Virtual Strangers by Lynne Barrett-Lee Read Free Book Online

knows.) Nevertheless, the arrangement of my window is a thing very dear to me. ‘I just did the window display!’ I sniff.
    ‘That’s as may be, but as I came in I noticed a gap. Third panel. Bottom row. Second from the left.’
    Ha! ‘That’s because I’m just adding the ‘sold’ sticker to it.’
    Ha ha ha. Yah boo sucks.
    ‘Ah. 27 Peasdale?’
    ‘Full asking price.’ Ha!
    Better. In anticipation of getting hold of a lovely lovely commission-enhanced salary cheque, I despatch an extra £300 to my MFI/Everest fund on my way home.
    It is almost a whole week however, before I manage to get hold of Rose. She calls during the five minute pre-straining run up, but sod the vegetables, I decide - this is important.
    ‘Charlie! There you are! At last!’
    ‘What do you mean, “at last”?’
    ‘What I say! You’re so hard to get hold of- ’
    ‘ I’m so hard to get hold of- ’
    ‘Your phone’s always engaged, Charlie.’
    ‘No it’s not.’
    ‘It sure is. It always is. I almost sent you a carrier pigeon today. I’ve been trying you non stop since we got back from Majorca.’
    ‘Majorca?’
    ‘Half term. One of those last minute pot luck breaks to Pollensa. Anyway, what’s the panic? You filled up the tape.’
    ‘Your letter.’
    ‘What about it?’
    ‘I’m addled about it.’
    ‘Addled?’
    ‘Seriously addled. About what’s going on.’
    ‘Oh? What is going on?’
    ‘That’s just it. I don’t know. You know Dan kept on at me about getting a modem and signing up with a server for the internet and so on, so I could email him?’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘Well, I did all that, and ever since then that’s just what I’ve been doing. Sending emails.’
    ‘And?’
    ‘Sending emails to you .’
    ‘To me? Have you?’
    ‘Absolutely. And you’ve been sending them back.’
    ‘I certainly haven’t. Our computer’s been stuffed in a box.’
    ‘Exactly!’
    ‘Exactly?’
    ‘ You haven’t been getting them. But they didn’t come back. They got sent somewhere else.’
    ‘Sent to where?’
    ‘That’s the problem. I haven’t a clue! I only realised it wasn’t you when I got your letter.’
    ‘But that’s ridiculous. What email address did you use?’
    ‘Yours!’
    ‘You can’t have. You would have had them returned.’
    ‘But I did! I checked. But could there be two?’
    ‘I don’t think that can happen. The system wouldn’t allow it. Once an address has been registered no one else can have it. Unless it’s with a different server of course. Definitely Cymserve?’
    ‘Definitely. Griffith-at-cymserve-dot-co-dot-uk. And there’s worse. Obviously, whoever’s been getting my emails has been getting everything you would. Mindless prattling, bitching, ranting, shag lists -’
    ‘Hang on. Hang on. griffith @cymserve? That’s not right. Our email address is m-n-r-griffith at cymserve.’
    ‘MNR? Is it?’
    ‘It is. For Matt ‘n Rose. Not what you put. You just typed griffith . Not the same address at all.’
    ‘Cripes! No wonder! Then who’s address is it?’
    ‘Haven’t a clue. And it’s a very common name. There must be hundreds - even thousands - of Griffiths in Wales. But someone who’s been on the net for some time. Plain Griffith would have been snapped up early on, is my bet.’
    ‘Which tells me nothing. Other than that it’s not Sheila Rawlins. Anyway, they said ‘sorry, you got me’ or something like that, and I’ve not heard from them since.’
    ‘So no harm done then, really. ’
    ‘But it could be anyone!’
    ‘So ask them.’
    ‘I did! They wouldn’t tell me.’
    ‘ So don’t worry. You don’t know them, so what does it matter?’
    ‘But I might. There’s at least a one in five hundred thousand chance that I do.’
    ‘How d’you work that out?’
    ‘Statistically, obviously .Wales isn’t that big. Though the odds are shorter now. how many actual Griffiths on-line in Wales, d’you think?’
    ‘Who cares? So what? So what if some clam digger living in