Presumed Missing

by Fiona Tarr

‘Yes. I’m fine. Two murdered girls, that’s not good. How long ago? Are we sure they are connected?’

  ‘I don’t know yet and no, we certainly haven’t made any viable connection so far. I’ll be speaking with the lead detective tomorrow. With any luck, we’ll have access to the girl’s phone too.’

  ‘How are they going with that? I can get Scott to help if you need him. He’s brilliant.’

  ‘Techs should be good. Penny, that’s our forensic scientist, she said they have a few options to getting in. The first and most common is guessing the password via the obvious stuff.’

  ‘Like birthday, dog names, that kind of thing you mean?’ Liz pushed a plate in front of Jack and pulled out cutlery, which she passed across the counter to him.

  ‘Exactly. In fact, I wondered if you might be able to quiz Mrs Richardson?’ Liz stopped the running water and finished dishing up her meal.

  ‘Sure. She’ll be devastated we have found the phone and not Gemma though.’

  ‘I know, but I thought you should talk to her, since you have a rapport.’ Liz nodded as she moved around the counter with her meal.

  ‘If guessing the code fails, they use some sort of debug software and I don’t really understand it, but they can access an internal file on the phone. Apparently, the pattern used to open the key pad is stored in the memory files somewhere and they can access it, but it takes a while.’

  ‘So, fingers crossed Mrs Richardson can help decode Gemma’s phone lock?’

  ‘Exactly.’ Jack waited politely for Liz to take a seat.

  ‘Forget those private school boy manners and hoe in Jack. Don’t let it get cold.’ He smiled and began cutting his chicken without further encouragement.

  ‘Hmmm. This is delicious,’ the words barely audible over his full mouth. ‘Thanks.’ He suddenly looked at Liz with a strange expression. ‘I haven’t had a home cooked meal like this for....I don’t know how long.’ He returned his attention to the food.

  ‘My pleasure. Thanks for letting me tag along on this investigation. I realise it isn’t standard procedure.’

  Jack looked over, his laden fork hovering in front of his mouth, his lips open, ready to receive. Liz knew what he was thinking. Tough Liz, actually saying thank you. But she felt like she owed it to him, somehow. Without him, she’d have been kicked off the case the moment it went to Major Crimes and she knew it.

  Jack put his fork down and placed his hand gently on Liz’s arm. ‘I might get my arse handed to me in a sling if the Chief finds out, but your insight could help save these girls. If we are dealing with a sexual predator and from my quick review of the other cases interstate, we probably are, then your connections might be invaluable.’

  It wasn’t exactly what Liz had hoped for, but she didn’t want to be beholding to anyone. A business arrangement. It suited her really. She tapped his hand, lifted her own fork and began eating before she could say anything stupid.

  19

  Liz pressed the button on her blinds, that slowly rose to reveal a drizzly rain and less than welcoming daylight. She sighed and rolled over, the temptation to pull the covers up almost won out but she suddenly thought about Jack’s information from last night and realised, rest wasn’t an option. Gemma and Belinda needed someone to find them and if Jack was right and some sort of predator was involved, then she might just know where to start looking for connections.

  Visions of her mother’s boyfriend popped into her head. The feeling of his rough, calloused hands on her thighs. The smell of beer on his breath. The threat not to cry out or he’d tell her mother she came on to him. She shivered considering what those girls might be enduring if a sexual predator had abducted them.

  She checked her phone before jumping out of bed and heading for the bathroom. The marble floor was heated and Liz smiled as she tip-toed to the loo after setting the hot water running. The thick glass screen on her shower began to fog up even before she flushed. She flicked the fan and heat light on before jumping in and purging her negativity.

  Fifteen minutes later she was dressed, a touch of lipstick and blush, just enough to make the autumn grey outside not suck the colour out of her cheeks. Liz flicked the coffee machine on before opening her laptop. She checked her emails and diary for up-and-coming appointments or any important messages. Her PI work was taking priority now, but she couldn’t drop the ball on her escort work. Some of her regulars were the only reason she could run her business since Jack’s cousin had killed her friend and his father had sent a goon to kill her.

  Connections in high places were important and if she was going to continue using her escort work to sniff out information to help in her or Jack’s cases, then she needed to keep her clients happy.

  Paedophiles and those who exploited women were not clients she encouraged, but some of her customers had vices that her girls couldn’t fulfil. They’d been black listed from her agency, but that didn’t mean Liz didn’t know who they were or how to contact them. And then there were others, nothing to do with her agency, like Les. Liz clicked on her contact list and scrolled through before pressing the call button.

  ‘Les.’

  There was silence and Liz could feel the tension in the man’s voice. ‘Liz?’

  ‘I need a favour.’ More silence. ‘You owe me one Les.’ A deep sigh followed by a muffled sound as Les covered the receiver and moved into another room.

  ‘Look, I thought we were done.’

  ‘We will never be done Les. You are a deviate and you and I both know it.’

  ‘What do you want?’ Liz heard a woman’s voice and the sound of thumping on a door. ‘Not now Carol. I’m busy.’ The woman yelled louder but the sound of thumping stopped and silence was slowly restored.

  ‘Seen any unsuitable movies lately? Local stuff?’

  ‘I don’t do that anymore Liz.’

  ‘Sure you don’t Les. You like teenage girls way too much to just stop, just like that. Does Carol have a daughter?’

  ‘Fuck’s sake Liz. You were the only one.’

  ‘Don’t give me that shit. Local footage. I’m texting you a few photos of two girls. Tell me if you’ve seen anything or that phone conversation I recorded goes to my new friend Detective Cunningham. Look him up Les.’ Liz hung up, her skin crawling at the sound of the man’s voice. The first time had been agony. She’d cried herself to sleep, but by the tenth time she knew she had to run. Somehow she felt like she might still be running.

  She resisted the urge to have another shower, instead, Liz checked her next line of enquiry. If these girls were taken by a predator, there was a chance he was just keeping them for his own amusement, but something Jack had said about the interstate cases made Liz wonder if he was using them to make money, not for his own enjoyment.

  She knew at least a handful of her agency clients who moved in the circles where pretty young girls might be used and abused. She clicked a new email message open and began seeing if she could get the invite she needed.

  Liz sent the email and got up to get her morning coffee. She sent Max a text about a new case she needed him to follow up for the morning and then arranged to meet him at her favourite cafe for a late breakfast and update on what Jones got up to last night.

  The thumbs up emoji arrived quickly and Liz smiled. She knew he was doing it to stir her up, but it was becoming endearing, rather than annoying. Thinking of Max made her remember Jackie. The coffee machine finished and Liz took her drink to the counter. The rain was hitting the windows on her patio at a forty-five-degree angle. There would be no sunshine today.

  Liz took a sip of her coffee and let the aroma wake her up as the caffeine hit the system. She opened the screen on her mobile and tapped in Jackie’s number. The rings went for too long and Liz felt her heart sinking. A second before she hung up, Jackie’s voice came on line.

  ‘Hello Liz.’ She sounded breathless, like she’d run to grab the phone. Liz breathed deeply, her pulse slowing, her heart warming.

  ‘Hi honey. How are yo
u doing?’

  ‘Alright. I’m glad you called. I think Mum has settled down enough for us to catch up, if it’s okay with you.’

  Liz almost giggled like a school girl but contained herself. ‘I’d like that. I was planning a shopping spree, if you like the idea? I need some new clothes for my new business. You can imagine my current wardrobe doesn’t exactly say PI.’

  Jackie laughed and Liz felt relief like nothing she’d felt before in her life. ‘Sounds good. When?’

  ‘Are you free this afternoon? If not, tomorrow?’

  ‘This afternoon sounds good. I’ll pick you up at yours.’

  ‘Great. Two okay?’

  ‘Two it is.’

  ‘See you then,’ Liz didn’t want the conversation to end. She needed to say more but over the phone wasn’t the right place for it. Over dinner maybe. The phone went dead and Liz held it to her chest for a few seconds before jumping from her seat and doing a little bum dance; not usually one for overexcitement, but this was special. This was her daughter and she didn’t hate her for her career choices.

  Liz took another sip of her coffee, moved to the fridge and opened it, staring into the coolness without really seeing anything. Her mind wandered to her afternoon with Jackie. Where they’d shop, where they’d eat, what they’d talk about.

  Her email pinged just as the door of the fridge began to protest about being held open. Liz grabbed the yoghurt, the strawberries, a kiwi fruit and closed the door. She opened a drawer and took out a bowl, then another drawer for a knife and spoon. Another email pinged as Liz scooped yoghurt onto the fruit she’d sliced.

  She sat back down to eat her breakfast, opening the last email that had come in. Her contact was good to go. He accepted she had two clients. Reminded her of the need for discretion and sent her the location, her arrival times and seat allocation.

  These events were organised in such a way that participants never met each other. Only the hosts or hostesses knew the clients. Liz didn’t like the idea of being involved in this type of show, but needs must. On one hand, she hoped Gemma and Belinda weren’t going to be there, but on the other, if they were, at least she’d know who to rescue them from.

  It had been years since she’d attended this type of event. She hoped Jack wouldn’t distance himself once he knew more of her history. Her Madam, from all those years ago had tended to service all sorts of fetishes, regardless of any moral or social codes.

  Liz understood that predators like her mum’s boyfriend Les were broken and that if they were provided with a release, under controlled circumstances, then maybe that was better than preying on unsuspecting, innocent girls.

  But the less rational part of her wanted to castrate them all. These events were usually hosted with over-aged girls that looked young and could play young, but there were less than scrupulous outfits that drugged girls and dragged them along for rich and powerful men and women to take advantage of.

  Liz suddenly wondered about the wisdom of her plan. Would Jack keep his cool and play the role he needed to?

  20

  ‘What we got?’ Jenny saw Jack tapping keys on his computer as she put her coat over the back of her chair and pulled out the bottom drawer of her desk to place her handbag inside. She shoved it shut with her foot and locked it.

  ‘Footage from the burger bar and ATM.’

  ‘Ooooh. Anything stuck out yet?’

  ‘I’ve only just started on it. Can you follow up with the techs and see if they’ve found anything?’

  ‘Sure.’ Jenny sat down, picked up the office phone and punched a few numbers, drumming her fingers on her desk as she waited. ‘Pen. It’s Jen.’ Jack smiled at the shortening of the names. It was an Aussie thing to shorten everyone’s name as much as possible, but Pen and Jen was particularly amusing.

  Jack could hear Penny’s bubbly voice but not make out the words. Jenny listened a moment and then spoke. ‘Tell him to suck it up Pen. He’s not worth it, that’s what I say.’

  More background noise of Penny’s voice, then it trailed off. ‘I’m chasing any update on the girl’s mobile? Did you get in? Aha. Yep, oh shit! Can you email it over?’

  Jack guessed Penny could because Jenny smiled and said her goodbyes before hanging up. Jack waited for the update, his eyes now on the detective.

  ‘They got in.’

  ‘That was quick. Liz would have only called the mother last night.’

  ‘No idea how Penny got the details, but apparently, her code was her dog’s name.’

  ‘Did she have a dog?’

  ‘Well the screen saver had a dog on it, but the dog’s dead now. Mrs Richardson said Gemma was pretty broken up when they had to put her down.’

  ‘What did Penny find?’

  ‘Photos. Gemma and Belinda, in their underwear.’

  ‘Damn!’

  ‘The techs are trying to work out if the girls uploaded them to any particular site or emailed them to someone.’

  ‘Well this might help.’ Jenny moved around the desk and peered over Jack’s shoulder. The screen wasn’t great quality, but they could clearly see the two girls huddled in a booth, talking with their mobile phones in hand.

  ‘Using the Wi-Fi?’

  ‘That’s my guess.’

  ‘The techs said Gemma did a good job of scrubbing her phone history but she didn’t delete the phones for some reason?’

  ‘Strange.’

  ‘I thought so too. Can they track the router history at the café?’

  ‘I might ask Liz to see if her tech guy can track that one down. Getting a warrant to access the burger bar router might be hard. With so many kids using the place, it won’t be easy.’

  ‘Surely a judge will issue a warrant based on the evidence we have so far? Missing girls? Phones with sexy images?’

  ‘I’m not so sure. Liz’s guy can speed it up. If we need to produce the evidence in court, we can get a warrant later.’

  ‘If you say so.’ Jack could hear the concern in Jenny’s voice but this case was getting to him. He could feel it. The girls were running out of time and stuffing around with warrants when the information could lead them straight to the kidnappers was a waste of time. The chances of needing the router history in court was unlikely if they found the girls. There would be other evidence to link them to their abductor. Of that he was sure.

  Jack pulled out his mobile phone and speed-dialled Liz. It had taken a while, but he’d dedicated #2 on his keypad to her.

  ‘Hey Jack, any news?’

  ‘A bit.’ He explained about the photos. Liz swore, but he carried on. He asked her if Scott could do a little digging and she agreed.

  ‘I’ll contact him now. He’ll need to be on site, but I’m sure he can get in there late today. What day and time is he looking for?’

  ‘The time stamp I have here is Tuesday 20th March. I’m not sure they didn’t upload the photos on a different day though.’

  ‘I think he might need the device details. What phone did Gemma have? Model, that type of thing?’

  Jack heard Liz taking notes on a scrap of paper and grinned at the thought, recalling their first meeting and his use of paper, her use of technology.

  ‘I have an event that needs you to attend, undercover.’

  ‘Undercover?’ Jenny looked up as Jack spoke, her eyebrows rose in question, but Jack ignored her.

  ‘You’ll need a good suit, what size are you?’

  ‘Suit?’ Jenny was grinning now and Jack turned around so she couldn’t eavesdrop so easily.

  ‘I’ll explain later. I’m meeting Max at eleven at the café. Bring Jenny if you want. I’ll explain everything.’

  ‘I don’t know Liz. You have a habit of getting in too deep with this kind of stuff. What’s the plan?’

  ‘I’ll be fine Jack, it’s you I’m worried about. How much undercover work have you really done?’ He could hear the smile in her voice and tried not to bite, but he knew he wasn’t successful.

  ‘I’ve done plenty o
f undercover work Liz, way more than you’ve ever done.’

  ‘I find that hard to believe. My whole life has been undercover work Jack.’ The phone went dead before Jack could come up with a retort. Too bad if he wasn’t free to meet.

  Jenny was still grinning when Jack turned back around and put his phone in his pocket.

  ****

  Max was already shovelling food in his mouth when Liz arrived. A huge plate of Eggs Benedict with bacon and salmon sat half devoured before him. Nino approached and pulled out her chair.

  ‘Your usual Signorina?’

  ‘Yes please Nino.’ He moved away and Max began to speak, his mouth still full.

  ‘Is Jack coming?’ The words were muffled before he closed his mouth and sucked air through his nose, his cheeks bulging as he tried to manipulate the food around his mouth.

  Eleven was the ideal time to grab a bite at the café. Not yet lunch and too late for morning tea, the café was nearly empty. The southerly was howling outside and the drizzle hadn’t let up. The outside chairs were stacked under the awning. There would be no outside dining today.

  In the back corner, two businessmen sat, one holding a tablet, the other huddled over so he could see the presentation. On the other side, a young couple sat holding hands over a small round table, their conversation quiet, their smiles speaking volumes.

  ‘I have an undercover event for you to attend, with Jack.’ Max’s full mouth stopped chewing, his loaded fork hovering in front of his mouth. He swallowed hard.

  ‘What undercover?’

  ‘I’ll explain it when Jack gets here. I don’t want to have this debate more than once.’

  The fork was still loaded and waiting. ‘That bad?’

  ‘Let’s just say I need Jenny here to back me up.’

  ‘Why do you think a junior detective is going to support you?’ The mouth opened; another huge fork-load entered. The gorged chewing began anew.

  ‘Because I get the feeling Jenny hasn’t done much undercover work yet and I have a role for her to play too.’

  As Nino arrived with her order, Jack and Jenny entered the café. They pulled out seats between Liz and Max in unison.