The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 3078 by Angharad Copyright© 2016 Angharad

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This is a work of fiction any mention of real people, places or institutions is purely coincidental and does not imply that they are as suggested in the story.
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As I alighted my car a strange car drove into the driveway. I stood by my car and watched. A man and a woman got out of the car and walked towards me. “Are you Mrs Cameron?” asked the man.

My tummy flipped, was this about Danni? “Why do you want to know?” I replied.

“We’re trying to trace a Daniel Maiden.”

“I’m sorry but there is no one by that name here and the only men are my husband and father, oh and my cook.”

“Nice house,” said the man.

“It’s my father’s.”

He nodded. “Okay, thanks anyway.” They went back to the car and drove off talking as they went. They’ll be back, I thought and turned towards the house.

As far as I knew, parents who give up children for adoption have little if any rights and certainly none to contact the child unless the child initiates it or agrees to it. Danielle had done neither of those. After lunch I left a message for Andy Bond to contact me. The person I spoke to thought he may be on a course. With my luck, that was highly possible.

Simon arrived back with Danielle and Trish, they’d both been playing football for the school and Danielle would be in action again tomorrow. I told them what had happened and I also had the number of the car the two people had been in. Trish grabbed it and ran off.

“Where’s she gone?” asked Simon.

“To find out who owns the car.”

“She’s not going to hack the DVLC, is she?”

“I hope not, but there are other ways, I believe.”

“That girl is something else.”

“Which one, Si?”

“Trish, who else?”

“You could have meant the soccer skills of Danielle ‘Beckham’ Cameron.”

“I could, she scored a hat trick in her match and Trish got one as well.”

“What a hat trick?”

“No, one goal.”

“Oh, okay. Did they win?”

“They did, three nil and one nil.”

“Are the school still allowing them to wear those shirts you had made for them, the ones with ‘Beckham’ on the back?”

He blushed, “As long as they score goals, I don’t think it matters too much.”

“So they are. It doesn’t look as if anyone is going to wash their kit, so I suppose I’d better do it.” I unzipped the two bags and fished out the muddy damp shirts and shorts and together with their towels and socks dumped them in the washing machine.

“I forgot to give you this, earlier.” He handed me an envelope inside which was a birthday card. I kissed him and thanked him. Just as we were getting affectionate, Trish bowled into the room with Danielle close on her heels.

“Oh bugger, they’re havin’ sex,” declared the brain causing us both to blush, pull apart and deny all knowledge of such things. In my case that probably wouldn’t be telling too many porkies.

“I was just thanking Daddy for my birthday card, if you must know.”

“I don’t care you’re both adults,” she dismissed me, “oh the car was a hire one.”

Danni standing behind just shrugged.

“Did you live in Portsmouth before?” I asked her.

“I don’t really know, we moved two or three times and then my step father—um.”

“It’s okay, sweetheart, we know what happened.”

“She put me in the home and told them all sorts of lies about me. I used to cry myself to sleep every night, an’ the only one who offered me friendship was Billy and that was because I defended him against Bowditch.”

“I wish you’d protected me against him,” said Trish with teary eyes.

“Yeah, so do I, but these days I’d probably need someone to protect me.”

“That’s my job,” I said quietly.

“Yeah, and I protect her.” Simon said and then blushed when I gave him a questioning look.

“I think she protects you too, Daddy,” said Trish and both girls went off together.

“Ha,” said Simon and strolled off in a huff turning at the door and adding, “What do we do if they come back?”

“What Danni and Trish?”

He rolled his eyes, “No our two visitors.”

“I’d close the gates except Tom is out and would probably demolish them again.”

“Isn’t he getting a bit old to be driving?”

“I don’t think so and let’s face it he’s safer than your sister.”

“Even Jeremy Clarkson is a safer driver than Stella.”

“What about Stella?” asked the very person walking into the kitchen.

“I was saying you drive like Jeremy Clarkson,” said Simon blushing brightly.

“You say the kindest things, big brother. Now what’s this about Danielle’s birth mother calling to take her back?”

“I don’t know if it was her mother, but a man and a woman drove into the driveway after I came in and asked if I was Mrs Cameron. When I asked why, they said they were trying to find Daniel Maiden. I told them there were no boys here.”

“If she wasn’t her mother, who was she?”

“I don’t know, she could have been a private investigator or even a lawyer. She was quite well dressed as was he, they didn’t buy their clothes in Marks and Spencer.”

“I got the impression that Danielle came from relatively humble origins,” said Stella, “So unless she’s come into some money, how would they manage to bribe the adoption agency bloke and hire a private investigator.

“I have no idea, but I shall ask James to look into it.”

Just then the phone rang, it was Andy Bond. I told him the matter was a little too delicate to talk about over the phone but that it was quite serious and that I’d welcome his advice on the matter. He told me he’d be over in an hour.

I did some housework and pretty well an hour later in walked sergeant Andy Bond. Over a cuppa I told him what had happened and how James had tricked the adoption agency man and filmed him betraying the confidentiality he was obliged to maintain in working for the agency. Andy was horrified and wanted his name to see if they could prosecute him.

We had no idea who the couple were who came trying to trace Danni and Andy also understood the potential for this to backfire on me personally for having two post-op transgender children who were much younger than the rules were supposed to allow. We did have the whole thing authenticated by Stephanie and Mr O’Rourke as being the best course of action, plus of course Danielle had risen to new heights in her soccer career that could only happen as a girl. In fact she attests quite vigorously that life as a girl was much better than as a boy.

“Did you get the mail?” asked Jacquie.

“I didn’t realise there was any.”

“It’s on the hall table.”

I went and got it and amongst a couple more birthday cards was a letter addressed to me. I opened it and found a letter from Danny’s school, the previous one informing me that they’d had a man and a woman asking questions about Daniel and trying to get verification as to his address and adopted parents. The headmaster said that the school told them nothing nor confirmed anything they seemed to have discovered so far about my son and thought they’d better inform me of the visit.

I’d have to write back and thank him for letting me know. What we didn’t know was how the couple discovered which school he’d gone to. Certainly, St Claire’s wouldn’t divulge anything though if they’re looking for a boy, it would be the last place they’d check.