The Shearer's Wife

by Fleur McDonald

  ‘You’re wrong, Kim.’ Jack broke in over the top of her. ‘She did do it. She accepted a parcel with the narcotics in it. I saw it with my own eyes. Essie did do this.’

  Leaning forward in her chair, Kim shook her head. ‘That’s not what I meant,’ she said earnestly. ‘Essie’s doing this for a reason, whatever that is. You and Dave need to look into whatever is making her do something so out of character, but she wouldn’t willingly have accepted that parcel.’

  Standing up, Jack paced the floor. ‘There’s a conflict of interest.’

  ‘How?’ Kim stood too and challenged him.

  ‘Because the arresting officer is your husband!’

  ‘No, he’s not. It was the AFP who arrested her and took her away. Dave just assisted in the raid.’

  ‘Jesus!’ Jack ran his hands through his hair and kept pacing. ‘Talk about a couple arguing. That’s what you’ll be doing when he gets home.’

  Kim stayed quiet, letting him think through the situation. She wasn’t going to change her mind, no matter what he threw at her.

  ‘Are you sure?’ He stopped in front of her, his hands on his hips.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Why? There’s got to be a reason behind this.’

  Kim shook her head. ‘No reason. I can see that someone badly needs help—help I can give. Give me the papers to sign, Jack. Let’s get Essie home and Paris back with her grandmother before the system upsets another little girl’s life.’

  ‘I’d rather you talked to Dave about this.’

  Giving her low throaty laugh, Kim said, ‘What, so he can have the same reaction as you? Look, Jack, let me worry about Dave. I’ve thought this through and there’s no changing my mind. Let’s just get on with it. I’ve got to get home and do some washing for Paris; try to get it dry before she comes home from school.’ She sat in the chair and waited.

  ‘Have you thought about what this might do to Dave?’

  ‘Nothing,’ she snorted. ‘He’s not involved in this at all.’

  Jack sat down heavily and sighed, but from the look on his face, she knew she’d won.

  Just for good measure she added, ‘Jack, this is coming from me. Kim Burrows. Not David Burrows. There won’t be any blowback.’

  ‘I’m not so sure about that, but I can see I’m not going to change your mind.’ He drew out a form from his desk and began filling in the details. ‘But by hell, Kim, make sure you tell Dave before he gets to Adelaide. Don’t let him walk into a shit fight when he gets down there.’

  ‘I’ll ring him once you’ve emailed the documents through. Maybe he’ll be able to bring her home with him.’ Kim smiled at the thought, but Jack didn’t smile with her.

  Half an hour later, Kim walked out of the Barker police station knowing plans were in motion to get Essie home. She dialled Dave’s number as she walked down the street, back towards her house. A strong gust of wind blew her scarf off her shoulder and she grabbed at it.

  ‘You’ve reached Dave Burrows from the Barker Police …’

  ‘Damn.’ As she finished fighting with her scarf she said into the phone, ‘Dave, it’s me. Can you give me a call?’

  She looked at the time as she ended the call: ten-thirty. Dave wouldn’t be in Adelaide yet, but he’d be close. Another trickle of anxiety ran through her. Jack was right—she really needed to tell him before he got there.

  Debating whether she should call again, she kept walking against the wind, her head down. Thankfully, her house was just around the corner.

  Her phone rang and she snatched it up without looking at the screen. ‘Dave?’

  ‘Hello? Is that Kim Burrows?’

  Kim took the phone away from her ear and looked at the caller ID.

  Unknown. Damn. Not Dave.

  ‘Yes,’ she said, putting the phone back to her ear.

  ‘Oh, good.’ The relief in the woman’s voice was clear. ‘You run Catering Angels, don’t you? My father has had a fall and is in hospital. I need someone to cook for my mum while he’s there.’

  ‘Sure,’ Kim answered. ‘Can you give me some details?’ As she spoke, she heard the ding of a message coming in. Taking the phone away from her ear again, she saw it was from Dave. ‘Actually, look, I’m just out in the street, in this shocking wind. Can you give me five minutes and I’ll call you back once I get inside?’

  ‘No problems. I’ll wait to hear from you.’

  Kim hung up and went straight to her call register, to hit Dave’s number. As she did, Dave’s name flashed up on her screen again, this time a text message:

  Hi honey, hope everything is okay. Just got to courts in Adelaide, so won’t be able to talk. Ring you on the way home.

  ‘Shit!’ Her stomach clenched as she read the words.

  Kim put the phone back in her handbag and felt around for her keys. She knew that she couldn’t explain adequately what she’d done in a text message, and so Dave was now walking into a situation that she’d caused. The bravado Kim had felt when convincing Jack slid away, replaced by nausea.

  Chapter 15

  Zara was outside the courthouse in Adelaide when she saw Dave walk up the steps. She knew she wasn’t supposed to be there, but the pull of the story had been too strong.

  She’d texted Lachie to let him know she was going to the hearing. Whatever is going on here is bigger than just her, I’m sure of it. I’m going down.

  Have you spoken to those pollies?

  Not yet. I’ll get you that story in time.

  She could imagine Lachie shaking his head but knew he wouldn’t stop her. Anyway, she had to do something to stop thinking about Jack.

  For days her fingers had hovered over her phone, wanting to call him. Then she would put the phone away; she couldn’t bear a rejection on top of everything else, even though she probably deserved it.

  Cars raced by, their tyres hissing on the wet streets. Under the balcony of the courthouse, Zara watched people hurry inside. Some were dressed in suits, carrying briefcases or pulling trollies with cardboard boxes full of files for the case they were defending or prosecuting. Others were dressed casually, fidgeting, smoking; some had headphones in and bounced in time to music no one else could hear. Everyone in the building was there for a trial in some way.

  Policemen and women came and went in their uniforms, giving evidence against criminals, Zara presumed, while the security guards checked the bags through the security scanner as everyone walked through.

  Zara sipped her coffee, wondering about her plan of attack. Getting inside wasn’t a problem; everyone, so long as they passed security, could walk through the front doors. She had covered trials here before and knew the layout; the issue would be finding Essie’s bail hearing and not letting Dave see her until she was ready.

  She watched Dave flash his badge at security and empty his pockets of his phone and other bits and pieces into the tray and then walk through the scanner.

  Zara followed at a distance and waited until he was out of sight before grabbing her bag from the conveyer and hoisting it onto her shoulder.

  She couldn’t see him amid the throng of people milling around outside the many courtroom doors lining the corridor. She quickly pushed through, trying to see Dave’s tall frame in front of her. As she rounded a corner, she saw him, straightening his suit and about to walk through a courtroom door. She saw his arm move forward to pushthe door when a man stepped up and brought his arm down on Dave’s.

  Zara took a sharp breath and pushed herself against the wall to hide herself. This was the man she’d seen in the Barker police station, she was sure, and he looked furious.

  Zara shifted forward a little while remaining close to the wall, trying to hear what they were saying. It didn’t take much because the man was speaking loudly—not loudly enough to bring security, but not far off.

  ‘You’ve got a bleeding heart, Dave,’ Zara heard the man say. ‘A Red Cross sticker on your arm.’

  ‘What the fuck?’ Dave stepped back and glared at the ma
n. ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘Like hell you don’t know. I can’t believe you’ve let her do this.’

  ‘I’ve got no idea what you’re talking about.’ Dave rounded on the man and towered over him. The fury radiating from him would have been enough to make most people walk away, but not this bloke. He took a step closer.

  Zara thought about getting her camera out but decided against it. Her heart was beating fast; she knew she was seeing something newsworthy, but there were too many problems with this.

  ‘See, this is the whole reason we wouldn’t tell you whose door we were going to knock on. The small-town syndrome. Too many of you know each other, like each other, drink together, and you’ll protect each other. Just. Like. Your. Wife. Is. Doing.’ With every word the man hit Dave’s chest with a sheaf of papers.

  ‘What the fuck are you talking about, Simms?’

  ‘We wanted to oppose bail. In fact, we tried to. Never mind all the evidence we have against Essie Carter. Three packages being delivered to her address. The fact she’s not providing any assistance in the investigation, which is a clear sign of guilt in my experience, and let’s not forget the fact she is a flight risk.’ The man stood in front of Dave, his arms crossed.

  ‘A flight risk? You’ve got no idea what you’re saying. Where’s she going to go other than home?’

  ‘Yeah, a flight risk. The only thing keeping that woman in Barker is her granddaughter. She has no one else. We can’t even track the daughter down—she’s probably dead in a pauper’s grave if your story is anything to go by.’ He took a breath. ‘But it turns out, despite everything we’ve got, someone decided to put up bail anyway.’

  Zara could see that Dave wanted to smile but was too angry. ‘Well, that’s good news as far as I’m concerned. Her age should have mitigated anything the judge imposed on her anyway. Obviously, I missed the good news. Nice you were here to give it to me.’

  Simms took another step forward and poked Dave in the chest again. ‘Yeah, great that she’s got bail.’ He let the words hang and Zara could see confusion cross Dave’s face.

  ‘Look here, Simms, I don’t know what you’re implying, but—’

  ‘Take a look at the paperwork, Burrows. I’m sure you’ll recognise the signature and the address of the asset put up for bail.’ The paperwork was slapped across Dave’s chest and left there until Dave put his hand up and took it.

  Zara watched as he took his glasses out of his pocket and read the paperwork, horror crossing his face before it was quickly masked again.

  ‘So,’ he shrugged, ‘what’s that got to do with me? If you did your research, Simms, you’d see that house is my wife’s. Not mine. It has nothing to do with me.’

  Simms gave a tight-lipped smile. ‘Maybe not, but you live with the woman who set bail. Surely you talk at night?’

  Dave said nothing.

  ‘Or perhaps you don’t. Since you don’t seem to know about this.’ He gave a taunting grimace ‘See, I feel that everyone in that police station is a little too close to people they shouldn’t be. Like that constable of yours and the journalist.’

  There was silence, and trepidation ran through Zara.

  ‘Oh, you think we didn’t know?’ Simms taunted. ‘We do more research before we make an arrest than you could ever imagine. I know when you take a shit!’

  Dave shrugged. ‘And so you might, but I told you earlier there was more to this case than what you were seeing. More than the package of drugs. Kim obviously thinks so too. That’s why she would have done this. She’s her own person and I never—hear me on this, Simms—never tell her what to do or influence her in any way.’

  ‘You’ll hear more about this, Burrows. It’s completely against all the ethics we as coppers stand for.’

  Dave laughed. ‘I don’t see how. I don’t own that house. It’s not my signature on the bail papers. Nothing leads back to me. Good luck in proving otherwise.’

  People kept pushing past Zara, obstructing her view. She knew there was no way Dave would want her seeing or hearing any of this, but she took another few steps closer anyway. She had to get the full story. By this point she wasn’t worried about being seen. Simms and Dave were so intent on each other, she knew they wouldn’t see anyone else. She was sure that if they could have grabbed each other by the throat, they would have.

  Surprisingly, Simms laughed and took a couple of steps back. He narrowed his eyes. ‘No, perhaps not. But I guess when I tell the judge that the person who signed the bail paperwork is your wife and is currently looking after the accused’s granddaughter in your house …’ He shrugged. ‘Hmm, who knows what the judge will think of that.’

  ‘I’d imagine not much. Everything is above board, which I’m starting to think is more than I can say for you and your boys, Simms. Your reaction to Essie’s bail has told me you know there’s more to this too. Which means—’ Zara watched Dave get in Simms’s face ‘—maybe Jack and I will have to investigate this case a little more.’

  Zara’s heart leaped as Dave smiled at Simms and drew himself up to his full height.

  ‘You just make sure you let me know if you’ve got a problem with us looking into Essie’s case, Simms, because if you do, I’m sure there’s no issue with what my wife has done.’

  Dave touched his finger to his forehead in a salute and, with another smile, side-stepped around Simms and walked towards Zara.

  ‘Shit!’ Zara tried to press back into the crowd and disappear, but she needn’t have worried; Dave stormed past her without a word or a look.

  Breathing a sigh of relief, she turned back to see Simms glowering at Dave’s retreating figure. She toyed with the idea of asking him for a quote, but after seeing the fury on Dave’s face as he walked by, she decided to follow him instead.

  Dave was outside now, his phone jammed to his ear.

  ‘How could you do that without talking to me?’ Dave roared. ‘We always talk about everything!’

  There was silence while, Zara assumed, Kim put her case forward, then Dave spoke again.

  ‘We’ll talk about this when I get home, but what you’ve done has put me in the spotlight. It’s one thing to care for Essie’s granddaughter but another completely to post bail. You and I know that you’ve done this off your own back. And Jack knows and Joan knows. But the people higher up, the commissioner, my boss, they don’t! They’ll think I sanctioned it.’

  Zara listened to his outburst with ever-increasing concern. He needed to calm down—he was an older bloke and she had a sudden vision of him dropping on the spot from a heart attack. She was sure her appearance wouldn’t help, though, so for now she stayed where she was.

  ‘Kim, let’s talk about this when I get home.’

  He shoved the phone into his pocket. Zara watched as he bought a bottle of water from the deli over the road and found a bench and sat down. Opening the top, he took a few sips.

  His chest was heaving and he wiped his brow. A few minutes later, seeming to have himself under control, he ran his fingers through his hair and glanced around before walking away from the courthouse.

  All Zara could do was watch.

  Chapter 16

  1980

  Kiz slammed another beer down.

  ‘Here we go boys, drink up. Only twenty minutes until closing time. Should be able to get another couple in before then.’

  ‘Thanking you, Kiz,’ Ian said, raising his glass.

  ‘Here’s to your kids, Paddy,’ Muzza said, raising his glass as well. That had been their toast for every drink that evening. ‘What time are you heading off in the morning?’ he asked, wiping the froth from his mouth.

  ‘Get up and get going, I guess,’ Ian answered. ‘Not much point in hanging around with Rose and the kids if they’re not coming with me. I’m pretty keen to get a move on anyway.’

  He took a drink and felt Kiz’s hand on his shoulder. ‘She would have only slowed you down, you know, Paddy. Best you leave her here.’

  Ian wanted to a
gree with him, but he didn’t. He wanted Rose alongside him as they drove. They both loved passing the time and kilometres singing the Irish songs he’d taught her. She told him Australian folk stories and he told her Irish ones.

  To be sure, this afternoon had showed him that the kids could be a pain, there was no doubting that, and he wasn’t sure how he would handle their incessant screaming.

  He’d had visions of coming to the house and being met with smiles and giggles from his son, not crying and them each feeding from his Rose.

  When he’d seen his daughter sucking on Rose’s nipple, the feeling of disgust had taken him by surprise. Ian had always loved Rose’s breasts, and to see a child at them had made him never want to touch them again. He wasn’t sure he wanted anything to do with her body at all.

  ‘I hear you,’ Ian said.

  ‘You know what I reckon?’ Muzza said. He swayed a little as he leaned forward, his eyes glazed.

  ‘Nah, what?’ Ian said.

  ‘I reckon your missus is just selfish. Yeah? I mean, they’re your kids too. Why wouldn’t she go with you so you get to see ’em grow up. If you’re on the road and in and out of sheds, you’re never gonna see them. I think she should be going with yer.’

  Ian nodded and held up his beer. ‘True,’ he agreed.

  ‘Mate, doesn’t matter. Maybe it is best if they stay here until they’re a bit older. Shit, you should have heard the noise coming out of there when I turned up today. Got a good set of lungs on them both.’

  The barman leaned over the counter. ‘Never had anything to do with kids before, by the sound of it? You have a new baby, huh?’

  Ian nodded. ‘Twins.’

  ‘Ah, your missus is the one Evie put up in her sister’s house, just down the road?’

  ‘That’d be her.’

  ‘Kind lady, Evie.’

  ‘Not sure about that,’ Ian said, sipping his drink. ‘Not good at minding her own beeswax. If it weren’t for her, Rosie and the kids would have to come with me.’