Amy Maddigan almost skipped down the steps that led to the street. There was nothing, she thought, quite like being praised for a job well done. How lucky she was to have landed the job at Kielly Co! The work was nearly always enjoyable, and her boss, Frank Kielly, was the best. His whole family was; for they often invited her to their place for dinner, knowing that she'd left her own family behind.

The rent was due the following week and it was true that it was going to put some stress on her finances but... Amy decided to head into town, treat herself to something special. For the rest of the week she'd live on toast if she had to but today she'd splash out. Maybe she'd buy some flowers too. They would brighten up her apartment and would serve as a reminder of her family's garden back home.

She could hear the traffic already starting to build on main street so Amy decided to navigate her way through the side streets until she arrived in the retail sector. Maybe she'd take a couple of wrong turns but that was okay. No one was waiting for her; she'd relax, take her time and enjoy being out and about.

After taking a left onto Fraser, she was just about to cross over to Manchester street when she heard a squeal of brakes shortly followed by a sickening thud. Dreading what she would see, Amy turned towards the sound. A young man was lying in a heap by the side of the road, while the car that had hit him was heading straight towards her.

The car had stopped. Amy thought the driver would get out, but instead, as she dashed towards the injured man the car drove straight towards her then disappeared around a corner.

She knew that car! Amy realised, somewhere at the back of her mind, that both car and driver were known to her. Before she got any further with that thought she arrived beside the young man, bent down to see if he was conscious.


With no medical training Amy had no idea how serious the victim's injuries would be. Shakily she took out her mobile phone and called the emergency services. She agreed to wait with the man until the paramedics and police arrived.

***
Amy had no longer felt like celebrating and instead had headed straight back to her apartment. She had given a statement, a very basic one. There had been a car, it had stopped but then driven away. No, she didn't see the registration. No, she didn't know the make of the car. Yes, she thought there was damage to the front of the car but she didn't know how much. Yes, she would contact the police if she remembered anything more.

Sipping at her coffee, Amy let her mind drift back to the scene. Her focus was not on the man but on the car. She'd recognised it instantly. Of course she had, for it was one she had seen many times at the Kielly's residence. It was the car that belonged to her boss's wife, Monica.

Why hadn't she stayed to help? What could she have been thinking of? An accident was one thing, but driving away... That had made it an automatic crime.

Putting her empty mug in the sink, Amy knew she was avoiding the really important question. What was she going to do?

***

Sleep eluded her that night. Amy tossed and turned as her mind kept going over the same things. The accident replayed over and over, and the car drove towards her, drove past her as she moved towards the injured man. Had Monica seen her? Amy had to admit that she really did not know.

Amy had always prided herself on her truthfulness. Perhaps the man had not been seriously injured. Perhaps he had already left the hospital. Perhaps Monica had told Brian what had happened and he had already taken her to the police station to make her statement. It was an accident after all, and accidents happened every single day.

Sighing, Amy admitted that there were so many things she did not know. One thing she was sure of was the date her rent was due. She would not act rashly but would wait and see what happened over the coming days.

For the first time since starting work at Keilly Co., Amy felt awkward as she sat at her desk and logged in to the computer. She could not shake the feeling that her colleagues all knew that she was hiding something even if they could not possibly know what. A few quick glances around the room proved that no one was paying her any more attention than usual. A guilty conscience, that was all it was. But if she felt like this Amy dreaded to think how Monica must be feeling.


After an hour Amy had managed to push the incident to the back of her mind and was almost as engrossed in her work as she usually became. Then there was a tap on her shoulder. Amy froze. How could the police have found her? But it wasn't the police, just Marie, Frank's secretary.

"He wants to see you in his office, Amy."

"Um." The last thing Amy wanted was a face-to-face meeting, but he was the boss and she couldn't refuse. "I'll just finish off what I'm working on," she said.

"I wouldn't if I were you. He's in a funny mood this morning. I'm off to run a couple of errands for him, so just show yourself in."

"I..." she began, but Marie had already walked away. Amy pushed back her chair and made her way to Frank's office.

"Amy, come on in and take a seat." Frank said, shutting the door firmly behind her.

"What is it? Have I done something wrong?" Amy couldn't meet her boss's eyes.

"On the contrary, I think both Monica and I owe you our thanks."

Amy looked up, her eyes briefly meeting his. "I don't understand," she said, although inside she knew exactly what Frank was talking about.

"Listen, Monica told me what happened. How this man just stepped out in front of the car, and that she caught him a glancing blow. Nothing serious..."

"Why didn't she stop then?" Amy began to feel the first stirrings of anger. Didn't they both realise the position the whole event had put her in?

"You know how it is, Amy. She panicked, that's all. If it had been serious..."

Amy held up her hand. "I've got to tell you, Frank. I saw the man where your wife left him and it looked pretty serious to me."

Rubbing his brow, Frank sat back in his hair. "I've been thinking, Amy, that it's high time I gave you a promotion. Team manager; how does that sound? And of course there will be a hefty wage increase to go with it."

Amy stared at the smile on her boss's face. "It sounds like you are trying to buy my silence, to be honest. And what about Kevin? Are you letting him go when his wife's about to have their first baby? Or is there a promotion for him too?"

Obviously taken aback by her outburst, Frank leaned forward over the desk, closing the gap between them. "Your work is far superior to that of anyone else's in the department. You should be rewarded, that's all it is. Everything else... It's just an accident of timing. At least take your time and think it over."

"I... I really don't feel good today. Shouldn't have come in," Amy got to her feet and turned towards the door. "I'm sorry. I'm going to have to go home."

"I'll call you a cab. It's the least I can do."

"No, Frank, please. Just let me go." Amy almost ran back to her desk where she hastily logged off from the computer, gathered her things and fled from the office.

Pushing through the door onto the street, Amy almost collided with Marie. "Are you alright, Amy?" The secretary put a hand on her arm.

"I'm... I'm not feeling too good," Amy managed to say. "I'm going home to bed, hopefully to sleep it off."

"Well, take care. That hit and run yesterday... Terrible. Just leaving the man and driving away. He died this morning apparently..."

Amy felt herself grow faint. Died? The man that she had tried to help was dead? Like a zombie she walked through the streets. Only once she was in her apartment did she allow the full impact of those words to sink in.

Monica had killed a man. Had Frank known when he'd made the offer of a promotion? Surely not. He had said Monica's car had barely touched the victim.

'But you know different,' she said to herself. 'You were there. You heard it. You saw what happened.' Amy knew what she had to do.

Picking up the phone she called the police station. "That hit-and-run on Fraser, I was there. I witnessed the entire thing."
***

After leaving the police station Amy wrote a quick letter of resignation to Keilly Co. There was no need for her to give a reason. That done she handed the keys back to her landlord.

"What about notice?" No notice, no return of deposit."

"Keep it. I'll be gone in an hour." And Amy was packed and ready to leave in just under fifty minutes. There was one last thing she had to do.

Picking up the phone to make one last call. She didn't need to ask, knew her parents would welcome her back but still she said: "Mom? Is it okay for me to come home for a while?"