Page 3 - double revenge 3.

PART ONE

FAYETTEVILLE
NORTH CAROLINA

MAY1988

Most of the pupils at Charlestown High had left a couple of hours ago but Arnold had been busy
working on a project of his own in the college library. He had just turned sixteen and as he
developed into adulthood, he began to question his lineage. He could not understand, for example,
why he did not carry any of his parents’ physical features. They were both tall; his father could
easily have been centre in a basketball team, whereas he was short and did not have much growing
left to do. Both his parents looked to have come from Scandinavian stock, tall, fair hair and fair skin.
When he wore the fur hat his parents had bought him last Christmas, his friends said he looked like
a Cossack. Thus his project in the library, researching newspaper cuttings in the Fayetteville

Chronicle and listing adoption agencies within a two hundred mile radius. He was not sure how he
could question the agencies, they are never forthcoming on adoption details but he would give it a
great deal of thought.

It was probably because he was so deep in thought he did not see the Claret Red Plymouth
Caravelle until it was almost on top of him. At this time of night, the Broadway was almost traffic
free, just the Plymouth and a cop’s car cruising to a halt.

‘You OK son?’ called the cop and to the driver of the Plymouth, ‘Ok, get off, no harm done.’

The cop opened the rear door. ‘Get in Arnold, you look a bit shaken, I’ll run you home.’

It was as they pulled away Arnold seemed to come out of his daydream.

‘You know my name?’

‘I know a great deal about you Arnold. For instance I know you weren’t born in Fayetteville, in fact
you weren’t even born in this state and I also know Gloria and James Warner are not your real
parents.’

‘Do you know my real parents?’ Arnold was fully alert now. He leaned forward in eager anticipation.
Could this cop truly have the answer to all those doubts he had felt for months?

There was a silence for a couple of minutes, a silence that Arnold dared not break. He only wanted
the cop to affirm his question. Eventually the Ford Crown came to a standstill.

‘I understand you have been making enquiries about your parenthood. See that Buick Sedan under
the footbridge?’ Arnold nodded, ‘there is a guy sat in the back who knows everything about you,
your parents and everything else you want to know. Take this,’ he gave Arnold a ten-dollar bill,