Robin Blaze was considering his position. He had been taken on at the bank and his credentials and references had been impeccable. They were too perfect as far as the Bank Manager was concerned but he didn’t have the authority to question them. It was Head Office who had made the decision, he couldn’t do anything about it.
The bank was tucked away in some remote suburb far from the busy streets of London and yet this bank seemed to be favoured by many people. Built in 1950, it was one of the many banks scattered around the suburbs to have a Vault timing device for the main safe. The device was the dream of Rupert Bolt who was an engineer by trade. Bolt seemed to be an apt name, for he had invented quite a few mechanical objects that were waiting to be patented.
Most of his ideas were turned down apart from the ‘timing device’ as they were considered too outlandish and as one bank employee described in Bolt’s earshot, childish. It was considered by Rupert Bolt that this upstart had to be taught a valuable lesson in manners.
The Bank Manager was becoming suspicious of Robin Blaze as he was asking all sorts of questions regarding the workings of the banks safe. Blaze dispelled the manager’s fears by pointing out as a bank employee, he would need to know how it worked if for some reason the bank manager fell ill or had to attend a meeting in London.
* * *
Rupert Bolt’s next invention was a six foot robot which was capable of emulating a human being. This invention was for the simple reason that In actual fact and unbeknown to Bernard, Rupert would be inside the shell and that human hands would make light work of door locks and the ability to walk and run if necessary. Bernard had made derogatory remarks about the idea being childish.
* * *
Bernard Grove had not telephoned in to say he was ill and as no one had seen him for two days, a neighbour noticing that there were milk bottles that had been delivered the day before had not collected, decided to call the police. When they arrived the front door was not locked. A policeman called out and receiving no answer bounded up the stairs and into the bedroom and laying quite still on top of the bed and with staring eyes towards the foot of bed was Bernard Grove. He was alive but his speech was incoherent. An ambulance was summoned and Bernard Grove was whisked away. The police made a thorough search of the house and the surrounding grounds including the back garden and found nothing apart from some over large footprints. They were puzzled and although the prints were shaped like shoes, they had hushed up their findings, mainly of course that no-one would have believed them and decided with a little of doctoring they could be classed as some large animal feet.
* * *
Robin Blaze joined the staff of the bank to replace Bernard Grove as the manager had decided that he needed another person after visiting Bernard in hospital only to find a gibbering blob of uncertainty with hallucinations and what the bank manager had understood with an effort when Bernard spoke “it was very tall with menacing flashing eyes.’ He had assumed that Bernard must have had a very bad nightmare which made a lasting impression on him.
Robin Blaze settled in his job and all was well within the bank. After six months had passed the bank manager summoned Robin into his office and stated how satisfied he was with his work and as his references had pointed out that he was an exceptional student in administration and finance, he was to be promoted and in doing so and because he didn’t want to upset the rest of the staff he was to be transferred to a London Bank.
Robin had heard that Bernard Grove, having had psychiatric treatment had responded well and was to get his old position back as a temporary measure at first and to start at a lower pay rate. George Fleece the Bank Manager was a bit mean with pay rates and increments as his staff had complained many times, but he had been unmoved by the majority of staff. He always stated that if they were not happy, they should look for another job. No one dared to leave as getting another job was becoming difficult to obtain, especially Banks.
Robin was to work for a further four weeks and then he would be off to London where the rates of pay were much better and London Weighting was in operation where he would gain an extra lump of cash every month. Robin should have been please, but for some unknown reason he was a bit disgruntled by this news of promotion, the reason being his home was just a couple of miles away and it would mean travelling. The manager stated he would also receive travelling allowance as it was the bank’s decision to transfer him.
Robin prepared himself for the move and had decided to sell his property, which by 1950’s standard wasn’t too bad. A cottage in a quiet area was an ideal spot for a retired couple. Robin on his last day, a Friday, gave a party at the local inn where all the staff of the bank were invited and a lovely night they had.
* * *
Sensational news had hit the headlines as Little Cotton Bank had been robbed and the sum of £206,000 had been stolen. It was the largest amount of money the bank had in its vaults. Rupert Bolt had been called in to inspect the site and couldn’t understand how the thieves had got in. As far as he concerned his patented timing device passed by the BSA was not to blame. He suggested that it could have been an oversight of the bank manager who was responsible for everything in the bank, not setting the timer. The bank manager was taken into custody for questioning, but had not been charged. The bank officials were to set up their own enquiry on how it could have happened.
* * *
Bernard Grove never came back to the bank and the authorities never thought about checking his whereabouts and assumed he had relapsed into his illness again which he had done every now and again when he started back as a temporary member of staff. Bernard found on the kitchen table a brown leather bag stuffed with money when he got back from the party. He reckoned on £25,000. Tucked on top of the first bundled of notes that had an elastic band round them was a piece of bank paper with a typed message: The Consolation Prize.
* * *
It was an elaborate deception that Robin Blaze and Rupert Bolt were the same person and when the police had worked it all out, a warrant was made out for his arrest. The police had to find him first as he never turned up at his new position at the London Bank.