Page 7 - Billy the Cat and Katie

rolled and thundered across Whitehall into the path of an oncoming lorry. Another car
travelling at tremendous speed had hit them and it had come to a stop in the middle of the
street and through a haze William could see two men carrying bags running away
towards Trafalgar Square. And then, all was dark……

It was the next day when William’s aunt Mabel visited him in hospital and told him what had
happened. He'd been lucky, but his parents weren't so fortunate. A stolen car driven by two
men who’d just robbed a jewellers shop in Bond Street had lost control when speeding away
from the Police and crashed into their car. Both William’s father and mother were killed
instantly in the accident. They didn't suffer and the police at the scene had taken William
straight to hospital. They didn't even wait for an ambulance as they could see he was in a bad
way. Although he'd suffered broken bones in his legs and arms he wasn't thinking about the
pain, he was thinking about his parents William and Janet Grange whom he'd never see again. It
was a very long six weeks in hospital and not a day went by when William didn't cry over the
loss of his mother and father. Aunt Mabel visited every other day which was very kind of her as
she didn't drive and travelled by train to bring him books to read and grapes and oranges as a
treat. Although William would have preferred chocolate to eat it wasn’t allowed but he was
very happy when his cousin Kathleen visited with her mother. She was the same age as William
and as he now didn't have any other living relatives he would go to live with them, just a few
miles from his old home in Burnham which was to be sold. Williams’s thoughts turned to the
robbers and how they'd got away, not only with the loot they'd stolen but with killing his
parents, albeit in an accident. If they hadn't been driving recklessly in a stolen car his parents
would still be alive. Someone should catch them; make them accountable for the terrible way
his mother and father had been taken from him, just when he needed them the most.

Chapter 3 - Adventure

William swayed a little in the hallway of Aunt Mabel's house and steadied himself on the
walking stick that the hospital had given him. The train ride from London was a distraction from
the aches and pains he still felt and Kathleen had helped him with his things in and out of the
carriage. As they neared Burnham station he felt sad and Aunt Mabel and Kathleen comforted
him, knowing he missed his parents so very much. He'd not been able to go to their funeral
service at the local parish church in Burnham as he was still in hospital at the time, but he was
determined to visit the churchyard the very next day. Looking at the cases and boxes in his
room that Kathleen and Aunt Mabel had prepared, William's thoughts turned to something
else; the robbers. Where were they and had the police caught them yet? According to Aunt
Mabel the police had found the car and the robbers hideout, an abandoned warehouse in the
east end of London, but there was no sign of them or any clues to their identity. Life started to
get back to normal pretty quickly and William went back to school at Burnham Academy with
Kathleen. Being the same age they we in the same year and now walked to school together
every day. As the weeks went by William thought less and less of the accident but could never
forget his parents and their love for him.