Ashes to Ashes

by Campbell, Jamie

  “Yeah well, just don’t change it to dead.” They went downstairs and had breakfast together. Caleb rushed out the front door as soon he had scoffed down some toast and coffee. Jasmine sat at the breakfast bar when Logan stirred from his room. He still looked half asleep.

  “You here again! We’ll have to start charging you rent.” He went to the fridge and poured a glass of orange juice.

  “It’s just for a few days. I’ll try not to bug you.”

  “Caleb gone to work already?”

  “Yeah, he just left.”

  “Does that mean you need another lift?”

  “No, I have my car. Thanks anyway.”

  “It wasn’t really an offer. I have stuff to do.” He wandered back to his bedroom. Jasmine wasn’t sure how to take Logan. He could be quite curt and rude at times, but amicable enough at other times. She didn’t really know enough about him, only that he had gone to school with Caleb since kindergarten. She didn’t even know what he did for a living, if he did anything at all. He spent a lot of time playing video games, that she was sure of.

  She was still pondering Logan when her mobile phone rang, the ring tone startling her in the quiet house. She looked at the caller ID – it was Chase.

  “Chase, how’s it going?”

  “Jaz, it’s going great. I have some good news for you,” she sounded excited. ‘Way too excited for a Monday morning,’ Jasmine thought.

  “Well, tell me what it is before I burst with anticipation.”

  “I opened the computer files. It wasn’t easy, but I am fantastic. You won’t believe what they were.”

  “What, come on, don’t make me beg.”

  “They were simple PDF documents. Each file contained only one page, so I have six pages of PDF documents. Bugger’s used some heavy encryption and covered it by some funky passwords, but you know they can never beat the Chase.”

  “The Chase is the master. What’s on the pages?”

  “I don’t know. My high school science class that I wagged every other day tells me they may have some scientific references. H²0 is water, right? It’s just a bunch of symbols, gobbledygook to me.”

  “Can I come by and pick them up?”

  “Sure, I’m here to lunchtime and then I’ll be at a client’s place.”

  “I’ll be right over.” She hung up and went straight for her car that was parked out on the street. Caleb had offered her the garage, but the car leaked oil and she did not want to have to apologise for staining the concrete.

  She made it to Chase’s in ten minutes, encountering green lights for most of the way. Despite all she was going through, she was in a good mood. She felt happy that at least some parts of her life were going her way. Chase’s good news added to her good vibes. She might be finally getting somewhere. She didn’t bother knocking on the front door. Instead, she waved at the camera. Chase opened the door after only seconds.

  “Come in. You said you got these from Avalon Laboratories?”

  “Yeah, off the CEO’s computer.”

  “I don’t want to hear it! I’m not going to be an accessory to crime. I was thinking that the labs fit into the picture. I’m sure they are some kind of scientific equations.” She led her into the office and handed over the six pages of paper. Jasmine took them and scanned through each one in turn. Chase was right; they looked like equations of some sort. It could have been Arabic to her, but there were some symbols she recognised. She saw the H²O that Chase had mentioned, there was also some temperature degree symbols.

  “Have you ever seen anything like this?”

  “Nope. We use coding in computers, but they are nothing like those. Makes you wish you paid more attention at school.”

  “Yeah, this must be the reason why we have to learn that crap. I’ll use the net; see what I can get from there. Thank you so much Chase, I owe you.”

  “Big time, but it was fun. I’d like to meet the person who encrypted them. I’d shake his hand. Hey, let me know what you find out. You’ve got me curious.”

  “Well, you know what they say about curiosity.”

  “I’m tougher than a cat. I can take it.” She smiled and they walked back to the front door. “If you need anything else, just call me.”

  “Thanks again.” She hurried back to her car. Turning onto the road, she made up her mind to visit the library again. She needed two things. One was a quiet public place to go over the company documents; the second was a computer with internet access. Fortunately, Avalon library had both.

  She was starting to become a regular with the librarians. They waved at her as she passed through the check-out counter. She found a table in the back. It was soaked in sunlight and deserted. She sat down and pulled out the computer print-outs that she had downloaded from work. She opened her notebook and started drawing a structure diagram.

  Avalon Laboratory Industries Pty Ltd was owned by company, after company. All in all, ownership passed through five different private companies before being split up into five family trusts. The trustees were also all private companies. She read through each company report, trying to find a name she recognised. Each officeholder was different, until she reached the five trustee companies. Each company had the same office holdings – Alfred House acted as sole director, secretary, and public officer for each one.

  The name seemed familiar to her, the only one out of a dozen. She piled up the reports and went through to the computer room. Besides a few senior citizens, the place was empty. She logged on to the internet and typed in ‘Yellow Pages’. The site came up and she searched for Albert House. After a few seconds, the matches listed.

  There was only one. House and Associates Lawyers; located in Cliffton. She clicked onto the link to their website.

  House and Associates was run by none other than Albert House. It was a two-partner legal practice that specialised in corporate law and conveyancing. She jotted down the telephone number.

  Next was a visit to Google where she typed in a few of the symbols from the pages Chase had given her. She was spot on, they were scientific references. She managed to match some of them.

  There were references to mercury, copper, and some chemicals that Jasmine had no idea what they were for. She wrote them in the notebook, but there were too many to translate. Six pages would have taken her a week. So she decided on a change of tactics.

  Leaving the library, she sat in her car and dialled Caleb’s mobile number.

  “Hey gorgeous, what’s up?”

  “Do you have a phone line that’s untraceable at work?”

  “Not really untraceable, but it’s a private number. If you dial out then it won’t show up on a caller ID. They also can’t star-ten-hash it to call it back.”

  “Are you there now?”

  “Yeah. You want to come by, make some prank calls?”

  “I’m on my way.” She revved up the engine and drove the couple of blocks. Caleb was waiting at reception for her.

  “Follow me.” They walked into one of the small meeting rooms. It could have passed as a police interrogation room. They were in serious need of an interior decorator. “Do you want me here?”

  “I’ll be fine. I’ll come see you when I’m done.”

  “Okay, have fun.”

  She dialled the number of House and Associates. A woman came on the line.

  “House and Associates, how may I direct your call?”

  “May I speak with Albert House please?”

  “Certainly, I will just check to see if he is available. Who may I say is calling?”

  “Lily Walters. I’m calling from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.”

  “Hold the line please.” The hold music was set to the local radio station. A song by Good Charlotte was playing.

  “Albert House.” He sounded grumpy.

  “Mr House, my name is Lily Walters and I’m calling from ASIC. We are updating our records and it appears that we have a few holes. I’m hoping you will have a few minutes to as
sist me.” He didn’t respond so she went on. “According to our records, you are the director of five companies each holding shares in Safe Net Pty Ltd. Is this correct?”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Are the shares beneficially held?”

  “No, the companies are acting as trustees for family trusts.”

  “Of course, I have those details here. In the interest of ensuring compliance with the Corporations Act of 2001, are there any undisclosed agency agreements in place within this structure?”

  “Is this a formal review?”

  “No, not a formal review, sir. However, your co-operation is appreciated. The ASIC has powers to ensure compliance and data integrity, I’m sure you understand. Is there an undisclosed agency agreement?”

  “Yes, there is.”

  “And who are the parties involved?”

  “They’re undisclosed for a reason. I would like to protect my client’s privacy.”

  “Sir, I can fully appreciate that. However, I’m sure you would not like a full investigation into the matter. It’s very time-consuming and costly for your clients, not to mention your practice.” She held her breath, praying he would take the bait.

  He hesitated. “Fine then. Each company has an agency arrangement. The agreement is with a Mr Brent McBain.”

  “Thank you for your help with this matter. This will now close the file.” She hung up. McBain had risen again. She remembered back to when she first heard that name, sitting in a chair in the security guard’s office at Avalon Laboratory Industries. She wrote down his first name so she wouldn’t forget it, unlikely as that was.

  Next, she dialled Lucy’s number. She had thought about what had happened last time she saw her sister. She may have made the conscious decision to risk her life, but she wasn’t going to do that to her sister.

  “Hello?”

  “Lucy, hi, it’s Jaz. Listen, I’m just calling to let you know that I have looked into what happened to Mum and Dad and I didn’t find anything. It all looked like the details matched what Gran and Gramps said; it was just a tragic accident. So I’m letting it go, you don’t have to worry anymore.”

  “Good to hear. I told you it was an accident. You could have saved yourself some time and just trusted us.” She sounded relieved, but still guarded.

  “Anyway, I’ll let you go. I just wanted you to know that. I have a week off work so I’m going to do some relaxing, maybe read a book.”

  “Sounds like a good idea. Bye.”

  “Bye.” She hung the phone up, hoping whoever else was listening in on the conversation believed her. She left the small room and found Caleb at his desk.

  “All done?”

  “Yep.”

  “Find out anything?”

  “Yep.”

  “Tell me tonight?”

  She smiled. “Yes of course. See you then.” She left through reception and picked up some lunch from the Round Bagel. She thought about Brent McBain as she ate her chicken and salad sandwich. He had to hold all the cards at Avalon Laboratories; otherwise, he would not have been able to give the release order for her and Caleb when they were caught. But why would he just let them go? She didn’t know him, so he couldn’t have known her.

  Then there was the shareholding. Why set up five separate companies and trusts only to be controlled by the one person? It didn’t make sense. Trusts are used to distribute profits to beneficiaries. With a discretionary trust, it’s the trustee who decides who gets the money. It can change from year to year, providing that it’s all in accordance with the trust deed. He didn’t need five trusts to distribute profit. In theory you could do that all with just the one.

  She came to the conclusion that she needed to see the trust deeds. They would list the specified beneficiaries and may give a clue as to who was really behind the ownership of the company. Jasmine had a feeling that, like Alfred House, Brent McBain was just a front man.

  Once she had finished with lunch, she crossed the street and entered an internet café. She purchased ten minutes and sat in the back of the store. She pulled up the White Pages and typed in ‘Brent McBain’. There were no matches for the name. If he existed, then he either didn’t have a home telephone number or it was unlisted.

  She went to Google and typed in the name again. There were 112 hits. She scanned through them. A Brent McBain from Canada was the star footballer at Toronto University. Brent McBain was also a writer for the Glasgow Times. She trawled through page after page.

  There was no mention of any McBain’s in Australia, let alone Avalon.

  She closed the internet page and left the store with three minutes of the time left. She went for a walk to the Golden Chest Pharmacy. It was a beautiful day and she was glad of the opportunity to enjoy at least some of it. There were quite a few customers inside the chemist. She had to jostle through them to get to the back counter.

  Brad Goodman spotted her after a few minutes and gave her a wave. It felt like déjà vu. She waited patiently as he finished with the customer he was serving. He waved her over and she made her way to the counter.

  “Jasmine Parker – twice in one week! To what do I owe this pleasure?”

  “I was hoping to talk with you again, but it looks like you’re busy.”

  “Tell you what, I have tomorrow off. Why don’t you come by my home?”

  “You don’t mind?”

  “Of course I don’t. You remember where I live?”

  She trudged through her memory bank. She remembered going to his house quite a few times for Sunday lunch or the occasional cricket match on Australia Day. They would usually walk there. It was only a couple of blocks from their home. “You haven’t moved off Livingstone Drive?”

  “Nope, it’s my castle. I’ll be home in the afternoon.”

  “I’ll come by at two then?”

  “See you then.”

  She left the store and walked back to her car. She wanted to make one more phone call, but didn’t want to go back to the newspaper. She had already disturbed Caleb enough today. She pulled out onto the road and headed for the nearest petrol station. She found a payphone inside, next to the restrooms.

  She put in sixty cents and dialled the number for McMahon Associates. It was the largest accounting practice in Cliffton. She was going fishing for information. There was only one accounting practice in Avalon and that was Apacho & Sons. She knew there weren’t any McBains on the client listing there, so they must use another firm for their secretarial and tax work.

  “Good afternoon, McMahon’s. Jennifer speaking.”

  “Hello, may I speak with someone in relation to Brent McBain please.”

  “That would be Kirsty. I’ll put you though.”

  She waited, hoping Cliffton counted as a local call so her coins wouldn’t run out.

  “Good afternoon, Kirsty speaking.” She sounded young – Jasmine hoped it was a good sign.

  “Hello, my name is Lily Walters. I work for Westpac Bank. A Mr Brent McBain has just been at our branch asking to set up some facilities. I need copies of his trust deeds to be able to do that. Can you please email them through?”

  “Sure, I will need to contact Mr McBain to obtain permission first, but that shouldn’t be a problem. What’s your email address?”

  Jasmine panicked. Damn it! A girl who followed protocol. “Oh, actually, my assistant has just handed them to me. Sorry to have bothered you. Thank you for your help.” She hung up promptly.

  She headed for the counter and bought a Mars bar before returning to her car. She was frustrated with McMahon’s but couldn’t blame the woman. If Jasmine was in the same situation, she would have done exactly the same thing. It was illegal to give out documents without checking with the client first. Things like that could get a place sued very easily.

  She decided to call it a day and went to the supermarket. Caleb had been so good to her that she planned to cook something nice for dinner, for when he finished work. She wasn’t a chef by any means, so she chose a roast c
hicken and vegetables with gravy. It wasn’t exactly a gourmet meal, but was definitely a step up from frozen pizza. She walked through the aisles and gathered the ingredients.

  Driving home, she wondered if Logan would be there. She had bought enough food to feed him too, if he wanted to join them. It might make him more affable. After all, they say the stomach is the way to a man’s heart.

  She pulled into the kerb and carried the groceries inside.

  “Logan, you here?” Silence. She put the food on the counter and looked through the cupboards. She found some pots and pans and started the meal.

  The house was too quiet. She walked into the living room and turned the TV on for some background noise. She didn’t like it being quiet. Growing up, the house had always been noisy. If it wasn’t her sister’s music blaring, then it was the whirl of the lawnmower engine as Gramps cut the grass, or Gran singing to herself, whilst she cleaned the house.

  The dinner was almost cooked by the time Caleb came home. He parked in the garage and entered the house via the internal door.

  “Something smells good!”

  “Roast chicken.”

  “Hmm, you can stay over any time.” He put his bag down and put his arms around her, drawing her close. He kissed her hard on the lips, she kissed him back.

  “It will be ready in about ten minutes.”

  “I’ll set the table then.”

  After a few minutes they sat down to their meal and a glass of wine.

  “So, what did you find out?”

  “I encountered that name McBain again. His first name is Brent.”

  “How’d that happen? This food is really good by the way.”

  “Glad you like it. I found out that an Alfred House was looking after the office holdings in the ultimate owning company of Avalon Laboratories. Turns out he was acting for Brent McBain.”

  “So McBain owns the labs?”

  “Well, sort of. He runs the companies that hold the shares. But the companies are only acting as trustees. Five different trusts are the ultimate shareholders.”

  “Do you know anything about the trusts?”

  “They aren’t public record. I tried to get the deeds, but was shot down by protocol.”