C&Q04,5 - Dark Paradise

by Lee, Catherine

  "Suit yourselves," said Rosie. "You're gonna at least need hats, though." She ducked back inside her house and emerged a moment later with two wide-brimmed hats, which she handed to Cooper and Quinn. Garry was already sorted in the headwear department, so they set off.

  "Thanks for doing this," said Cooper, walking beside Rosie. Quinn and Garry followed behind.

  Rosie shrugged. "Got nothing better to do. You know those plants you mentioned are dangerous, don't you?"

  "We're aware."

  "Of course you are. You're homicide detectives." Rosie put two and two together. "That girl die of an overdose? Can't say I'm surprised. Wouldn't be the first kid out here to try getting high on angel's trumpet."

  "It's a popular past-time?" Cooper asked.

  "I wouldn't say it's exactly popular, no. Most people know how dangerous it is. But there are definitely some locals who've been known to resort to angel's brew when times were tough and they couldn't afford the bottle shop's exorbitant prices."

  Cooper wondered whether Zara had learned about angel's brew from a local. Interesting the locals had a name for it. Angel's brew. He made a mental note to ask Maeve just how much interaction the contestants had with the locals.

  They walked and talked for almost forty-five minutes before Rosie stopped and looked around. They'd walked through light scrub quite close to the beach, and were now standing in a clearing about ten metres in diameter. By Cooper's calculation they were about a kilometre, maybe one and a half kilometres, from the Transformation in Paradise house. The walk between here and the house would be quite isolated.

  "I think it was around here somewhere, from memory," said Rosie, as she scanned the clearing. She stopped, then headed off into the bush in the opposite direction to the ocean. After a minute or so she called out. "Found it."

  Cooper, Quinn, and Garry Adams followed her into the bush. They quickly found her standing in front of what was indeed an angel's trumpet tree, if the pictures they'd found on the Internet were anything to go by. It was quite a tall tree, and was covered in long flowers that hung down like trumpets pointing to the ground. It was a striking tree, and on seeing it Cooper remembered one in a neighbour's yard not far from his home back in Sydney.

  "Is this the only one around here?" Cooper asked, as they all took a closer look.

  "It's the one I remember seeing, but it won't be the only one. There'll be others around, but probably further in and more difficult to access. If anyone's been using it to brew angel's tea, I reckon this tree here will be your source."

  Cooper and Quinn left Rosie and Garry to examine the tree and went back to the clearing. They had a good look around, and it wasn't long before they came up with something.

  "Over here," said Cooper, calling to Quinn. He pointed to the ground by a tree, on the edge of the clearing. "The dirt's been disturbed. Someone was sitting here."

  Quinn nodded, and they expanded their search area. "Footprints," said Quinn. "Leading to the spot. They're faint, but you can still see them. Looks like they came in on the same track as us, and settled down over here. The scuff marks in the dirt indicate at least two people, don't you think?"

  Cooper agreed. "There's no evidence of a fire, though. If you're brewing a herbal tea, you need water and heat, right?"

  "Yeah. I would have expected a fire," said Quinn. "Maybe they didn't want to draw attention to themselves? Brought a flask from the house, instead?"

  "Maybe."

  Rosie and Garry returned from the bush. "I think that's definitely your tree," said Rosie. "I found a spot where some leaves have recently been cut. Playing with fire, if you ask me. That stuff is deadly."

  "We know," said Cooper. "Thanks for your help, Rosie." He turned to Garry. "Can you stay here for a while? We'll send Zach and Nora out here, along with one of the uniforms. This is a crime scene."

  "Sure thing," said Garry.

  Rosie accompanied them as far as the Transformation in Paradise house, where she took her spare hats back and left them to it. Cooper spoke to the two uniformed officers and asked for a volunteer to go and relieve Sergeant Adams at the clearing.

  "I'll go," said the male officer, Senior Constable Ziegler. "Could do with the exercise."

  Cooper gave him directions, telling him the two crime scene technicians would be out there within the hour to process the scene. Then he and Quinn made their way back to the resort.

  "So we know Kyle and Zara have snuck away from the house at night on at least one occasion," said Quinn. "And we don't believe Kyle's explanation for it. Now we know someone's been out there in that clearing, and it looks like the angel's trumpet plant has had a few leaves recently stripped. The belladonna alkaloids found in her system most likely came from that plant. But how do we go from the two of them getting high on leaves to Zara winding up suffocated in her own bed?"

  "That's what we need to find out," said Cooper.

  "How did they know this particular plant could get them high?"

  "I don't know, Joe. I think we need to look into Kyle Aren a lot closer. See if there's a history of drug use. If so, perhaps the two of them found themselves kindred spirits on an isolated island. Even a place like this has its drug knowledge. There's always at least one local who can get you what you want. Perhaps out here, that's angel's brew. Zara mightn't have had enough access to the locals to sniff out the right contacts, but Kyle does. He's been here two months now, staying at the resort. That's long enough to find out who's who, and learn the local drug of choice."

  "That's a fair bit of speculation, boss."

  They reached the resort, and Cooper paused by the front door. "It is. That's why we need to get back into that editing room, take another look at the footage of Kyle Aren. He is the key to all this, Joe. We're getting close."

  22

  There was an air of excitement when Cooper and Quinn entered the editing room.

  "Have you found something?" Cooper asked.

  Zach smiled and yawned at the same time. He pointed at his partner.

  "I think I might have something, Coop," said Nora. "I was just showing the guys. You take a look, see what you think." She cued up an image on the monitor in front of her, and played it.

  "That's what we looked at yesterday," said Quinn, leaning over Cooper's shoulder. "Kyle and Zara leaving the house."

  "Yes, but look closely. I'll slow it down, and zoom in on this point here. Don't blink, you'll miss it."

  She played it again, and this time Cooper saw what Nora was excited about. "There's another movement there, about a second after the two arms."

  "That's right," said Nora, with a grin. "I think there was a third person with them."

  "Play it again," said Quinn, and Nora did so. They watched it six times in total, and by that time they were all in agreement. A third person left the house on Thursday night with Kyle and Zara.

  "So the next question is who?" asked Quinn. "How are we going to find that out?"

  "We do what we came here to do," said Cooper, after a moment's thought. He turned to Brandon. "I want to watch as much footage as you've got of Kyle Aren, both the stuff that was aired, and the stuff that wasn't. Starting with the stuff that wasn't. Can you help me with that?"

  "Sure," said Brandon. He started setting up a workstation.

  "Quinn, you set yourself up here at Nora's desk. I want you to research as much as you can about Kyle Aren. We need to know who he is outside of television land. Family. Friends. Does he have a drug habit? Any other skeletons in the closet?"

  "Got it, boss."

  "What about us?" asked Nora, who didn't look too happy at her workstation being taken over.

  "I need you two to process a crime scene." Cooper explained about the clearing, the angel's trumpet tree, and their suspicion that Zara took the drug willingly. Just as he finished, Sergeant Garry Adams knocked on the door and entered. "Just in time, Garry. Could you take Zach and Nora out to the clearing?"

  "Sure. I've brought the Land Rover here, so it'll be
quicker."

  Zach and Nora gathered their field bags and went off with Garry, leaving Cooper and Quinn to their research. Brandon pulled up as much footage containing Kyle Aren as he could find, and sent it over to the monitor he'd set up for Cooper. He was a big help.

  "How long have you known Kyle?" Cooper asked the young man.

  "This is the first time I've worked with him, sir. I knew of him before that, of course. Everyone in the industry does. He's a big player, hosted one of the major game shows before Transformation in Paradise."

  "Know anything about his personal life?"

  "I've heard the rumours."

  Cooper looked up from the screen. "What rumours would they be?"

  "That he's gay."

  Cooper and Quinn exchanged glances. "Says here he's happily married," said Quinn, pointing at his screen. "Two kids, a boy and a girl. Perfect family life."

  Brandon shrugged. "I don't know for sure. Like I said, this is the first time I've worked with him. But I heard it from a few different people, people with nothing to gain from making something like that up."

  "Okay, thanks," said Cooper. "We'll look into it."

  They spent another couple of hours researching, and Cooper paid close attention to Kyle's interactions with the other contestants. If there was something going on between Kyle and Zara, as they'd originally suspected, Cooper would have thought there'd have been more between them than he was seeing. But Kyle hardly ever spoke to Zara, both when they were filming the challenges and other stuff that would go to air, and also when the cameras were still rolling between takes. No, Kyle seemed to pay much more attention to Jerome. Even more telling was the attention Jerome paid to Kyle.

  "I've got something," said Quinn. He turned to Brandon. "Would you mind giving us a minute?"

  Brandon shrugged. "Sure."

  When the young editor had left the room, Quinn shared his finding. "Looks like the kid might be right. On the surface, Kyle Aren's a happily married family man. But there are a few rumours circulating, as Brandon said. Plus there's this."

  Cooper scooted his chair over to get a closer look at Quinn's screen. Quinn had logged into the police database, and they were looking at Kyle Aren's record. There were no convictions, but he'd been picked up for indecency in a public place less than a year ago. He was with a young male at the time.

  "He's lucky the press didn't get hold of that one," said Cooper, reading the details. "That could have ruined his career."

  "I don't get it, boss. If you're gay, why not just be gay? This guy has a wife and kids. He's living a double life. Imagine what it's going to do to them when it comes out. I mean, I can maybe understand it thirty years ago. I know things were rough for homosexuals back then. But now? I don't see the point. Who cares whether a game show host is gay or straight?"

  "Unfortunately there's still a lot of prejudice out there, Joe. You and I might not have a problem with it, but some people still do. And wherever there's hate, there are secrets and cover ups. It sucks, but it still goes on."

  "Yeah, I know." Quinn sighed. "I hope I live to see the day it's gone."

  "Me too. Or at least I hope my kids get to see that day. Gay or straight, though, prejudice is no excuse for murder. Kyle Aren has some explaining to do, and from what I'm seeing of this television show and its out-takes, so does Jerome Kokinos. I'm starting to think his stomach aches have got nothing to do with going home to face his family."

  23

  Cooper and Quinn spent the ten minute walk to the Transformation in Paradise house mostly in silence. Jerome had seemed like a nice young man, if a bit nervous, when Cooper had interviewed him yesterday morning. That seemed like weeks ago now, with all they'd learnt in the meantime. If Jerome was mixed up in this, where did he fit in? Was he the ring-leader, or was he taken in by Kyle's persuasive personality?

  Cooper had seen how Kyle had been able to work the journalists earlier today. If the host had set his sights on the young man, Jerome would have been no match. But where did Zara fit in? The other contestants said Zara and Jerome had been close. Was she keeping an eye on him? Some kind of sisterly-type watch for a friend? What did she get out of the situation?

  "If the three of them were heading off into the bush at night to do strange, mind-bending drugs," said Quinn, "And we're looking at a possible sexual or even romantic interest between Kyle and Jerome, where did Zara fit in?"

  "That's what I've been trying to figure out," Cooper answered. "Maybe it was just about the drugs for her. We know she was an addict back home. Maybe it was as simple as getting high, and having friends to do it with."

  "Then why this angel's brew tea? I know this is a small island, but surely if you asked around you could get something a bit more mainstream. There's got to be at least one small-time dealer out here. The contestants may not have had contact with the locals, but Kyle certainly did. Surely he could have arranged something more suitable and less dangerous."

  "Yeah, I've been thinking about that too. I need to confirm it with Maeve, but I suspect if Zara came in here with a drug habit, and one of her transformation goals was to kick that habit, it stands to reason the show would have been administering random drug tests. So maybe angel's brew was a way of having a bit of fun while avoiding detection."

  Quinn nodded as they turned the corner and the house came into sight. "That makes sense for Zara. What about Kyle and Jerome?"

  "Thrill-seeking behaviour, maybe? Or maybe it was all they could get. Maybe this island is as clean as it looks."

  They stopped talking as they approached the house, aware of the cameras and microphones in the little group held back by crime scene tape.

  "Have you got an update, Detective Cooper?" asked one of the journalists, microphone held inches from Cooper's face.

  "When are you going to let these poor people go home to their families?" asked another.

  "As soon as possible," was Cooper's response. "You know I can't comment on an ongoing investigation. I will tell you we are making progress, and are doing everything we can with the resources at our disposal to solve this case and get these people home to their families." He turned his back on the cameras and the follow-up questions, and he and Quinn ducked under the crime scene tape and entered the house.

  All the furniture in the living area had been pushed back against the walls, and Maeve and Johnny were instructing the contestants in some kind of challenge. They stopped when the detectives entered.

  "Hi," said Maeve. "Any news?"

  "Not yet." Cooper scanned the room. Neither Kyle nor Jerome were present. He asked where they were.

  "They went for a walk about an hour ago, when we took a break in filming," said Maeve. "They were supposed to be back by now. You didn't see them on your way in?"

  "No. Which way did they go?"

  "Out the back way," said Maeve, "to avoid the cameras. I think they headed for the beach track."

  Cooper and Quinn exchanged a look. The beach track led to the clearing, where Zach and Nora should still be processing the scene.

  "Thanks," said Cooper. "We'll head that way, see if we can find them."

  "Something wrong?" asked Maeve. She'd seen the footage of Kyle and Zara leaving the house together on Thursday night, but wasn't aware of Jerome's involvement.

  "We just want to speak to them," said Cooper.

  "Well send them back here when you're finished," said Maeve. "We need to get this wrapped up."

  Cooper just nodded, then he and Quinn went upstairs so they too could exit the house via the back door and exterior staircase.

  "Do you think we need to worry, boss?" asked Quinn once they were on the beach track and headed to the clearing.

  "I don't know. Kyle is arrogant, he might not think we know as much as we do. And he wouldn't know Zach and Nora and the others are out there processing the clearing. Maybe they have just gone for a walk."

  "Yeah, maybe."

  Cooper didn't like the situation any more than his partner, and they quickened
their pace. There was no sign of Kyle or Jerome along the track, and no sign of them at the clearing, either.

  "What are you doing here?" asked Zach, looking up from where he was busy taking a plaster cast of a footprint. Nora was examining a nearby tree, but stopped and turned to them as well. Senior Constable Ziegler stood watch about ten metres away.

  "Have any of you seen Kyle Aren or Jerome Kokinos?" Cooper asked. "They apparently left the house about an hour ago, and were headed this way."

  All three answered no. Cooper figured it was possible Zach and Nora had missed them, as engrossed as they tended to get in their work, but if Kyle and Jerome had come close to the clearing Constable Ziegler should have seen or at least heard them.

  "They must have headed off somewhere else," Cooper concluded.

  "The beach is just through there," offered Ziegler. "I saw it when I was scouting around earlier. You can see a lot from down on the beach. Maybe you might spot them."

  "Good idea, thanks," said Cooper. He turned to Zach. "You going to be long here?"

  "A couple more hours. We should finish before it gets dark, so no need to organise lighting."

  "Great. Find anything interesting?"

  "Not really. These surfaces are terrible for prints. This is the best footprint we could find, you might be able to match it if you find the right boot. The tree's definitely been cut recently. That's about all. They covered their tracks pretty well."

  "Okay. Keep on it. We'll go see if we can spot them from the beach."

  Cooper and Quinn traipsed their way through what looked like a little-used path, and emerged on one of the whitest beaches Cooper had ever seen. Looking around, they could see the nearby cliffs of Dawson's Point, all the way to the other end of the island and the stunning peak of Mt Gower. This place truly was an island paradise, and Cooper thought briefly about bringing his family here when the boys were a little older.