Deadly Obsession

by Karen M. Davis

  Rod shrugged.

  ‘I knew she was from Sydney, so I’d assumed she might just have wanted to come back to her home town but . . . not long after she had arrived she asked me out for drinks. I brushed her off again, told her it was too soon after Rachel. She seemed to take it well and left me alone after that. I thought she’d taken the hint, then, about two months ago, I was out one night and ran into her. She’d had a few drinks and was extremely flirty with me. It was rather awkward because I was waiting for Dani. When I told her I was waiting for my girlfriend, things turned sour.’

  ‘In what way?’

  ‘She accused me of not telling her I had a girlfriend. That I’d told her it was too soon after Rachel. Why had I found someone else? She thought we would be together, et cetera. I thought she was just drunk and being overly emotional. She eventually stormed off and didn’t really speak to me much after that.’

  Bream sighed.

  ‘I was relieved, to tell you the truth, and didn’t think any more of it.’

  Lexie glanced at Josh, who was still studying the picture.

  As if sensing her eyes on him, Josh looked up.

  ‘This girl on the right was your girlfriend, right?’

  Rod nodded.

  Josh spoke again.

  ‘I recognise the other one. The one you’re talking about.’

  Josh’s face was serious, almost sickly.

  ‘She was a nurse who befriended Jenna. She was paying Jenna house visits in her own time to see how she was doing. I met her one day when I came to visit my sister. Knowing Jenna, she was probably telling her everything about you.’

  Josh gave Bream a hard look.

  Lexie put her hand on Josh’s leg and rubbed it. She knew it was all becoming very real to him right now. She turned to face Bream.

  ‘This woman was also friends with Melissa, whom she knew you had slept with. That links her to all three girls. Not to mention Dani. She obviously found out who the competition was.’

  For a moment they all stared at each other and then lapsed into a protracted silence – each person lost in their own thoughts.

  Lexie finally said, ‘I think we might find that the person who is supplying the prescriptions is one and the same. In her sick little mind, it could be a way of getting back at you for rejecting her. Or maybe she just thinks herself too clever to get caught – who knows? But hopefully we will find out in the next few hours.’

  Lexie glanced at her watch.

  ‘Speaking of which, I’m going to have to get ready for work.’

  ‘Hang on a minute,’ Josh said. ‘Neither one of you has said this woman’s name. Who the hell are we talking about here? I want to know the name of the maniac who might have killed my sister; all because she was too close to you,’ Josh spat at Rod Bream.

  Lexie felt the tension rise like a tide.

  ‘It’s not Rod’s fault, Josh.’

  She indicated with her eyes for Rod to leave. He didn’t hesitate.

  Standing suddenly, he moved quickly towards the door. He turned before opening it.

  ‘I’m sorry, Josh. I know that doesn’t make things better or bring Jenna back, but I don’t know what else I can say.’

  Josh drilled an angry glare into him.

  ‘If you were not such a sleazy, arrogant areshole, my sister would still be alive today.’

  Rod Bream dropped his head in shame.

  ‘You’re probably right. And trust me, I’ll never forget it.’

  Rod Bream turned and disappeared through the door. Lexie thought he looked like a broken man.

  Josh looked at Lexie.

  ‘What is this woman’s name?’ he asked through gritted teeth.

  ‘Her name is Sasha Hemming, Josh. She is the woman who was Rachel West’s and Melissa McDermott’s friend. As well as your sister’s nurse. She is also the same woman who slept with my ex-husband and broke up my marriage.’

  CHAPTER 43

  Josh stared wide-eyed at Lexie.

  ‘Sasha Hemming is your friend from school who slept with Zack?’

  Lexie nodded.

  ‘Ex-friend, and yes, it all makes perfect sense now. Well, not perfect sense but some sense.’

  It was all coming together. A myriad of thoughts ran through her mind simultaneously.

  ‘Really, how’s that?’ Josh replied, looking bewildered. ‘Sleeping with a friend’s husband is bad. Really bad. But is Sasha seriously capable of killing someone?’

  ‘They say anyone is capable of murder.’

  Josh rolled his eyes at her. A habit he’d picked up from Brad. Lexie continued.

  ‘She clearly has, or has had, an obsession with Rod Bream. True to form, she’s made a play for him. Rachel being her friend clearly didn’t deter her. In the same way, I was her friend but that didn’t stop her coming on to Zack.’

  Lexie felt a flash of red-hot anger shoot through her.

  ‘Quite the opposite, in fact! Sasha had always wanted what she couldn’t have. She was popular with the boys when we were younger, but she always wanted the guy who belonged to someone else. And she became obsessive. She was totally infatuated with my brother at one stage. It drove me crazy.’

  Lexie thought back in time.

  ‘I lost touch with Sasha when Zack and I got married. She came to our wedding but . . . things were a bit weird between us and I didn’t know why. Apparently she was in love with my husband, so she removed herself from our lives.’

  ‘How do you know that?’ Josh asked.

  ‘Zack told me. That’s how the seduction routine started. “You know I’ve always been in love with you, Zack . . .”’

  Josh arched one eyebrow.

  ‘Well, he fell for it.’

  ‘You don’t have to remind me. I know that,’ Lexie groaned. ‘But my point is, she came after Zack when she had returned from Wagga Wagga Base Hospital. She never got in touch with me, just him. Sasha purposely set out to break up my marriage.’

  Lexie shook her head as she thought about it.

  ‘So apparently, when Zack wanted nothing to do with her after we were over, she was furious. She clearly thought she had won. In Sasha’s eyes that was good enough reason to pay Gitt to set Zack up. He had rejected her, so this was payback.’

  Josh nodded and waited for her to continue.

  ‘I’m thinking that maybe Sasha followed Bream back to Sydney with the idea she was in with a chance. He’d had time to get over the grief of Rachel – or so she had thought. So then, when Bream gave her the brush-off excuse that he needed more time, Sasha tried her luck with Zack. Maybe in her sick, deluded mind she hoped that if she hooked up with Zack it would make Bream jealous, who knows? Perhaps when that went pear-shaped she re-focused her attention on Bream. However, other girls kept getting in her way.’

  ‘If Sasha is still obsessed with Bream, why forge his signature on prescriptions? Surely she knew that could get him into trouble. Why couldn’t she just steal medication from the hospital?’

  ‘Maybe she did that as well, in small amounts. Clearly Sasha is not playing with a full deck, but she would know that if a large quantity of medication went missing, it would be noticed.’

  Josh stared at Lexie.

  ‘Do you seriously think she would be capable of killing off every girl who had anything to do with Bream?’

  Lexie shrugged.

  ‘It seems like the only explanation.’

  ‘Why come after you though, Lex? You haven’t been with Bream – have you?’

  Lexie shot him a look and shook her head in disbelief.

  ‘I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.’

  She paused to think.

  ‘I don’t really know why Sasha would be after me. I don’t have all the answers. Maybe she just hates me . . . Was trying to throw me off the scent . . . ? Was trying to scare me?’

  ‘She can’t be right in the head,’ Josh said.

  ‘That’s a major understatement.’

  Lexie glanced at her wat
ch again.

  ‘I seriously had better get ready for work. I can’t be late.’

  Josh leant forward and placed a kiss on the top of her head.

  ‘And just so you know, I’m going to be there at the undercover operation today. I know I’m not part of the office anymore, but . . .’

  ‘That’s fine, Josh. I understand this is personal for you. Just don’t get in the way. I don’t need to be worried about you when I have other things to concentrate on.’

  Josh gave her a wink.

  ‘Don’t worry, baby. You won’t even know I’m there.’

  CHAPTER 44

  Lexie had just sat down at her desk after giving the operational briefing when she suddenly felt a presence looming next to her. It was Lurch. He looked tired. His thin features were drawn and his large eyes were bloodshot.

  ‘Everything okay, Lurch?’

  Lurch shuffled from one leg to the other and looked at Brad, who was sitting opposite them, hoeing into a toasted sandwich.

  ‘Can I talk to you, Lexie?’

  Lexie glanced at Brad, then back at Lurch. She waved her hand in the air dismissively.

  ‘Sure. Don’t worry about him. Brad can’t eat and listen at the same time. He can’t eat and do anything at the same time.’

  Lurch still looked unsure.

  ‘Maybe we can go outside, in the corridor – for a bit of privacy.’

  What did Lurch want to say to her that he didn’t want Brad to hear? Lexie wondered.

  Nodding, Lexie followed Lurch out of the office. The hallway was too busy, with people rushing back and forth, so she steered him into an empty interview room. Lexie remained standing while Lurch perched on the side of the small table that occupied the room. It brought them almost eye to eye.

  ‘What’s up, Lurch?’

  ‘I stayed with Batman until one o’clock this morning. I waited for his parents to get to the hospital. They were out of town and I didn’t want him to be alone.’

  ‘You’re a good friend.’

  Casey had told them first thing that morning that Batman was doing well and that he’d be released from hospital today. He would be back at work in a few days.

  ‘I’m very glad he’s okay.’

  ‘Me too,’ Lurch agreed. ‘That was really scary what happened. We had a long talk once he was feeling better. He was really upset and embarrassed.’

  ‘He has no reason to—’

  ‘Batman didn’t want anyone to see him like that, but mostly he didn’t want you to witness him at his worst. You can understand that, can’t you, Lexie? He really likes you and I know it’s none of my business but . . . I thought you should know that.’

  Lurch gave Lexie a long searching look.

  ‘I mean, he really likes you; do you get me?’

  Oh boy . . . This was like being back in high school where the boy would tell his friend to tell the girl that he liked her.

  ‘I know, Lurch, and I like Batman too. But I’m with Josh.’

  Lurch nodded.

  ‘I know. Well, I didn’t know that, but Batman thought you might be back together. Don’t get me wrong, I really like Josh as well. It’s just that Batman’s my best mate, you know?’

  ‘I know.’

  Lexie didn’t know what else she could say. In hindsight, perhaps she should have spoken to Batman. He had been upfront about how he felt, but nothing had ever happened between them.

  ‘Maybe I should talk to him. Perhaps that would make him feel a bit better.’

  Lurch shrugged.

  ‘I doubt it, but that’s probably not a bad idea.’

  Lexie felt about as big as a mouse. Why do things have to be so complicated sometimes?

  Lexie sighed and patted Lurch on the arm.

  ‘Okay, I appreciate you talking to me. I’ll talk to Batman as soon as I get the chance. As for now . . . we have work to do.’

  *

  Josh had been in position for almost an hour when he sighted a guy fitting the description of Ugly Phil approach the wall of post office boxes. Having secured a spot on a bench facing the exact area he wanted to observe, Josh could now sit back and relax in the knowledge he wouldn’t miss anything. Although no longer an official member of Bondi Junction detectives’ office, Josh wanted to be here. He needed to ensure that the woman who had killed his sister got caught. But he was determined to stick to his word and stay out of the way. Unless he was needed.

  Yes, that’s him, Josh thought, surprised the description had not been an exaggeration. Sadly, Ugly Phil was indeed a very unfortunate-looking individual. Josh pretended not to watch him walk a steady line towards him. He felt Ugly Phil’s eyes on him briefly as he glanced around, somewhat nervously. No doubt he was on the lookout purely due to habit and an instinctive, street-smart sense of self-preservation.

  Now at the wall of post office boxes, Ugly lifted the metal flap of number thirty-three and placed a white envelope inside it. Closing the lid, Ugly walked off in the direction he had come from. The whole process of delivering the drug money had taken less than a minute.

  Glancing around, Josh noticed Patch sitting nearby apparently engrossed in his mobile phone. Cakes carried out the occasional walk by. Grace and Lurch were strolling hand in hand, doing laps of the block. Grumpy was inside the post office. He’d glimpsed Ossie in the distance. No one made eye contact and everyone acted their part to the point where Josh wondered if they had actually noticed Ugly Phil making the deposit. Their surveillance techniques were good. They looked just like ordinary people going about their business, he thought. Then he spotted Fester.

  He was a bloody oxygen thief; he had no idea.

  Josh observed the chubby little bald bloke walk in anxious circles around the post office. There always had to be one, didn’t there?

  Fester might not look like a cop, but his actions were jerky, unnatural. He had no purpose. Like a thick-headed criminal about to commit an opportunistic act, he stood out. Josh wondered what he could do to get him to pull his head in. He didn’t want to risk losing his position to talk to him. It was frustrating. He had no communication device, and no radio. So unfortunately he was not in a position to reprimand Fester. The only thing he could do was ring Brad on his mobile, pass on the message to get Fester to pull back, and hope that in the meantime the target didn’t turn up and spot him.

  CHAPTER 45

  ‘What if she has a decoy, a runner? What if she doesn’t turn up?’ Lexie asked Brad, not expecting an answer. ‘How smart is she, really? There is no way she would suspect that she has come under notice, so she shouldn’t be toey or paranoid. But what if . . . ?’

  ‘Would you stop with the “what ifs”? You’re killing me. Just wait and see what happens. There has been no contact over the telephone lines from Natalia or Bream. He hasn’t called to warn her. It’s all looking good right now.’

  Lexie huffed. She knew she was nervous, anxious and overthinking everything. It was just that she would do almost anything to make sure today’s operation went according to plan. She wanted to catch Sasha Hemming so badly she could almost taste it.

  Brad and Lexie were sitting in their unmarked car on Maroubra Road, just south of the post office. Their position gave them a good visual of the wall that contained the rows of post office boxes. A number of their team were on foot. Dressed casually, they were keeping certain positions around the vicinity. Two other teams were also parked in cars in side streets in case a quick follow was necessary.

  ‘Stop worrying, Lex,’ Brad said. ‘Your nervous energy buzzing around the car is making it vibrate. We have planned everything out. It will be fine.’

  ‘If she turns up,’ Lexie said.

  She knew only too well that even the best laid plans and meticulously organised operations could collapse in a second. Cops were human – they stuffed up, and crooks were unpredictable. Lexie looked down at the operational orders in her hand. The number plate of Sasha’s car had been circulated and all police were keeping their eyes open for a sigh
ting. Lurch had reported that Ugly Phil had deposited the money in the box, so they were all now just waiting . . .

  ‘When we arrest our target today, who do you want to do the talking?’

  ‘Please let me do the talking,’ Lexie pleaded.

  ‘Okay,’ Brad agreed. ‘So when you place our suspect under arrest, make sure you caution her. Tell her she is under arrest for the supply of a restricted substance and forgery. We’ll go from there. We don’t have enough to slap any murder charges on her yet. Everything we have is circumstantial.’

  They had been through all this at the station but Brad, acting like the overbearing big brother, had to reiterate everything to Lexie as if she was a kid.

  ‘I know all this. And I agree that it’s all circumstantial . . . but put every set of circumstances together, the facts lean towards tendency and coincidence evidence. Three dead girls, same modus operandi, same drug injected, same flower left at scene, all linked to Bream and the obsessed Sasha.’

  Brad sighed aloud.

  ‘I keep forgetting you recently completed the detectives course. I know all that, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Lex. One step at a time.’

  The radio crackled just as Brad’s phone rang. He checked the caller ID. It was Josh. He would have to wait. Lexie and Brad stopped talking.

  ‘Grumpy here; can you hear me, Brad?’

  They were on one of the police radio’s unmonitored backchannels so they could communicate freely, without disrupting the operational working channel. It also served to keep operational information as limited as possible.

  ‘Copy. I’m receiving you loud and clear. What’s happening, Grumpy?’

  ‘The target car has just pulled into a car space a few cars in front of me,’ said Grumpy, giving his position.

  She had turned up. Lexie felt adrenaline pump through her body.

  ‘Got a description, Grumpy?’

  ‘Stand by . . . target is still in the car.’

  There was a long pause. Brad and Lexie waited. Lexie’s phone began to ring. She checked the screen. It was Josh. She couldn’t talk now, so she pressed the decline button.