condensed master

Will Bonner
"We're sorry cobber, but we thought you were an intruder. Would you like a
drink?" Will was beside himself with relief but he had no desire to test his luck any
further.
“No thanks, I think I’ll get off home.”
As an afterthought, before leaving the room, he turned. “Could I have Len
Croft's home number?" A piece of paper was passed over. "I'll phone him at
home, I don't want to get clobbered again."
Everybody laughed as Will closed the door and made for the stairs at
breakneck speed. He cleared the building running, his nerves wound up tight and
he didn't stop until he reached the restaurant where Ed and Tony were waiting.
Ed looked across the table at him as he sat down. "They caught you, didn't
they?"
"How did you know?"
"You've got big red weals around your neck." Will instinctively pulled his coat
across to hide the marks. "How did you manage to get away?"
"It's a long story. Have you got the recording?"
"Yes, everything's fine." Will stayed awhile for a coffee and something to eat,
and to wind down. He never thought that he would be glad to be back in that
restaurant again!
He had to get a compress on his neck to help clear the redness before he went
home. It was in the early hours of the morning before he arrived back at the
apartment and climbed into bed.
"You're very late Will."
"Yes, things got a bit involved." But as he stretched out his body started to
shake, a delayed reaction from the trauma he had experienced and his eyes started
to fill with tears from the relief of being home, and safe.
"You're shivering Will. Are you cold?"
"Just a little bit."
He felt another blanket fall over him as he kept saying to himself "everything's
alright now that you're home."
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