‘Last month?’ the man laughed, his face in shadow from the brim of his hat. ‘No, it’s been like that for the past 20 years. Abandoned. No one can seem to trace the owners, or so I heard anyway. Good day to you both.’

  As the man doffed his hat, Audrey saw his face. He was looking right at her, an amused look in his eyes and playing over his face. It was the man from the antique shop. The one who had sold her the flamingo.

  He turned and walked away, whistling nonchalantly.

  ‘Shall we have coffee?’ Kath asked, slipping an arm through Audrey’s.

  ‘Good idea,’ Audrey agreed, and the two women turned and walked in the opposite direction.

  But the sound of the man’s whistling followed Audrey down the street, carried on the wind. It made her blood run cold and her heart beat faster. What just happened? Why was the shop empty? Who was the enigmatic old man? And more importantly, what had she been thinking when she bought the flamingo? Had she just made a huge mistake?

  10

  After a few days Audrey managed to put the incident with the empty shop and her encounter with the elderly gentleman out of her mind. She had just been confused about which shop she bought the flamingo from. And in her heightened state of discombobulation, she must have thought she recognised the man coming out of the barbers, as the shop owner. Perhaps he was the right man, and it was just that she was stood outside the wrong shop?

  Either way, she was going senile in her old age, she decided and laughed at herself.

  So life returned to normal. Audrey went to the coffee mornings and lunches. Went for runs out in the car with Kath. And occasionally did the lottery, but without any more wins.

  Scrolling through the internet on her laptop one day, trying to find something new to read, an advert for a bingo site popped up and she decided to have a go. She’d always been glad she was a little ‘tech savvy’ and she’d be lost without her laptop. It was how she kept in contact with friends in other parts of the country and chatted on book forums with like-minded readers. She didn’t do much more than that, but she enjoyed the interaction and the fact that she could read newspaper articles online without having to leave the apartment to purchase the paper. Although all the adverts did rather get on her nerves, but she understood the newspapers had to make their money somehow. It was all very well reading the papers online, but that meant you weren’t buying a copy from the shop.

  So when the advert for a bingo site popped up on the paper she was reading, and a reputable newspaper site at that, she clicked on it. The website boasted that you could play with £10 for bingo and they would then give you £30 to spend on their other games, meaning you had £40 to play with for a spend of only £10.

  She seriously considered it. She had to admit that £10 wasn’t much for a bit of entertainment. For that’s all it would be, a bit of entertainment and it would make a change from the Mahjong games she enjoyed playing.

  As she looked around the apartment for her handbag, she spied the flamingo. It once again seemed to be glowing, this time lit by sunbeams spilling in through the nearby window. It seemed to say, go on, have a go, your luck is in.

  Was it? She wondered. Was her luck really in? But hey it was worth a measly £10 to find out, wasn’t it?

  Once she had gone through the registration process, she found there was yet another opportunity. You could play for free for three whole days! Was her luck in enough so she could win big on the bingo? At least she’d be able to practice for free. And still be able to win a share of a smaller pot of money. Imagine! Play for free and win for free! She turned and looked at the flamingo, it was still glowing, and Audrey suddenly knew that finding that site had been part of the luck the flamingo had brought her. Long forgotten was the disarming incident in Arundel with the empty shop and the mysterious man.

  Audrey had never been a bingo-type person. It was more of an older person’s game as far as she was concerned. Although she was getting on a bit in years, she’d never thought of herself as old. When she was younger, she’d gone with her mother to the bingo a few times. But to be honest, she’d never really understood why you had to have so many cards for each game and why it was all so fast so that you barely had time to check your numbers. And those funny little pens they used, the ones that put a dot on the number as the balls were shouted by the caller. So that was her only experience, and she was eager to find out what it would be like playing online.

  Turning her attention back to the site, it was calling for her to enter and start playing.

  Keep trying your luck!

  There are different jackpots and promotions every day.

  Even more chances to win big every time you visit!

  As Audrey reached toward the keys her hands were shaking. How much luck did she really have? Did it come from the flamingo? Or was it just that it was her turn to be the lucky one. Did she have the guts to go for it? Or was she too scared?

  Audrey’s finger hovered over the enter key.

  And then she pressed it.

  11

  Of course, Audrey won. It was pretty inevitable with the flamingo beside her. She was enjoying herself so much she just had to tell Kath. Maybe she’d like to join in as well? Perhaps Audrey’s luck would rub off on her good friend?

  The next morning after coffee Audrey persuaded Kath to pop into her apartment. ‘There’s something I want to show you,’ she whispered, so the others couldn’t hear.

  ‘What on earth are you talking about?’ asked Kath. ‘And why are you whispering?’

  ‘Come on in, and I’ll show you.’

  Kath did as her friend asked, but Audrey could sense her reluctance. She hoped to be able to get Kath to join her in the bingo rooms, so they could play together.

  Once in Audrey’s apartment, she rushed over to her laptop, clicked the mouse to wake the machine up and then said, ‘Ta da!’ as the bingo site opened.

  ‘What on earth? You’re playing bingo?’

  ‘Yes and it’s brilliant! You can win loads of money and play whenever you want. What do you think?’

  ‘I don’t really know what to think, Aud. Are you gambling then? Not just playing? But putting money down?’

  ‘Of course I’m gambling,’ Audrey retorted, wondering why Kath was being so dense. ‘That’s the whole point, isn’t it? And I’m winning. You know how my luck is in at the moment.’

  ‘Winning?’ Kath said faintly.

  ‘Yes, I’m just playing with the free money for now. You’re allowed three free playing days and the chance to win a share of £3,600. I’ve won already.’

  ‘Well, good for you, I suppose, but I’m not sure it’s my thing.’

  ‘Oh, Kath, go on, join me. We can play in the same rooms, it’ll be fun. You won’t need much money. Promise.’

  ‘No, I’m sorry, not this time, Aud. I know we do lots of things together, but gambling’s the last thing I want to get involved with. It’s dangerous, you know.’

  ‘Dangerous?’ Audrey scoffed. ‘What are you talking about? I’m only playing a bit of bingo. But if you don’t want to join in, that’s your decision. You’re the one missing out. Anyway,’ she said as she started tidying up, ‘I’ve got stuff to do. I better get on.’

  ‘Right, I’ll be off then,’ Kath pulled her cardigan round her and folded her arms across her chest. ‘See you later?’

  ‘Maybe, I’m not sure what I’m doing yet.’

  Audrey stole a glance at her laptop. She knew exactly what she’d be doing, it’s just that she chose not to tell Kath. Perhaps Kath wasn’t the good friend Audrey had imagined she was. Well it didn’t matter. Audrey would play on her own. She was sure to meet new friends in the playing rooms.

  She had wanted to tell Kath all about the women who win big on the site. There were hundreds of thousands of people who win big each week, Audrey had found. There were dozens of different games you could play and, what she was very excited about, was the fact that you could play on the go! You could download the app for your mobile phone so you’d always be able to play wherever you were.

  Audrey dug in her bag for her mobile phone and started to download the bingo app onto that. She’d show Kath. Show her what she was missing.

  As she passed the flamingo, it glowed, as if agreeing with her.

  12

  Back in her own apartment, Kath reached for her tablet. Audrey wasn’t the only one who had access to the latest tech. Her daughter had bought it for her for Christmas and her grandson Ben had spent ages downloading the apps for her and showing her how it worked. Now Kath could control her email, listen to music, read books and newspapers and even watch live tv on it. It was the best thing she’d ever been given and she was so grateful to her grandson for spending the time to turn her from a technophobe into someone who wasn’t afraid of the modern methods of communication.

  She put the name of Audrey’s bingo site into the search engine. She found it easily and clicked on it. She had no intention of joining, rather just wanted to see what it was all about. And what she found chilled her to the core.

  In addition to what Audrey had told her about the site, Kath found out that you could play there 24 hours a day. There were live games running all the time, in different ‘rooms’ and with different themes to the games. That was all very well, but it left Kath slightly uneasy that there were so many rooms to play in. It encouraged players to try out different rooms, each time thinking that the change would increase their luck. But what was more frightening were the clocks. Each game advertised which theme the game was, how much the jackpot was, how much it was for a ticket. But the clocks were counting down the seconds to the start of each game. From Kath’s perspective that put pressure on the player to join in, encouraging a spur of the moment game or, worse, making the players feel that they had to hurry and make a decision, before the time ran out, which encouraged the feelings of desperation, promoting ill-considered choices.

  The site claimed that the clocks were there to help the player make sure they never missed an opportunity to play, because of the up to the second countdown clocks. Yeah right!

  The site wasn’t limited to bingo. If you got a bit fed up of that, then it boasted that there were slot machines and even a virtual casino. So you’d never get bored!

  And then there were the endorsements. Claiming to be from ordinary people, they boasted prizes that were bigger than on any other site. That they enjoyed playing for their share of the £2,000,000 that was won daily!

  £2 million! Kath snorted. She didn’t believe a word of it, but Audrey obviously did.

  Then came the boast that there were 35,000 winners every month! So by playing regularly the customer thought their chances were pretty good. Kath wondered how many people played on the site. Millions probably. That certainly lengthened the odds!

  Kath wanted to warn her friend about how dangerous gambling could be. Her nephew Sam had been a gambler and had lost the shirt off his back, citing the old cliché, including his house and his wife and children. It had been a dark time for Kath’s sister, having to watch her son’s life disintegrating around him. So Kath had experienced the bad side of gambling.

  But Kath was very afraid that Audrey wouldn’t take any notice of her warnings.

  13

  It was early afternoon when Audrey started playing bingo that day, once Kath had left and she’d done her chores. It was early evening by the time she lifted her head from her laptop. As she slowly came back to reality from the surreal world of on-line bingo, she couldn’t believe how long she’d been playing. How time flies when you’re enjoying yourself, she thought. The only thing that had made her stop really was hunger. Oh, and needing to go to the loo!

  Wandering into the kitchen, she decided a bowl of soup would be best. Easy to make and hot and nourishing. She looked at the clock in the kitchen to make sure, but yes she really had been playing all this time. After running to the loo, she returned to the kitchen and finished making her meal of soup and bread.

  Carrying her bowl and plate into the living room, she turned on the television, and began watching Channel 4 News. But after she finished the soup, her attention started wandering. Her eyes kept returning to her laptop, and she began wondering what games she might be missing. Just before she stopped playing, she’d been experimenting with bigger money games. She was sure she could get a jackpot of £36,000 for a £20 or £30 ticket. After all her luck was in, wasn’t it? But that wouldn’t matter if she wasn’t playing. You had to be in it to win it. The Lotto slogan was particularly apt, she decided. Her hands itched to get hold of her laptop.

  She’d had a little bit of success, at least enough to negate her spend, but that’s not why she was playing, she thought. She wanted the thrill of the bigger games. The opportunity to win life changing money in the thousands of pounds. If others could do it, after all she’d read their stories online, why not her? Why not indeed.

  This time she decided to sit on the sofa, and then swivelled sideways to put her legs up. Sitting at the table on a hard chair had done nothing good for her back and she needed a softer seat. She soon got comfortable with a couple of cushions behind her and eagerly reached once more for her laptop. Behind her head, on the cabinet close to the sofa, sat her flamingo. It was as though he was looking over her shoulder. She felt a frisson of excitement. She was going to win. She knew it. She didn’t know how or why she knew it, but know it she did.

  By 11 o’clock that night she was forced to stop due to exhaustion. She shut down her laptop and placed it on the coffee table. She reckoned she was £1,000 up on the night, which wasn’t to be sniffed at. Fancy, £1,000 earned in one night and on something that was good fun. And entertaining. Certainly not work. She struggled off the sofa and as she went around the room turning off lights, she saw the flamingo glowing. Audrey reached out, stroked its back which was warm to the touch and said a silent, thank you.

  Audrey made a mint tea and took it to bed with a smile on her face and butterflies of excitement in her stomach as she anticipated playing again the next day.

  14

  The following day Audrey promised herself that she wouldn’t play bingo until after she’d bought her bits and pieces from the local convenience store and had coffee with her friends. As she was getting ready, she found her attention frequently wandering to either the flamingo on display in her window, or her laptop.

  She was ready in record time and at the shop by 8 am, something unheard of before and which raised an eyebrow from the cashier.

  ‘You’re early today, Aud. You alright?’

  ‘Of course. I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?’ Audrey bristled and took the innocent comment the wrong way.

  ‘No reason. No offence meant. It’s just that its only just gone 8am. You’re not normally here until around 10.’

  ‘No, well, yes, I woke up early today. That’s all,’ and Audrey turned on her heel and marched out, wishing that people would stop being so bloody nosy!

  It was the same back at the apartment.

  ‘Morning, Aud,’ called Kath from her open window, still in her dressing gown. ‘You alright? A bit early aren’t you?’

  ‘I’m fine. See you later,’ said Audrey and hurried indoors. Dear God, why couldn’t people just leave her alone!

  She was still keen to open her laptop, but instead scrubbed the kitchen and then the bathroom until it was time to go for coffee. She shut the door behind her on an apartment that smelled of bleach and polish and made her way to the lounge. She didn’t really contribute much to the conversation that morning, allowing the chatter to wash over her. Her hands were sore from all that cleaning and most of the time she was rubbing them.

  ‘Been doing too much again, Aud?’ asked Kath. ‘Your hands seem sore today.’

  ‘What? Oh, yes, must be the weather.’ Audrey looked at the coffee left in her mug and suddenly she couldn’t face drinking anymore. ‘Sorry, Kath, think I’ll go home now.’

  ‘Not feeling so good?’

  ‘No, I’m not,’ Audrey lied. ‘Been doing too much I expect. See you tomorrow.’

  Audrey left the room, calling a vague goodbye to anyone that may have been listening. She hurried to her apartment and closing the door behind her, leaned on it and took a few deep breaths. She thought she’d never get away. But realised she’d have to be careful, so people wouldn’t suspect anything. Not that anything she did was anyone’s business apart from her own, but she did live among a load of busy bodies.

  ***

  Back in the coffee room Audrey was the subject of the ladies’ conversation.

  ‘Do you think she’s alright, Kath?’ Joan asked. ‘It’s just that she’s seems a little, um, distant.’

  ‘To be honest, I don’t know,’ replied Kath, brushing cake crumbs off her skirt. ‘She’s been preoccupied.’

  ‘With what?’ the development manager, Franny asked, as she walked in the room. ‘Is she unwell?’

  ‘No, I don’t think so,’ said Kath, wondering how much she should say. Deciding she couldn’t keep her concerns to herself, she expanded, ‘She seems really keen on this gambling thing. She enjoyed winning on the lottery and the premium bonds.’

  ‘Well, we’d all love winning like that,’ said Franny. ‘Is it spreading to other things, do you think? This interest in winning?’

  ‘No, no I don’t think so. She’s just doing competitions, you know?’ Kath lied and immediately regretted it. Perhaps she’d have a private word with Franny some time. It was just that she didn’t want her friend to be the subject of the gossip culture on the development. She deserved to be protected from that. But lying to her friends and neighbours? No that hadn’t felt good at all.

  ‘Anyway, must be off,’ said Kath.

  ‘You going shopping?’

 

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