Trepidation had flooded through him, but he’d tried to act unconcerned. He’d hung up the fuel hose and turned to face the man. ‘Free country. Didn’t see her complaining.’
‘No,’ Bulldust had agreed. He’d leaned forwards and leered in Reeve’s face. ‘But Sal, your wife, might. Oh, yeah, Reeve Austin Perkins, I know all about you. Graduated from Western Sydney University fifth in your law class. Worked at Bentley and Co for the first three years of your career, then moved out to start your own business, which isn’t doing that well, is it? But don’t worry. I’ll probably be able to help you with that.
‘Married Sally Jane Frank in October twelve years ago and have three beautiful girls aged six, eight and ten. The model family. Surely, as a father, you must understand how unhappy I am you thought you needed to have relations with my daughter. A man like you. A failure. I’d want so much more for my daughter.’
Reeve’s eyes had widened as Bulldust continued to talk. He knew everything! How?
‘Here’s my offer to you. One, you stay the fuck away from my daughter. Two, I’m going to become a silent partner in your business. You’ll find two hundred k in your business bank account already and you—’ he looked hard at Reeve ‘—are going to work for me when I need you.’
Something in Reeve had made him want to fight back. He wasn’t going to take this lying down. He was a lawyer! He knew the penalty for blackmail was fifteen years. ‘And what if I don’t?’ he’d sneered with a confidence he hadn’t felt.
‘Then I guess poor little Sal is about to have her world turned upside down when these arrive in her mailbox.’ He’d handed Reeve an envelope, and Reeve had known straightaway what was inside. ‘Imagine what the girls will think of their daddy when they come home from school and Mummy has these strewn all across the kitchen table.’
Reeve had paled as he’d realised he was caught. There was nothing he could do now. Not if he wanted life to continue on the way it always had. He’d made his bed and there he would have to stay.
Bulldust had obviously sensed he’d won and had climbed back into his car. He’d given Reeve a wink. ‘Guessing by the look on your face, we’ve got an understanding. I’ll be in touch.’
That had been five years ago. He’d only ever needed to help Bulldust out once and that had been a small piece of legal advice on the sale of a property. Easy stuff. Nothing to do with blackmail or anything illegal.
In fact, until six months ago, Reeve had been able to almost forget that Bulldust even existed. Until the phone call. Four of his employees had been picked up by the cops and one was a dirty copper.
And that was the end of the forgetting.
Four days later, he was in front of the judge with the DPP, Hal McCure, standing alongside him.
‘Your Honour, we are opposed to the adjournment. This date has been set for many months and to change it now will impact not only on my client, who has a right, when found innocent, to be back with his family as soon as possible, but also on the lawyers. This isn’t the only case I have. My calendar is full for the rest of the year,’ Reeve said, clasping his hands together as if begging.
‘And you, Mr McCure,’ the judge said, his eyes shifting to the next lawyer, ‘what is your reasoning behind the request?’
‘Your Honour, Witness X’s wife is seriously ill and pregnant with her second child. We are asking that he is able to remain until the child is born and his wife is well again.’
Reeve spread out his hands as if to say, ‘Really?’ ‘I object, Your Honour.’
The judge adjusted his glasses and glared at him. ‘You’ve already stated that.’ He paused. ‘Mr McCure,’ the judge turned to the tall man standing in front of the bench, ‘I take it that the wife is in hospital.’
‘No, she’s been discharged, sir.’
‘She has no one else to care for her?’
‘Witness X is caring for her now,’ he said.
‘That doesn’t answer my question. Is there no one else to care for her? No family? Friends?’
Reeve felt his heart kick up a notch. Maybe the judge liked his argument. Maybe, just maybe. He needed to make sure that the judge didn’t let the adjournment happen. He wasn’t sure what Bulldust would do to him if he didn’t prevent the delay.
‘She’s with her parents.’ Hal looked down at the paperwork in his hands and frowned.
‘If she is with her parents, Mr McCure, why are we here?’ the judge asked, looking over his glasses.
Reeve saw his opportunity. ‘Your Honour, while I understand the concerns of the witness for his wife—and no one should have to leave an ill family member—the fact is his wife is in the care of her family. Therefore, he is not the sole carer. Surely she should be able to stay where she is while Witness X is here. I will endeavour to have him in front of the court for as little time as possible. And under the circumstances, Mr McCure would do the same, I am sure.’
‘I have to agree with you, Mr Perkins.’
‘And what about the protection of the witness?’ Mr McCure broke in. ‘Let’s not forget that Witness X was shot. We need to be aware that there are two other exceptionally dangerous criminals still at large. They may well be plotting to try and disable my client, sir.’
The judge looked down and appeared to be reading something. ‘Yes, two of the main suspects haven’t been sighted since that night,’ he said, half to himself.
‘Your Honour, if I may, if that is the main reason that the witness doesn’t want to attend the trial in person, then surely the city police are able to supply some kind of protection,’ Reeve appealed.
McCure rounded on him. ‘I don’t think you’ve been listening, counsellor! My client has a wife with an illness who is about to give birth. Does your wife have children? Would you have wanted to miss the birth?’
‘Enough!’ The judge looked up and frowned at both the men. ‘I appreciate Witness X’s circumstances, Mr McCure, but I need to allow the court to have the best evidence and I prefer people here in my courtroom. The city will offer protection to Witness X. Let’s not forget that an officer of the law is on trial here. This is an important case. Motion denied.’
‘Sir, could I draw your attention to the other option of a video link-up?’ Mr McCure hurried to say before the gavel had fallen.
Reeve quickly responded. ‘In fairness to my client, I need to speak to this, ah, Witness X face to face. Mr McCure here brought the charges against my client and I believe I have the right to pressure test this evidence at the highest level, which is, as I’m sure you’ll agree, face to face.’ Reeve hoped his argument would stand up. He had to make sure this man turned up and his face could be seen and his identity discovered.
‘Again, denied, Mr McCure. Witness X will be here to give evidence in two days’ time.’
Reeve wanted to punch the air with excitement, but he had to keep focused. ‘Just one more thing, Your Honour.’
‘Yes?’
‘In regard to the suppression order. At the moment Witness X is unknown to us. All we have is his deposition. We need to know who this gentleman is so we can prepare our case accordingly.’
‘Your Honour,’ Mr McCure just about shouted, ‘you understand the sensitivity of this case. I ask you do not remove the suppression order. Have I not just mentioned the dangers of this case!’
‘You’re right, Mr McCure. There is a sensitivity to this case. The suppression order will stand.’
Without another word the gavel fell and the lawyers were dismissed.
Chapter 21
Dave couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He looked down at the notepad in front of him and saw he’d written one word. No.
‘And you can’t change it?’
‘No, Dave, I can’t. The judge has ruled and once that’s happened it’s set in concrete. You need to be on that plane tomorrow and giving evidence in front of the court the next day. Get it organised.’
‘Fuck.’ Hanging up the phone, he ran his hands through his hair, then jumped up, agit
ated, and paced the room. He wanted to ring Spencer, but there would be nothing his friend could do. He would just have to be in Brisbane tomorrow. He grabbed his wallet from the desk and shoved it in his back pocket. He put his hands on the desk and leaned forwards, breathing deeply. How was he going to tell Mel?
Bob looked up from his office. ‘What’s up?’
‘Judge denied the adjournment.’
Bob typed something then got up and came out into the room. ‘When do you have to go?’
‘Tomorrow.’
‘Right. I’ll take you to the plane.’
‘It’s not that part I’m worried about.’
Bob nodded. ‘I know. You’d better go and get Melinda sorted. Let me know what time your flight is.’
‘That’s if I’m still alive then,’ Dave muttered, grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair and heading out the door.
Outside, he decided to walk to Mark and Ellen’s house. It was only about four kilometres away and he needed to clear his head. And to get his story straight. Not that there was anything kinked about it, but he had to somehow put a positive spin on what was going to happen.
‘Damn it!’ he said again. He shouldn’t have promised. You didn’t promise, he thought. You just told her you thought you had it sorted.
That argument wasn’t going to stand up and he knew it.
The door opened before he could knock and Melinda stood in the doorway, her hair up, looking beautiful. Dave had to admit the rest was doing her good—the dark shadows under her eyes were fading and the tension had gone from her shoulders.
Maybe being away from me is helping her, he thought.
‘God, you’re a sight for sore eyes,’ Dave said as he leaned down to kiss her. ‘Why aren’t you resting?’
‘I have been. I got up to go to the loo—this baby just wants to sit on my bladder! Then I saw you walking up the drive. How come you’ve walked?’ She stood back to let him come inside. ‘And what are you doing here in the middle of the day?’
‘Felt like the exercise. Where’s Bec? And your parents?’ he asked, ignoring the most important question.
‘Mum’s hanging some clothes on the line and Bec’s helping her. Not sure where Dad is. Probably in his office watching the share prices.’
‘Let’s go into your room,’ Dave said, putting his arm around her.
‘Why?’ She turned to look at him. ‘There’s something wrong, isn’t there?’
He sighed and took her hand. He couldn’t sugarcoat the news. ‘I’m sorry, sweetie, the DPP rang a little while ago. The judge denied the adjournment. I have to go to Brisbane.’
Mel let out a gasp and her hands flew to her mouth. ‘No,’ she whispered.
‘Yeah.’
‘When?’
Dave waited a second before placing his hands on her cheeks and bending down to kiss her again. ‘Tomorrow,’ he said against her mouth.
Mel wrenched away from his grasp. ‘They’ll see you. They’ll know who you are! Then they’ll know who we are.’ The frightened words ripped from her as she backed away from him, holding up her hands as if to ward him off.
‘I promise they won’t, Mel. The cops are picking me up and the DPP told me today I’d be staying at a safe house. I’ll have protection all the time. The judge has ordered it.’ ‘But what if they get through? People like that could have a sniper rifle or something. They might be able to get at you like that. The police mightn’t even see them and you could be dead!’
Mel’s face was pale and she was breathing hard. Dave had to get her to calm down; he didn’t want her to go into labour or faint.
‘Here,’ he took her hand again to lead her over to the couch. ‘It’ll be okay. I promise.’ The repeated words were beginning to feel empty, but he had to keep reassuring her.
‘You’ve said that before, but you can’t be sure. How can you be?’ Mel’s voice was high and strained and her hands were over her stomach as if to protect the unborn child. ‘Dave, you can’t go, you just can’t.’
‘Sweetheart, I have to. I’m sorry. I don’t have a choice in this. This court case is so much bigger than me.’
At those words Mel seemed to gather herself. She breathed deeply through her nose and glared at him. ‘And you wonder why I say you love the job more than me.’ Standing up, she walked to the window and looked out. ‘What should I tell Bec when she’s six and she’s asking about her father? Well, honey, Daddy had to go to Brisbane to talk about some bad men who tried to kill him once. He had to go, said he didn’t have a choice and while he was there the bad men who tried to hurt him before got to him and he came home in a casket.’ She swung around. ‘But don’t worry, he was given a state funeral for his trouble. Or even worse, what if they track you back here and take Bec, or harm all of us?’
‘Mel—’
‘What’s going on here?’ Mark stood in the doorway.
‘Dave’s just telling me how he has to go to Brisbane tomorrow to give evidence. The judge denied the adjournment,’ Mel said calmly.
‘I see.’ Mark shook his head. ‘Still, I don’t know why I’m surprised.’ He stepped into the room and walked to Mel. Putting his arm around her, he said, ‘We’re here.’
‘Can I ask you, please, to look after Mel while I’m away?’ Dave asked, swallowing every amount of bitterness and anger he held towards the man. Maybe if he could get Mark onside, Mel would change her attitude.
Mark eyeballed him with dislike. ‘Yes, I can look after your family since you’re unable to. Or unwilling to. I won’t let my family down.’
Biting back a sharp reply, Dave thanked him, although all he wanted to do was yell at the injustice of it all. ‘I’ll just say goodbye to Bec and be off. I’ve got to pack and get ready.’ He didn’t tell them he had a few jobs left to do at the office, or that he couldn’t wait to get out of this house. It was better to say goodbye now and make it quick.
He went out to the clothesline where Bec was standing on an upside-down bucket helping Ellen by handing her the pegs.
‘Hi, princess,’ he said, picking her up and giving her a cuddle.
‘Hello, Daddy! I’m helping Gran.’
‘And it looks like you’re doing a wonderful job.’ He kissed her cheek. ‘I have to go away for a few days, honey, so I’m not going to be coming around for dinner. But I’ll be back really soon.’
‘Where are you going?’ she asked, looking at him.
‘A place called Brisbane. It’s a long way from here. I’ve got to catch a big plane to get there.’
‘Like that one?’ Bec pointed to a jet above them. ‘I like watching them.’
‘Yep, just like that one, princess.’
‘Okay. Bye, Daddy,’ Bec said, putting her chubby arms around his neck and squeezing.
He put her down and Ellen placed her hand on Bec’s shoulder. ‘Can you run inside and see Mummy for a sec, darling? I need to talk to your dad.’
They watched her go and Dave turned to Ellen. ‘Thanks for having them here. Mel’s pretty upset and I just want to let you know that I don’t have a choice here. If I don’t turn up, I’ll be held in contempt of court and that can carry a jail term. I haven’t told Mel that, but someone needs to know. I just want you to understand that I have to go. I have to.’ His voice broke before he said, ‘I didn’t think it was worth adding fuel to the fire in there by saying that.’
‘It’s okay, Dave. I’m retired, as is Mark. I’m more than happy to have them both here. In fact, it’s quite nice, after you all being such a way away over there in Barrabine.’ She paused. ‘But I do have something I want to say to you.’
Ellen reached down for another piece of washing and started to peg it out. ‘Sometimes, when you marry a person, they’re not that same person in thirty years’ time. And sometimes you don’t like who that person has become. Mark isn’t the man I married, Dave. He’s had a few kicks during life, which I think have made him put up walls and barriers, but when I first met him he was a charming, charismatic ma
n. Now he’s sullen and mean.’ She picked up another piece of clothing and continued along the washing line.
‘When you lived in Barrabine, it was easy for me to be swayed by what Mark was saying. You were working long hours, and Mel had followed you to a godforsaken little town that had no prospects for her. Or your children. You’d taken her away from us.
‘Since you’ve moved back here, I can see that the assumption I made wasn’t right. Instead, I see how great a dad you are to Bec and how good you are with Mel. How you look after them both so well. Which of course means you need to go away sometimes.’ She stopped and looked over at him. ‘Perhaps the problem isn’t you, but my husband and my daughter. She’s certainly stubborn when she gets set on something, which she has with your job.’
Surely he was being set up here. Ellen had never been so nice.
‘That’s good of you to say,’ he stumbled over the words.
‘Dave, I’ve given up a lot of myself for the wishes of my husband and daughter and it’s only now I realise how much. Don’t let that happen to you, because you are doing a great job in very difficult circumstances.’ She patted his arm and turned back to the clothesline. The conversation was finished.
Bob pulled into the driveway as the sun rose over the roofs of the houses. A dew had settled on the lawn overnight, but the sky was a clear blue and, with the heat not far away, it wouldn’t take long for the dew to dry.
‘Not the same watching the sun rise in the city as it is in the bush,’ he said when Dave had thrown his duffle bag in the back and settled in the passenger seat.
‘Dead right there,’ he agreed.
Bob glanced over at him. ‘How’d you go last night, son?’
‘Pretty rough.’ Dave looked out the window, not wanting to talk about the way he’d left the house. Mel had been silent and cold, and Mark had smirked at him as he closed the door. He’d thought, as he walked down the paved driveway, looking at the lawn, manicured to within an inch of its life, that he was playing right into Mark’s hands. He wanted his daughter to himself and Dave was handing her to him. Only because Mel was letting it happen!
Red Dirt Country Page 16
