Chapter 12
‘Wife disappears without a trace’, Dominic read in the local paper. He’d tried to place the article in a national magazine, but even with his contacts and money, he hadn’t been able to get it into Woman’s Day or New Idea.
He was convinced that if he could do that, he’d find Ashleigh. Those magazines had readerships in the millions, and someone, somewhere, had to have seen her, or perhaps she’d confided in someone already. Dominic was sure she couldn’t keep her mouth shut for long.
Every year 35,000 Australians are reported missing. Eighty-five per cent of these are found or make contact within the first week, and it’s estimated that 1,600 of these have been missing for more than six months.
Dominic Alberto’s wife went missing nine weeks ago and since then there hasn’t been a single sighting of her. Her husband holds grave fears for Ashleigh’s safety. In this exclusive tell-all interview, he tells of the days leading up to his wife’s disappearance.
‘I hadn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary, except that she was a little quieter than usual,’ he said. ‘Sometimes when her medication needed adjusting, she was like that but it always took a few days for it to become apparent. It was only after she left, I realised she hadn’t been taking her medication at all. There were full packets of her pills in the bathroom, which hadn’t been touched. Not taking her pills causes her to become irrational and have anger attacks.
‘I plead with anyone who has seen her, or even thinks they have, to come forward to the police. I’m desperate to have her home safely, where I can look after her.’
Local policeman Simon McCullen said it’s out of character for Ashleigh not to make contact with Mr Alberto. ‘Well, she’s a good communicator, but if she hasn’t been taking her prescribed medication, she could be unpredictable.’
There was a knock at the door. Dominic threw down the paper and got up to answer it.
Simon was there, flanked by two plain-clothes detectives.
Dominic looked at Simon, a question forming on his lips, then noticed that his friend was looking very uncomfortable. He suddenly realised this wasn’t going to be a pleasant visit.
‘Mr Alberto, we need to come in and ask a few questions,’ one of the strangers said.
Simon stepped forward. ‘Dominic, meet Detectives Harry Potts and Stephen Haliday. They’re both from Sydney’s major crime unit and we need to ask you a few questions.’
Dominic switched on the charm. ‘Come in, come in, please. Do you have news on Ashleigh? Please tell me you have.’
‘No, sir, we don’t. We have more questions.’
‘Of course. Anything, if it helps find her. Please, sit down.’ He indicated seats, then offered coffee. He hoped they would accept, so he could get Simon alone and find out what the fuck was going on here.
‘No, thank you,’ Haliday answered. ‘We’ll get straight down to business. Have you got any idea why Ashleigh may have disappeared?’
Dominic shook his head. ‘No. We had a happy marriage. Or, at least, I thought we did. It was her mental health that was the problem. You see, sir, she was abandoned as a child and very insecure. It caused her to have panic attacks that would range from shaking and crying, to being so angry that she would throw things. When we met, I made sure she had the best doctor we could find and the best care. The doctor changed the medication she was on and, for a long time, Ashleigh was a completely different woman—happy and loving—but she changed when she didn’t take her tablets. She was dependent on them to keep her level.’
‘That must have been very hard to live with.’
‘It was, but it wasn’t. You see, I love her more than life itself, so it wasn’t a hardship. I understood her.’
‘Did she have any friends she would have confided in?’
‘No. Ashleigh was very private and her panic attacks made it hard for her to go out in public. She found it easier to stay at home, rather than put herself in a situation where she might become the centre of attention.’
‘Okay, but you’ve just told us that while she was on the medication, she was able to act normally. Why would she be afraid to go out in public or make friends? She was a very good schoolteacher before you were married, so I understand.’
‘She was. That was what attracted me to her in the first place. I thought she would make a wonderful mother.’ Dominic stopped. He didn’t think he would answer the other questions unless the detective pressed him.
‘Have you found anything missing?’ Potts asked. ‘Jewellery, clothes, that type of thing?’
Dominic found it hard to answer because he was engulfed in rage. The violent fury he’d felt when he found his pocket watch stolen and her wedding rings in the safe hadn’t abated.
He didn’t want to tell the detectives about the rings because it made it seem that Ashleigh had wanted to leave him. Or maybe they would turn it around, to make it look like he’d killed her and kept the rings.
‘My pocket watch, which has been passed down for two generations, is missing,’ he admitted, shoving his hands into his pockets so the detectives couldn’t see they were clenched into fists.
‘Is this a photo of it?’ said Haliday, offering the picture to Dominic.
‘That’s right.’ He glanced at it and kept his hands in his pockets.
‘What about money?’
‘What about it?’
‘Did she have any?’
‘Detective, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve already been through this with McCullen here. Is there anything new you want to ask me?’
‘Where were you on the night Ashleigh disappeared?’
Dominic eyed the detective steadily. ‘I was at the pub, playing cards.’
‘You can’t think of a reason why Ashleigh would leave?’
‘I don’t think she would leave if she was of sane mind, Detective. I’ve given her a privileged life and she loves me.’
‘Are you sure you didn’t have anything to do with her disappearance, Mr Alberto?’ Haliday asked, suddenly leaning forward.
‘Why would I? I keep telling you, I loved my wife.’
‘Did you ever hit her?’
‘No.’
‘Yell at and abuse her?’
‘No.’
‘Threaten her?’
‘No! What is this? I’m the victim here and you’re treating me like the criminal.’
‘Really?’ Haliday replied. ‘Unfortunately, that contradicts the information we have.’
Silence filled the room. Dominic didn’t move, although his mind was racing. What could they have on him? What hadn’t Simon told him?
‘Ashleigh made a complaint to the police about you, a year ago,’ Haliday informed him as he dug into a folder and pulled out a piece of paper, which he waved in front of him.
‘What?’ Dominic’s voice was low and steady. He wanted to grab that form and rip it to shreds, but he managed to stay seated, unmoving.
‘It seems that she didn’t feel safe enough to go to Sergeant McCullen so she made the complaint at a Canberra police station. It alleges you verbally abused her and threatened to hurt her if she didn’t do what you told her to.’
‘That’s a load of rubbish.’
‘Is it?’
‘I’ve already told you. I loved my wife.’ His voice rose, angry and indignant.
‘Loved?’ Potts asked. ‘As in the past tense? Did you kill her, Dominic?’
‘I most certainly did not,’ said Dominic, shooting up from his seat and towering over the two detectives. Unable to hold his tongue, he turned to Simon. ‘How dare you let them ask these types of questions!’
‘Why would Sergeant McCullen be able to stop us asking you questions, Mr Alberto? Is he on your payroll? We understand you have a large one.’
‘If you haven’t got anything else to ask me, I suggest you leave now,’ Dominic said in a low and menacing voice. ‘Your boss will be hearing about this.’
‘You’re right,’ answered Haliday, getting up. ‘He
will be.’
After the three men had left, Dominic paced the room, his mind whirling. He hadn’t seen that line of questioning coming. Why hadn’t Simon told him they were going to interview him? And why the hell hadn’t he told Dominic about the report?
He was furious. He would not stop until he found Ashleigh and made her pay for bringing him to the attention of the police.
In a violent burst, he ran at the door, and hip-and-shouldered it, before punching it three or four times. Dominic let out a roar as he felt a bone shatter.
A moment later, the three men were standing in front of the broken door, staring at him.
‘Bit of an anger management problem there, Mr Alberto?’ asked Potts. ‘Wouldn’t like to see a woman on the end of that, would you, Haliday?’
‘Certainly not. Never know what might happen. He might even hurt a lady so badly that she dies.’
Dominic said nothing and nursed his hand.
‘Maybe you should come along with us to the hospital and have that hand looked at. Wouldn’t want you to accuse us of police brutality, would we?’
There didn’t seem to be any other option, so he went with them.
At the hospital, his hand was X-rayed and he was cleared of any breakage. The nurse put some disinfectant on the cut and bandaged his hand. ‘That’s really quite deep and nasty, Dominic,’ she said. ‘Make sure you come back tomorrow, to have the dressing changed.’
Dominic jumped down from the table he was sitting on, avoiding the eyes of the detectives, who were both leaning against the wall, watching him.
‘Thanks very much for your help.’ He could see the nurse wanted to ask him what had happened and why the police were there. He picked up his coat and walked out, the policemen following him. He couldn’t wait to be away from the bright lights that made him feel like he was under extra scrutiny.
Out in the corridor, his doctor friend stopped him. ‘Ah, Dominic,’ he said and offered his hand, withdrawing it quickly when he saw that Dominic’s was bandaged. ‘I’ve been meaning to call and thank you for the very generous donation you made to the mental health facility of this hospital. We appreciate it.’
‘You’re welcome,’ Dominic responded. He had to get out of here. ‘If you’ll excuse me?’
As he was about to get into the car, Haliday said, ‘Seems you’re the big man around here.’
Dominic didn’t answer.
He had just poured his first drink after getting home when he received a text message from Simon: ‘Have been put on leave pending an internal investigation.’
Chapter 13
Eliza made sure Heidi was busy with her sums before she turned her attention to Tilly.
‘Now, Tilly, we need to organise this interview with your nana for this family history project, while they’re here at the park.’
‘They’re going soon,’ Tilly said. ‘They didn’t say when, but in the next few days.’
Eliza nodded. ‘Yep, your nana told me this morning. It must have been nice to have them here for a few days?’
‘They don’t seem to like us much. We can’t go into their caravan or anything like that. Dad says they’re very private.’
‘Some people are like that. Now, have you seen a family tree before?’
Tilly shook her head. ‘It’s like a tree?’ she guessed.
‘Sort of. It’s lots of lines, all linked together. It has lots of branches, and each member of the family is on a branch each, and their kids, or the people they marry, are added to it. Here, I’ll show you.’ She took a piece of paper and started drawing a diagram. ‘So, we put your nana at the top and draw a line to her husband. Do you know what his name is?’
‘Pop.’
Eliza suppressed a smile. ‘What about his first name? Like Tilly, or mine, Eliza.’
‘Oh! I don’t know.’
‘Okay, we’ll just put “Nana” and “Pop” in the top line. Now, see? I’m drawing a line down and adding your mum’s name here. Then I put an “m”, which means married, and I write your dad’s name.’
‘She’s not part of the tree,’ Tilly said. ‘She left us, so she doesn’t get to be on here.’
Eliza paused, wondering how to answer. Her heart ached for these two girls. She knew exactly how they felt—after all, her mother hadn’t wanted her either, and her foster parents hadn’t cared about her.
‘See, the thing is, Tilly, your mum gave birth to you. You wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her, so we do have to pop her in here. Maybe we could write her name a little smaller or something?’
Tilly shook her head, a stubborn look crossing her little face.
Eliza tried again. ‘I tell you what. You and I know that you don’t want your mum’s name on here, and Heidi knows that too, but to make this worksheet and project the best it can be, you put her on and not take any notice of her being on there, okay? All the important people know that you don’t want her on there.’
Tilly gazed out the window, her face awash with emotion, and Eliza had to make a big effort not to give her charge a hug. That wasn’t the done thing these days.
Instead, she looked at the clouds scurrying across the blue sky, and at the leaves of the gum trees along the creek streaming out in the wind. She pulled her jacket around her a little more. But even though it was cold, she wouldn’t mind being outside. It would clear her head and maybe help her find the words to comfort Tilly.
‘Okay.’ The little girl finally tore her eyes away from the window. ‘But it has to be in small letters.’
‘Great idea. Okay, now we draw a line from your dad to your mum, and another downwards.’ Eliza demonstrated, before writing the sisters’ names. ‘This is what’s called a family tree.’
Tilly regarded it. ‘Doesn’t look much like a tree.’
‘I guess it doesn’t. Not like the trees you’re used to.’ Eliza then read out some of the questions in the workbook. ‘We need to find out when everyone was born—that will help you know how old everyone is now. Then you ask about their occupation—the job they did.’
‘Eliza, I need help,’ said Heidi, looking up from her work.
‘Sure.’ She turned her attention to Heidi and worked through a couple of problems with her, and before they knew it, it was time for a break.
Eliza poured the girls and herself a drink each, and put butter and Vegemite on Sao biscuits.
‘What was your mum’s name, Eliza?’ asked Tilly.
Unease shot through her so she took a sip of her drink to stall for a moment.
‘I don’t know,’ she answered.
‘Why not?’ Heidi asked, looking interested.
‘I never knew my mum.’
‘So, who looked after you? Your dad, like ours does?’
Oh, this is dangerous territory, thought Eliza. ‘No, I didn’t know my dad either.’ She changed the subject, with the first thing that came into her head. ‘Now, I’ve heard about some ruins not far from here. The Kanyaka ruins. Do you know where they are?’
‘Oh yeah,’ Heidi said, getting off her chair and walking over to the large map that Chris had hung on the wall. She put her finger on it. ‘Follow the road that goes to Quorn—you never actually get there,’ she said, tracing the thin line downward. ‘Go through Hawker, and a bit further on, and there you are.’ She stabbed at a marking on the map.
‘It’s really not that far from here, is it?’ Eliza thought for a while. ‘Do you know why the town was abandoned?’
‘Nah,’ said Tilly. ‘Maybe it got too hot.’
‘Or too dry,’ Heidi added.
‘I’ve heard there were seventy families living there at one time. Can you imagine? Blinman hasn’t even got seventy people living here, let alone seventy families!’
‘I bet they ran out of water,’ Heidi answered. ‘Dad said people didn’t know how to store things the way we do today.’
‘They could have,’ Eliza agreed. ‘I tell you what. If it’s okay with your dad, let’s go for a drive out there tomorrow. It’
s good to know the history of where you live. Are you both in?’
After a chorus of ‘Yes!’, Eliza thought it was best to finish the school day on a high note, so she suggested they play a game of Twister.
Eliza drove out of the park, stopping briefly to say goodbye to Chris and wave to Jane and Mark, the girls’ grandparents. She knew exactly what Tilly had meant when she’d talked about her grandparents not being ‘kid people’.
They weren’t at all warm towards the girls—in fact, they were downright stand-offish. She hadn’t seen either of them hug their granddaughters, or even squat down and look them in the eye as they talked to them.
She couldn’t imagine what Claire must have been like—or what Chris might have seen in her. She sighed. People were just strange at times.
Eliza turned her thoughts to the excursion she had just suggested. She wanted to see something outside Blinman. On the other hand, the prospect of leaving this safe area made her extremely apprehensive.
By the time the next day arrived, the wind had blown itself out and the sun was shining. It wasn’t warm by any stretch of the imagination, but it was more pleasant than it had been.
Eliza pulled up in the dual cab and the girls came running out.
‘Eliza, guess what?’ the words tumbled out of Heidi’s mouth.
‘I don’t know, but it must be exciting!’
‘Remember the goanna’s nest we showed you? The eggs are gone!’
‘What? Where have they gone? Do you mean they’ve hatched?’
‘No, silly, a fox must have got them. I went down there last night to check and they weren’t there.’
‘That’s terrible!’
‘It’s life,’ Tilly said as she came to stand alongside Eliza.
‘Well, it is,’ Eliza had to agree, ‘but doesn’t it make you sad? After all, you’ve been watching those eggs for a few weeks now.’
Heidi shrugged. ‘It happens. Dad says it’s nature.’
‘It mightn’t have been a fox,’ Tilly said. ‘It coulda been a wedge-tailed eagle, or a crow.’
Heidi paused, thinking. ‘You’re right,’ she said, sounding surprised. ‘It could have been. I didn’t know you were that clever, Tilly.’
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