Wow, a blast comes flying back from the past straight at me, so unexpectedly.
I was having one of those days; end of financial year, my (crap) system had been playing up and it had taken us two weeks, three departments and five patches, supplied by the cowboys who run the software support, to fix it, to get it into some sort of working order to proceed with year end. To say it had been a stressful two weeks is an understatement.
Manny arrived in the middle of it all to collect our tattslotto money. He was off to train out with, the beautiful, Stuart, afterwards. His parting words were that Stuart was looking for car to buy and I have a car for sale... and not just any car.
When Stuart was going out with my house mate at the time, Julien, Stuart had the same classic car as me. In fact, Stuart used to park his maroon Rover out the back of my place next to my white Rover.
Stuart liked my white, manual, Rover so much that he sold his automatic maroon car and bought a white sedan the same as mine, although still automatic, a few years later. I still have my white one, I've been meaning to sell it for some time, but have just been too slack. The old Rover is not worth much, considering I had hung onto it as an investment and I'd be keen for Stuart to buy it now. I really want to sell it, I'm keen to get rid of it, with the minimum of fuss, and I'm really keen to get it out of Lottie's garage.
So when my mobile phone rang sometime later, with ID restriction, which is often what comes up on my mobile screen when Manny calls me when he is somewhere other than home, in the midst of the whirl wind that was going on in my office, I answered it with interest.
This is senior detective, we shall call him, Bob Smith. I'm looking for a Christian Fletcher am I speaking to him.
Yes, you are.
I would just like to ask you a few questions. Do you have a few minutes?
Yes, I do, I said, a little taken a back. It was supposed to be Manny.
Let me just say first that the Christian Fletcher I am looking for is not in trouble, but he may be able to help us with an investigation.
Okay, I said.
Would you be the Christian Fletcher who attended, we shall say, Smithton Boys Grammar School?
Yes, I am, I said.
Well then, I think you may be the Christian Fletcher I am looking for.
My mind spun. What the? I thought.
Did you know of a teacher named, Peter Morrison?
Oh my God! I thought. Fucken hell! It all started coming clear to me.
Yes, I did.
I am investigating a complaint from a past pupil who has made certain allegations against Mr Morrison. The investigation has been pending since, he gave a year, and that investigation has stalled. The complainant has supplied me with three names, one of which is yours. This inquiry is, I'm sorry, of a delicate nature and the allegations, are of a sexual nature. The complainant believes that you may be able to help with the investigation.
I see, I said.
I don't really remember his exact words after that, my head was spinning, but he went on to say words to the effect of...
I realise this is of a very personal nature and that it may be a lot for you to take in, all of a sudden like this. Please let me assure you that if you choose not to be involve that is perfectly okay. Or if you'd like some time to think about it, well, maybe you could call me back at a later date, or you could come into the station and we could go through some more details.
Wow, I thought. It all comes back in the end, huh? Fucken hell!
The detective had stopped talking. My head was awash with details from my school years, when I was a thirteen year old school boy, when the man in question did try to molest me. There was silence. I hadn't thought about it in years.
All I could manage was um... I had to say something. The detective must have known. I never felt like anything bad had happened to me. The teacher showed me porn magazines and grabbed me on the cock starting to play with it through my pants, asking me if it turned me on. I told him no and to stop and he did stop. I can't remember what I felt.
I guess, I should add that he spent some considerable time working up to that point, though; taking a shine to me, driving me home for a year before this, buying me coffee and chocolate cake at Brummells cafe in South Yarra, treating me... special.
As Tom said, I was groomed. I guess I was, thinking about it in retrospect, but it never felt like that.
Um. Look, um, I'm really busy today and I don't really want to think about this at the moment. I would like some time to think about what you have said. Could I call you back, um...
Yes, of course you could. I would hope that you would call me back though.
Yes, sure.
The detective asked me to keep our conversation confidential - well, none of you know who I'm talking about.
His last question was, Are you still in contact with the accused?
No, I said.
So... what to do?





























