Call Screening (standard:drama, 2521 words)
Author: meg malpas	Added: Sep 16 2009	Views/Reads: 2931/2028	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Home alone a housewife decides to not answer the phone for one morning to get her work done. This story has 3 different endings.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

3........  Violent. 

Please choose your ending and read on. 

ENDING No. 1 

As Jenny sipped her coffee the dinning room phone could be heard through
the open garden doors or the dinning room.  By now Jenny was becoming 
very brave and did not let it disturb her.  She could hear the birds in 
the trees at the bottom of the garden as they fought to swing from the 
bird feeder and help themselves to their breakfast. 

The over-head helicopter moved away and the usual garden sounds were
relaxing. Just then the garden side gate was opened with a click of the 
latch and Peter her husband appeared with at first a worried look then 
relief. “I have rung several times and wondered if you were OK.  You 
did say you had a headache this morning.” He explained his appearance 
as he looked closely at his wife. “Ah that is nice of you to be 
concerned but I am fine.  Just letting the phone ring for a morning to 
get a few jobs done.  Are you on your way somewhere?” inquired Jenny. 
“Yes I have a meeting at head office in an hour but I have time for a 
coffee if there is any left.” “Will instant do?  I'll warm some milk.” 
“How about, instead of coffee and as your headache has gone, we take 
the opportunity of being the only ones in the house after a busy 
week-end.” said Peter as he took Jenny's empty cup and, putting it on 
the garden table, lead her by the hand to their bedroom. 

“What about your meeting?” asked Jenny with a grin. “What meeting?”
Peter quipped as they undressed each other. He began to kiss her all 
over. 

Just then the phone rang. No-one even considered answering it. 

ENDING No. 2 

As Jenny sipped her coffee the sound of the over head helicopter and the
sirens died away and she could hear the birds hidden in the trees at 
the bottom of the garden. She decided she was now chilled enough to see 
what all the calls were about. 

As she brought the cordless phone from the dinning room to the garden
she tapped in the code. The first message was her friend Carol who, 
although she only lived directly across the road, loved to have a 
natter on a Monday morning and was probably wanting to know how the 
family birthday went. “Only me.” said Carols cheery voice, “Just to let 
you know they have your favorite tea-bags on half price round the 
corner and some lovely salmon steaks on buy one get one free.  Catch 
you later.” 

After deleting Carol's message Jenny had to listen more carefully to the
second message as it was a female voice she didn't recognize. “Hi 
darling only me. I'm waiting in arrivals.  Have you forgotten me?” 
Jenny slumped down into the garden chair and spilled her coffee on the 
plastic cloth that covered the table. With phone still attached to her 
ear the she vaguely heard the operator say “Message will be saved for 
20 days.  Next new message. 

Jenny pulled herself together as she heard her daughter Helen's voice
say  “Hi Mum just ringing to say thank you for a lovely birthday 
yesterday.  Off to work now but will talk to you this evening.” As 
Jenny pressed 3 to delete Helen's message she was told the next message 
was left 40 minutes ago and it was a mobile number.  The same unknown 
female voice. “Where are you darling?  I hope this is your number I got 
it out of the phone book when you didn't answer your mobile and I 
couldn't get through to the office.  Please ring me soon.  I love you.” 
As the operator told Jenny she had no more messages Jenny's head began 
to process the possibilities. That could have been a wrong number.  Yet 
we are the only Redhurst in the phone book.  The young lady could have 
mis-dialled.  Peter   could be having an affair. 

Jenny tried Peters mobile but it was switched off as it often was when
he was driving.  Next she got his works number out of the Rolodex. 
After several engaged attempts a voice answered. “Good morning. 
North-west under floor heating can I help you?” “Yes” replied Jenny.  
“My husband is your new area sales manager Peter Redhurst.  Is he in 
his office just now” “You are Peter's wife did you say?” she asked 
slowly as if studying what to say next. “Yes I never like to disturb 
him at work but I had a call for him and his mobile is switched off.”  
Jenny waited and after a pause the voice said “Can I put you on hold 
for a moment please?” and she was gone, replaced by gentle blues music. 
After what seemed like a year, yet was more like ten minutes, Jenny 
started going through all the possibilities again when the lady's voice 
was replaced by an older male voice. “Hello my name is John Forbes and 
I am the general manager here...” “Yes Peter has mentioned you Mr. 
Forbes” Jenny interrupted. “Yes, well Peter has gone to a sales meeting 
at head office but if it is urgent I can get a message to him.” “Well,” 
began Jenny “I had a phone message from a young lady waiting to be 
picked up from an airport I think but it could be a wrong number.  I 
will try to get back to her and make sure it is.....” “No don't do 
that.” Interrupted John “I will get on to Peter now and get back to you 
as soon as I have spoken to him.  Talk soon.  Bye.” The phone went dead 
and Jenny became even more confused. 

As she waited for that call Jenny seemed to be on auto-pilot. She
emptied the washing machine and hung out the clothes. She rinsed her 
coffee cup and stared out of the kitchen window. John Forbes did not 
want her to speak to the young lady in the phone message. Did he know 
who she was? Did he want to warn her? Did he want to warn Peter she had 
rung? “No this is ridiculous.” Jenny said out loud to herself.  “He may 
be going through a bit of a mid-life crisis with the sports car thing 
but not a young lady who sounded as young as their daughter and he has 
only been in the new job two weeks. She said “I love you.”” Jenny was 
in the bathroom when the phone rang again and she dashed for the 
bedroom extension. “Hi there darling are you OK John tells me you have 
a young women for me to pick up at an airport.” “Oh Peter its you.  He 
said he would ring me back. Yes I got two messages from a young female 
and she is waiting to be picked up at arrivals.” “Well if she is tall, 
blonde and 25 to 30 you can find out which airport for me.” Peter 
joked. “Well I am going to ring her now and see if she got picked up.” 
“OK. I have just finished a sales meeting and can call home for lunch 
on the way back if you are going to be in.” “Yes” said Jenny, “That 
would be nice.” “And don't worry my darling it is probably someone 
dialing the wrong number.  I'm sure she has been picked up by now. See 
you in about an hour.” But as Jenny hung up she thought she heard in 
the background loudspeaker voice call, “The 12-15 flight from Geneva 
has been delayed.....” 

ENDING No. 3 

As Jenny sipped her coffee it was not the quiet, peaceful sit in the
garden she had expected. That helicopter seemed to be hovering almost 
overhead and there go those sirens again.  It was not easy to tell the 
ambulance from the police or the fire engines. It could be any. Added 
to that the magpie, at the bottom of the garden somewhere, was doing 
that warning chattering that they do when next door's cat is hiding 
among the trees. 

On a sunny morning like this Jenny was expecting to hear the small birds
as they came and went from the bird-feeder on the plum tree and maybe a 
few bees as they went from flower to flower in the borders around the 
patio. The phone rang again and again. Jenny would soon have to give in 
and answer it but first she would tidy the bedrooms.  As she pulled 
back the curtains in the back bedroom and pushed open the window she 
thought something moved behind the apple tree at the bottom of the 
garden.  “That cat again.” she murmured as she came down the stairs 
with arms full of towels from the wash basket. 

The phone was ringing again.  This time when it stopped Jenny picked up
the phone and decided she had got most of her jobs done so she would 
see who was trying to get hold of her. “You have 7 new messages.” said 
the recorded voice. “Wow, aren't I popular she said out loud as she 
stood in the frame of the garden doors and looked at the beautiful 
early summer flowers. The most recent message was from Carol across the 
road, she recognized the number but not the hysterical tone in her 
voice, as she screamed “Get out Jenny please he is in your back garden 
and he has a gun.  The street is surrounded by police, Just run 
please.” Carols voice half screamed and half crying. Jenny could not 
resist a look down the garden in front of her as the shadow came out 
from behind the old apple tree.  She turned to run in, just as the 
bullet with a bang and a whistle hit her. She fell into the dinning 
room as she heard the footsteps running up the path towards her.  Then 
she heard the side garden gate burst open and everything went black. 

Jenny regained consciousness as she was lifted on a trolly into an
ambulance.  Her friend and neighbour Carol leaned over her. “It's just 
a flesh wound to your shoulder.   You'll be fine they say.  Unless you 
screen my calls again.  Then I'll shoot you myself said Carol with 
tears streaming down her cheeks and some very messy mascara.” 

It was 2 day, 5 stitches and a lot of sympathy later that Jenny heard
the full story of the raid on the local jewelery shop and the police 
chase which ended in her back garden. It took a lot longer than that 
for Jenny to stop shaking every time the magpie chattered out a warning 
that next door's cat was on the prowl. 


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