Page 11 of Trust in Truth
It wasn’t the cost of the ring that bothered her if it was missing, more so that she needed it now. The thought that there may be a thief in the office didn’t sit well with her either.
A deeper search and extraction of most of the drawer’s contents led her to the conclusion that any further search was fruitless. It wasn’t there. She checked behind the drawers to see if the ring could have fallen down the back. There was nothing more than a few sheets of blank paper, a paper clip, and a ball of fluff.
She sat back and wracked her memory, replaying the ring’s placement in the drawer and confirming her movements one by one. There was nowhere else she could have put it; she was sure.
Margaret hung up the phone and beamed at her. “What a nice surprise, I wasn’t expecting you this morning.” She got up and walked around to Katherine’s desk, perching on the edge of it. “Something up?”
“You could say that.” Katherine breathed out heavily.
“Can I get you a cuppa whilst you’re here?”
Katherine looked at her watch. They were supposed to be leaving for Bath shortly. She knew she couldn’t leave until she’d checked every inch of her desk and she didn’t want to alert Margaret to her engagement plans; Anna would never forgive her if Margaret knew before her.
“Tea would be great. Thanks, Margaret.”
Margaret gave her a light touch on the shoulder and left the room.
Katherine took the opportunity to scour her desk and filing trays. She couldn’t help herself and ransacked the drawer for a third time to no avail. It was gone. She would have to get up early on Saturday morning to find a replacement in Bath or her plans would be scuppered. She’d have to hope Anna wanted a birthday lie-in.
She opened her laptop. A quick check of her emails wouldn’t hurt whilst she drank her tea.
Her phone vibrated on the desk. A photograph of Anna cuddling Virginia popped up on the screen. Kat answered the call after allowing herself to admire the warming image for a moment.
“Hey, are you coming? You haven’t done something silly like check your emails, have you?”
“No,” Katherine replied, closing the lid of her laptop. “I won’t be long.”
“Is Margaret there?”
She didn’t want to lie to Anna, but she didn’t want to feed into her delusions either. “I’m not sure, probably somewhere.” It was a half-truth. “I’ll be back soon.” Katherine hung up her phone.
Margaret appeared with their drinks and placed one on Katherine’s coaster with a smile.
“Is she checking up on you? These youngsters can be so impatient these days.”
“Mm,” was all Katherine could muster in response as she sipped her tea. Margaret was a bit of a dinosaur when it came to the younger generations, but Katherine didn’t count her girlfriend amongst them.
“Did you find whatever you were looking for?”
Katherine shook her head and gulped at her tea. She knew she’d have to report its absence to Margaret eventually. She was a little embarrassed to admit she left something so valuable in an office drawer. It would have to wait until after the weekend, however, by which time, she hoped, Anna would be her fiancé.
“Well, I’m sure it will turn up. These things normally do. Usually right where we were looking for them.”
Katherine certainly hoped so. She placed her mug down and got up. “I better hurry. Thanks for the tea.”
Margaret returned to her desk. “So soon? Well, I hope you have a nice weekend.”
“Thanks,” Katherine replied as she exited.
Virginia was still waiting for her when she stepped out into the cold air. “Come on, let’s get you a big bowl of food ready so you don’t starve. Just promise not to eat it all today.” Katherine scooped up the cat, tucking her inside her coat. Virginia’s purrs reverberated through her chest as she carried her home.
Chapter 5
The journey to Bath was a slow one. Why did it feel like everyone else was heading in the same direction whenever you tried to get away? Anna was relieved when she finally spotted a signpost that indicated they were fifteen miles out from the city centre.
“I’m going to give Dad a ring, let him know we’re nearly there.” Anna fiddled with her phone until the sound of ringing filled the car.
Harry answered immediately. “Happy birthday for tomorrow, love. Katherine has your present from me.”
