‘Now, son, you’re assuming things again. What about the charge “stealing as a servant”? There’re always plenty of employees who steal from their employers. Surely in the time we’ve been working together I’ve taught you not to assume.’

  Dave flushed as he realised Bob was right. Spencer had also cautioned him against thinking that way.

  John came back into the room, with three photos in his hand and a pair of silver-rimmed glasses perched on the end of his nose. ‘These are the cattle you’ll need to look for. Herefords. Not Shorthorns or Brahmans or any other breed. Good old-fashioned Herefords.’

  ‘No trouble with eye cancers here?’ Bob asked as he reached out for the photos. Herefords were notorious for it because of the white skin around their eyes.

  ‘All you gotta do is keep on top of ’em, for sure. See ’em start early and cut ’em out or burn ’em off.’

  Bob nodded. ‘Ear mark and brand?’

  John slid another piece of paper across. A shaky hand had drawn an ear with the ear mark in it and written down a brand. As in Western Australia, it started with a number and was followed by two letters. Dave jotted it down in his book and made a note to ring the local stock agents in the sale yards and see if any Herefords had been through recently.

  ‘And what stock agent do you use?’ he asked.

  ‘The ones with the green shirts. Always found them to be the best.’

  Bob drained his cup and got up to rinse it out at the sink. ‘Right, well, shall we go for a stickybeak and see what we can see?’

  John handled the plane smoothly, seeming as comfortable in the four-seater Cessna as Dave would guess he was on the back of a horse.

  ‘We’ll stay at one thousand feet so you can get an idea of the land,’ he said through the headphones both Bob and Dave were wearing.

  Dave looked out across the red and khaki landscape. Even though the country was undulating, from the air it looked flat and unyielding. Summertime out here would be hard for any animal. The lack of trees and shade made Dave shiver, but he knew the stock were accustomed to this environment. Stations out of Alice Springs in the harshest of climates ran Herefords without losses from heat stroke.

  They followed the road from the homestead, heading west.

  ‘Down here was where I found the first mob,’ John muttered into the microphone. ‘Tank and windmill all in good nick. About fifty on that bore.’

  Taking out his binoculars, Dave saw a small mob of cattle camped under the bushes and around the bore. Their tails were swishing and ears twitching; obviously the flies were feeling friendly today. A calf stood off to the side and although he couldn’t hear it, Dave could see its mouth open and the stomach contracting in and out as it called for its mother.

  Finally, a large cow got to her feet and went to it, sniffing down its body, while the calf quickly put its head under her rear end and found her udder.

  ‘See, here’s the boundary,’ John told them about ten minutes later. He angled the plane to fly along the fence line.

  Again, through the binoculars, Dave could see the fence was well maintained. Shouldn’t be any problems there.

  ‘How do you get along with the neighbours?’ he asked.

  ‘I haven’t met them yet,’ John said. ‘But George tells me there’s never been any trouble.’

  ‘And this Kendal fella, how long did he work here?’

  ‘Couple of years, I’m told. Plucked him out of a group of two. No other applications for the job. Hard to get good stockmen these days and there’re not too many who are happy to give up the comforts of farms closer to a town, or the air-conditioned tractor cabs. Told George when I heard about him that he wouldn’t last long, and now I’m here cleaning up his bloody mess.’

  Dave caught sight of the frown that crossed his face.

  ‘Why is it you who has to tidy this up?’ he asked.

  ‘I’m the go-to bloke. Been with George the longest. He trusts me.’

  Dave nodded and made another note in the book he had resting on his leg.

  Another long run down a boundary and a visit to three more bores and Bob indicated they’d seen enough.

  The landing was smooth despite the potholes in the strip. As they taxied to a stop, Dave put his binoculars away and notebook back in his pocket.

  ‘We’ll just grab that paperwork from you, John,’ Bob said as they got out and helped tie the plane down. ‘Then we’d better get back and have a yarn to some of the stockies.’

  ‘I’ve got it all in a box for you.’

  ‘Could we get the contact details for George, too?’

  ‘Yeah, I’ll write his phone number down. He’s got a … Whatcha call it? One of the computer thingies you can write to him.’

  ‘Email address,’ Dave said.

  ‘Don’t know why people want to do that. Better just to ring someone up and ask the question,’ John grumbled. ‘Won’t be long and no one will be talking to each other if they keep communicatin’ like that.’

  Dave hid a grin.

  ‘I know what you mean,’ Bob sympathised. ‘All the younger generation are in such a hurry. Don’t realise you catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Eyeballing people is a real good thing to do when you want to know something. You can read ’em that way. Can’t do that over the phone or by writing them an email.’ He looked at John as they walked across the stony ground towards the ute. ‘Don’t know about you, but it takes me an age to find the letters on the keyboard. I can ask more questions a lot quicker if I am talking to them and writing down the answers by hand rather than typing.’

  John laughed. ‘I don’t even try. See these?’ He held up his hand to show two crooked fingers, while the others had skin knocked off the knuckles and grease ingrained in them. ‘Don’t reckon they’d even fit on the keys, from what I’ve seen in the boss’s office.’

  This time Dave couldn’t help himself. He laughed aloud. ‘I don’t like them much myself. I always said I’d never let technology get in front of me, but unfortunately I think it has.’

  ‘You’re too young to let that happen, son,’ Bob chided.

  They clattered back to the homestead, where John passed them a large box. Dave could see invoices and tax returns inside.

  ‘Right, so we need to verify the stock existed, which hopefully all this paperwork will do. I can see that the place is pretty tired, but that doesn’t mean there’s been poor management. However, we have to negate that option, too. Really, for us it’s going to be about trawling through this information and coming back to you with any questions. So, we’ll be in touch.’

  John nodded.

  ‘Have you got any questions for us?’

  ‘Nah, just get in touch when you know something. I’ve got enough to do here for a few weeks.’

  ‘You’ll be the first to know,’ Dave said and held out his hand. ‘Good to meet you, John.’

  ‘Likewise.’

  Chapter 12

  Dave threw his bag on the bed of the motel and opened the fridge door in hope of a mini bar.

  ‘That’d be right,’ he muttered. Empty.

  The paint was peeling in one corner of the ceiling and the middle of the bed sagged. Still, the room was clean and warm, and for the next few nights it would be home.

  The pipes in the ceiling creaked and groaned as another visitor turned on the shower.

  Letting out a sigh, Dave collapsed on the bed, thinking he should have a shower, too—that it might wash away his anxiety about Mel and the kids.

  He’d been trying to talk to Mel for the past two days. His calls had gone straight through to voicemail, and he wasn’t sure if it was because she had the phone turned off, because she was avoiding him, or because they were in a remote out-of-range spot.

  The need to hear her voice was strong.

  He pulled his mobile from his top pocket and flipped it open to scroll for Mel’s number. His fingers were hovering over the keys, when he paused. Then, without thinking much more, he hit dial.

  Silence. Not even her voicemail this time. He took the phone away from his ear and looked at the service. Three bars. Should be enough to ring out.

  Dialling again, he finally heard it connect. Jerking upright, he took a breath and paced to the window to look out. The ring tone seemed to go for an age and he was sure the voicemail would kick in once more.

  ‘Hello?’

  Suddenly he felt as nervous as a high-school boy asking a girl out on a date for the first time. ‘Mel, hi. It’s me.’

  In the silence that stretched between them, Dave could hear seagulls screech and wind blow, muffled against the phone.

  ‘Where are you?’ he finally asked.

  The pause went on so long, he was about to ask if she was still there, when she said, ‘I can’t tell you, Dave. Dad’s asked me not to.’

  Volcanic rage coursed through Dave and before he could help himself, he spat out, ‘For god’s sake, Mel! It’s not me you have to be worried about. I’m still your husband. You don’t have to listen to everything your father says.’

  ‘Well, I’ve missed you too, Dave.’ Her words dripped with sarcasm and Dave silently cursed himself for losing his temper. ‘For your information, we’ve been on Dad’s friend’s yacht.’

  He paused as he took in the news and the white-hot rage that he felt evaporated to a burn. ‘Okay,’ he said carefully. ‘That’s good. You’ll see people coming if you’re out on the water. Whereabouts are you?’ He had to give it to Mark: that was a clever move.

  ‘I’m not to tell you, Dave. Dad has asked me not to tell anyone, I just said that.’

  He took a breath and silently exhaled. ‘Can you just tell me if you’re in Western Australia?’

  He could sense her relenting. ‘Yeah. We are.’

  ‘North?’

  ‘Yeah, up north.’

  ‘Well, sweetie, if I can’t find you, then no one else will.’ He paced the floor, ending back at the window. ‘If I had my way, I’d be there with you.’

  Outside, a dusty LandCruiser ute pulled up at the IGA supermarket and a tall well-built man got out. Dave paused for a moment, squinting at him, but he was distracted by Mel’s sad tone.

  ‘No, you wouldn’t. You won’t stop until you’ve found this bloke. Anyway, I said “we’ve been”, not “we are”. I was seasick; couldn’t bear the rocking and being tossed about.’

  ‘So, you’re not on the yacht now?’

  ‘I had to get somewhere that didn’t move. We’re in a resort now.’

  ‘And the kids?’

  ‘Are fine. Bec is enjoying the beach and sand. And Alice, well …’ Her voice trailed off and Dave could imagine her looking at the baby in the cot, stroking her hair. The pang of separation hurt so much he closed his eyes.

  Her voice brought him back. ‘She’s okay now that I’m not seasick. I didn’t have a lot of milk for a little while because I was vomiting. But that’s better now I’m on terra firma.’

  ‘Mel, I can’t help you unless you let me.’

  ‘You’re never home, so how would you help now? We’re managing.’ She sounded bemused.

  ‘I wanted to be with you, Mel. Surely you know that,’ he repeated. ‘I would be helping you with the kids if I could.’

  Mel scoffed quietly. ‘No, Dave, you’re in Barrabine, solving another crime. And if you weren’t there, Bob would have rung you, given you another case and you’d still have left. I’ve seen it all before.’

  ‘That’s unfair,’ Dave said, but the words sounded hollow even to him. She was right. He had done that. Every time Bob had called, he’d gone.

  But with good reason, Spencer’s voice came to him. Victims rely on the coppers they make contact with. That’s part of your job. And I’ve told you before about coppers’ wives and them trying to make us change.

  ‘Unfair?’ Mel countered. ‘Do you really think so? I asked you to leave the job when we moved to Barrabine and then again just recently. Our marriage has been about what you want rather than what we want, surely you have to see that, Dave? If you can’t …’ Mel let out a heavy breath.

  ‘Mel—’

  She interrupted him, her voice terse. ‘I meant what I said when I left, Dave. You have to make a choice when all this is over.’

  ‘Do you really think it’s fair to ask me to give up something I’ve worked for since I was kicked off the farm? Mel, Jesus, have you forgotten what it was like for me? To be told there wasn’t room for me on my own family’s property? I’ve explained all of this to you before! You know the stock squad is the perfect thing for me. I’ve wanted this for so long and you’ve always supported that. Well, I thought you did.’ He ran his hand through his hair and shook his head in disbelief. ‘And now you’re saying you’re not going to.’

  ‘But I didn’t know it was going to involve this sort of thing, Dave.’ Her voice was pleading. ‘Surely you can understand that I didn’t put my hand up for anything like this? I didn’t know that we’d be scared and having to hide away because of your work. And it’s not just that! Is it really fair for me and the children not to have you in our lives because you’re off busy saving someone else’s family … or someone has killed you? What about putting us first?’

  ‘For god’s sake,’ Dave muttered under his breath, but his words didn’t stop the pang of guilt that shot through his stomach.

  ‘You know, Dave, if I can’t have you, at least I’ve got your children. I’ve got a part of you that you can’t take away from me.’

  Dave shut his eyes as too many thoughts crowded in. Is that a threat? Do you want to take the kids away from me?You can’t do that! I have as much right to see them as you do, he thought.

  But really, he argued with himself, how do you think you’re going to manage looking after them with your work? Mel is their mother. You can’t take them away from her.

  Silence dragged out between them.

  ‘Yeah, I thought as much,’ Mel said eventually. ‘You’ve got nothing to say because you know I’m right. Go back and be the policeman and I’ll look after our children, and Dad will look after me.’ Mel hung up.

  Looking at the dead phone incredulously, Dave hit the button to call her back, but this time it went straight to voicemail.

  ‘Fuck!’ Dave let the word rip from deep inside him. He pushed the chair and it toppled backwards, hitting the desk. White-hot fury was exploding from him as he swiped at the desk, knocking the phone, pen and notebook to the floor. ‘You’ve got to be fucking joking.’

  The door opened after a brisk knock, and Dave ripped around, ready to tear whomever it was limb from limb. ‘Don’t fucking come in here without—’

  Bob stood in the doorway. ‘Didn’t go well, son?’ He eyed the damage. ‘You might want to calm down.’

  ‘I don’t want to talk about it,’ Dave snapped, looking at the mess he’d made.

  Raising his eyebrows, Bob said, ‘Really? Again?’ He was referring to a time when Dave refused to open up and talk about the troubles he had.

  Snatching up his wallet, Dave stormed past him. ‘Let’s get a beer and a feed. Spencer is supposed to be here tonight.’

  ‘Whatever you think you need, son,’ Bob said as he went inside, scooped Dave’s mobile from the floor and stood the chair up. He picked up the key to Dave’s room from the bed and pulled the door closed, making sure it was locked. ‘You might want this,’ he said, handing the key to Dave, who was standing under a tree with his arms folded, still breathing heavily.

  ‘Where does she get the right to issue ultimatums?’

  Bob started walking towards the pub.

  Dave caught up with him. ‘She knew. The whole time she’s known me, she knew that I wanted to be a copper on the stock squad. Now she’s saying that it’s either her or the police. I mean, where—’

  Bob stopped and put his hand on Dave’s shoulder. ‘There isn’t anything I can say that’s going to make this better, son. Plenty of us have been on the same island you’re on now. It’s isolating, frightening and unfair. And sometimes those women play mean. But you’re not Robinson Crusoe.’

  ‘You’re telling me! She threw in a comment about “I’ve got your children”! What the fuck is that all about? Has she already decided she’s leaving? That she’s going to shut me out and apply for full custody? Well, if that’s the case she’ll have another thing coming—I’ve got the right to have my children too.’

  Bob was quiet for a few moments, then he said, ‘It sounds like you’ve made your decision.’

  Dave swung around and looked at him. ‘What? What do you mean by that?’

  ‘Well …’ Bob kicked at the dust. ‘Well, son, you’re talking custody. That usually means a marriage break-up.’

  ‘I … ah …’ Dave frowned. ‘Nooo.’ He drew the word out as he thought. ‘No, it was just what she said. I was only reacting to that.’ He fell silent, then shook his head. ‘No, I haven’t made a decision. She might’ve, but I haven’t. I don’t want to have to. What I do want to do is to find Bulldust and eliminate his threat. Once that’s happened and she feels safe again, Mel mightn’t think this way anymore.’

  ‘Hmm, maybe.’

  ‘You don’t agree?’

  ‘No, son, I don’t. I am one hundred percent sure you’re going to have to make a choice. Mel won’t give you another option.’ He slapped Dave’s back sympathetically. ‘Rock and a hard place and all that.’

  Dave stared at him, willing him to say something different. But nothing came.

  ‘Look, here’s Spencer. Let’s get a beer.’

  Bob set off towards the short, stocky man in shorts and a shirt who was leaning against the door of the pub.

  ‘Good to see you, Spencer. How’re things?’ Bob said.

  ‘Excellent, excellent,’ Spencer replied before turning to Dave. ‘It’s good to see you, fella. You’re looking a bit wound-up there.’ He took off his hat and grinned at them both. ‘By god, it’s great to see you.’

  ‘Ah, he needs to get a few drinks into him,’ Bob said, taking out his wallet. ‘Bad phone call with the missus. Needs a distraction. Beer?’

  ‘Never say no to one of them,’ Spencer answered as they walked in. ‘Here, we’ll grab a table.’

 

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