Organising an event like a gardening club workshop wasn’t an easy job at any time, but when people start telling you that they have sent their subscription, yet you haven’t seen hide nor hair of it, it could be a bit problematic, Miss Flanagan thought as she listened to Dolly Lavin on the phone now. She was saying just that.
“I sent the postal order to you for fifty euro two weeks ago, honest!”
Miss Flanagan had checked and rechecked her records but could find nothing. “It must be delayed in the post – that’s the only explanation I can think of. Did you get a Certificate of Posting for it, I wonder?”
“No! I can’t be bothered with all that go-on. When I post a thing it should get there, simple as that.”
“Well, if you’d like to re-send the payment I could return the first postal order to you if it arrives so that you’d get your money back – that’s if you didn’t fill in a name on the order?”
“No, I didn’t, though I know you’re supposed to. Yes, that’s what I’ll have to do but I’d like you to tell your organising committee how cross I am about this.”
After taking a few deep breaths Miss Flanagan grabbed her hat and coat. She had money to lodge in the bank in Kilmullen related to the workshop and it was best to get it done sooner rather than later.
Good, mission completed, now for a cup of tea… She was just chaining her bicycle outside the café when Lucy Denning waved from across the street.
“Brigid! Wait, please!”
Miss Flanagan commented on Lucy being out of sorts.
“You’re very observant, Brigid. It’s my credit card – it hasn’t arrived, you see, nor has the PIN number for it. They usually come separately in the post but I’ve seen neither and the bank said that they have posted them out. I’m going on holiday soon and I want to have my card with me rather than carry cash obviously.”
Miss Flanagan was all ears.
“That’s very worrying,” she said. “And your card hasn’t been used?”
“No, thank goodness, but I have quite a substantial limit. I’d hate it to get into the wrong hands.”
Two post related problems in one day… Was it just coincidence or was something unsavoury afoot? She would make it her business to enquire discreetly if others were having similar problems.
A few days later she had acquired knowledge of four more people missing post – Jack Meadows hadn’t received the card his daughter had sent him from Canada, young Melissa Cunningham hadn’t received her grandmother’s birthday gift of boy band concert tickets either and Josie Devin, who’d been at bingo, was still, like Lucy, waiting on her credit card and PIN to arrive in the post. Billy Larkin had ordered a new phone from his provider too and that hadn’t arrived yet either.