The Light Horseman's Daughter

by David Crookes

  Emma glanced at Kathleen. ‘It’s our flesh and blood that Patrick Coltrane hates so much, Molly.’ She got up and began pacing the floor. ‘I wonder why it should all happen now,’ she said angrily. ‘That Hope Farm business all happened so long ago.’

  ‘Mrs Coltrane said the man who had been in a coma since Bruce ran away, died a month or so ago,’ Molly said.

  ‘Brother Lucas?’

  ‘Yes. Apparently, right after he died the police called at Essex Downs again asking the Coltranes if they had any news of Bruce. They…’

  Molly was interrupted by a loud knock on the front door. She hurried to answer it and came back with Dan Rankin.

  ‘Well, Dan?’ Emma said expectantly.

  ‘They’re processing an application from Queensland to extradite Bruce. We have no chance of fighting it. He’ll be sent up to Brisbane in a couple of days and held there until the trial.’

  ‘Oh, God.’ Kathleen put a hand to her mouth. ‘What happens now?’

  ‘I’ll turn it over to John Matheson, an associate in Brisbane,’ The solicitor said. ‘He has a small firm, but they’re very good.’

  ‘What about bail?’ Emma asked.

  ‘I’d say, no chance at all. After all it’s a murder charge now.’

  ‘But he was only a child at the time.’

  ‘And it took them five years to find him, Emma. They won’t let him out of their sight now.’

  ‘But he didn’t do it,’ Emma said angrily. ‘He can’t go to prison for something he didn’t do.’

  ‘Oh yes, he can,’ Rankin said firmly. ‘And even though the evidence is largely circumstantial, he probably will.’

  ‘Just who’s side are you on, Dan?’ Emma asked angrily. ‘You’re supposed to be helping Bruce.’

  ‘I’m trying to,’ Rankin said gently. ‘But to do that, I have to face the facts. And from what you told me earlier about this Hope Farm business, the fact is, there’s only one way Bruce can avoid going to prison for a very long time.

  ‘And what’s that?’

  ‘Your friend Harmony Jones and this boy Strickland will have to testify at the trial. And Mr Jones will have to admit it was him who bashed Brother Lucas.’

  Emma looked horrified. ‘But I couldn’t ask them to do that. It seems we’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t. We couldn’t even try to recover Jack’s body or accuse the Brothers of anything without implicating Strickland and Bruce.’

  ‘I wish there was some other way, Emma, ‘Rankin said. ‘But in my view, a full confession from Mr Jones is all that’s going to save your brother.’

  *

  The next morning, Emma looked tired and drawn when she arrived at Sydney Styles after a long sleepless night. Neale the Nib, and Joan and Iris greeted her warmly and offered their condolences about Bruce. After a quick walk through the factory, Iris and Joan went about their business on the factory floor and Emma returned to the office with Neale the Nib.

  ‘I wasn’t going to come in today, Neale,’ Emma said wearily, ‘what with all this trouble with Bruce; but Molly said you needed to talk to me.’

  ‘Yes.’ The bookkeeper followed Emma into to her office. ‘There are a few things I think you should know right away.’

  Emma frowned. ‘Everything is all right here, I hope?’

  ‘Yes, everything’s fine. We’ve got a full order book. No production problems. All our deliveries are on time. We’ve acquired several new accounts since you’ve been away. And all our debtors’ accounts are current.’

  Emma sat down at her desk. There was nothing on it. She ran her finger along the length of the surface and managed a wry smile. ‘Six months away and business is booming. Not even a piece of paper on my desk. You make me feel expendable. Now what is it I should know, Neale?’

  Neale the Nib grinned. ‘You remember the interest we got from David Jones after the hiccup with Bowes-Scott?’

  ‘Yes, I do.’

  ‘Well, it seems their interest was in more than just our garments.’

  ‘What do you mean, Neale?’

  ‘They want to buy the company.’

  Emma eyes widened. ‘Really. Why us, I wonder?’

  ‘I can answer that, Emma. David Jones handles only quality merchandise. If they owned us, the Sydney Styles brand would be exclusive to them.’

  Neale the Nib watched as Emma strummed her fingers on her desk.

  ‘Would you consider selling, Emma?’ he asked.

  ‘I’d be interested in hearing what they have to say, Neale. Perhaps you’d telephone them and say I’m back in Sydney and will be in touch with them soon.’

  Emma saw the surprise on the bookkeeper’s face.

  ‘Just to hear what they have to say, Neale.’ She stood up from the desk. ‘Now, what else is really important? I have to be at Darlinghurst to see Bruce soon.

  ‘Nothing that can’t wait for now, Emma, except Leonard Fairchild phoned while you were away. I told him you were in England and when you’d be returning. He phoned again yesterday. He said he wants to see you as soon as possible. He’s phoning again at ten o’clock this morning.’

  This time it was Emma who looked surprised.

  After a moment she said, ‘I won’t be here, Neale. I’ll be at Darlinghurst. When he calls, would you tell him I’ll meet him at three this afternoon at the usual place.’

  *

  ‘I telephoned you when the Royal Commission on banking was sitting here in Sydney a couple of months ago, Emma,’ Leonard said. ‘I was staying with my brother at Prospect House. Everyone was so distressed at not hearing any word from Stephen. When your Mr Lawrence said you were in England we thought perhaps there was a possibility you had gone to see him.’

  They were sitting on the low wall surrounding Redfern Park. Children were playing on the grass inside, their shrill voices occasionally piercing the tranquility of the afternoon..

  ‘No. I haven’t heard from Stephen or seen him,’ Emma said. ‘Though my heart stopped a few times in London when I saw someone who looked like him on the street. England just seemed to be the natural place he’d be.’

  ‘Yes, that’s exactly what we thought.’ Emma saw the disappointment on Leonard’s face. After a moment he said, ‘I hope you didn’t mind me telephoning, but we just had to know.’

  ‘No, of course not, Leonard. I know exactly how you feel. In fact I was planning to call you when I got back to see if Stephen’s situation has changed at all.’

  ‘No, everything’s just the same. That damn policeman, Proudfoot, still has his ear to the ground. But it seems Eleanor was disciplined by her father for what she did. William Bowes-Scott had a long chat with Fenton. He was terribly concerned he’d be ostracized by everyone. He told Fenton he’d threatened Eleanor with disinheritance if she testified against Stephen.’ Leonard shook his head. ‘It sometimes amazes me how important social acceptance is to the new money crowd.’

  ‘Does that mean it’s safe for Stephen to come home?’

  ‘Yes, that’s why we were so anxious to see if you knew where he was.’ Leonard smiled resignedly. ‘But anyway, enough about that. Now tell me, how was your trip? Mr Lawrence told me the whole family went. He also said it was doctor’s orders.’

  ‘Yes. I was terribly run down.’

  ‘I’m not surprised after all you’ve been through. There’s no substitute for a good holiday.’

  ‘The reason we all went to London was to have mother see a Harley Street specialist.’

  ‘And how is she now? I do hope he was able to help.’

  ‘She’s well, and Dr Fettering was able to help. But it’s a long process. She’ll need constant therapy.’

  ‘And how is Christopher?’

  ‘He’s very well and glad to be home.’

  ‘And no doubt Bruce is too?’

  Emma had managed to show a brave face until Bruce’s name was mentioned. Leonard saw her flinch and turn away.

  ‘What is it, Emma? What’s wrong?’

  Emma told Leona
rd what had happened on the dock at Darling Harbor.

  ‘This Coltrane fellow really is a bastard, ‘Leonard said when Emma had finished. ‘He’s been in the news a lot while you’ve been away, you know. It seems he’s bent on taking his extreme racial views into the House of Representatives, maybe even into the Lodge.’ Leonard shook his head. ‘What are you going to do, Emma?’

  ‘I’ll be going to Brisbane as soon as Bruce is extradited. I have to talk with the solicitors up there and do whatever I can.’

  ‘You’ll need the best legal people you can get, Emma. Why not let Fairchild and Associates look after it. I know Fenton would appreciate any opportunity to help. He feels so badly about the way he treated you in the past.’

  ‘No,’ Emma said quickly. ‘I already have a solicitor here and he’s arranged for associates in Brisbane to act for Bruce. It’s a small firm, but he says they’re very good.’

  Leonard looked skeptical. ‘If there’s anything I can do, or Fenton, you will get in touch with me, won’t you? He has some of the best lawyers in the country you know.’

  Emma stood up to leave. ‘I promise I will, Leonard, and thank you.’

  She held out her hand and he shook it gently. Emma thought Leonard looked as if he wanted to say something else, but then he seemed to decide against it. Then he changed his mind again and said: ‘I shouldn’t really be telling you this, Emma. But if it’s any comfort to you, Patrick Coltrane may well get his comeuppance very soon.’

  Emma looked puzzled. ‘How do you mean?’

  Leonard hesitated. ‘This Royal Commission I’ve been sitting on. It’s been looking into all aspects of the banking and finance industry. One of the reasons the Prime Minister set it up was to make all financial institutions more accountable. Up to now, many haven’t been required by statute to disclose either their profits or their financial statements, let alone disclose how they use funds deposited with them. Under such a loose system there were bound to be abuses, especially through the Depression years. Well, we found many instances of gross mismanagement and breech of trust. So many in fact, that we have recommended that several institutions be forced to cease trading if they don’t adhere to stringent new banking regulations.’

  Emma looked confused. ‘What has all this got to do with Patrick Coltrane?’

  ‘A great deal. He’s up to his ears in dodgy dealings with one of the financial houses we put under the microscope. It will cease trading soon. ’

  ‘Will he be hurt badly?’

  ‘Yes. A lot of people will. Many will lose everything. You see, VMP hedged its Australian interests by investing heavily in a large American financial institution which recently went to the wall. Now, it’s unlikely depositors will get even a penny on the pound when the company ceases trading.

  ‘You said VMP. Is that Victorian Mercantile and Pastoral?’

  Leonard sighed. ‘A slip of the tongue. I shouldn’t have mentioned them by name.’

  ‘It’s all right,’ Emma said with a wry smile. ‘I won’t start a bank rush. That’s the last place I’d keep my money. It was VMP that foreclosed on Yallambee, you know. And as for my uncle, I don’t think he’ll suffer. He has friends in high places. He’s probably got wind of all this and taken his money out by now.’

  ‘I don’t think so, Emma. As I said, we’ve had this particular company under the microscope. We’ve kept a close watch. The usual seepage has already taken place. It’s quite minimal. I’ve seen the figures.’

  ‘Seepage?’

  ‘That’s what we call the withdrawal of funds precipitated by depositors with inside information,’ Leonard explained. ‘But VMP is essentially a rural financier. As far as I know there are no farmers or pastoralists sitting on the Royal Commission who might try to withdraw large amounts themselves or tip off their friends. ’

  Emma remained skeptical. ‘You underestimate Patrick Coltrane, Leonard. Everyone around Augathella deals with VMP. My uncle would have their regional manager in his pocket like everyone else. Peebles would have told him if they were going under.’

  ‘Frank Peebles?’

  ‘Yes. He’s the Queensland regional manager.’

  ‘Not any more. He’s the managing director of VMP now.’

  ‘Then he’s in a position to pass on inside information even sooner.’

  ‘I don’t think he would dare,’ Leonard said quickly. ‘In order to prevent just that sort of thing, and to protect the thousands of smaller depositors, it’s been made clear to senior management that any breach of confidentiality will almost certainly result in a lengthy prison sentence under retrospective legislation already before the Parliament.’

  Emma rose to her feet. ‘Well, I can’t say I’m sorry about VMP or Patrick Coltrane.

  Leonard put a finger to his lips. ‘Just remember, my dear. You didn’t hear it from me.’

  *

  Emma sent a telegram to Laura at a Brisbane address her aunt had given Molly, telling her she was coming to Brisbane and why. On the long train journey she considered Bruce’s situation calmly and rationally, even though her anger at the Brothers of the Apostles and Patrick Coltrane remained unabated.

  Before leaving Sydney, Emma wrote to Harmony telling him what had happened, though making no mention of Dan Rankin’s insistence that he and Strickland testify at Bruce’s trial. She also instructed Neale the Nib to advise David Jones of the price she would accept for Sydney Styles, providing the jobs of all the employees were guaranteed.

  When the train arrived in Brisbane, Emma took a taxi directly to the Bellevue Hotel. Next morning she telephoned the law firm of Matheson & Matheson. John Matheson, the senior partner, told her Bruce had been arraigned two days earlier. His case had been set down for trial in October and bail had been refused. He told her he would make arrangements for her to see Bruce just as soon as possible.

  Matheson arrived by car at the hotel just before midday and drove Emma to the Brisbane Jail in Boggo Road. The gaunt, fortress-like structure, built during Queensland’s colonial days stood on a hill overlooking the city. Emma shuddered when the massive prison gates clanged shut behind her. Matheson complied with the usual visitor formalities and in due course, a guard showed Emma and the lawyer into a small windowless room where they were told to wait.

  After about fifteen minutes, the door of the room opened and Bruce shuffled in escorted by two burly guards. Emma thought her heart would break when she saw him. After five years of freedom, once again, Bruce was a prisoner in another heartless, soul-destroying hellhole. There were manacles on his wrists and ankles. His face was pale and drawn, his tall frame was stooped, and his dark eyes were dull and glazed. Already, incarceration with hardened criminals had exacted an awful toll.

  It seemed the eight minutes she was allowed to spend with Bruce ended almost as soon as it began. When a guard took Bruce’s arm to lead him away, Emma realized she hadn’t really said anything at all that mattered. Somehow she couldn’t reach out to Bruce as she wanted in a that dirty little prison room full of strangers.

  *

  Emma spent two hours in John Matheson’s office after leaving Boggo Road, going over the file Dan Rankin had sent from Sydney. Matheson said he would do everything in his power to prove Bruce’s innocence, but he reiterated what Dan Rankin had said about the need for Harmony and Strickland to testify at the trial. For the time being, there was little else she could do to assist Bruce.

  From the lawyer’s office, Emma took a taxi to Laura’s address in Wooloongabba. It turned out to be a large, old private residence converted into a modest private hotel for ladies.

  ‘When I got your telegram, I couldn’t believe he’d really done it,’ Laura said tearfully, in the privacy of her bed-sitting room. They sat side by side on a small settee overlooking the cricket ground. ‘How is Bruce?’

  ‘Not well at all, Aunt Laura. And the outlook isn’t good either. He has to remain in custody until the trial in October; that’s over three months away.’

  ‘I haven’t
been able to eat or sleep properly,’ Laura said despondently. ‘I can’t help but feel responsible. If I hadn’t left Patrick, all this would never have happened.’

  ‘Don’t blame yourself, Aunt Laura. It wasn’t your fault. It was just pure chance that Uncle Patrick saw my picture in the newspaper.’

  ‘But it was deliberate malice when he told the police about it,’ Laura said reproachfully. ‘If I’d thought for one minute he’d actually do it, I’d have stayed at Essex Downs. Living with him would be better than how things are now. Now my family despise me, even the Silvers.’

  Emma looked surprised. ‘Royston Silver’s family?’

  ‘They say I let Patrick down at the worst possible time. They think the world of him, you know. He’s done so much for Royston.'

  ‘He’s done so much for Royston Silver,’ Emma said incredulously. ‘That’s a bit rich isn’t it? I would have thought it was the other way around. Royston Silver’s put Uncle Patrick where he is today.’

  ‘And in return Patrick’s made Royston Silver a very wealthy man,’ Laura said. ‘They speculate in land—have done for years.’

  Emma said nothing for a few moments. Then she said, ‘Well, they seem to have looked after themselves very nicely, Aunt Laura. But the important thing is, what are you going to do?’

  ‘Oh, they’ve offered me money, you know. Royston was here a few days ago. He said Patrick’s chances of being elected to his safe seat in the House of Representatives could be ruined if the opposition got word of the separation.’ Laura smiled wryly. ‘It seems the voters don’t like to elect wife-beaters or divorcees. Patrick’s offered me a small annuity if I’ll ensure that everything seems normal with our marriage, till after the election.’

  ‘Did you accept?’

  ‘I told him I’d think it over. I have to, Emma. I have so little money.’

  ‘What would you have to do?’

  Laura sighed. ‘Oh, I suppose I’d have to make the rounds with him. He’s campaigning all the time you know. I’d have to be by his side like the loving wife at all the party functions.’