THE SENTINEL

THE SENTINEL PART TWO: THE SURPRISE   By Tessa Harvey     Tony Smith simmered in a holding cell. His story was that the boy was startled by the thunder and lightning, and he was reaching to save him, of course.     Most of the police would never be as smart as he was. He knew that the detective bloke was nobody's fool though.     That stuff about angels and light was a load of hogwash. Nobody sensible believed in God - not in this nice new woke world. Who in their right mind would believe children's fantasies?     Still one thing bothered this clever genius of a man who had managed to quietly infiltrate so many secure websites. He could even soar to the cloud.     But.....while he was still sure his former wife had betrayed him, the revenge on her and the kids involved men who could betray him.     Tony knew he would walk free tomorrow, and maybe take his son with him. He had found out Theodor, while odd, was a mathematica...

THE SENTINEL PART TWO: THE SURPRISE   By Tessa Harvey     But when the others were asleep, the young girl's nightmares returned. She was struggling in icy water and bits of glacial ice kept nudging her sharply.     The cold was so intense. She felt herself struggling in green-blue water. The lumps of ice became men looming over her menacingly, holding her down, pushing her under. Her friends had gone. No-one could hear her. She let go....Her bedside light flickered on.     Her mother hovered over her, and still locked in the dream, Sylvia shrank away, then slowly opened her eyes, confused.     "What happened, Sylvia?" her mother asked, softly. And her daughter told her all she remembered and about the policewoman and the other officer.     "I don't know what to do," she added, allowing her mother to push back her dark blond hair gently as she had as a child.     "I must go back and get a doctor's note and face the other wo...

THE SENTINEL  PART TWO: THE SURPRISE By Tessa Harvey     Her mother had been apologetic . "Sorry Sylvie. One of these was not paid for in time for your birthday, so I got them both when I went to the 'big town.'" It was Sylvia's name for the city when she was small.     Both of her children had been given bright new laptops. Theodor had used one at school and Sylvia had managed to get one fourth hand, but they had never owned new ones.     They were both in awe. "How, mum," Sylvia managed to say. "We have so little." Her mum looked embarrassed. "I wrote some stories about our plateau for a women's magazine. They were pretty lame, but the editors liked them."     Theodor had given Eliza one of his rare hugs. He wanted to hug his sister, but saw she still did not like him.     He turned to his own gift, stroking it, trying to decipher the instructions.      "I can help you Theo," Sylvia offered diffidently, feeling some...

THE SENTINEL PART TWO: THE SURPRISE  By Tessa Harvey     There was a sudden scratching at the door. Theo, remembering the weird man near the cliff, froze. His sister's hands, dripping soap bubbles, unaware yet of his recent trauma, turned to the door.     But it was her mother's voice, shaking with cold, calling as she tried to knock. Her children both opened the door. The woman was shivering, trying to nudge two large boxes into the cosy room, her hands too cold to have mobility.     Though she still felt unwell, Sylvia helped her mother inside. Both children dragged the large boxes inside, puzzled.     "Can you get me a warm drink, Sylvia?" The mother was feeling the cold after her own assault some days ago.     Slowly the girl made drinks for them and waited, still resentful. But the surprise had overwhelmed her.

THE SENTINEL PART TWO: THE SURPRISE   By Tessa Harvey     That night, cocooned once more in her childhood room, Sylvia's mind swirled with thoughts that permitted no sleep, though she was desperately tired. It had been good to be looked after, to let her mother and brother be kind without her saying a word.     But the old resentments crept back into her mind. Why should Theodor get a surprise just because he was ten? When she turned eighteen a few months ago, there had been a pretty card from mum and gratefully received, gift vouchers, but not a surprise.     The girl knew she was being childish, but deep down, the harsh issue of her unexplained attack hid behind the resentment of her family.     Earlier, al most as though her mother had felt this after a meal of warm vegetable soup, bread and cheese, Sylvia was asked to stay inside while her mum went to the car, that stupid little red Kia. Theodor was hopping around with excitement. To dist...

THE SENTINEL PART TWO: THE SURPRISE By Tessa Harvey     They rushed over, and mindful of each other's frailty, embraced.     "What happened, mum?" "Where were you, Sylvie. Are you ok? No-one came at night."     Their words tangled around each other and Sylvia felt Theo hugging her around the waist. "I lost you, Sylvie," he kept saying, "and mum." Rain began to fall and Eliza took charge, trying not to offend her daughter. "Will you come home for now?" she offered, looking hesitant.     Sylvia was shivering and feeling quite unwell. The car was not far, just in a parking lot across the busy street. They took the lift and were soon groping towards their mud-stained vehicle. It was not well-lit on the third level. Theodor crawled in the back with his sister which really touched her. He said nothing much, but kept holding her hand or sleeve as though afraid she would vanish.     Sylvia did not know her brother had been alone so long. No...

THE SENTINEL PART TWO: THE SURPRISE     By Tessa Harvey     A young bored-looking boy was with her, presumably a grandson, scuffing his shoes in an idle pattern while he waited, annoyed he pulled her coat as they moved away.     Trying to hide her tears, the young woman felt bereft. A young policewoman had visited and Sylvia remembered her from school, but she had been in a higher grade. When the officer had left after some desultory conversation, Sylvia had hastily dressed and followed her out without being noticed. Then she saw her mother and brother. They had left the busy entrance and were walking in her direction. Theo stopped to fasten his shoe. To his sister's surprise, she saw he was crying, tears trickling down his small face. Her mother had paused, waiting, trying to make sure he was safe, but in a distracted way. As the girl looked closer, she saw her mum's face was also bruised and they both looked like victims of some bad accident.  The th...

THE SENTINEL Part 2: THE SURPRI SE   By Tessa Harvey     Sylvia was leaning against a wall a little way from the main hospital entrance. It was tucked into a corner where there was an exit-entrance which meant no-one could enter without a keycard, but treated day patients could leave that way if convenient.     She felt terrible. Somehow the police had recovered her handbag and she had her well-hidden credit card and a cracked pair of old sunglasses. Despite the dull cold day, she wore them. A look in the hospital bathroom mirror, a burnished metal of some sort, had shown her one black eye.     An older woman walked by on the footpath and paused, assessing her. It was clear she had noticed the bruising.     At another time Sylvia would have rolled her eyes....obviously the older woman had not realised Sylvia could see her clearly through the sunglasses, trying to assess the damage.

THE SENTINEL  By Tessa Harvey     A boy's voice was yelling "mum!" and a lad barreled out of the darkness and engulfed his mother in an enormous hug, struggling not to cry.     He was speaking more clearly, Eliza thought in a small corner of her mind, but she was crying herself - tears of relief and gratitude.     "What was all that light?" she suddenly asked, bewildered. "Angels," said a small voice, "they were angels you saw, mum!"      "Yes they were," Anemone confirmed. "They saved your son, Mrs. Schonbaum."     Confused, Eliza looked around. Nothing, just a few moths. No bats tonight. Too many people. Too much light and noise, but she wondered.     "God saved me. That man pushed me. I was too near the edge. Sorry mum." He looked up at her seeing bruises and noticing tiredness.     "Where was Sylvie? Why are you hurt?" Theodor asked. "Where were you?"     His mother stood there, bewildered...

THE SENTINEL   By Tessa Harvey     Detective Inspector Alistair Sutherland wondered at the light that was fading over the plateau. Trick of light, he thought, from the town on the horizon as he strode purposefully to where "Tony Smith" was beginning to get up, somewhat shakily.     "Terrible storm," he was muttering. "So much lightning, awful thunder. Trying to save my boy," he added, alert to the fact that must be a senior constable at least, suddenly standing so so close.     But the detective was not listening. He had heard such cries of innocence for a long time, and few were genuine. "Your mates have dobbed you in, Karl, or "Mr. Smith" or whatever. Two attacks on helpless women."     You can't prove it," snarled the wrongdoer, now securely shackled and his rights explained by another constable.     "This time we can," replied the police officer , and let his junior colleague lead him away.     Alistair paused and...

THE SENTINEL  By Tessa Harvey     It was Alice who first saw the angels. They were hovering over the far edge of the plateau holding her friend. Alice was too young and beautiful inside to know unbelief.     The warm strong light had woken her and she stood on tiptoe at the small window of Theodor's little house. She felt she was seeing something of God.     Her mother, Anemone, aware of the thin cold of the mountain air, had sat up in the spare bed, half asleep, at first annoyed. Alice had gone probably to the toilet, leaving her mother uncovered. Then the awareness of immense light froze fear in her shaken heart......whatever?! she thought, and thought was gone.      Slowly she crept to the window and crouched, holding her daughter close and totally forgetting her abusive husband, Eliza's disappearance, worries about money...nothing mattered but the ethereal God - beauty of the awesome scene before her. Truly awesome.     Ane...

THE SENTINEL  By Tessa Harvey     D.S. Alistair Sutherland was not happy. He did not believe in all this religious stuff and he certainly did not believe that we all worship the same god. He had taken the trouble to really look into some religions and found that the god of those who believe in radical Islam is quite definitely not the same one the Christians hold dear. Perhaps if people could unite more in the Christian sphere it would help, he thought., but then people are divisive.     Even different areas and regions in the same country are at odds with each other.     But these are his own personal thoughts and what is really bothering him is the bloke they call the sentinel, John Dixon.     Yes, he is highly trained, highly successful and very well qualified. But he is just one person. The word keeps coming into his mind "Shield." His grandad had been some kind of minister or preacher or vicar. Alistair had been very young when the old m...