The shopping centre was busy with people.
She sat at the back of the café, sipping her coffee and daydreaming. She did that a lot. Her reverie was broken by someone calling out. He waved as he approached. “I thought I’d find you here.”
Unnerved by the stranger’s sudden appearance, she said, “Pardon?”
He was an old man, somewhere in his nineties, she thought. He eased himself into the chair opposite and squinted at her. “I reckoned you’d be here. I thought they’d never leave.”
“What?”
“Leave… I thought they’d, you know, never leave.”
“Who?”
“All of them! Lord there must have been at least a dozen of them, all jabbering away at once. These people keep coming to my house, I think they think I’m somebody else. You know how they go on.”
She gave a sardonic smile. “No, I don’t actually.”
“Of course you do. You were there when the old guy came in with the blueprints, weren’t you? Oh! Perhaps not. Well, I think they’re planning something. It’s bound to be something bad.”
She looked around in desperation. “Look,” she began, “I think…”
He went on as though she hadn’t spoken. His agitation was growing worse. “You know, they just kept talking. I thought they’d never leave. I don’t want any part of it. They wouldn’t let me in on what they’re doing… just kept on about how society was going down the drain. Do you have any idea what they are up to?”
She paused. “Well, I…”
“Thought not; anyway, I must let you get on. Just glad I caught up with you, to let you know. Remember, you really can’t trust them!”
“Sorry, I think you’ve got me muddled up with…”
“Bye for now. Take care.” He got slowly to his feet and disappeared among the crowd of shoppers.
A few weeks later, it was all over the news. The police had uncovered a plot. A group of terrorists had planned to blow up parliament. In the workplace, everyone was talking about it. It just went on all day.
That evening she sat watching the top story on the news. She turned the television off and sat for a few moments with conflicting thoughts. Then, she came to a decision.
She would say nothing.