by Sarah Barrie
On the mountain, in the darkness, the figure prowled restlessly. He’d missed her. She’d been gone for days. Now she was home and Tallon was sticking to her like a leech — and she allowed it — allowed him to man-handle her! She was lonely, that was all. She wouldn’t be lonely for much longer.
He’d seen the commotion at Hal’s, seen Tallon and a team of men pull the place apart. Lucky he’d got out when he did. Lucky he had a stash to last him awhile. Now Jordy was down there cozying up to the cop. Fuck! Tallon was a cop. He popped a pill in his mouth, closed his eyes and imagined. He should be there with her. He should be holding her, touching her. Well, he would be…soon.
CHAPTER
16
Jordan expected the week to drag, but with so much to do, each day flew by. There were horses to work, calves to attend to and a million and one jobs that needed catching up on. Acutely aware of how far the small amount of profit she’d made would need to stretch, there were budgets to plan, short-term money-making schemes to consider, and Jordan found herself with little spare time. Reid called her each evening, a gesture that both surprised and pleased her and, before long, he was driving back down her driveway.
He emerged from his car and moved straight into kissing her senseless. ‘I feel like I’ve been gone a month. And what in creation is that god-awful stink?’
‘Huh? Oh…I just put some chicken on.’
Reid pulled a face that was half surprise, half dread. ‘No offence, but if that’s dinner, we’re eating out.’
Jordan’s smile turned to a teasing grin. ‘City boy. I just put some chicken manure on the back paddock.’
‘Why?’
‘It makes it all green and pretty.’
‘How long does it reek like this?’
‘Couple of days if the weather’s right.’
‘So let’s get out of here.’ He took her hand and began to pull her towards the car but she dug in her heels.
‘I can’t. I have a truckload of sheep arriving any minute.’
‘Sheep?’
‘Yeah — short-term project until the cattle numbers build up again. Got them cheap.’
‘Cheap sheep. Can’t wait,’ he muttered through the sleeve of his shirt as he attempted not to breathe in anymore of what he considered to be a completely unacceptable and noxious blight on the environment. ‘Can we at least go inside?’
‘Sure. I bet I can take your mind of the stink…’
‘I’m willing to give that a try.’ Even as he agreed they heard the truck approaching and she turned to see it bouncing down the drive.
‘Sorry handsome, truck’s here.’
Reid watched the double-decker truck arrive, laden with noisy animals all stomping and shoving chaotically. With enviable precision, the driver managed to turn the truck and back perfectly up to the race.
‘Afternoon Nick.’ Jordan greeted the tattooed monster that leapt with remarkable agility from the cabin.
‘Jordy.’
‘How do they look?’
‘Hungry.’
‘Not a problem.’ She indicated to the lush pasture surrounding them. ‘I’ve got a lot less cattle to feed.’
Nick looked around and nodded. ‘You’re going to make a killing on these bags-of-bones.’
‘That’s the plan. Let’s get them out.’
Reid watched on as she let them out of the yards and into a paddock. ‘That’s a lot of sheep.’
‘Yeah. And in a few weeks I should be able to triple my investment.’
‘Wouldn’t they put on weight faster in one of the other paddocks?’
‘I can’t just throw them straight out onto the lush stuff, they’re half starved. There’s enough feed in here to start them on.’
‘I don’t think that one agrees with you.’
Jordan’s head snapped around. ‘Damn it, stupid ram!’ She raced through the gate, attempting to stop one of the flock pushing through a fence.
‘A ram?’ He leapt the fence with her because they were too late to stop it getting through.
‘A male — entire. They can be a real pain in the butt, as demonstrated. These were all supposed to be wethers. Now they’re all going to try for that same escape route. Stay there!’
‘What are you going to do?’
‘Try and put him through that gate over there.’
‘Good luck with that.’ He laughed as the animal ducked and bolted around her. His laughter quickly halted as it turned, backed up, and charged. ‘Jordan —’
Jordan leapt out of the way. This time she approached more cautiously.
‘What now?’
‘If I can get a hand on him, I’ll throw the bastard and drag him over.’
‘I’m sorry, but doesn’t throwing something require you to pick it up first?’ His confusion was genuine. The animal was enormous.
‘Not quite.’ As the ram backed up, so did Jordan, closer to the fence.
‘Jordan, be careful.’
‘It’s okay…’ Eyes alight with challenge, she braced herself. ‘Watch.’
As the ram tried another charge she moved at the last second and it hit the fence, giving her just enough time to get her hands on it and somehow, within seconds, she had it sitting on its butt.
‘That, is throwing a sheep. Now I drag.’
Reid laughed. ‘How about I drag? Then I’ll help with that lot.’
‘What lot…shit, shit, shit!’ Jordan watched a line of sheep make their way through another gap. ‘I knew there was a reason I didn’t like sheep!’
Two hours later they sat on the veranda, fences fixed, sheep contained. Jordan was tired and just a little pissed off. Reid, on the other hand, had had the time of his life.
Jordan took a sip of her Coke and sent him a sideways glance. ‘You’re grinning.’
‘I was just thinking how much fun that was.’
Her eyebrows rose. ‘Don’t tell me the city boy’s embracing farm life?’
‘Enjoying the hell out of it, actually. Of course, you probably have a lot to do with that.’
‘I’ll get you on a horse next.’
‘Let’s not get carried away.’
‘I knew a guy at uni that said something very similar to me. Turned out he won the bronc riding two years later at the annual rodeo.’
‘You trying to show me up with some uni student?’
‘Whatever works.’
He just grinned. ‘What did you do at uni?’
‘Huh? Oh…biotechnology,’ she answered, wondering where the unexpected question had come from.
‘Biotech…figures. Any special interest?’
‘Agribioscience. Figures why?’
‘I had a feeling you were smart.’
‘It’s hardly astrophysics.’
‘So what is it?’
‘Oh, lots of things: genomics, animal health, plant pathology, agricultural sustainability…I didn’t finish. I had to come home. I will though — finish. Maybe by correspondence.’
‘Then what?’
She grinned. ‘I single-handedly plan to revolutionise farming forever.’
‘I’m sure you could. You don’t like things the way they are?’
‘Of course…but that doesn’t mean things can’t be better. I enjoy the possibilities.’
‘How far through it were you when…’
‘When my parents died? Two and a half years.’
‘Knowing how they died as a result of that crash, I’m amazed you were still able to turn the wheel of Joel’s truck into Sean’s car.’
‘I wasn’t thinking about it. You’re going to be able to lock Hal up for a long time, right?’
‘Yeah, you won’t need to worry about him for several decades. He’ll be a very old man before he’s free.’
‘No more threats, no more flowers, no more notes.’
Reid frowned. ‘Just how many flowers and notes did you receive?’
‘At first just one bunch a year on the anniversary of Sean’s death. But more recently th
ey were coming once a month. It mostly just pissed me off because they were my favourite flowers. Dad used to buy them for me. I hated that I began to hate those roses when I’d always loved them so much.’
‘I understand. We need to get that statement from you. I want all of this on record.’
As he pulled her closer, his mobile phone rang and he dug it out of his pocket. Jordan got up to give him some privacy and start thinking about dinner. She’d just pulled some steaks out of the freezer when he joined her on the veranda.
‘That was my boss, Tony.’
‘Everything alright?’
‘Just something that couldn’t wait until tomorrow.’
‘If being here is interfering with your case —’
‘Stop right there. It’s not. I’ll head off first thing in the morning, be in time for the nine o’clock meeting.’
Jordan sighed and shook her head. ‘You should head off this evening, otherwise you’ll have to leave by five to make it.’
‘And miss a night with you? I’ll get up early.’ His expression softened. ‘And you don’t need to leave the room every time my phone rings.’
‘Okay.’ She stepped in, sliding her hands up his chest and looping them around his neck. ‘Meat’s gonna take a while to defrost.’
‘I was hoping you’d say that.’
‘Tallon, fucking Tallon!’ Brian curled his lip into a snarl. He could see them on the veranda, all over each other. ‘He thinks he’s so important. Jordan doesn’t need a dick like him, walking around the place like he owns it.’
He’s trying to take over. He’s laughing at you.
Yeah? We’ll see how long he laughs.
He’s screwing Jordan.
With a guttural growl that turned into a raging scream, he stabbed the knife into the tree until the bark was shredded. ‘Shut up! Just shut up!’ His angel wouldn’t do that.
Are you sure?
Scratching at his arms until they opened up, he revelled in the pain that told him this was real. He needed to get rid of Tallon. But how? He couldn’t kill him, not yet…that would bring the cops poking around. Nothing could interfere. He couldn’t risk it, not now. He needed to see Jordan — connect with her. He couldn’t wait.
‘It has to be now.’
That’s not the plan.
‘Shut up! Shut up!’
He pulled a small zip-lock bag from tattered jeans and shook the pills around. He’d crush some up, mix it with the GHB — just like he’d used so successfully on the slut at the pub a couple of weeks back. He knew what to do, it was just a bit sooner, that’s all.
‘Doesn’t matter, doesn’t matter…’
Tomorrow he’d finish setting up the van — the van he’d towed by tractor as far up the old, overgrown fire trail behind Hal’s place as he could get. No one would find it. Only the new trails were marked on the map. He’d have his angel to himself…for as long as he wanted. He’d fix it up tomorrow.
‘Yeah.’ He giggled with excitement. ‘And then I’ll come back and get you, angel.’
Reid sat across from Hal Carter and swore. ‘I don’t believe you!’
Anything but his usual arrogant self, the man in front of him looked old and scared. He looked at his lawyer, who cleared his throat.
‘Judge Carter knows nothing more than what he’s already admitted.’
‘You’re telling me you don’t know the name of the person that’s putting a couple of million dollars a year into an off-shore account in your son’s name? An account you’ve been accessing?’
‘We only deal with the guy at the drop-off point. Always have.’
‘We?’
‘Brian’s responsible for most of the communication.’
‘Let’s talk about Brian for a moment. Where the hell is he? Maybe while you’re at it you could tell me what you know about Beau Davison.’
‘Is this a drug investigation or a murder investigation?’ Hal’s lawyer objected.
‘I don’t know,’ Hal replied at the same time.
Ignoring the lawyer, Reid leaned over Hal. ‘One more lie, Carter, and I stop being nice.’
‘I’m not! I didn’t want Brian to up and leave. I needed him!’
Reid sent him a withering scowl. ‘He’s not smart enough to run all that.’
‘He’s not as stupid as you might think — especially when he can stay off my stuff long enough to be useful.’
‘And he suddenly just up and left? A man with a serious habit just walked off on his supply?’
‘He’s lost the plot lately…I don’t know why he left. But he took a lot with him. I figure when it runs out he’ll be back.’
‘Why would he come back when he knows you’ll kill him?’
The lawyer stood. ‘Detective —’
‘I’m not a killer!’
‘Then who is?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘Stop fucking with me!’ For effect, Reid tossed a chair into the wall.
‘This meeting is over!’ the lawyer objected.
‘Fine!’ Reid slammed his hands on the table and stepped away. ‘But if the others talk first, you’re history, understand? What do you think’ll happen to a judge in a shared cell, let’s say, with someone you put away?’
‘Okay!’ Hal caved, his cuffed hands shaking. ‘Our contact’s name is Ezio. He delivers our stuff to our buyer.’
‘What about Brian?’
‘I know he’s killed before — at least once. And he was at the club the night Beau was murdered.’
‘A lot of people were at the club that night. Who’d he kill before?’
‘A guy that worked for me: Frank. They had a fight, there was a struggle. Brian held him under the water a bit too long. They were both on meth, both bloody idiots. It was an accident, Brian said. But he wasn’t sorry.’
‘And the other one?’
‘Other one?’
‘Another guy,’ Reid struggled to replay the conversation with Joel in his head. ‘A Kane…Choo?’
‘Card-player. Ended up owing the boys some serious cash. Took off.’
‘Never seen since, not even by his family. I did some research.’
‘I don’t know anything about that.’
‘Fine. Where’s Brian likely to be?’
‘I don’t know. Look, I need to know what you’re going to do to protect me.’
‘Faster I find Brian, the faster I can help you out. You think of anything else…I’m around.’
Reid was back in Whitewater Creek the following morning, at Hal Carter’s place with a search team. Somewhere there had to be a clue to Brian Dunmore’s location. And he intended to find it. He drew his weapon and addressed the waiting men.
‘Be prepared; he could be dead — he could just as easily be very much alive and armed.’ At his nod, they began their search.
It took five hours of hot, dirty searching, but by the end of the day they’d found a badly decomposed body in the dam. Of Brian, there was no sign.
‘We’re ready to go sir,’ one of his team informed him as he watched the forensics team do their work.
‘No problem, head off. I’m going to hang around a while.’
All in all, Reid was pretty pleased. He’d bet just about anything the body was going to be Kane Choo. But where the hell was Brian Dunmore? He decided he’d head into town, fill Harry in on the latest. Then he’d pick up some takeaway…surprise Jordan. The thought put a smile on his face as he climbed back into the car.
Brian put a hand over his mouth as he struggled to stop giggling. ‘Quiet…quiet…’ he whispered to himself as he tiptoed through Jordan’s kitchen.
Jordan was home — just down at the machinery shed — with that bloody dog and Tanner’s girl’s boyfriend. He opened the fridge. She’d go for the Coke. She always sat down with a Coke at the end of the day. Yes, the bottle was almost empty; that made things easier. He’d premixed the meth with the GHB liquid and his hands were shaking as he opened the vial.
He heard
a car; saw Madi Tanner pull up. Carefully, he poured in the mix, screwed the lid back on the bottle and returned it to the fridge, then he slipped out of the house and went back up to his spot.
‘Not long now,’ he promised himself and, unzipping his jeans, he fantasised as he waited, as he watched.
Madi strolled down to the stables and found Matt and Jordan sitting on a large stack of hay bales. She grinned at the sweaty pair. ‘Looks like I’m just in time.’
‘Yeah — to avoid having to do anything.’ Matt grinned back and, levering himself up wearily, gave her a kiss. ‘Miss me?’
‘Every smelly inch of you.’ She kissed him again.
‘Ever heard of “get a room”?’ Jordan complained.
‘Withdrawals?’ Madi asked sympathetically. ‘When’s he coming back?’
‘This has nothing to do with Reid. Well okay, yeah…maybe. He’ll be back on Friday.’
‘Oh yuck…five whole days? I bet he’s on the phone by five-thirty.’ Madi turned to Matt. ‘Dad’ll be here in a few minutes with the new belt you requested for this bucket of bolts.’ She patted the backhoe, admired Matt’s work.
Matt nodded. ‘Great. Assuming we can make this baby go, I’m taking it home. Jordan’s finally finished borrowing it…after breaking it.’
‘I did not break it!’ Jordan defended. ‘Joel said that stupid belt’s needed replacing forever.’
Matt shook his head and made a sound of disbelief. ‘Women drivers.’
Jordan playfully threw a filthy rag at him. ‘Dodgy mechanics.’
‘Would you two stop?’ Madi laughed. A moment later they heard a car pull up and Madi craned her neck around. ‘Here’s Dad now.’
On cue, Joel appeared, belt in hand. ‘Afternoon all.’
‘Hi Dad.’ Madi jumped up and smiled. ‘We’ll leave you guys to it…I need to speak to Jordy.’
‘You do?’ Jordan asked, curious.
Madi and Matt exchanged happy glances and Jordan’s eyes narrowed. ‘Yes, I do.’
‘Don’t forget your mother needs the car,’ Joel reminded her, ‘seeing as I had to come over and fix the backhoe Jordy broke.’
‘Okay, that’s it!’ Jordan pulled a face at Joel’s smirk. ‘No beers for you. Let’s go Madi.’
Madi got to her feet. ‘Bye gorgeous, bye Dad. I’m going to talk to Jordy then I’ll head straight to mum with the car.’