‘Oliver Johnson.’ Why a returned serviceman wouldn’t live in the Bend remained a mystery.
‘Are you local?’
‘Yes. Taylor’s Bend.’
‘Never heard of it.’
‘It’s the nearest town.’
‘Johnson. Any relation to Francis? The doctor?’ He regarded Oliver briefly. ‘I guess that’s unlikely.’
For a fleeting moment Oliver considered saying no but the disdain on the man’s face sparked a little fire. ‘He’s my father.’
‘Is he? He’s my cardiologist. Good man.’ He looked at Oliver with renewed interest. ‘A vet. What are you doing in this godforsaken neck of the woods?’
‘I like it here.’ Oliver stood abruptly. ‘Excuse me, please.’ Why the hell did he admit to the connection? This bloke would undoubtedly mention the meeting next time he had his check-up which, judging by his appearance would be fairly soon, and they’d both get stuck into the disappointing, inexplicable folly of the son for choosing such a life, town and profession.
Seething, he headed for the terrace. One circuit of the garden for a last attempt at finding Krista and he was off. He’d rather spend his evening in the pub than here with these people. Why on earth had they invited him? Neither Hugh nor Krista had shown any interest in talking to him.
Glass in hand, he scanned the group seated under the nearest shade umbrellas then went down the steps on to the grass. A King Charles Spaniel wandered between the guests, looking up hopefully as it passed each group but being completely ignored. Brenda caught his eye and winked as he strolled by. He paused and she edged away from the people she was chatting with.
‘Excuse me, is Krista about somewhere?’ he asked.
She frowned. ‘Haven’t you seen her yet?’
‘No. I’m about to leave but didn’t want to without saying hello.’
‘Hugh wants to talk to you so make sure you see him before you go. I’ll nip up and see if Krista’s in her room.’
‘Thanks. Who owns the dog?’
‘Lola belongs to Viivi but she’s taken a liking to Krista this visit. Probably because she brings her outside whereas Viivi has a thing about dirt. Krista is minding her when Hugh and Viivi go overseas on Monday.’
‘Where are they going?’
‘Starting off with business in Tokyo and then skiing, also in Japan. I’m going too.’
‘Nice.’
‘Yes, but it’s work for me.’ She placed a light hand on his arm. ‘I’ll be back in a minute. Don’t go anywhere. Promise.’
‘Promise.’
Oliver hovered in the shade of a tree listening to the music. The waitress from indoors went by with a smile his way, which he returned, but no-one else gave him a second glance. Lola trotted up and sniffed at his shoes. He bent and patted her head.
‘Hello, Lola.’
She looked up and wagged her tail then resumed the exploration of the interesting smells on his shoes and trouser legs.
A few moment later Hugh strode by, looked his way and changed course. ‘How are you enjoying yourself? Got a drink? Good.’
Lola retreated behind Oliver’s legs, which was interesting given the dog belonged to his wife.
‘I’m fine, thanks.’ Still buoyed by annoyance, Oliver snatched his opportunity. ‘This afternoon I came out to see to Firebrand at the request of your stable manager. Two men were here when I was leaving, the ones who came to my practice and wanted to take Calypso Secret. They threatened Krista and me. I want you to make it quite clear to them I have nothing to do with this family or anything your son might be into.’
Hugh’s jaw tightened and he edged Oliver around to face away from the other guests. Lola scampered away, sensing the anger. ‘That is my son’s affair, not mine. You need to speak to him.’
‘I would but I don’t know him and no-one seems to know where he is. The first and last I saw of him he was being helped into an ambulance. Why were they here today?’ Oliver took a punt as it dawned on him that the car was a luxury model and the two men he recognised were waiting outside like the lackeys they were. ‘Did they bring their boss to speak to you?’
From the working of his jaw Hugh was grinding his teeth as he prepared his next disclaimer. He must have decided on truth, or part of it. ‘My son owes Stefan Moran money. Moran is a business acquaintance of mine so he came to discuss the matter with me.’
‘Right. All the way to Taylor’s Bend in a heatwave. Doesn’t he have a phone? I’m no genius but even I know that’s extremely unlikely unless it’s a very large amount of money and he wants you to know it’s personal.’
‘Tell him the truth, Hugh.’
Krista’s voice startled him, so intent had he been on trying to read her stepfather’s face. She’d come to stand beside him, elegant and beautiful in a long silver dress that shimmered in the late afternoon light. He caught her eyes and for a moment nothing else registered except the nearness of her, her scent and her cool composure. His brain emptied as though a plug had been pulled.
When Hugh said nothing she continued, speaking to Oliver. ‘Angus has a gambling problem and Hugh has finally stopped bailing him out. He was sent out here to keep him away from the Melbourne casinos and give him something to do.’
‘And it didn’t work?’ So she did know about the gambling but had kept that detail to herself.
‘No. He’s not here much according to Rod.’
‘How do you know?’ demanded Hugh.
She gave him a withering look. ‘Rod told me.’
‘He told me the same thing,’ said Oliver. ‘But it’s common knowledge in the Bend.’ Gossip but still, it wouldn’t hurt to ram the point home.
‘I think Angus owed so much money he couldn’t pay it back and tried to palm off Calypso as part payment.’
‘But it wasn’t the right horse.’ Oliver frowned. ‘You mean he tried to disguise Arch Rival and fool them? How stupid does he think they are?’
Krista said, ‘Moran told us Calypso was very valuable as a brood mare. I had no idea. And neither did you, did you, Hugh?’
‘She came as part of the deal when I bought The Grange. Rod said she was of very good bloodstock but we were more interested in the stallion.’
How nice to have so much money that a valuable horse was lumped in as ‘part of the deal’.
‘Why don’t you just give the man the horse?’ asked Oliver. Neither of them seemed to want her very much.
‘She’s mine,’ said Krista. ‘I’m not paying Angus’s debts.’
‘I don’t react to threats,’ stated Hugh.
‘You haven’t been threatened,’ said Oliver. ‘Krista has.’
‘And you too,’ said Krista. ‘He said today he doesn’t like to be lied to and we both lied to his men so we’re both accountable.’
‘This whole thing has nothing to do with me.’ Indignant rage roared through Oliver’s body. ‘This is your family we’re talking about.’ He glared at Hugh. ‘So fix it or I’m going to the police.’
‘And tell them what?’ snarled Hugh.
‘Everything.’
He gave a mirthless laugh. ‘Meaning nothing. Moran is smarter than you and he’s entirely ruthless where his money and his honour are concerned. He hasn’t done anything yet.’
‘So what happens? Are you going to ignore those threats against us?’
‘Moran won’t touch me.’
‘He included you, Hugh, in case you’ve forgotten,’ said Krista. ‘He made it clear that with Angus missing, he holds the family responsible for the debt, that’s why he came to see you.’
‘Where the hell is he, your son?’ asked Oliver. ‘You must have some idea.’
But Hugh shook his head. ‘I don’t. If I did I’d wring his useless neck.’
‘I do,’ said Krista. ‘He was in my apartment in Melbourne. He stole my key.’
Chapter 7
‘How do you know that?’ demanded Hugh. ‘You could have lost the key yourself.’
‘He called me.
’ She looked at Oliver. ‘That’s why I wasn’t down here to meet you. Sorry.’
‘What else did he say?’ Oliver asked, relief that she hadn’t deliberately avoided him moving through his body like sweet honey.
‘He’s flying out of the country, I think. He’d be in the air now. He called from the airport and I heard an announcement in the background about Auckland so it must have been the international terminal.’
‘Where’s he going? It wouldn’t be Auckland.’ Hugh’s voice grated with fury.
‘He wouldn’t tell me. He said he’s posting my keys to me.’ She bit at her lower lip. ‘You have to pay Moran off, Hugh.’
‘I do not. I’ll tell him Angus has left the country.’
‘Why aren’t you worried about what he’ll do?’ Oliver asked slowly. The man was angry but it was directed at Angus and it wasn’t fear driven, as far as he could tell.
‘He wouldn’t dare do anything.’
‘Why?’
‘That’s none of your business. If you’ll excuse me, I have guests to attend to, and your mother is giving me the evil eye, Krista. As usual.’
He strode away.
‘Christ! Where does that leave us?’ Oliver exhaled in exasperation. ‘What a total crock.’
Krista touched his arm. ‘I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault you got involved.’ Her voice wobbled.
He moderated his tone. ‘Hey, it’s not your fault at all. The police called me to the accident, not you, and your brother started the whole thing and wouldn’t lift a finger to sort it out.’
‘You’re being very kind but you know that’s not strictly true. You stuck up for me when those men came.’
He gave a little snort of derision. ‘And look how that worked out. Fat help I was. It made things way worse.’
‘Not really. You were in the right, and I still have my horse.’
Oliver smiled. ‘Thanks. You should leave here, you know.’
‘I have to stay until my keys turn up.’
‘No, you don’t. You have your car, you can go anywhere. Hide out in Cairns or somewhere. Rod can send the keys on or keep them here until this thing is sorted.’
‘And leave you to face them?’
‘They’re not interested in me, not really. They’d know Hugh wouldn’t give a damn what happens to the local vet so I’m not much of a lever for them. Not like you are. If they come around again I can always tell Rupe what’s going on.’
She sighed. A waiter wandered by with drinks and she flagged him down and took champagne. Oliver replaced his beer.
‘I wonder what your stepfather meant when he said Moran wouldn’t dare touch him.’
‘He said earlier when I met him that Moran was a business associate.’
‘What sort of business?’
‘No idea but Hugh’s involved in lots of things. All sorts.’
‘Illegal things?’
She hesitated. ‘I’m not sure. He probably has some close calls but straight-out illegal? I think it’d be too risky.’
‘But he’s an associate of Moran and he’s clearly a crook—or has a very weird way of doing business.’
‘He has legitimate businesses as well. His casinos, for example.’
‘And what else, I wonder? Do you think he imports drugs or something?’ How much did she know?
‘Maybe. Indirectly. It’d be at arm’s length if he did.’
‘So Hugh might know some choice details.’
‘Possibly, but Moran didn’t sound to me as though he was treading carefully around Hugh.’
‘Could have been a front. And he is owed money.’ Oliver glanced at the assembled guests. ‘I wonder if any of these people are involved as well.’
‘I wouldn’t trust Felix Schwartz as far I could kick him.’ She almost snarled.
He looked at her, surprised by the vehemence. ‘Who’s he?’
‘My mother’s best friend Gwen’s husband. He’s a total sleaze.’ She surveyed the garden. ‘He’s over there. Cream pants, green shirt. Bald, big nose. Can’t keep his hands to himself.’
Oliver looked where she indicated. The man appeared harmless enough, but then he himself wasn’t an attractive young woman and highly unlikely to be a target. He changed the subject.
‘I’ve met your friend Lola. She likes my shoes. Interesting smells.’
Krista smiled, as he’d hoped. ‘I’m looking after her while they’re away.’
‘Will you stay here?’
‘Yes, I think so. I don’t fancy being on the run and I don’t see why I should be. It might be the safest thing.’
‘So you trust Hugh’s word?’
‘He must have some sort of business arrangement that Moran relies on. Hugh has a lot of influence both financially and politically.’
‘You mean he could organise a boycott, or get a government investigation or something into Moran’s affairs?’
Krista shrugged. ‘He’s done it before with business rivals. He has a controlling share in one of the main media outlets and plenty of friends in radio and TV, not to mention politician mates.’
Oliver shook his head. ‘Way beyond me.’
‘Me too, but like him or not, Hugh does know what he’s doing and he’s as ruthless as Moran. You have to be to survive at that level.’
Oliver studied the woman standing beside him. She came from that same world but she spoke as if she were an outsider, even though she was a beneficiary of the ruthless pursuit of money and power, of her mother’s single-mindedness as much as Hugh’s.
‘What do you do, Krista? Do you work?’ He almost added, ‘Do you need to?’ but that would be a jibe too far, considering she was already upset.
‘Not at the moment. I’m between jobs.’ Something about her tone and the way her gaze slipped away as she answered made him doubt her. Was she embarrassed about saying she didn’t have to lift a finger to support herself?
‘What did you do before?’
‘I was a PA but I …’ She drained her glass, ran her tongue over her lips. Nervous, not seductive.
‘Didn’t like it? Quit?’
‘Got fired.’
‘Really? Why?’ Why would anyone fire her? She was intelligent, articulate, probably spoke a few languages and he imagined would do her best in whatever work she did. ‘I thought it was quite difficult to fire people these days. Without a very good reason, I mean, like doing something criminal.’
‘Not if you’ve only been hired as a favour to your mother.’ She glared at him. ‘I wouldn’t sleep with the guy I worked for. He’s here tonight with his wife. Shall I introduce you?’
‘No thank you. Unless you want me to cause a scene.’
She held a breath for a moment then exhaled slowly. ‘It’s not the first job I’ve lost, although I quit the one before.’
‘Same reason?’
She nodded, then smiled. ‘Would you cause a scene?’
‘No. I wouldn’t want to embarrass his poor wife. How can these blokes still do that? Haven’t they heard of Me Too?’
‘They’re rich and they’re the boss. Rules don’t apply to them.’ She pushed a strand of hair from her brow. ‘They think because I look the way I do I’m fair game, and I’m also expendable. My jobs are always a favour to my mother.’ Her lip curled. ‘Why are men like that?’
Oliver quailed under her bitter focus. ‘I’m not and I know plenty of other men who aren’t.’ Was his father the type of man she despised? He had no idea. Their paths rarely crossed now he was an adult.
‘That’s what Brenda said.’ The set of her mouth indicated she was doubtful about the judgement.
‘She’s right.’
In the silence that followed, Oliver digested the other piece of information she’d let loose. A favour to her mother? Didn’t Krista have any ambitions of her own?
‘Maybe you need to look for a different type of job,’ he said.
‘I can’t do anything else.’ She gave a little snuffle of laughter which sounded perilously clo
se to a sob. ‘I’m apparently not even very good at what I do. That was the official reason I was sacked. I wasn’t efficient and made too many mistakes.’
‘What did you have to do? I mean, what does a PA do?’
‘I arranged travel—flights, hotels and things like that. Booked restaurants. Made appointments, organised his diary. Collected dry-cleaning. Made coffee. Sent flowers to his girlfriends. Bought gifts. Looked decorative for clients at social functions. Other people did more important things.’
‘I’m sure you’d be very good at all of that.’
‘I thought I was until he added in the extracurricular activities.’
‘Did you report any of this?’
‘Who to? His wife?’
‘Surely there was someone or some department in the business …’
‘Maybe, but it was easier to leave. I’m never the most popular person in the office. It would have been very … messy.’ She glanced over to where her mother had begun chatting to the slimeball in question. ‘I didn’t want to work there anymore.’
‘You should tell your mother.’
‘She thinks that’s what women have to do if they want any sort of security.’
Oliver had no response to that. He’d thought his family was bad but he had no sisters for comparison and his older brother, Julian, although very charming and popular, remained unmarried by choice after a disastrous affair. Unencumbered by a permanent woman—as he put it—he was a fast-rising star in the criminal law courts.
‘Why were you here earlier?’ she asked when the silence had stretched almost to discomfort. ‘When Moran saw you.’
‘Rod called me. Firebrand has a cold.’
She nodded. ‘He and Amy do all the work around here. They love the place.’
‘And no-one else does?’
‘It was a whim for Hugh. He’ll sell it soon, I think. Angus hates it. Mama hates it.’
‘And you?’
‘This is my third visit and the longest.’
‘You’ve only been here three days.’
She smiled. ‘I might stay longer this time.’ Her mouth drooped. ‘Actually, I have to. I can’t go home until my keys turn up. If they ever do.’
‘Won’t Angus have sent them?’
‘Who knows? He said he had but that would involve thinking, and acting on behalf of someone else.’
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