebecca will be willing to answer them, but in her own time. Okay, thank you. Right Inspector Gold, Sergeant Smith, over to you"
With that, Adam O'Karo left the room, giving a sigh of relief as he shut the door to the briefing room.
"Okay everyone; here are the pairings for the day..." Inspector Gold started.
"How you feeling then Serge?" Tony Stamp asked later that morning as both men patrolled the high Street.
"Yeah great" Smithy replied, then added "Is there a reason I shouldn't be?"
Tony and Smithy were quite good mates and had been there for each other quite a few times.
"Everyone knows how you felt about Kerry so, it must be strange finding out that our latest recruit is her sister" Tony expressed.
Smithy glanced at Tony, trying not to look suspicious but Tony caught on straight away.
"Smithy, did you already know?" Tony inquired.
Smithy took a seat on the wooden bench in the park which they had just entered and sighed.
"Come on mate, you can tell me" Tony added.
That's when Smithy explained everything to his mate. Smithy told Tony that Cameron and Rebecca had known each other for a few years and that the Aussie cop was the one to spill the truth. The young Sergeant then revealed to Tony about the evil cop trying to attack Rebecca in one of the offices, then about Gabriel tampering with the DNA results to pretend he was the father of Kerry's unborn baby when actually it was Smithy. Tony sat there shocked as he listened on but there was still one thing that Smithy had to share.
"There's something else. I think...I may have kinda...ummm..."
Tony laughed nervously
"Come on mate, spit it out"
Without thinking twice, Smithy confessed
"I think I've fallen for Rebecca, big time! We kissed and since then...I just don't want her to get hurt. She's been through so much in the last few weeks"
Just a few moments later, Tony patted Smithy on the shoulder and stated
"You know what mate, if you're happy then I'm happy"
Smithy thanked Tony for being so understanding and together, the two boys in blue continued to patrol the streets.
All the officers were rushed off their feet for the whole shift. It was as if Sunhill were having a bad day. There were burglaries, attacks, domestics, drug deals and even murders. Rebecca had been paired up with Yvonne, which they were both very grateful for. Yvonne knew how nervous Rebecca was as, even though she'd been at the station for a while now; it was her first shift as PC Young. The two female PC's had been given the delightful job of investigating a break-in at a pet store and the owner, was less than c-operative. It didn't help that she was about 90 years of age and couldn't speak much English as she was Chinese. While Yvonne tried to get some information from the owner, Rebecca walked over to the metal cages which contained eight to ten meowing cats. Moving her eyes across from one to another, Rebecca stopped and smoothed a little white kitten which was purring very loudly and looking very adorable. Nearly half hour later, Yvonne finally received enough information from the pet shop owner to return to the station. On the way back, Rebecca told Yvonne all about the cute little kitten back at the stop and informed her friend that she was debating whether to buy it.
The rest of the day flew by as the officers were constantly busy and on the go. Smithy had wanted to talk to Rebecca but they kept missing each other. Smithy and Tony returned to the station just moments after Rebecca and Yvonne were called back out. As the end of the shift approached, Smithy thought about texting Rebecca but he wasn't quite sure what to write. The young Sergeant knew he felt something for her but, were they genuine feelings or did he want to protect her because of who she was, Kerry's sister? Whatever the true reason was, it would have to wait because the day was over. However, Smithy had a longer wait than he thought because; unknown to him, Rebecca had been given some over-due holidays by Inspector Gold which meant she had the following 11 days off work. It just so happened that Yvonne also had 11 holiday days due to her so, with a little bit of pleading, managed to persuade the Inspector to let her have the same days off as her friend. Smithy didn't know this until he walked into the briefing room the following morning. It was freezing cold outside and most of the ground was iced over. The officers were sat in the briefing room huddled around the radiator when Gina and Smithy walked in.
"Okay you lot please take your seats. Whoever's sitting next to the radiator, make the most of it before you head outside because it's pretty cold outside!" the inspector informed.
"I know it's freezing out there isn't it!" Honey exclaimed as she took her seat near the door. Turning her head and giving a sulky look at Gary and Will, who were sat right next to the radiator, Honey added
"We're here freezing our butts off here in icy London while Bec and Yvonne are probably burning up in sunny Dubai. I'm so jealous right now!"
Smithy turned his head to look at Honey, who was now chatting away with the few sitting around her. He then turned to Gina, who looked away and started shuffling through papers.
"The girls are in Dubai?" Smithy asked Honey.
Honey stopped talking about her pet dog Poppy and looked in the direction of the young Sergeant.
"Umm, yeah Serge...they flew out last night. They finished work, had like 2 hours to pack then went straight to the airport. I had a text from Yvonne a few hours ago saying they'd landed and were heading down to the beach to sleep. Jammy things!"
Before Smithy had a chance to ask anything else, Gina Gold started the briefing.
Fifteen minutes later, the officers started piling out of the room and headed off in different directions to start their work.
"So, PC's...Young and Hemmingway are in sunny Dubai are they?"
Gina stopped what she was doing and looked up from her paperwork.
"Smithy..." she started.
"No, why wasn't I told?" Smithy asked, raising his voice.
"You're being told now aren't you?" Gina stated.
Smithy moved his eyes down to look at the floor and for a moment, there was silence until Gina spoke again.
"Look Smithy, both girls had holiday days owed to them. When I asked Rebecca when she'd like hers, she informed me that she'd looked at some last minute holiday deals in Dubai and asked for her 11 days to start today, meaning that she could fly out last night. The two girls must have discussed it because ten minutes later, Rebecca returned to my office with Yvonne. After I looked through the file, it just so happened that Yvonne was also entitled to 11 days off and asked if she could have hers starting today too so that she could go away with Rebecca. So, after passing it with the Super, I agreed and...that's that. They've gone away for ten days and are back in work in eleven. Oh and the Super's arranging it that the memorial for Cameron is on the day they're back at work"
With that, Gina left the room leaving the young Sergeant alone. Smithy reached into his pocket and pulled out his iphone. Touching the screen a few times, a picture of a blonde girl popped up onto his screen. It was a photo of Kerry. Smithy felt himself well up so touched the screen again, meaning to close the file but instead, it flipped onto the following photo which happened to be of Rebecca. He quickly locked his phone and slipped it back into his back pocket. Smithy felt so confused and just wanted to talk with Rebecca to see what she thought. Pulling out his phone again, Smithy started writing a new text message but just before sending it, he changed his mind. Angrily shoving his phone into his pocket for a second time, Smithy stormed out of the room and headed towards his office.
"Stop police!" Tony Stamp bellowed as he chased a young teenage boy through the park after finding him fleeing the scene of a crime.
"Sierra Oscar 595 to 54, chasing suspect down past the playground, heading towards the end of the park. Can you cut him off by the gate on Cross Street? Over!"
"Stop or I'll hurt her!" the teenage thug shouted as stopped, grabbed a young woman off the bench and held a knife to her throat.
Tony halted in front of the boy and in the corner of his eye, spotted Smithy entering the park through the silver gate, edging his way towards the boy. Making sure the boy didn't notice Smithy behind him; Tony took a few steps towards the boy.
"Come on Son, don't do anything stupid. Pass me the knife yeah and let the lady go"
Smithy made the mistake of stepping on a bit of glass which made a noise, making the young boy turn around to see who was behind him. Seeing it was Smithy, the boy thought he had no choice but to hurt the woman so, he did. Taking the knife, the teenager plunged the knife into the woman's chest and left her drop to the floor before trying to make a run for it. However, he wasn't quick enough as Tony grabbed him, threw him to the floor and handcuffed him before calling for backup while Smithy rushed towards the injured lady and realised that she literally bleeding to death.
"Tony, Serge, I'm really sorry!" Gary said as his two colleagues walked into the canteen after returning from the hospital.
"Yeah, I'm sorry too boys" Honey added, wrapping her arms around them comfortingly.
The boys thanked their friends before taking a seat at an empty grey table.
Placing his face in his hands, Smithy sighed. Reaching out and placing his hand onto Smithy's arm, Tony whispered
"I'll get us a cuppa"
Smithy looked up and nodded before leaning back in his chair. Slipping his hand into his pocket, Smithy pulled out his phone and started writing a text message. He wrote it so quick that he didn't even know if it made sense so thought it was best to read it before sending it.
"Hey Bec, its Smithy.
I heard you and Yvonne are sunning it up in Dubai? Hope you're enjoying.
Had one of the worst days today & wish you were here to listen to my rant but you're not so,
I guess you're let off this time. Anyway, enjoy your hols and see you soon. Both of you.
Smithy x
Tony returned to the table carrying two hot mugs of tea and placed them down onto the table. For a moment, Smithy stared at his phone. He wondered if Rebecca had received his text and if he'd get one back in return. Smithy drank up his tea and when finished, changed out of his uniform and headed home. The young, tired and emotional Sergeant closed his eyes tight as the hot water droplets from the shower covered his face. After stepping out, Smithy popped his West Ham pyjama top over his head and jumped into bed. Just before turning out the light, Smithy glanced at his mobile phone which was charging at the side and sighed as he realised there was still no text from Rebecca. He thought maybe she was having too much of a good time in Dubai with Yvonne to bother texting her Sergeant back. Thoughts popped into his head that, maybe she wasn't just with Yvonne and that maybe she had met a guy out there. Feeling a mixture of emotions, Smithy decided that the best thing to do was forget about it and just see Rebecca when she returned to work in eleven days time. Turning out the light and snuggling under the blanket, Smithy realised it was going to be a very long week.
Eleven Days Later
"Okay morning my lovely guys and girls. Ah PC's Young and Hemmingway, did you enjoy your time in sunny Dubai?" Inspector Gold asked cheerfully as she walked into the briefing room.
Rebecca and Yvonne stopped chatting with their group of friends and looked towards the Inspector. Before they could reply, Smithy walked into the room and caught sight of them. Yvonne giggled to herself at the sight of the love struck Sergeant gazing into the eyes of her friend.
"Morning Serge" she smiled.
Smithy snapped out of his gaze with Rebecca and replied 'Morning' before heading towards the front. With a big smile on her face, Rebecca smiled at her Inspector and replied
"Yes thanks Marm, we had a lovely time"
Gina nodded and smiled as she started the morning briefing.
"Good. Okay now the pairings for today are..."
That's all that Smithy heard Gina say because once again, he found his eyes fixated on Rebecca.
(Inside Smithy's head)
"She looks so tanned, refreshed and, well, beautiful. The holiday must have done her good. And she's smiling. But why didn't she text me back? Maybe she didn't get my text. Or maybe she was too occupied with someone else, other than Yvonne. Should I ask her? Oh gosh Gina just said my name..."
"Smithy, I said is that okay?" Gina asked for the second time.
Nodding, Smithy replied
"Yes Marm" without knowing exactly what he'd just agreed to.
"Now, lastly, Cameron Tait's funeral will be taking place over in Australia tomorrow but obviously, because we can't be there, we'll be holding a memorial service for him in the front yard this afternoon at 2pm. Myself, Superintendant O'Karo and Sergeant Smith have some things to say but if anyone else would like to say a few words, please just let me know. Alright? Off you go!"
With that, the uniformed officers stood up and made their way out of the room.
"Serge" Rebecca called as she and Yvonne followed the young Sergeant up the corridor.
Smithy stopped and turned around to find the two female officers behind him.
"I'll wait for you outside dear" Yvonne said to Rebecca.
Rebecca watched her friend walk up the corridor and out of sight before turning to Smithy.
"You're covering in CAD today, just to let you know" she informed Smithy.
Raising an eyebrow and looking confused, Smithy asked
"Am I?"
Rebecca laughed and explained to Smithy that he'd agreed to it but was obviously too zoned out to realise. That's when he realised what she meant and laughed. Folding his arms in his usual way, Smithy moved closer to Rebecca and lowered his voice.
"So erm...did you get my text?"
Rebecca nodded and explained that she'd forgotten to take her phone charger on holidays with her and her phone died after only being in Dubai for a few hours. So, Smithy's text didn't come through until she returned home with Yvonne and charged her phone into the wall and it was too late in the night to reply.
"Sierra Oscar 202 from 298, you ready? We have a shout" Yvonne informed Rebecca over the radio.
"I best get going. If I don't see you before, see you at Cam's memorial yeah?"
Smithy nodded and watched as once again, Rebecca walked out of sight.
"Thank you all for coming. PC Cameron Tait was a loyal, dedicated officer and I was very proud to call him one of my relief. He will be truly missed. I will now hand over to Inspector Gina Gold" Adam O'Karo announced to the relief and press who were filling up the front yard of the station.
Gina Gold stood up in front of everyone and said a few words about Cameron before she handed over to Smithy.
"Hi, I'm Sergeant Dale Smith. Cameron Tait was a great member of my relief and a great colleague. We had a good personal relationship and, even though we didn't always see eye to eye, he was a good friend and I know he'll be missed by everyone working at the station. My thoughts go out to his family and I hope he gets a good send off over in Australia tomorrow cause he deserves it"
Rebecca was the last one to give a few words so Smithy handed over to her.
"Hey everyone, I'm PC...Young. Both me and my sister were great friends with Cameron. The three of us were close and I have many memories of nights out we had together. He was a great copper and friend as well as an amazing Dad to his beloved daughter Emily. I hope Em and the family will receive the comfort they need to get through this difficult time. It'll be tough for them at his funeral but I know that he's in a better place now and that he's being looked after well. I'll miss you loads Cam, but will love you forever"
The Superintendant had ordered a big bunch of purple helium balloons for the officers to let go in celebration of Cameron's life and Rebecca had promised Cameron's parents that she would record it. So, pulling out her pink digital camera and pressing the record button, Rebecca zoomed around, making sure to catch every detail. Adam O'Karo, Gina Gold, Smithy, Neil Manson and Jack Meadows made their way around the relief and press, handing everyone a single balloon each, including Rebecca. Adam started counting loudly and once he reached three, everyone let go of the balloons. Rebecca's eyes filled up with tears as she watched and recorded the sky filled with hundreds of floating purple balloons. Yvonne walked over and wrapped her arms around her friend, hugging her tightly as they both shared the emotion. Rebecca continued to record until the purple balloons had almost disappeared.
"Wow that was emotional wasn't it. You alright chick?" asked Yvonne.
Rebecca looked down from the sky and wiped her eyes. Smiling at her friend, she replied
"Yeah it was. I'm okay. Let's go get a cuppa yeah?"
Nearly an hour had passed since Cameron's memorial service and the relief had settled down in the canteen with mugs of tea, coffee, cakes and biscuits. Some had been called out of shouts but the majority of them remained in the canteen. They had been given an hour for refreshments and it was nearly over when Smithy approached Rebecca who was sat at the opposite end of the table to him.
"Bec, can I have a word please?" he asked.
Rebecca nodded, told Yvonne she'd come find her in five and followed her Sergeant in the direction of his office. Smithy signalled for Rebecca to enter the office first before following and closing the door behind them. Taking a deep breath, Smithy turned around to face Rebecca.
'This is it' he thought to himself.
"Umm, I've been meaning to talk to you about something for a while..." he started, very nervously.
"Bec there's something I need to tell you and I don't really know how you'll take it. I don't really know how to take it myself...or understand it for that matter"
Smithy looked at Rebecca and could see she was looking confused.
"Umm, for the past few weeks I've been...feeling something towards you. I don't know if it's because of who you are or...I don't know but I know I can't stop thinking about you" he blurted out.
For a moment there was silence which made Smithy even more nervous. Rebecca walked towards Smithy so that she was standing in front of him.
"Serge...Smithy. Maybe you think you feel something for me because I'm Kerry's sister, I don't know. I think you're great Smithy and, if things were different then maybe I would return the feelings but, I can't..."
Smithy looked down towards the floor but Rebecca wasn't finished explaining yet.
"I don't mean it in a nasty way Serge it's just..." Rebecca paused for a moment to try and find the right words.
"Smithy, when I 'died' in that ambulance when Kent tried to kill me, I saw Kerry..."
"You've told me this story before" Smithy interrupted.
"It's not a story Dale!" Rebecca shouted, a little louder than intended.
"What Smithy? You think it's some fantasy dream I had? Well you know what, maybe it was! But when I died, everything was perfect. I saw Kerry, my mum, my grandparents, Ryan, lots of people that I've lost over the last few years but they were all there in one room, alive and looking better than ever. Kerry told me that, it was the place we'd all made together so that we could find one another. She told me that her, and everyone else there would be waiting for me there, when I was ready to leave. In other words Smithy, when I die, I'll be reunited with them all, forever. I told both my Dad and Cameron this and I told them not to be scared because they'll be going to this place too. I have to believe that it was true Smithy, that it wasn't just a dream. That's why nothing can happen with us. I know how much you loved Kerry and I loved Ryan with all my heart. I felt as though I lost everything when he died. I have to believe that one day, when we're ready, that we too will be reunited with them and we can start our lives together again. So, whatever you think you feel for me, get rid of it ok. I can be your best friend of all, but nothing more okay" and with that, Rebecca walked out of the room, leaving Smithy stunned and wondering if what she was saying really was true. Did Rebecca really see Kerry alive and well? Was he really going to be reunited with her when he died? All Smithy could do was wait and see.