A Time to Run Read Online Free Page B
Author: J.M. Peace
worried but couldnât pinpoint exactly why. He wasnât sure if it was about their fight, the feeling that she didnât trust him enough. All he wanted to do was keep calling Sammiâs number till she answered and he knew she was OK. He couldnât shake the feeling that something was wrong.
But he knew ringing her phone at quarter to seven in the morning after sheâd had a night out on the town would put her in an even worse mood. He didnât mind her going out, but usually they would have kissed and made up by now.
Gavin knew Sammi started work at midday. He always loaded her work rosters onto his phone so he knew what shift she was on. She took work seriously and would drag herself into work rather than call in with some dodgy excuse because she was hungover and tired.
It was a small town. Someone else probably knew by now that she hadnât been home all night. The night crews regularly did laps past all the other officersâ houses, and would have seen that her car was not in the carport or yard. Sammi knew all of that. If she didnât turn up for her shift after a night out, there would be trouble, and not just from the boss. There would be a loss of reputation among her colleagues for letting the team down and for being soft. There was a certain bravado among Sammiâs workmates. It was like a badge of honour, partying all night and then still putting in a dayâs work. The inevitable teasing if she turned up to work with a hangover was always better than the snide remarks if she didnât turn up at all.
He trusted Sammi, but she was with Candy. Gavin had met Candy only a couple of times but knew what she could get up to. He knew going out with Candy was Sammiâs way of punishing him.
Gavin did a few calculations. Candy lived in the western suburbs of Brisbane, a good three hoursâ drive away. Sammi would have to be out of bed and on the road by about 8:45Â am. Knowing her, she wouldnât want to cut it too fine. Gavin looked at the clock radio. Heâd ring her at 8:15. She might even appreciate him waking her up in time so she wasnât late. He rolled over, shutting his eyes. He pretended Sammi was next to him and tried to relax.
Saturday 6:50 am
The drug fog had lifted a little and Sammi tried to focus. Now was the time to make a plan. She didnât know how much longer she would be bumping around in the back of the ute but she knew with absolute certainty that she would need all her wits about her once the ute stopped. She would have to think on her feet.
Now was the time to try some cool-headed practical thinking. After all, this was what she had been trained for.
Sammi had been a police officer for six years. She had joined the Queensland Police Service after a failed attempt to become an accountant. She completed two years of a finance degree before she realised she was sentencing herself to endless days in an office. Sheâd applied to the police halfway through her degree and had been accepted straightaway. Sheâd had two weeksâ holidays to transition between a uni share house in Toowong and joining a recruit squad in the Police Academy at Oxley.
On her first day of station duty, which was like work experience for wannabe coppers, she knew sheâd made the right choice. She loved the unexpected, turning up to jobs without knowing what would happen once she got out of the car. She relished driving fast with lights and sirens, looking for the best route as the traffic moved aside. She thrived on the surge of adrenaline when she turned up at a fist fight, hand on her capsicum spray, trying to sort out the goodies from the baddies. It was never that straightforward though. Sammi also enjoyed getting both sides of the story in any dispute, sifting through what was said and deciding who was lying to her â and why.
She was also developing into a good negotiator. Her supervisor in her first year had repeatedly told her,
But he knew ringing her phone at quarter to seven in the morning after sheâd had a night out on the town would put her in an even worse mood. He didnât mind her going out, but usually they would have kissed and made up by now.
Gavin knew Sammi started work at midday. He always loaded her work rosters onto his phone so he knew what shift she was on. She took work seriously and would drag herself into work rather than call in with some dodgy excuse because she was hungover and tired.
It was a small town. Someone else probably knew by now that she hadnât been home all night. The night crews regularly did laps past all the other officersâ houses, and would have seen that her car was not in the carport or yard. Sammi knew all of that. If she didnât turn up for her shift after a night out, there would be trouble, and not just from the boss. There would be a loss of reputation among her colleagues for letting the team down and for being soft. There was a certain bravado among Sammiâs workmates. It was like a badge of honour, partying all night and then still putting in a dayâs work. The inevitable teasing if she turned up to work with a hangover was always better than the snide remarks if she didnât turn up at all.
He trusted Sammi, but she was with Candy. Gavin had met Candy only a couple of times but knew what she could get up to. He knew going out with Candy was Sammiâs way of punishing him.
Gavin did a few calculations. Candy lived in the western suburbs of Brisbane, a good three hoursâ drive away. Sammi would have to be out of bed and on the road by about 8:45Â am. Knowing her, she wouldnât want to cut it too fine. Gavin looked at the clock radio. Heâd ring her at 8:15. She might even appreciate him waking her up in time so she wasnât late. He rolled over, shutting his eyes. He pretended Sammi was next to him and tried to relax.
Saturday 6:50 am
The drug fog had lifted a little and Sammi tried to focus. Now was the time to make a plan. She didnât know how much longer she would be bumping around in the back of the ute but she knew with absolute certainty that she would need all her wits about her once the ute stopped. She would have to think on her feet.
Now was the time to try some cool-headed practical thinking. After all, this was what she had been trained for.
Sammi had been a police officer for six years. She had joined the Queensland Police Service after a failed attempt to become an accountant. She completed two years of a finance degree before she realised she was sentencing herself to endless days in an office. Sheâd applied to the police halfway through her degree and had been accepted straightaway. Sheâd had two weeksâ holidays to transition between a uni share house in Toowong and joining a recruit squad in the Police Academy at Oxley.
On her first day of station duty, which was like work experience for wannabe coppers, she knew sheâd made the right choice. She loved the unexpected, turning up to jobs without knowing what would happen once she got out of the car. She relished driving fast with lights and sirens, looking for the best route as the traffic moved aside. She thrived on the surge of adrenaline when she turned up at a fist fight, hand on her capsicum spray, trying to sort out the goodies from the baddies. It was never that straightforward though. Sammi also enjoyed getting both sides of the story in any dispute, sifting through what was said and deciding who was lying to her â and why.
She was also developing into a good negotiator. Her supervisor in her first year had repeatedly told her,
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