Page 27 of Read Between The Lines

Anotification from SO Ox pinged on my phone screen as I arrived back at the library alone, wondering whether Leo really did have an appointment, or more likely, whether it had been a convenient excuse to make a speedy exit and swerve my questions. The man was clearly determined to remain a closed book. Which was fine, of course it was. Just because we were working together, it didn’t mean he had to bare his soul to me, even though I felt I’d been doing a lot of that to him.

I clicked onto the app and saw that Brian had already got back in touch. The speed of his response made me feel like he was watching out for me, and not in a good way. I read his message and rolled my eyes, wondering how I’d ever been taken in by him in the first place.

Hon, I’m so glad that you’re ok. I missed our heart to hearts. I’ve been reading back through your messages which have been sustaining me during a challenging period. The post-mission debrief is nearly over, and I’m looking forward to spending time with you once it’s all done. It’s taking longer than expected because the situation on the ground was worse than we realised. We’re already planning our next aid drop, although the powers that be say there are issues with the funding, and without funding, there’s no chance of helping those who so desperately need it. It’s a huge worry. I wish there was more I could do. My army wages only go so far. I know you’ll understand my frustration, being the gorgeous caring person that you are. We’ll be together soon, but until then, sending all my love, Brian xoxo

He was trying to be slightly more subtle in his money-grabbing approach, but the emotional manipulation was still present, the pressure to offer financial support to back his work with these unnamed people who were suffering because of some unspecified disaster. Obviously, I had no intention of doing any such thing, but I could see how I might have felt compelled to if I hadn’t finally cottoned on to his nefarious objective.

It would probably be best to play ignorant to try to force Brian into making an overt demand. If I expressed shock, and said something along the lines of I wished I knew how I could help, that might make him show his hand. Or would that sound strange?

‘Are you heading in or out?’ Library regular Gavin brought me back to reality. I hoped I hadn’t been blocking the doorway for too long as I considered my situation.

‘Sorry, guys, I was miles away,’ I said, leaning down to scratch his loyal pooch, Robin. I swear she grinned at me. ‘I was going back into the library, but I guess my mind had other ideas.’

Gavin laughed. ‘Don’t worry, it happens to me all the time. But sometimes it’s good to let the brain go into neutral and see what emerges from the subconscious rather than overthinking things.’

I nodded. ‘You know what, that’s just what I needed to hear right now. Thank you.’

‘Always happy to help,’ he said. ‘Speaking of which, can I make a contribution?’

I looked at him blankly. ‘What do you mean?’

He gestured at my phone. ‘Sorry, I couldn’t help seeing part of the message on the screen. It sounds like your friend needs some donations. Is it a charity he works for? I can’t give much, but they do say that every little helps, right?’

He fished a pound coin out of his coat pocket and offered it to me. I thought my heart might break.

I reached out and squeezed his arm. ‘That’s so kind of you, but please don’t worry. The situation is all in hand, I promise. You put that money back where it belongs, in your wallet.’

‘Are you sure?’ he said, the coin still held out towards me. ‘Only I know what it’s like to go through hard times, and I’ve got enough to cover myself for tonight. I’d hate for someone else to be struggling when there’s something I could do to help, even if it’s not much.’

‘I’m certain. I’m going to sort everything out.’

If I’d been determined to put a stop to Scammer Brian’s activities before, now I was even more motivated to track him down and bring him to justice. Gavin lived such a precarious existence, yet the briefest glimpse at a message from Brian had had him wanting to offer financial help, which he could ill afford. How many other vulnerable people like Gavin would be similarly taken in? I needed to up the ante.

Now that Leo was a fully signed up member of SO Ox, it was time to explore the next stage of my plan: that was, to book us onto one of the events run by the app and take the investigation into the real world. It couldn’t happen soon enough. Scammer Brian was back in contact with me, and goodness knows how many other potential targets.

* * *

When I got home from work that night, I finished typing out a reply to Brian in which I hopefully sounded suitably sympathetic, like I was teetering on the brink of offering money, then I turned my attention to the app’s upcoming events diary. I needed to find something happening in the next few days, then I could contact Leo and present him with a considered plan.

The first event I spotted was the promising-sounding Single Mingle which had a little red banner stating that it was nearly fully booked. I scanned through the details. It was basically a speed-dating event dressed up with a catchier name. Each participant had five minutes to talk to the person opposite them on the table, then a bell would ring and everyone would move around. I experienced a clutch of nerves. Never mind that it wouldn’t leave much opportunity for screening potential Brian suspects, but it sounded like my version of hell. I was used to meeting lots of people on a daily basis in the library, but that was for work. It was easier to pretend to be confident and outgoing in a familiar, safe environment where I had an official job title and was surrounded by friends and colleagues. I knew it would be a very different matter turning up at a bar and facing a bunch of strangers, with a weight of expectation in every interaction. That kind of event was designed for extroverts, who would thrive in the challenge to make a connection in less than five minutes. I was more of a slow-burner, someone who preferred a quieter, steadier approach to getting to know new people.

The real-world events had been part of SO Ox’s appeal in the first place, although I’d started talking with Brian so soon after joining that I hadn’t attended any of them. Under normal circumstances, I would never have chosen to go to the Single Mingle. No, the book club or the cookery class were much more to my taste; events where there was something more going on than just checking each other out, where people had a chance to bond over shared interests and connect on a deeper level. I was far more likely to get to know a person by finding out their reading tastes or seeing how they reacted following a complicated recipe, than by enduring a quick-fire round of questions before a bell rang.

But Brian was definitely good at the patter and at making a quick impression. Wasn’t that exactly the kind of event that he was likely to attend, if he was bold enough to get up from behind his computer screen and try his scamming in person? He’d be able to meet a dozen or more potential targets in one night.

The more I thought about it, the more I realised it could be the perfect way to advance our investigation. And if I could rope Leo into coming along with me, that would be even better. I could screen the male attendees for potential Brians, while he could subtly try to find out if any of the women had fallen for the same despicable advances that I had. But coming up with the plan was one thing. Getting Leo to agree to it was quite another…

‘Absolutely not,’ was his forceful response after I delivered my sales pitch. I briefly held the phone away from my ear and wondered if it would have been better to text him instead.

‘Scared at having to talk to a bunch of women?’ I challenged, trying a different tack.

‘I’m not going to dignify that with a response.’ He didn’t even sound annoyed, so confident in his ability to attract and entertain. I envied that poise.

‘I honestly think this is the most productive next step we can take,’ I said, sitting forward on the sofa as I pressed my point. ‘The only reason I can come up with for you digging your heels in like this is that you never had any intention of helping me in the first place, and that you’ve been stringing me along in exchange for access to Doris’s business expertise.’ It was a low blow, but I couldn’t think of another way of getting him on board with my idea.

‘I’m sorry that you have such a poor opinion of me,’ he said, instantly making me feel guilty, although his next words replaced that with indignation. ‘But it would be utterly foolish to take on that kind of operation with just the two of us and no kind of backup. And let’s face it, only one of us has any actual experience of investigative work. Criminals are much more wily in real life than they are in the pages of books.’

I stood up and started pacing in exasperation.

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