The Dark Series

by Catherine Lee

  “So he’d have had to have planned the whole thing, convinced a mate to help, somehow got his wife to go along with it at least part of the way out to the bush location, then once she realised what was happening, controlled her somehow the rest of the way. Then he kills her, buries her, and goes home to sleep on the couch.” It wasn’t likely, Cooper thought. But then, people do the strangest things.

  “He did have a lot of dirt under his fingernails this morning,” Stocky suggested.

  “That’s right, from the so-called early morning gardening. What do you make of that?”

  Stocky took a hand from the wheel to scratch his head. “It’s a bit weird, but then, maybe it’s his hangover cure. Maybe it’s just like he said, he had to get up and do something and didn’t want to wake the rest of the household. It’s plausible, at least.”

  “Yeah, it is.” Cooper couldn’t get past where the body was found, and he turned the conversation back to the bush location. “I know it was near houses, but still, it’s a pretty isolated patch of dirt. You have to park and walk five hundred metres into bushland. Who would do that on a Friday night?”

  “Teenagers?” Stocky suggested.

  “Yeah. Teenagers, and homeless people like old Ben. We need to interview him, find out whether he ever saw anyone else out there. But a fifty-two year old woman? And did you see what she was wearing? She was dressed for a night out, not a night in the bush. It doesn’t make any sense.”

  Stocky pulled into the Gilmore’s driveway. “No, it doesn’t. But homicide never makes much sense, Coop. You’ve worked enough cases to know that. We follow the evidence, we’ll get to the bottom of it. You ready?” he nodded toward the house, where Royce Gilmore had just opened the front door and was staring at them with suspicious eyes.

  “No. I hate this part.”

  “We all do. Come on, let’s get it over with.”

  They both exited the car and put their suit jackets on, and Royce’s face changed from suspicion to torment. They always know, Cooper thought. They can tell by looking at us. Unless it’s a complete surprise, they know. Rebecca Gilmore is missing, and we turn up back here hours after interviewing the family and they know instantly what we’re here for.

  “Let’s go inside,” Stocky said when he reached Royce.

  “She’s dead, isn’t she?” Royce didn’t budge.

  Stocky gently took the grieving man by the shoulder and led him inside the house. They sat next to each other on the lounge, and Ashley entered from the kitchen.

  “Where’s Josh?” Cooper asked her.

  “No idea. What’s going on?”

  “Can you see if you can find him?”

  “He’s not here, he left last time you were here and he hasn’t come back.” She sat in the chair opposite her father. “Have you found Mum?”

  Stocky nodded. “I’m sorry to tell you both, we found a body in Lane Cove National Park this afternoon. We’ve been to the site, and we’ve identified the body as Rebecca. I’m so sorry for your loss.”

  Cooper watched them both closely. As hard as it is to tell someone their loved one had died, when you worked in homicide the person you were telling was usually a suspect. Part of the job was to assess their reaction to the news.

  Royce fell apart immediately. Tears streamed from his eyes and he began howling uncontrollably. Ashley looked frightened at first, but as soon as she saw her father’s pain she rushed to his side and wrapped her arms around him. Stocky moved away to give them room, and the two of them became a bundled mess of tears on the lounge.

  Cooper and Stocky looked at each other, and Cooper knew what his partner was thinking. Royce Gilmore was either a very good actor, or he didn’t kill his wife.

  The tears didn’t last long. Royce pulled Ashley off him and gently but firmly set her aside. He stood and began pacing the room, before stopping dead in front of Stocky.

  “Who did this?” he demanded, inches from Stocky’s face.

  “Mr Gilmore, we’re doing everything—”

  “Don’t give me that bullshit. What do you know? You must know something. What do you know right now about who killed my wife?”

  “Royce, come on. We only just found her. We will do everything we can to get to the bottom of this, but it’s going to take time.”

  “Everything we can. Get to the bottom of it. Rehearsed lines, you’re telling me what I want to hear. Well I don’t want to hear it I want to know who did this! Who did this to my family!”

  Cooper could see the spittle flying from Royce’s mouth, some of it actually hitting Stocky in the face. Stocky didn’t even blink. When Royce was finished, Stocky took an almost imperceptible step backwards.

  Moments ago in the car Cooper and Stocky had all but ruled out the possibility of Royce Gilmore having killed his wife. But now, watching the man’s anger boil over, Cooper began to wonder. This was a level of rage he’d seen before, too many times. A familiar statistic popped into his head: fifty percent of all female homicide victims were killed by a current or former intimate partner. Fifty percent. Was Rebecca Gilmore part of that statistic?

  “I’m going to need you to calm down, Royce.” Stocky’s voice was calm but firm. “We’re not going to get anywhere if you carry on like this.”

  Ashley stood and touched her father’s arm. “Come on, Dad. We need you to get it together.”

  “Ashley’s right, Mr Gilmore,” Cooper added, keeping his own voice low and even. “She needs you right now. And we can’t leave to get on with the investigation until you calm down.”

  Royce looked from one detective to the other, before his eyes finally settled on his daughter. “I’m sorry, love.” He put his arms around her and drew her in for a hug, before ever so slightly pushing her in the direction of the kitchen. “Make us a cup of tea, will you?”

  Ashley sighed and followed her father’s instructions, not bothering to ask Cooper or Stocky if they wanted anything this time. Once she’d left the room Royce’s anger returned, but he controlled himself this time.

  “Is there anything you can tell me?” he asked. “Do you have any suspects? Any leads? What are you doing right now to find whoever did this, besides standing here wasting time with me?”

  Stocky took control. “Royce, why don’t you sit down?”

  “I don’t want to—”

  “I said sit.” Stocky was firm. When they were both seated, he launched into a version of a speech Cooper had heard a number of times, only this time Stocky modified it to suit Royce’s rage. There was no mention of ‘we’re doing everything we can’, or ‘it’s going to take time’. Instead, Stocky gave Royce as much information as he could about where Rebecca was found, and what the team were currently doing as far as the investigation went, without telling him anything specific that could compromise the case. It seemed to calm the man down considerably.

  Ashley came back in with a cup of tea for her father, which she set down on a side table next to him. Royce took her hand and pulled her down on the lounge close to him, and more tears came for both of them. Cooper looked at Stocky, his eyes questioning whether they should give the grieving family some privacy, when Stocky’s phone rang.

  “Excuse me,” he said to Royce and Ashley. “I just need to step outside and take this.” He nodded to Cooper, indicating that he should stay in the room. They still needed to question Royce about Rebecca’s affair, and, as harsh as it may seem, doing it while he was emotional had the best chance of getting the truth.

  When Stocky was gone Ashley looked up at Cooper, who was standing by the window trying not to look too awkward. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t offer you a drink. You like coffee, right?” She started to get up.

  “No. I mean, yes, I do like coffee. But I don’t want one right now. I’m fine, Ashley. Thanks for asking.”

  “Oh. Okay.” She sat back next to her father.

  Royce looked up at Cooper next. “Why was she out there?” he asked.

  “In the National Park?”

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nbsp; “Yeah. Your mate out there said she was found somewhere down a dirt road. What the hell would Rebecca be doing out in the bush on a Friday night? She was supposed to be at home, she was going to have a bath and read her book. That’s what she told me.”

  “Has Rebecca ever been to Lane Cove National Park? Was she the type to go walking, for example? Or maybe you went there for a family picnic?”

  Royce looked at Ashley, but her face was blank. “I can’t remember ever going there,” she said.

  “No, me neither.” Royce shook his head.

  “I think Josh and his mates go in there sometimes,” said Ashley. “They drive their cars in and park in the picnic areas. Some of their girlfriends bring food. It’s just a place to hang out for them.”

  “Do they go walking in the bush at all?”

  “Not that I know of. Josh isn’t really the bushwalking type. It’s more about getting together and showing off their cars to each other. But you’d have to ask him to be sure.”

  “I didn’t know they went in there,” said Royce.

  Ashley looked at him. “There’s a lot you don’t know, Dad.”

  “Like what?”

  Ashley didn’t get the chance to answer. Stocky came back into the house, a grave look on his face.

  “What is it now?” asked Royce, wiping away the last remnants of tears as he stood up.

  “You’d better come with us to the station, Royce. Josh has been arrested.”

  9

  “Why aren’t I allowed in there?” Royce demanded from the hallway. “He’s my son! He needs me in there with him.” Cooper could hear his anger even with the door closed, so he was pretty sure Josh could hear him as well.

  “You’re sure you don’t want your father present?” Stocky asked Josh. “It might make things easier on you.”

  “I’m nineteen. I don’t have to have him in here, and no, it won’t make it easier. Can’t you get him to shut up?”

  “It’s been a rough day for him, son.”

  “I’m not your son. I’m his son. We’ve already established that loud and clear.”

  They always have to be smart-mouthed.

  “All right, let’s get on with it, then,” said Stocky. You’ve been charged with assault, Josh. Constable’s MacIntosh and McGuiness will interview you formally about that shortly. But they’ve let us have this informal chat with you first, because there’re some questions we need to ask you. There’s also something we need to tell you, and again, I’m going to tell you one more time that you might want your father with you for this.”

  “And again, I’m going to tell you that I’m a big boy now.” Josh leaned forward to make his point. “I don’t want him in here. Just tell me whatever it is already.”

  Stocky put his hand on top of the manila folder in front of him, and Cooper knew it contained the first photos from the crime scene where Rebecca’s body was found. Surely he wasn’t going to show those to the kid, was he? Cooper was relieved when Stocky pushed the folder aside and folded his arms on the table in front of him. He looked Josh square in the eyes.

  “Your mother’s dead, Josh. We found her body a couple of hours ago. I’m sorry.”

  Cooper watched as Josh’s eyes narrowed, the only movement he made for at least thirty seconds. His breathing sped up ever so slightly, but apart from that, there was very little reaction in this kid. What did that mean? Cooper was normally pretty good at reading people, but Josh Gilmore was giving nothing away.

  “Did you hear me, Josh?” Stocky asked.

  “I heard you.”

  “I just told you your mother was dead. You seemed pretty convinced this morning that she wasn’t even missing — had just gone to a friend’s house and lost track of time, I think was how you explained her absence.”

  “Looks like I was wrong, wasn’t I?” Josh started chewing on a fingernail.

  “Is there anything you can tell me now about your mother’s disappearance?”

  “No. You seem to be the one with all the answers. Why don’t you tell me? Where did you find her?”

  “Lane Cove National Park. A secluded area, off a dirt road. I’m told you and your friends frequent the park, is that right?”

  “I wouldn’t say frequent. We go there sometimes, yeah.”

  “You ever go into the bush?”

  “No. We stay in the car park, have a few drinks, something to eat. See who’s done work on their machine. It’s a spot to meet up. Why was my mother out there?”

  “We don’t know that yet, Josh. There’s a lot we don’t know.” Stocky changed the subject. “Tell us about the assault this afternoon. You have a reason for beating up your best mate?”

  More fingernail chewing. “He’s not my best mate.”

  “Well, no, I’d say not. Not anymore, at least. Why’d you hit him?”

  Josh folded his arms. “I don’t have to tell you.”

  “No, that’s true. But it might help your case if you tell us why.”

  “It’s not going to help me to tell you anything. You haven’t even got anything to do with my assault. You’re investigating my mother, not me. I’m done talking to you.”

  “Fair enough.” Stocky stood, and Cooper followed. “Stay here. MacIntosh and McGuiness will be in to question you shortly.”

  Once they were clear of the room, Cooper turned to Stocky. “We just going to leave it at that with him?”

  Stocky shrugged. “I can’t see us getting anything more out of him right now. What do you think?”

  “You’re probably right. Weird reaction to his mother’s death.”

  “Yeah. We’re not done with him yet. Let’s leave him to the Macs for the moment. We’ll catch up with him later.”

  Stocky picked up a nearby wall-mounted phone and made a few enquiries, while Cooper leaned against the wall and contemplated the case. They had a dead wife and mother, a husband who had a dodgy alibi and anger issues but looked genuinely distressed about his wife’s death, a compliant daughter who seems to know more about her mother’s movements than anyone else in the family, and a delinquent son who may or may not give a shit that his mother is dead. Then there was the friend she hadn’t seen for weeks, and the friend’s husband, with whom she was having an affair. Where did they go next?

  Stocky hung up the phone, so Cooper asked the question.

  The answer came with another trademark Stocky shoulder shrug. “Royce Gilmore’s in interview room two. Let’s go and ask him about his wife and Jack Payne.”

  * * *

  “What’s happening with my son?” Royce asked as soon as they entered the room. “I need to see him. He needs to know about his mother. You can’t keep me in here. I haven’t done anything wrong.” Royce pushed back the chair he was sitting in, the legs scraping loudly across the floor. He made it to the door, but Cooper blocked it.

  “I think you’d better sit down, Royce. Josh is fine. He’s being interviewed about the alleged assault this afternoon, and he’s stated quite clearly that he doesn’t want you in there with him.”

  “It’s not up to him.”

  “I’m afraid it is, Royce,” said Cooper. Stocky, who hadn’t said anything at this point, placed his folder on the table and took a seat. Cooper guided Royce back to his chair before sitting next to Stocky. “He’s nineteen years old, legally an adult. He doesn’t need you present.”

  “He wants to handle this on his own,” Stocky added.

  Royce sighed and leaned back in his chair. He looked tired, Cooper thought. Not really surprising.

  “What about his mother? Does… does he know?”

  “We’ve told him, yes,” said Stocky.

  “How did he take it?”

  “He’s doing okay. Let’s leave Josh to the other officers, for now. I need to talk to you about Rebecca.”

  Royce’s eyes widened. “Have you found something? Do you know who did this?”

  “No, not yet. But we’ve been told that she was having an affair. Do you know anything about this?”
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  Cooper enjoyed watching Stocky take the lead in suspect interviews. He always seemed to know exactly the right thing to say to push people’s buttons. He knew when to be aggressive, and when to hold back. And he knew when to play it straight, like he was doing with Royce Gilmore now.

  “Rebecca? Having an affair? Are you serious?” The look on Royce’s face was one of disbelief. He seemed to find the idea almost laughable. This didn’t fit with Carmel Payne’s account at all.

  Stocky obviously had the same thought. “We were told you found out about the affair yesterday. Are you telling me that’s not true?”

  “Of course it’s not true. It’s not true because there was no affair. I’d know if my wife was screwing around on me, mate. And she wasn’t. Not Rebecca. No way.” Royce folded his arms, as if he’d just had the last word on the matter. Then he changed his mind, unfolded them, and leaned forward. “Who with?”

  “You really don’t know?”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about. But if you’re so sure she was doing this, then you must know who it was. Who was she supposedly sleeping with behind my back?”

  “Jack Payne.”

  Royce laughed so loud Cooper jumped in his chair. He looked over at Stocky, who was trying to suppress a smile; this interview was not going as they’d expected.

  “Jack Payne? Are you serious? She doesn’t even like that guy. And he’s totally pussy-whipped by that wife of his. Carmel. No way the two of them would be getting it on behind our backs. No way.” He shook his head emphatically. “You’ve got your facts all wrong there, mate.”

  “Jack’s admitted it, Royce. And Carmel told us she’d come to see you on a building site yesterday specifically to tell you about it. She said you had a right to know. Did she come and see you yesterday, Royce?”

  “Well, yeah, she did actually. But not to spin some garbage about an affair. She wants some rewiring done on a house they own, asked me to come round and give her a quote. I said I would, but not until next week. That’s it, that’s all we talked about. She didn’t even mention Jack at all.”