He bent his neck forward, trying to ease the kink from the sofa. At least his satellite phone should still work. Ellie looked almost relaxed. The intimacy of last night was gone. That was a good thing. He’d expected to find her still reeling from her attack. The only outward sign of the night’s trauma was the red mark on her cheek. Nick regretted not getting there in time to stop that.
‘I’m heading in to collect Shadow shortly. I can cook bacon and eggs if you want an early breakfast?’
He shook his head. ‘I’ll follow you in, then head back to the pub.’
‘Oh. Okay.’
He heard disappointment in her voice and mentally berated himself for the leap of joy that brought. In the dark hour before dawn he’d convinced himself he could walk away from Ellie Wilding after this operation was over. In the light of day he wasn’t so sure.
He rang work on the drive to the vet’s, keeping Ellie’s car squarely in his sights. He wasn’t sure his boss would actually take his call but he did. It was almost as though last night’s conversation had never happened.
‘The roads are cut,’ Nick said. ‘Unless you want to foot the bill for a chopper, there’s no way in or out.’
‘That’s convenient,’ the man retorted.
Nick almost laughed. ‘Yeah, but even I couldn’t organise a low-pressure system to dump three hundred mills of rain on the district in forty-eight hours.’
‘If you’d come back yesterday, this wouldn’t be happening.’
‘True, but then we may well have had blood on our hands.’
His boss snorted. ‘The Garrison police collected your two lads. They had some outstanding traffic offences, but they’re just a couple of local thugs. They wouldn’t have done anything but rough her up. O’Sullivan’s hired help.’
‘Have they served warrants on O’Sullivan and his mates yet?’
‘No. The Sydney police are holed up near Coffs Harbour. The roads are cut there as well. They’ve faxed the paperwork through to the local coppers. They should act today.’
‘If they aren’t out evacuating people from floodwaters . . . It’s still raining here. What about the shipment of drugs?’
‘It’s got a tracker on it and is currently stuck in a storage facility at Garrison owned by Jason O’Sullivan. They’ve lost the tanker at the moment. Customs will resume looking when they can get an aircraft up. They’ll pick it up further north. It’s their operation now. Their counterparts in Hong Kong are very interested in the outcome, not to mention the old boys at the top of Defence being very involved.’
Nick scoffed. ‘They knew two years ago that there was a problem with the private contractors in Afghanistan. They didn’t want to hear then that any of our guys might have left the army and joined those arseholes with the sole aim of setting up smuggling lines. So what’s changed their minds?’
‘Someone’s requested information about the hearing into Nina Wilding’s shooting. A journalist called Alex Creighton. Heard of him?’
Nick stopped breathing. ‘Yes. I have.’
‘He’s been making noises about going public, saying he has evidence of a cover-up. It seems he’s gone into hiding.’
‘Is that right?’ Did Ellie know where he was? Nick wondered. Why did he assume she was telling him the truth? Her sister had obviously been a seasoned liar. ‘So what are you doing about that?’
‘Since you insisted on staying, you’re now in a good position to keep an eye on Eleanor Wilding in case Creighton makes contact with her. We need to know if she’s going to break the story herself. We can’t allow that to happen yet.’
‘So now you want me to stay here?’
‘Unless you have another solution.’
‘No, not yet, but I’d be happier if she was out of Half Moon Bay. We could hide her in Sydney. You have a tap on her phone?’
‘Yes, of course, but it doesn’t read text yet.’
‘Okay. So I’ll stick with Ellie and be in touch.’
‘Do that.’ The phone call always ended abruptly with his boss. So now he’d gone from being ordered back to Sydney to being assigned as a watch on Ellie. That should have made him happy, but it didn’t. Was she playing games with him?
He hadn’t heard Ellie’s phone ring, but had she spoken with Alex Creighton this morning? It had been unwise to tell her about the ICAC investigation last night. Had he jeopardised everything now if she was still in contact with Alex?
Liz was waiting for them at the vet’s with a wide smile as they pulled up in convoy. ‘He’s fine, Ellie. Still groggy and full of drugs. Feed him some raw chicken later today. I took the drip out a little while ago. But come and see him.’
She led the way through and Shadow lumbered unsteadily to his feet.
‘Ssh, big fella.’ Ellie knelt by him. ‘Take it easy now.’ She scratched behind his ears and the dog’s eyes closed in delight as he leant into her. Her eyes filled with tears. She blinked them away.
Nick squatted down beside her. ‘He looks good.’ Shadow pressed his head into Nick’s knee, surprising Ellie again. The big dog didn’t give his trust easily.
She glanced sideways at Nick’s profile, struck again by the solid strength in the jaw now covered with at least a day’s dark growth. He was wearing yesterday’s rumpled clothes. The ‘morning after’ look suited him.
Nick carried the dog to Ellie’s car and lowered him onto the back seat.
‘Thanks,’ Ellie said, closing the door gently. ‘I’ll see you around, then. Can I tell Ron and Mavis what’s really going on?’
‘You will anyway, regardless of what I say, but keep it brief. Just remember O’Sullivan’s not been arrested. The police have been held up by the flooding as well.’
‘Really? What if he finds out?’
Nick shook his head. ‘Apart from you, no one else knows exactly what’s going on except my boss and the police. Even if they don’t arrest him, the information isn’t going to go away. The corruption’s already been proven.’
‘And you don’t think he’s capable of retaliation?’
‘He’ll be too busy trying to shred documents and save his sorry arse.’
‘I hope you’re right,’ Ellie replied, shutting the door of the car. ‘I’m taking Shadow around to Ron and Mavis’s. When I phone this morning they were beside themselves. They’d already heard about it via the grapevine. Have to love living in a small community.’
He looked worried. ‘Right. I’ll tail you to Ron’s house.’
‘No need.’
‘There is. And that’s non-negotiable. I’ll leave you with them and be back as soon as I can.’
‘Okay, but this can’t continue indefinitely.’
‘It won’t have to.’ He rapped the side of her car and turned away. She started the engine and indicated to turn out, watching him stride to his vehicle, rolling his keys in his hand. It was a mannerism she’d noticed before. It made him seem like a man on a mission.
Alex still wasn’t returning her calls, but he’d sent an email late last night that made little sense to her. It was a series of numbers and a cryptic message: You already know the password. You already have the key. Pitt St. She guessed the numbers were bank account numbers, but the key? She didn’t know the answer to that yet, but she did still have Nina’s bundle of keys. They were now in her backpack and she wasn’t letting them out of her sight.
Mavis and Ron were both home. She parked the car and waved at Nick who lingered until the front door with its frosted glass opened. Wrapped up tight by Mavis, Ellie didn’t see him drive away. Ellie was steered into the cheerfully cluttered kitchen and the three of them sat around the table, although Mavis couldn’t sit still.
‘Bob says there’s already been some horsetrading going on about the prisoners.’ Ron wasn’t keeping his disapproval to himself.
‘Really? What prisoners? What are you talking about?’ Ellie knew she’d only mentioned Shadow had picked up a bait.
Ron waggled his finger at her. ‘Bob mentioned you’d
had some trouble last night. He phoned me, since I was in the car when the idiots rammed us off the road.’
‘Why didn’t he phone me?’
‘Apparently Lawson told him to back off.’
‘Did he just?’ Ellie didn’t know whether to be annoyed or relieved.
‘Bob told me there was some heat from Sydney. He’s pretty sure the boys at Garrison station are going to release them.’
‘Since the road’s cut, they won’t get back here anyway.’
‘So what happened last night, Ellie?’
There was no short version of this. They let her talk uninterrupted, but Ron’s agitation was obvious when he stood up at the end. ‘The damn fools in ICAC could have let us in on it rather than running it like some secretive special branch operation. As soon as Felicity blew the whistle, I’ve been expecting them to do something. It would have put her mind at rest too. They’ve caused a whole world of grief for ordinary people.’ Ron stomped out to the garden, jamming a hat on his head as he went. He seemed oblivious to the rain.
‘He was so worried about you when Bob phoned last night, I just about had to tie him to the bed. Bob said Nick was going to stay with you, just in case. All I could imagine was Ron barging in on you unannounced.’
‘Then he would have found Nick on the couch, wouldn’t he?’
‘Oh.’ Mavis didn’t try to hide her disappointment.
Ellie’s mobile rang.
‘Hi, Flick. I’m with Mavis. Where are you?’ She laughed at the reply. ‘Well, don’t stand out in the rain. Mavis won’t mind.’
She disconnected. ‘Is that okay, Mavis? I’ve been trying to speak to Felicity since yesterday morning. I wish I knew where Dad was. I don’t want him to hear about this second hand. He hasn’t returned any of my emails or phone calls either.’
Mavis bent down to reach into a cupboard, her voice muffled by the counter. ‘Don’t worry about your dad. He’ll be in touch soon enough. Last time he spoke to Ronnie he was heading into north-west WA, no-man’s land.’
Before Ellie could say any more, Felicity knocked on the back screen door, shedding her rubber shoes and shaking the water from her bright-blue spray jacket. Her damp hair clung to her head and curled at the ends.
‘Hi, guys. Room for one more for coffee? You’re a hard woman to track down, Ellie.’ She gave both women a quick hug and perched up on one of the old-fashioned stools. ‘So,’ she leant on the counter, ‘spill all. The town’s humming with gossip. Is Shadow okay?’
Ellie shook her head. ‘The grapevine in this town must be the most evolved of its kind anywhere in the world.’
‘Something about two men and a gun. Is it true?’
‘Unfortunately, yes. And the back of my car is going to need some serious panel beating as well. Busy twenty-four hours.’
‘Shit!’ Felicity looked horrified as she clutched Ellie’s arm. ‘I thought Bob’s wife was exaggerating.’
‘Sadly, no. She wasn’t.’
Felicity glanced at Mavis. ‘Does this have anything to do with dinner the other night?’
Ellie shrugged. ‘I don’t know for sure.’ She read the uncertainty in Felicity’s eyes. ‘It’s all right, Flick. Mavis and Ron both know Lawson was at my house for dinner.’
‘Right. Bet you didn’t share my advice with them.’ Felicity was trying to lighten the mood, but she was chewing her lip.
Mavis spoke up. ‘I can imagine what your advice would be, Felicity, and I don’t disagree. But don’t discuss it in front of Ron.’ She dried her hands on a towel. ‘I’ll just get the washing out of the machine.’
Felicity turned to Ellie. ‘So, what’s going on?’
‘Where to begin? Dinner was interesting. I’m afraid it seems I’m not immune to all that seductive charm after all. And then his phone rang. Pretty obvious he wasn’t what he claims to be, so I tossed him out.’
‘You need to get a handle on that temper of yours, girl,’ Felicity admonished her. ‘And then?’
Ellie leant closer as she spent the next five minutes trying to make Felicity laugh. It didn’t work.
Felicity reached across and gripped her hands. ‘And you’re still putting on a brave face? Where is he now?’
‘Asleep in the laundry.’
‘What? Nick?’
‘No, Shadow.’ Ellie laughed. ‘Nick is busy tidying up the Bay apparently.’ She screwed up her nose before continuing. ‘So I hear you’ve been busy yourself?’
Felicity flushed bright red. ‘What do you mean?’
‘It takes guts to do what you’ve done. Courage and conviction. I’m so proud of you. You’re the reason this investigation got off the ground in the first place. The Bay owes you big time.’
‘No, they don’t. I did what anyone would have done in the same position. What O’Sullivan was up to is wrong.’
‘Dan must be so proud of you too.’
‘He’s not proud. He’s terrified.’
‘Of O’Sullivan?’
‘No. Whoever’s behind the smuggling operation. The two things have to be connected and he’s scared that someone will find out I’m involved. When Nina started asking questions he told me not to help her, but how could I say no?’
‘Nina?’
‘Yeah.’ Felicity looked at her. ‘You really didn’t know what she was working on when she was killed?’
‘No. She only told me it was an international money-laundering operation, possibly involving heroin smuggling, with Australian connections. She said she’d explain when we met up again in Kandahar.’
‘Oh, Ellie. I’m sorry. I thought you’d chosen not to investigate the story. If I’d realised . . .’
‘I couldn’t face it, Flick. Whatever it was that made Nina go out that night had cost a man his life. Left his children without a father. I didn’t want to know. I didn’t . . .’ She choked on the words and tried again. ‘I didn’t want to cause that man’s family any more pain. I heard the whispers amongst the army guys. At the time I thought they meant Nina had been sleeping with him. You know what she was like. How could I throw it in a widow’s face? I couldn’t. It was Nina’s story and I was so hell-bent on getting her out of there. Once I did I never wanted to go back . . .’
Ellie sat back and Felicity looked at her hands. ‘I don’t blame you.’
‘And Dad was mad with grief. I couldn’t do it to him either. I couldn’t do it then but I intend to finish this off now.’
‘Then what else can I help you with?’
‘I have some photos, black and whites, that Nina must have taken the night she was shot. I’ve identified two people in them. Maybe you’ll know some more of them.’
‘I’ll drop around this afternoon.’ Felicity stood up. ‘I’m glad you know now. I felt awful keeping a secret that big from you, but the fewer people who knew, the better. Dan’s only just told me he’d figured it out. He’s pretty pissed off with me for not telling him. He went down the wharf this morning to secure the boat, then the SES called in all volunteers. He’s in the swift-water team. I don’t know when he’ll be home again. He’s not answering my calls.’
‘He’ll come round.’
‘I hope so. I love him so much it hurts.’ She was clearly fighting back tears and changed the topic. ‘Have you heard from Alex since he flounced off in his Porsche?’
‘We’ve been playing phone tag, but it’s not like I’ve had time to try too hard. But I think he knows more than he’s letting on as well. Secrets everywhere I turn. He reckons Nick was in the army in Afghanistan but I don’t know the time frame.’
‘Really? Have you asked him?’
‘Not yet. I guess I want to double-check the facts myself.’
‘Hmm.’ Felicity didn’t look convinced.
‘Another cuppa, girls?’ Mavis rejoined them with a pile of folded laundry.
Felicity looked at her watch. ‘No, thanks, Mavis. It’s almost nine o’clock. Time for tuckshop duties. They didn’t close the school today. Got to run.’ She pecked Ellie
on the cheek. ‘You stay in touch, even if it’s just a text to let me know you’re fine.’
Ellie walked out with Felicity and collected her camera bag from the car. She still had some photos from the rally at the Bowls Club to download. Back in the kitchen she attached the camera to her computer, listening to the rise and fall of the conversation between Mavis and Ron out in the back undercover area.
She laid out her cleaning gear and an airbrush. Right now she needed to keep busy. As she turned a telephoto lens over in her hands, it reminded her of one assignment when she was fussing over her cameras, sat side by side with a group of American soldiers as they stripped and cleaned their guns. Nina had been flirting as usual. ‘You’re armed and just as dangerous as these guys,’ her sister said. ‘Only difference is your weapon’s a camera.’ It had unsettled Ellie even as she acknowledged Nina was correct. Up until now she’d never imagined that a photo could result in death.
Her phone rang, startling her.
‘Hey, Flick, what did you forget?’
‘They’ve taken them, they’ve taken Mikey and Sarah!’ Felicity’s voice broke, her harsh sobs cutting into Ellie.
‘What? Where are you?’ Ellie was on her feet.
‘I’m at school. They didn’t make it. One of the other kids said a white car picked them up a block from here.’
‘Have you rung the police?’ Ellie’s voice was measured as she tried to slow Felicity’s stream of words.
‘Yes, yes, Bob’s on his way here now. I’m with the principal, but I can’t contact Dan. The phone’s diverting. Ellie . . .’ Felicity’s words trailed off in a wail. ‘I can’t . . .’
‘Hang in there, Felicity. I’m coming. I’ll be there in five. We’ll find them.’ She disconnected the call then redialled, packing her gear away with hands that fumbled, her brain racing.
‘Hi, Ellie.’
‘Nick, thank God. They’ve abducted Sarah and Mikey. You’ve got to help.’
‘Who?’
Ellie stamped her foot. ‘Felicity’s kids. They’re six – gorgeous, innocent six-year-old twins.’
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