Red Dust

by Fleur McDonald

  'Okay. Take down her statement, then you get back out here. We'll take a closer look at that dog enclosure tomorrow and impound the sheep yard panels. We can bunk down in the shearers' quarters.'

  'No worries. See ya in a few hours.'

  Chapter 27

  Ben liked being in the office at night. It was peaceful and he was able to achieve a lot more when nobody else was around. Ned had given him his own car and a few clients over the past few weeks and Ben was finding that his workload had increased since taking on these extra customers. But it was better than riding around with Ned all day. Ned had become increasingly edgy and grumpy, and had told Ben he'd been having trouble with his stomach due to stress. Ben had noticed the older man had a tremor in his hands and there seemed to be a rash on his arms. It could be stress, but Ben was worried that it might be something more. He wondered if Ned was seriously ill.

  Ben walked down the narrow corridor to the storeroom where the old files were kept. The feedlot contract that Adam had signed dated back three years, Ned had said. So that was four contracts he was looking for – the three that had been filled and the one that was due to be filled in the next few months. He wanted all the information at his fingertips when he met with Craig.

  Running his fingers over the dates and sale numbers he found the first two without any trouble. Looking at the contract, Ben could see nothing amiss. They were signed by the state manager, Ned and Adam, and it appeared the cattle had been delivered and paid for. The third one proved much more difficult to locate. It should have been at the top of the archive box but Ben couldn't find it. Shifting a couple of heavy folders out of the way, he found another filing box pushed to the back of the shelf. Leafing through the contract and sale papers, he finally found the one he was after. He was surprised that it hadn't been filed correctly. Barb, the office manager, was usually meticulous about filing. Ben shrugged. Must have had a temp in at some stage who stuffed up.

  Taking all three contracts back to his desk, he then went in search of the current contract. That one would be in Barb's office since it was still to be filed.

  Flicking through the pages of the contract file, he found the one he was looking for and unclipped it from the folder and took it back to his office, thinking of Gemma. He kept seeing her face, hearing her voice. No woman had ever affected him this way. Ben couldn't wait to see her again. He was sure he hadn't imagined her moving closer to him in the shearing shed. Next time, he promised himself, I'll kiss her.

  Shaking his head to clear it he sat down and carefully read through the contract. Trying to decipher the scrawled signature, Ben's heart almost stopped when he realised it was a woman's writing. Pretty messy for a woman, but it had the round loops that women often used in signatures. Looking closely, Ben saw a distinct G. Surely Gemma hadn't signed it. She'd looked so shocked when Ned had told her about the contract, but here was her signature in black and white: G.R. Sinclair.

  Ben put the contract down and rubbed his eyes. There must be an explanation.

  He picked up the earlier contracts and examined Adam's signature. His writing was virtually illegible; Ben didn't think there was any way he could have forged Gemma's name.

  Ben put the four contracts in a large yellow envelope and headed out the door. He wanted to confront Gemma with these. He couldn't help her if she wasn't honest with him. He'd go and see her tomorrow.

  Once Gemma was finished at the hospital, Craig took her statement. He was as sympathetic and compassionate as he could be but by the time everything was finished, Gemma was exhausted. She alternated between crying, being very angry and just wanting to go home.

  Jess drove her to her house, insisted she take the sedative that Paige had given her and Gemma fell into bed. Jess sat with her until she fell asleep. Tomorrow they would go out to Billbinya.

  The amount of traffic that Ben passed on the way to Billbinya the next morning amazed him. The quiet country dirt roads seemed to have turned into a drag-racing track. Two police cars had come up behind him, passed him and disappeared into the distance. Then he'd passed Dave and Craig and four other cars he didn't know heading back towards town. A truck carrying some Hereford cattle went past. The presence of the police cars made him wonder if some more stock had been stolen. Ben put his foot down and got to Billbinya as fast as he could.

  When he arrived he saw Bulla at the shearing shed, letting out the sheep that had been left under the shed the night before. Bulla nodded and carried on with his work.

  'Where is everyone?' Ben asked, jumping over the fence to give Bulla a hand. The stubborn sheep had decided they didn't want to come out from underneath the shearing shed and even Bulla's dog, Roady, had been baled up against the railing by an angry wether.

  Bulla swore and threw a rock at the sheep. 'Gem's in town,' he answered.

  'Oh, I was hoping to catch her,' Ben said.

  'She'll be out with Jess this afternoon. Some pretty bad business went down last night and Craig had to take her in to hospital. C'mon, you stupid bastards, get out from under there.' Bulla crawled in under the shed. 'Go back, Roady.' He let out a piercing whistle and from nowhere a black and white collie dog flew over the fence, under the shed and started barking. 'Fetch 'im up, Mac, go back there.'

  Ben watched as together Mac and Roady worked their way to the back of the shed and teamed up to push the sheep towards the small gateway. His curiosity got the better of him and he yelled under the shed: 'What happened?'

  Bulla didn't answer straightaway. He worked his dogs quietly and quickly and within a couple of minutes the wethers realised they were beaten and ran through the opening. The two dogs followed the sheep out and accepted their pats from Ben with big grins on their faces. Bulla struggled out from under the shed and stood up. He groaned. 'I'm getting too old for this,' he muttered. 'Bloody Jack got to Gemma last night,' Bulla said, looking Ben in the face for the first time. 'He bashed her up a bit and Craig took 'er in to the hospital. Jess rang this morning and said she was up and about feelin' pretty sore but they'd be comin' out today. The bastard did a runner last night and the cops are on the lookout for him.'

  Ben felt sick. 'Right, well then I guess you're a man down. I'll give you a hand until Gemma gets back. I need to stay and talk to her anyway. Garry about?'

  'Nah, he's gone to town to get the supplies for shearing.'

  'Righto, hand over the back-liner. I can do this if you want to get the other sheep back out into the paddock.'

  Bulla looked at Ben for a second.

  'I own my own farm, Bulla. I know how to do this.'

  Bulla indicated with a nod of his head to where the backpack and spraygun were lying on the bench. 'There you go, sunshine. Hook in.' As he turned to walk away, he stopped. 'You're a bit keen on our Gem, aren't ya?'

  'Yeah, a bit,' Ben answered candidly.

  Bulla nodded. 'You'd be good for her.'

  Ben shook his head. It didn't matter if he was keen on her or not. If she was involved with the stock stealing, he wouldn't touch her with a ten-foot pole. But, deep down, he still couldn't believe she was.

  Jess had had the prescription given to Gemma at the hospital filled, then stocked the car with comfort food and alcohol. 'Right, Gem?' she asked as they pulled into Billbinya's driveway.

  'Yeah,' Gemma answered softly. She didn't feel okay. She was scared. She didn't want to go back to the house. But Craig had said that was normal and Jess had promised to stay for a while. Pat would come and stay too, and Bulla and Garry would camp at the shearers' quarters if she asked them to. Plus, the shearers would be around for another week.

  'Looks like Ned is here,' Jess commented as the shed and yards came into view.

  Gemma looked. 'No, I think that's Ben.' A warm feeling shot through her stomach. 'I wonder what he's doing here on a Saturday.'

  'Checking up on you, I'd reckon.' Jess smiled slyly. 'Think he's got the hots for you.'

  'Uh huh,' said Gemma, shifting painfully in her seat.

  They pulled up a
t the yards and got out of the car. Ben looked up and took a quick breath when he saw Gemma's face and bandaged arm. He finished the race of sheep, let them out, hung up the backpack and walked over to the girls.

  'Been in the wars, Gem?' he asked, touching her gently on the shoulder.

  'Yeah, a bit.' She smiled up at him, basking in the warmth of his concern. 'How come you've been roped in here?'

  Ben's face sobered as he recalled the reason for his visit. He moved away from Gemma and turned back towards the yards. 'I came to talk to you and found that Bulla was a bit short-staffed so I offered to help while I was waiting for you.'

  'Oh.' Gemma was confused by his sudden withdrawal. 'Well, thanks. I think I might be out of action for a little while with this arm.'

  Ben spun around to face Gemma with an intense look on his face. 'Gemma, tell me truthfully: are you involved with stock stealing? Do you know anything about any of it? Any tiny little thing?'

  Gemma recoiled and Jess moved in closer. There was a heartbeat of silence then Gemma's eyes narrowed. 'I thought you were different, Ben,' she choked out. 'I thought you believed in me. Well, stuff you! I'm not even going to dignify that question with an answer. We don't need your help. You can leave any time you like.' She stumbled back to the car, tears filling her eyes.

  Jess stared at Ben. 'I must have pegged you wrong,' she said. 'I thought you were one of the good guys.' She turned to go to Gemma.

  'Jess, I've found something with Gemma's signature on it that would indicate she is involved. If you guys want me to help you, I have to know everything. If Gem's involved then I need to know. I can't help if she is involved, but if she isn't then let's have a crack at working out what the hell is going on around here.'

  Jess watched his face carefully. 'Finish up here and I'll have the kettle on at the house when you're ready to come and talk to us.' She turned and walked away.

  Ben let out his breath and ran his hands over his face. Shit, what a bloody awful position to be in.

  The girls were sitting at the kitchen table when Ben entered the house. Gemma had her back to him and wouldn't look him in the face when he sat at the table.

  'So what have you got, Ben?' Jess asked. 'Why are you giving us grief?'

  Ben opened the yellow envelope. Addressing Gemma he said, 'These are the contracts for the cattle that have been going to the feedlot. Craig asked to see all the sale contracts early next week. I particularly went to find these because I knew Gemma didn't know anything about the feedlot cattle. The first two are fine. They have Adam's signature on them, they've been filled, money paid, no problem. It's the last two I have a problem with. Gemma, your signature is on the last two contracts, but you told me and Ned that you didn't have any idea about them. Did you lie about not knowing about the contracts?'

  Gemma's good hand shot out. 'Let me look.' Ben passed the contracts over to her. 'That's not my signature,' Gemma said without hesitation. 'Jess, can you pass me that pen and paper?' Gemma signed her name with a flourish and pushed the paper towards Ben. 'That's my signature – want me to show you my credit cards? That one,' she said, pointing to the contracts, 'is not mine.'

  Ben looked at Gemma's signature and Jess took the contracts from Ben's hand to look. It was quite clear the two signatures didn't match. Ben smiled.

  Jack was holed up in a cheap motel in Adelaide. It was off the main drag and he didn't think there would be much chance of anyone finding him here. Another five days and this would all be over. His brother had told him about the last big job they were going to pull when they had met the previous night. He wasn't needed until Friday so to have a week in a motel with nothing to do but drink rum and watch TV sounded great to him.

  He'd snuck the dogs into his room. They didn't care about the luxury they were in – they were just pleased to have their master with them.

  Jack couldn't stop thinking about Gemma though. He kept remembering the feeling of her close to him, the screaming. Jack couldn't understand why women's screaming and fear turned him on. He really had tried to control those feelings – until he'd met Gemma. She'd been too irresistible to ignore.

  Jack shrugged. It would be over on Friday. He'd made plans to head bush and spend some time in stock camps with just the fellas. He needed to stay away from the ladies and the law for a while.

  * * *

  Gemma, Jess and Ben had moved to the lounge room to discuss what they all knew. Jess was in full flight. 'We need to find those bank statements. It's the only way that we can prove Gemma wasn't involved. I'd bet my last dollar that her name isn't on the statements.'

  Ben listened to a rundown of the latest developments without comment. Jess finished by saying, 'The other thing I have found in the books is that the proceeds from the feedlot contracts haven't been going into the Billbinya operating account. I'm beginning to think that the money from that is hitting the bank account that we don't have access to.'

  'So what we need to do is find the bank account the money went into and who owns it. See if the payments match the transaction history – is that right?' Ben asked.

  'Hit the nail on the head,' Jess said. She nudged Gemma. 'See, I told you this one was smart.' Gemma rolled her eyes; they were about the only part of her that didn't ache at the moment.

  'Well, I can do that without any problems,' Ben declared.

  Gemma raised her head to look at him. Ben's eyes met hers and it was all Gemma could do to stay sitting on the couch and not throw herself into his arms for comfort.

  'How?' she asked.

  'Well, you know Barb, our office manager?' Ben asked.

  'Yeah,' Gemma said as Jess suddenly whooped.

  'Of course!' she shrieked. 'Why didn't I think of that? Oh Ben, you are clever – well done, mate.'

  Gemma looked confused. 'What've I missed?'

  'Ben can trace where the money was paid to, can't you, Ben?' Jess was almost dancing with delight.

  'Yeah. I can ask Barb about last year's transaction. Although I'll only be able to get the account number and name – I can't track the transactions or anything like that. But it will give you something to work with.'

  'Absolutely,' Jess said, her mind working overtime. 'I have a contact in the head office of the Inland Development Bank. I'd rather try and find the statements of Adam's than use her, but I'll call on her as a last resort.' Jess stood up, stretched and looked at her watch. 'Drinks all round, I think,' she said, and then looked at Gemma. 'Oh, except for you, Gem. Can't drink with your painkillers. Want a beer, Ben?' she called over her shoulder as she headed to the kitchen.

  'I should probably be getting home. It's a long drive.' Ben got up from the couch. 'I'm really pleased we've sorted that contract, Gem.' He smiled down at her and reached out to touch her shoulder. Gemma brought her hand up to cover his. His hand stilled and he looked at her longingly until they heard Jess coming back and dropped their hands.

  Jess stood in the doorway with a Scotch and Coke, looking knowingly at them. 'Well, Ben, thanks for your help. Will you give us a call on Monday when you've got the account number?'

  'Yeah, no problem.'

  Gemma got off the couch and swayed slightly. Ben quickly put his arm around her waist to steady her. 'You stay here, Gem,' he said softly. 'I'll be back soon.' He squeezed her waist, helped her back to her seat and sauntered towards the door.

  When Gemma woke the next morning, she felt better. She was up and tottering around the kitchen when Pat burst in. Without saying anything he strode over and picked her up in a bear hug.

  'Ow, Pat, my arm!'

  He released her immediately, looking sheepish. 'Sorry, sis. You okay?'

  'Much better today. Coffee?'

  They sat at the kitchen table and talked about all that had happened in the last few days.

  'The weirdest thing,' Gemma concluded, 'was that as Jack was leaving he turned around and said, "Ever get the feeling you're being set up, Gemma Sinclair?" What am I being set up with?'

  'Morning all,' said Jess fr
om the doorway. 'Is there any more coffee?' Gemma handed her a cup.

  'So how can I help?' asked Pat.

  It was Jess who spoke. 'We need to search this place high and low and find those bank statements.'

  'Jess, I've already done that. I didn't find anything,' Gemma said.

  'Where did you look?' Pat wanted to know.

  'Um, in the ceiling, all through the drawers, under all the furniture in case something was taped there . . . Nothing.'

  'What about outside? Have you looked in the sheds?' asked Pat.

  'No, I've only done the house.'

  'Worth a shot then, eh? You girls take the machinery shed and I'll do the shearing shed.'