Ben Chatham in "ALL THINGS MUST END"

Ok folks, here is the much anticipated new story:

ALL THINGS MUST END

Part 1

Heavy rain poured down in torrents as Cassie Buckley left the office and rushed quickly to the dingy little car park where her small blue Fiat was parked. The cold February wind blew mercilessly into her face and the rain covered her glasses, making it difficult to see. As Cassie got into the car, she began spontaneously to cry, as she did most nights. It had been six months since her boyfriend Paul had died and Cassie still felt completely alone and lost. Her only consolation was that Paul had died doing something he loved, having sustained neck injuries while playing rugby for the small local team. Cassie hated going home after a tedious day working as a trainee accountant only to find her flat cold and empty. This was her first job after leaving university, where she had met Paul, and she despised every aspect of it, especially the petty office politics and pecking order. However she needed to keep working to pay the mortgage on the flat as he parents had moved to Spain and had financial problems of their own.
Cassie drove carefully home through the driving rain and parked in the communal parking area beside the flats, a converted former hotel and pub. As she was locking her car, a gust of wind blew a branch off an overhanging tree and it fell onto her car, denting the bonnet.
"Oh f*** thats it! Thats all I need" Cassie said openly, angry tears welling up. She ran into the flats and took the dirty, litter strewn lift up to the top floor. Arriving, she walked towards the door of flat 12 and opened the door with her key. What she saw inside caused her to drop her keys.... there waiting for her was Paul, holding a bottle of wine and grinning:
"Dinner is ready Madame" he cheekily said, just as he used to on many a Friday evening. Cassie stared in disbelief:
"Paul.... how.... you can't be...." Paul came over to her:
"Hey Cassie, whats wrong? Whats happened?" he said, puzzled.
"You... you're dead.." Cassie mumbled.
"What do you mean dead? You ok Cassie?"
"Six months ago.... you died after the rugby match..." Paul was confused.
"I don't get it Cassie. Is this a joke or something? You know full well that I was fine this morning when I saw you off to work...."

Ben Chatham sat nervously on the exclusive leather sofa in his Cambridge apartment, his laptop open on his lap. Kyle poursed himself and Ben a coffee:
"So you gonna reply to her or not Ben? Its really mean not to."
Ben had received an email from Emma and he was agonising over how to respond. He looked up at Kyle:
"I really don't know what to do for the best. She's threatening to come over here tonight."
"She is your wife like. Yous two really should get all this sorted. Neither of you seem to be getting anything from all this." Ben frowned:
"I do not need relationship advice from you Kyle!"
He stared at Emma's email which read:

Ben,

I called you again three times last night and you still didn't answer. What the hell is wrong with you? You can't just pretend that I don't exist Ben. Why are you doing this, guilty conscience? I knew when I married you that it wouldn't be a regular set up afterwards, what with your work and stuff, but I never thought that I'd never see you, never live with you or anything. What kind of marriage is that? You said last time we spoke that you'd given me a nice home and that I was being looked after so what was I angry about. You really have no idea do you? Yes I knew that you had money and yes I was kind of pleased to be marrying a successful man who would look after me and our children financially but do you really think that that was all I wanted? I remember that first night we spent together when I woke up with my head rested on your chest and you kissed my forehead. Is it really too much for me to want that all the time Ben? I love you but I think all you really wanted was a trophy wife to show to your parents, well I won't be that anymore Ben. I'm coming over to Cambridge today and I'll be round to your apartment around 4 pm ish, there is no point going out Ben I'll wait all night if I have to . I know you don't want to talk, well I do.

Emma

Ben didn't object when Kyle lean't over and read the email:
"What you gonna do Ben? She sounds really upset. You've gotta talk to her." Ben put his hands in his head:
"Agghh its so difficult. Why can't she just give me some space to think things through? I really can't handle this Kyle. Maybe I could go round to Katie's and you could tell Emma that I'm away on a major investigation in London. Before Kyle could raise any objections the door buzzer went. Luigi, Ben's cook and cleaner, emerged from the kitchen, rubbing his hands on a dishcloth, and opened the door. A girl of about twenty-four stood there:
"Er hi. I'm told that this is where Ben Chatham lives.I'd er I'd like to talk to him if he's in." Ben went over to the door:
"I am Ben Chatham. Who are you?"
"Er hi. My name's Cassie Buckley. Can I come in? I'm a friend of a friend of Adam Wooten. He works for you? I really need your help."
"You'd better come in. What exactly has Adam been saying to your friend?" Ben asked.
"That you investigate.... that you investigate the paranormal and stuff..." Cassie began to cry. Kyle went over to her:
"Ere its ok. We'll try and 'elp you". Ben frowned:
"I am not impressed with Adam talking about this organisation and its work to his friends. But that isn't your fault. What has happened to you?"
Cassie explained to Ben about the night that she came home in the rain to find Paul back from the dead and behaving like nothing had happened:
".... and we had a lovely meal, just like we always did on a Friday evening. Then we snuggled up on the sofa watching telly and I fell asleep." Ben was confused:
"I don't get this. Didn't you question him further? Why didn't you get yourself out of there? You were behaving rather unconcernedly for a woman who has just come home to find her dead boyfriend offering her a glass of wine." Cassie wiped her eyes and stared angrily:
"Do you know what its like to lost someone you love? You can't stop thinking about them and suddenly they're back and its as if nothing had happened. I'll be honest with you, I just didn't care about what was happening or why; I was just glad to have my life back as it was before. I can see that you don't understand."
"Look, I imagine that grief can do funny things to the mind. Have you sought medical advice?" Ben asked softly. Cassie stood up angrily:
"Look I'm telling you that what happened was real. When I woke up later on the sofa, he was gone and I was alone in the flat again. But he was there, he was......"

..............to be continued.

Is the title a promise?

Nick Barlow wrote:Is the title a promise?

No. These stories are not going to end soon.

Part 2
After Cassie had left, Ben lay back on the sofa and smiled sadly:
"I really don't think that there is much to investigate here. I'm not being heartless and I do feel sorry for that girl however she is clearly undergoing some kind of meltdown due to her grief."
Kyle sat at Ben's laptop:
"Ere I wouldn't be so sure about that Ben, 'ave a gander at this."
Ben sat up and looked at the screen. It was an article from the online version of the Cambridge Daily Echo:

MAN ARRESTED FOR CEMETARY DESECRATION
A 45 year old man was arrested last night after attempting to dig up his late wife's remains in Grantchester Cemetary. Police were called to the scene after passers by noticed lights in the cemetary and, taking a closer look, saw the man, who has not been named, digging. It is understood that no remains were actually disinterred, however in a bizarre twist the Echo can reveal that the man had told neighbours that his wife was still alive and that he had come home to find her preparing evening dinner earlier in the week. It is possible that the man was trying to prove that his late wife, who we understand died six months ago of cancer, was not actually in the coffin that was buried.
Ben frowned:
"So what? So there is another case of a delusional, grief-stricken person imagining things. This hardly suggests a pattern Kyle."

Meanwhile, in her apartment, Katie Ryan was busy writing a report on the excavation of an Iron Age village in Lincolnshire that she had been comissioned to write by "Archaeology Today" magazine. As she typed the door buzzer went and Katie looked up angrily:
"Oh who the hell is that?" she said out loud, before getting up and opening the door. It was Adam Wooten:
"Er hi Katie. Sorry to bother you but I just came round to ask your advice about the case synopsis write-up for the Peace Conference case. Ben asked me to do it and I know you've done them before. I was just wondering how much detail....."
"Couldn't you just email me about this? I'm busy!" Katie angrily interrupted.
"Er I have done several times and you didn't answer" Adam sheepishly answered.
"Well you should have got the message then that I'm too busy to hold your damn hand when you're doing basic admin tasks" Katie shouted. As she did so, her mobile rang:
"Oh what now!" She answered the mobile:
"Hello. Er what? Is this some kind of sick joke? Look I don't know who you are you sick f*** or how you got this number, but I'm reporting you to the authorities and if I ever get hold of you I'll smash your teeth down your throat".
"Is everything OK Katie?" Adam asked.
"Does everything look ok to you? Huh? My dad died three years ago and I've just had some sick **** on the phone pretending to be him. He was imitating his voice just as it sounded....."

"OK Kyle, I accept that I dismissed this too hastily and that we should look into it" Ben said as Kyle grinned cheekily.
"Thats a first, you admitting you were wrong over summat" he replied. He stared down at the four other recent cases of people claiming to have seen dead loved ones that he had printed out from articles in the online press.
"I was not wrong Kyle. I merely gleaned new information and developed my approach in the light of this. I'm still not fully convinced that there is anything going on untoward. These cases are from all over the south-east, for all I know it could be a fairly regular thing with grief stricken people. However we will look into it. I say we visit that Cassie girl now and get a fuller statement from her. She left her address."
"What about Emma? She's comin' round in a bit" Kyle answered.
"I can't face her Kyle. This provides an excellent excuse to avoid her and her whining."
"Don't you think you're actin' like a kid over this Ben? Stringin' her along and puttin'off talkin' things through I mean".
"Don't you think I damn well know that Kyle? I just can't deal with her. She knew what the situation would be like when she married me and yet she springs this emotional neediness on me all of a sudden. She's impossible. I don't actually want to hurt her, which is why I can't face her. Come on, lets go."

Ben and Kyle drove through Cambridge to the converted former hotel where Cassie Buckley lived. It took Ben some time to find the flats but eventually he parked the car in the communal car park outside. Getting out of the car he stared at the overflowing wheelie bins and shabbily maintained building:
"What a dump. Why an earth would she want to live here?" he commented.
"You any idea how 'ard it is to get a roof over your head if you ain't earnin' much Ben?" Kyle asked.
"Then get a better job" Ben tersely replied.
They took the damp smelling lift up to Cassie's floor and walked to flat 12. They rang the buzzer and a tall, muscular young man with dark hair opened it:
"Is Cassie Buckley in? My name is Ben Chatham and I wish to speak to her. She called round to see me earlier."
"She's out at the mo. I could ring her if its urgent. You mind me asking what its about? I'm Paul Latham, her boyfiend....................."


..................to be continued.

Here is part 3 folks. Enjoy:

ALL THINGS MUST END

Part 3
Ben stared at the young man in front of him:
"Er do you mind if we come in and wait for Cassie?" he asked.
"Sure, come through, however I'd rather know what this is all about. How do you know Cassie?"
Ben had to think on his feet:
"Oh we are work colleagues of hers. We just need to ask her about some invoices."
Paul looked at him suspiciously:
"What on a Sunday? Couldn't it wait till tomorrow?"
"Sorry but no. It concerns a really urgent deal thats going through" Ben quickly replied.
Paul shrugged and offered them a coffee before going into the kitchen. Ben looked around the apartment which was furnished with modern IKEA furniture.
"He could see that you were lying" Kyle observed.
"Well I could hardly tell him that we are here because he is dead could I" Ben whispered loudly. Kyle got up and wandered to a shelf, picking up a photopgraph of a rugby team with Paul in the centre:
"Well at least we know for sure like that he plays ru.....ru...."
Kyle and Ben suddenly became enveloped in a swirling haze of dizziness and nausea. The room faded for about a second into a indistinct blur, like gazing through a steamed up jam jar. Then all at once it was back to normal. Kyle rushed into the kitchen and then back again:
"Yeah just as I thought like, he's gone. That was it like, that feelin' we had. D'you think that summat is playing around with time?" Ben frowned:
"I'm not sure. Its not like we went back in time, it was more like that we were still here but Paul had never died. That means an alternate universe though and thats impossible....."

Meanwhile Adam Wooten had taken Katie to the Mermaid Wine Bar for lunch, as he could see that the phone call had really shaken her. He ordered two cappucinos and two paninis and they sat by the window. Katie stared out of the window at the passers by in the street:
"You know I thought I was over it. He was never much of a dad really. He walked out on my mother when I was five years old so that he could marry a woman he met at work. He was a coach driver and she worked in the office." Paul failed to suppress a look of surprise, which Katie picked up on:
"Yeah I know. You assumed that my dad would be some high flying exec or something. Well my mother worked damn hard to get on after he walked out on us. She started out as a basic secretary and ended up as a managing director. If you work hard in life, you get on and if you don't then you deserve to sink. There's too much indulging of the sponging passengers in this country." Paul frowned:
"You're so hard Katie."
"I've had to be damn hard. It doesn't mean that what happened today hasn't got to me. I did love him you know. As a kid I used to long for him to visit me at weekends and was a gibbering mess when he didn't turn up, which was pretty ¤¤¤¤ing regular."
As Katie spoke, her mobile rang again. She picked it up, listened and grimaced in anger:
"Whoever you are you sick ¤¤¤¤ just ¤¤¤¤ off now..." she shouted and threw the phone at the wall."

Cassie Buckley was distraught as Kyle handed her a coffee and tried to comfort her:
"Why did I miss him.... why did he come back again when I was out?" Ben felt uncomfortable:
"Look Cassie, whatever is happening here is not going to change your essential situation. Your boyfriend is dead, at least in this universe anyway. You can never be with him again."
"He was here though and I'm not going out again until he comes back. You can't tell me I'll never be with him again when I've seen him and so have you", Cassie shouted back, tears streaming down. Ben tried to explain:
"I'm sorry for you and I know what you must be going through. The point is that alternate universes just cannot cross into each other, overlap or intermingle. Its just impossible. There are an infinite number of alternate universes. Every decision or action creates a mass of alternate universes and possibilities, but they can never cross. The result would be the cancelling out of both of them and the end of everything here. Therefore if an alternate reality where Paul never died is crossing over into this one then we have to find out why and put things back as they were."

Luke Maland stared carefully at the painting in front of him. He loved the pre-raphaelites and Rossetti was his favourite artist. He gazed at the subtle smile on the central female figure in the painting and thought how much it resembled Sara. He smiled. Luke loved art galleries and had spent more time than he cared to remember strolling through them. He was a cultured person and he knew it. He thought that he might enjoy a cream tea at the Savoy later that afternoon before travelling home. Sarah would be waiting for him, strong loyal Sara. He smiled to himself as he thought of how much time he would have to devote to painting and drawing once the world had been cleansed of other people......


...............to be continued.

OK people: here is the next gripping part:

ALL THINGS MUST END

Part 4


Ben sat cross-legged on the sofa and contemplated the series of written reports in front of him. He had called an Operation Delta meeting in his apartment and Luigi brought in trays of drinks and smoked salmon sandwiches. Ben looked up:
"Hmmm. So Torchwood have been unable to shed any light as to the source of this problem. This is a huge setback." Keith Smith interjected:
"The only locational lead that we have is that provided by Jake's Dimensional Interface Extrapolator. I think we should follow that up." Katie Ryan scowled:
"Oh for pity's sake. Jake cobbled that thing together from junk he pilfered from the UNIT archive illegally. As if its reliable." Jake looked up:
"Hey babe chill. Don't get heavy with me. Look the Extrapolator does show that their is inter-dimensional weirdness going on all over Europe but with the central activity in the London area. The Clapham area."
Ben tossed his hair out of his eyes and sipped his glass of Merlot:
"Well we have no choice but to follow this up I guess. Me, Kyle and Katie will travel to London immediately and touch base with Corinne and Paul Farraday. The rest of you need to hold the fort here and keep an eye on Cassie."

As Ben drove Katie and Kyle through dank, foggy weather, he noticed that Katie looked drawn and upset.
"You look awful Katie, weathered and down."
"Yeah thanks a lot for pointing it out Ben."
"Well its not like you thats all".
"Oh well how am I supposed to react after getting phone calls from my dead father? Huh? Its brought it all ¤¤¤¤ing back and I wanna know why."
An uneasy silence followed which Ben found disconcerting, so he put David Bowie's new classic album "The Next Day" on the car stereo:
"You know this is probably the best album he's released since "Scary Monsters", he commented.

Luke Maland stepped off the tube train and walked along the platform towards the way out. The station was very crowded and Luke felt angry and resentful.
"Ants" he whispered to himself, as he shoved past people and up the stairs towards the escalator. Luke hated people, especially the faceless, transient crowds of tube and railway stations. He stepped out of the station exit and walked rapidly through the dank Clapham streets clutching the book on the Pre-raphaelites that he had bought at the gallery. He purposely glared at people trudging by, as if daring them to challenge him. He would not miss them at all. Arriving at a shabby, four-storey victorian building, he entered by a side door and walked along a short passageway towards another door. Taking a card from his jacket pocket, he swiped the machine on the wall and a beam of light shot into his left eye, scanning it. The door unlocked and Luke pushed his way in. The large room before him was filled with technology far advanced of that of 21st century earth. Sara looked up at him and grinned:
"Did you get it?" she asked.
He kissed her:
"Oh yes. Stopped off at the gallery on the way back and got this for you as well".
He handed Sara the book and she smiled. From his pocket he took out a strange, rectangular object.
"He's going to be pleased with us" he said.

Adam Wooten stepped off the train at Cardiff Station and winced at the cold, drizzle-filled wind. He resented the fact that ben had not asked him to accompany him on the main mission to London but instead had sent him on this sideline trip. The station was quiet except for a woman who stood in the middle of the platform about twenty metres away. She rapidly walked towards him:
"Adam Wooten?"
"Yeah"
"I'm Gwen Cooper. My car is outside. Whats this all about?"
"Ben thinks that Torchwood is being obstructive and unhelpful about the matter he discussed with you earlier. He believes that something is going on".
"What do you mean 'something is going on?' Oh and there is no Torchwood as such anymore. Just a permanent bloody legacy of archives and baggage".
"Ben askes if you ever see Jack". Gwen fixed Adam with a stare:
"No. I don't see Jack".
They arrive at Gwen's car and sit inside without driving off.
"Look Gwen, all I know is that Ben is convinced that Torchwood must know something if there is some kind of force creating inter-dimensional bleeding. I mean we're not just talking about the rift here, its something much much bigger. I mean its impossible for ¤¤¤¤'s sake. Do you still have any kind of monitoring team?" Gwen frowned:
"As I told you, Torchwood no longer exists. All we have is a skeletal team who look after the archive of alien artefacts and victims of the rift."
"Where is the archive kept? Can we go there now? I'm presuming its here in Cardiff, or is it in various locations?"
"You know I can't answer that."
"Look Gwen, this is serious. If Torchwood no longer does its bloody job then Operation Delta has to."

Meanwhile, Ben parked the car in a dingy car park in Clapham.
"What a foul place" he muttered. As opened his door, he noticed two men in black uniforms approaching.
"All of you out of the car now!" One of them shouted.
"What is this? We have paid at the gate!" Ben stated.
"Do not argue. You have entered this facility at a time which is past the curfew commencement. Explain briefly why." Katie scowled:
"What ¤¤¤¤ing curfew hour? Is this a wind up? Can I see your police identity cards?" The men look at each other:
"You really are asking for it arn't you bitch. Right, you're all under arrest as suspected enemies of the state. If you're lucky you'll be shot................"

.................to be continued.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

OK folks, here is the long awaited next part of this major story:

All Things Must End

Part 5

The two uniformed men marched Ben, Kyle and Katie towards their car, which was a large black vehicle with tinted windows. One of the men put on a pair of dark shades while the other pulled Katie backwards by the hair and force-kissed her:
"You can give me the full works later bitch....."
As he spoke, Kyle lunged at him and punched him to the ground. Katie kicked him in the ribs while Kyle took on the second man in the shades, wrestling him to the floor.
"Lets split!" Kyle shouted.
"Nice work Kyle!" Ben exclaimed as they ran. The two men pulled out handguns and fired several shots, however Ben, Kyle and Katie dashed down a back alley, knocking over some bins, and climbed over a wall into a grimy back yard of some house. Several grubby looking children were playing with tin cans in the yard:
"Ere dad there's some ¤¤¤¤ers in our garden" one of them shouted. An obese man in a white vest staggered out of the house holding a can of beer.
"Ere who are you?" he asked. Ben smiled radiantly:
"There is no need to worry. We are not criminals or yobs. We simply need to run through your house."
Ben, Kyle and Katie dashed into the dingy little house, which smelled of stale chicked tikka, and out the front door. They strode along the grim Clapham road:
"What the hell do we do now?" Katie asked angrily. Ben flicked his golden hair out of his eyes and pulled his exclusive new mobile phone from his pocket:
"My new phone has been modified to receive direct onfo from Jake's Extrapolator. It indicates that the source of the time bleed is very close. Lets go team!"

Meanwhile in Cardiff, the sunlight shone through the hotel room window onto the bed as Gwen Cooper lay in Adam Wooten's arms. She rested her head on his firm chest:
"We really should not be doing this...." she muttered. Adam stroked her hair:
"Oh come on, you wanted it as much as I did. You said yourself that you and Rhys are going through a bad patch."Gwen sat up in the bed:
"Oh God, Rhys! He must never find out about this." Adam sighed:
"Why not just tell him its over. I mean the relationship must be in a real dead end if you just go around sleeping with the first guy on a work trip who makes a move on you."
"You know nothing about me and Rhys. Oh God, why am I doing this?" Gwen exclaimed.
"Because you're obviously a highly sexual woman who is neglected at home. Anyway, I should be moving on with the job Ben sent me to do. I need to know the locations of the storage facilities where Torchwood keep alien artefacts, especially those in the London area. I also need a list of the 'skeletal team' that you mentioned." Gwen frowned:
"I've told you that I can't give you that kind of info." Adam looked at her sharply:
"Look Gwen, you wouldn't want Rhys to find out what we were doing half an hour ago would you?" Gwen gave an angry shout and slapped Adam round the face:
"You bastard! Are you trying to blackmail me over this?"
"Look I'm really not some callous guy. But Operation Delta really needs this information. Someone or something is playing with time and causing bleeds between dimensions. Who knows what this might lead to. Therefore I think our little fling pales into insignificance compared to that and so I mean to have this info one way or another."

Ben, Katie and Kyle followed the signal on Ben's exclusive new £5000 phone and walked around Clapham until they arrived outside a dingy four-storey victorian building. They found a doorway at the side of the building and Kyle used his lock-picking skills to get inside. They walked along a narrow passageway and found another door, this time protected by a card-swipe lock.
"Ere I don't really 'ave any idea how to get through them things" Kyle exclaimed. Katie scowled:
"Well thats us ¤¤¤¤ed then", and she angrily hit the door. However it simply swung open. Entering the room, Ben and the others saw that it was completely empty.
"Er , are you sure we're in the right place Ben?" Katie asked.
"Of course I am Katie. This technology is 21st century and cutting edge. I suggest that we search this building."
They thoroughly searched the building, however the grubby bedrooms, the smelly bathroom and cockroach-infested kitchen were all empty. Ben had a contemplative moment before an idea crystallised in his consciousness:
"Whoever is behind this has been very clever indeed. This is indeed the right location. However we have slipped into the wrong dimension......."

..............to be continued.