Lauren 2
Without Prejudice
Bob and my stories will come later,too long, too involved for now I just want to talk about Lauren.
So it was the next day and according to us her parents, Lauren was happily ensconced at school. Yvette was at home with her 2 week old baby, Kyle, Alena was at high school and Debbie had finished year 12 and was working for us in the office.
At lunch time on the 1st December, after our shitty day Bob decided we would call in at a big hotel in Mordialloc. When we went to cross the threshold I saw a fish not long dead laying on the step. It was beautiful and dead. I called out to Bob and he popped his head back out the door. We were puzzled as to why it was there.
"Maybe it's some fishermans catch and he's dropped it there and gone for a beer", Bob suggested. but it un nerved me and I couldn't stop thinking about it, baking out in the hot sun.
WE had a very ordinary lunch and both us were unsettled after our waste of a morning, we decided to go home, check on Yvette and the baby and grab an ice cream from the freezer. Another hot afternoon at the office awaited us. So we called in at home and Yvette said after a while,
"Did you hear that a teenage girls body was found at Noble Park Pool they are looking for the parents."
"Some street kid", i thought, " How sad."
We raced off back to the factory and Bob started up the chain mesh machine. he had been having trouble with it and he was determined to find out the problem. Debbie was in the factory office upstairs on the mezzanine floor. As I threw my bag down and grabbed hold of a phone debbie said,
"Mum, some of Lauren's schoolfriends have been calling, apparently she wasn't at school, today"
"What", I replied.
Debbie gazed at me steadily, calmly,
"Lauren, was not at school today", repeating herself slowly.
I grabbed the phone and checked the back of my hand for the number I dialled
A man answered,
" Is Lauren there" I asked
"Nuh" came the reply delivered in a hostile manner.
I said, "it's Laurens Mum Janette,"
"Oh yeah" Once again short sharp speech.
For some reason I asked this next question, not knowing where it came from
"Did she sleep there last night'
"Hang on a minute", said exasperatedly and the phone was clunked down.
Another mans voice came on the phone and introduced himself as a policeman from Springvale.
"Are you Mrs Hancock", he asked,
"Yes" I replied.
"Are you the Mother of Lauren Hancock"
"Yes, why is she in some sort of trouble"
"Mrs Hancock, i need you to get your husband and meet me at your home"
I looked out of the office window, gazing down at my hot and hot tempered husband he was throwing tools around and swearing his head off. He threw one of the spanners at the cockatoos aviary and she screeched and flew up to the furthest spot.
"OK", I lied,
if Lauren was in trouble there was no way i was letting on to Bob. I decided to go home on my own.
I told Deb what was going on, she replied,
"Ring Parkmore, Mum, she'll be at Parkmore, shopping centre, maybe wagging school with Tanya"
this was feasible, I had caught Lauren wagging once and she was grounded for two weeks. That 2 weeks limit had not long passed.
My middle two girls were major rebels but Lauren always did as she was told and I did reason to myself that i did not think she would wag again, that was Lauren, a trustworthy girl.
i dialled the number for Parkmore's Centre management, but then put the phone down,
" I, have to go home,i have to meet the police there in 20 minutes."
"Fine", Deb, said a bit miffed,
"I'll ring Parkmore and have her paged"
I turned to leave and Debbie phone in hand said"
"Did you hear a girls body was found at Noble Park Pool"
"Yes", I replied desperate to get home, but I had paused, I looked back at Debbie
"When Lauren's schoolfriends rang one of them was crying" She said.
Puzzled I said, "Why were they crying"
Her call clicked through and she turned her attention away. i left for home thoughts tumbling through my mind.
I reached Ordish road and I knew,i knew. Things totalled up in my mind. Teenage girl ( not that we thought of Lauren as a teenager.... not at 12 ) she was a child.
The only thought that could get through to my whirling brain was one
"What parents in Noble Park, didn't know where their child was,???"
Us.
I parked the car half way up the drive and ran to the front door. Alena and Yvette were standing on the front step.
"Don't tell me its her I said.
DON"T FUCKING TELL ME IT"S HER" I screamed
Alena and Yvette were solemn but calm.
"Mum, it's not her" they said in unison.
"WELL, THEN WHERE IS SHE"
"Lauren would be home by now."
The girls had rung all her friends and she was no where.
The police arrived.
I was calm, it couldn't be Lauren. Not Lauren....., not my baby. but where was she, where was she, she had to be somewhere.
The police were very non commital, they said a girls body had been found in the olympic pool at Noble park By a pool worker at 6am that morning. The police just wanted to rule out Lauren was the girl. They asked for recent photos I fetched them from her messy messy room. the police were calm as they looked at them, they asked about her hair colour, what colour jewellery she wore silver or gold.
Deb arrived with Grace, they were both crying. Grace explained they had been to the pool and asked for a description of the girl.
'ITS NOT HER",I said through gritted teeth
but if not her, where was she.
Bob arrived and was informed of the situation.
The police asked if Bob would go with them to the morgue to rule out it was not our daughter. I asked to come to and they said to me gently no, they would just take Bob.
People arrived, I know my Dad was there, he had lost a son, my older brother James. he had died as a child aged 11 in a tragic sand cave in at port Augusta, Jamie and his best friend Wayne. My dad knew what I was going through and held my hand. I didn't cry. i couldn't cry. I waited
I waited for the phone call that never came i knew Bob would ring me from the Morgue if it wasn't her. So we waited, Other people were in the kitchen neighbours and friends and I was numb. Remote. Switched on to auto pilot. This was not happening. But one nagging thought kept running through my brain.
"Where was she "
We drifted outside after a while, somehow instinctively knowing to wait for the police cars return. The night was hot and dark now,
The police car drove slowly into view and Debbie and alena and Yvette were standing closest to the road. They screamed. it was a sound I didn't want to hear and never want to hear again. One long drawn out scream of agony. The girls had seen Bob's face through the window of the back seat. A woman police officer ran towards me, and Bob ran towards me and I turned away,
all i could think of (And i know this is terrible ) was
"where the bloody hell were you while she was alive"
I ran towards the house , the police and Bob following me.
And all of a sudden it was like someone punched me in the stomach and I almost fell. Bob grabbed me and took me in the house. The nightmare had begun..........................
Bob and my stories will come later,too long, too involved for now I just want to talk about Lauren.
So it was the next day and according to us her parents, Lauren was happily ensconced at school. Yvette was at home with her 2 week old baby, Kyle, Alena was at high school and Debbie had finished year 12 and was working for us in the office.
At lunch time on the 1st December, after our shitty day Bob decided we would call in at a big hotel in Mordialloc. When we went to cross the threshold I saw a fish not long dead laying on the step. It was beautiful and dead. I called out to Bob and he popped his head back out the door. We were puzzled as to why it was there.
"Maybe it's some fishermans catch and he's dropped it there and gone for a beer", Bob suggested. but it un nerved me and I couldn't stop thinking about it, baking out in the hot sun.
WE had a very ordinary lunch and both us were unsettled after our waste of a morning, we decided to go home, check on Yvette and the baby and grab an ice cream from the freezer. Another hot afternoon at the office awaited us. So we called in at home and Yvette said after a while,
"Did you hear that a teenage girls body was found at Noble Park Pool they are looking for the parents."
"Some street kid", i thought, " How sad."
We raced off back to the factory and Bob started up the chain mesh machine. he had been having trouble with it and he was determined to find out the problem. Debbie was in the factory office upstairs on the mezzanine floor. As I threw my bag down and grabbed hold of a phone debbie said,
"Mum, some of Lauren's schoolfriends have been calling, apparently she wasn't at school, today"
"What", I replied.
Debbie gazed at me steadily, calmly,
"Lauren, was not at school today", repeating herself slowly.
I grabbed the phone and checked the back of my hand for the number I dialled
A man answered,
" Is Lauren there" I asked
"Nuh" came the reply delivered in a hostile manner.
I said, "it's Laurens Mum Janette,"
"Oh yeah" Once again short sharp speech.
For some reason I asked this next question, not knowing where it came from
"Did she sleep there last night'
"Hang on a minute", said exasperatedly and the phone was clunked down.
Another mans voice came on the phone and introduced himself as a policeman from Springvale.
"Are you Mrs Hancock", he asked,
"Yes" I replied.
"Are you the Mother of Lauren Hancock"
"Yes, why is she in some sort of trouble"
"Mrs Hancock, i need you to get your husband and meet me at your home"
I looked out of the office window, gazing down at my hot and hot tempered husband he was throwing tools around and swearing his head off. He threw one of the spanners at the cockatoos aviary and she screeched and flew up to the furthest spot.
"OK", I lied,
if Lauren was in trouble there was no way i was letting on to Bob. I decided to go home on my own.
I told Deb what was going on, she replied,
"Ring Parkmore, Mum, she'll be at Parkmore, shopping centre, maybe wagging school with Tanya"
this was feasible, I had caught Lauren wagging once and she was grounded for two weeks. That 2 weeks limit had not long passed.
My middle two girls were major rebels but Lauren always did as she was told and I did reason to myself that i did not think she would wag again, that was Lauren, a trustworthy girl.
i dialled the number for Parkmore's Centre management, but then put the phone down,
" I, have to go home,i have to meet the police there in 20 minutes."
"Fine", Deb, said a bit miffed,
"I'll ring Parkmore and have her paged"
I turned to leave and Debbie phone in hand said"
"Did you hear a girls body was found at Noble Park Pool"
"Yes", I replied desperate to get home, but I had paused, I looked back at Debbie
"When Lauren's schoolfriends rang one of them was crying" She said.
Puzzled I said, "Why were they crying"
Her call clicked through and she turned her attention away. i left for home thoughts tumbling through my mind.
I reached Ordish road and I knew,i knew. Things totalled up in my mind. Teenage girl ( not that we thought of Lauren as a teenager.... not at 12 ) she was a child.
The only thought that could get through to my whirling brain was one
"What parents in Noble Park, didn't know where their child was,???"
Us.
I parked the car half way up the drive and ran to the front door. Alena and Yvette were standing on the front step.
"Don't tell me its her I said.
DON"T FUCKING TELL ME IT"S HER" I screamed
Alena and Yvette were solemn but calm.
"Mum, it's not her" they said in unison.
"WELL, THEN WHERE IS SHE"
"Lauren would be home by now."
The girls had rung all her friends and she was no where.
The police arrived.
I was calm, it couldn't be Lauren. Not Lauren....., not my baby. but where was she, where was she, she had to be somewhere.
The police were very non commital, they said a girls body had been found in the olympic pool at Noble park By a pool worker at 6am that morning. The police just wanted to rule out Lauren was the girl. They asked for recent photos I fetched them from her messy messy room. the police were calm as they looked at them, they asked about her hair colour, what colour jewellery she wore silver or gold.
Deb arrived with Grace, they were both crying. Grace explained they had been to the pool and asked for a description of the girl.
'ITS NOT HER",I said through gritted teeth
but if not her, where was she.
Bob arrived and was informed of the situation.
The police asked if Bob would go with them to the morgue to rule out it was not our daughter. I asked to come to and they said to me gently no, they would just take Bob.
People arrived, I know my Dad was there, he had lost a son, my older brother James. he had died as a child aged 11 in a tragic sand cave in at port Augusta, Jamie and his best friend Wayne. My dad knew what I was going through and held my hand. I didn't cry. i couldn't cry. I waited
I waited for the phone call that never came i knew Bob would ring me from the Morgue if it wasn't her. So we waited, Other people were in the kitchen neighbours and friends and I was numb. Remote. Switched on to auto pilot. This was not happening. But one nagging thought kept running through my brain.
"Where was she "
We drifted outside after a while, somehow instinctively knowing to wait for the police cars return. The night was hot and dark now,
The police car drove slowly into view and Debbie and alena and Yvette were standing closest to the road. They screamed. it was a sound I didn't want to hear and never want to hear again. One long drawn out scream of agony. The girls had seen Bob's face through the window of the back seat. A woman police officer ran towards me, and Bob ran towards me and I turned away,
all i could think of (And i know this is terrible ) was
"where the bloody hell were you while she was alive"
I ran towards the house , the police and Bob following me.
And all of a sudden it was like someone punched me in the stomach and I almost fell. Bob grabbed me and took me in the house. The nightmare had begun..........................
