Half Moon Bay

by Young, Helene

  ‘And now it’s time for your dream.’

  ‘Maybe. I’m sorry I ran out on Dad, but I just couldn’t face the sympathy. I was okay until people told me how brave I was. I wasn’t brave. I wasn’t there to defend her, to save her. I should have been.’ Ellie sat back, hugging a cushion to her chest. ‘And I know it’s just survivor guilt and it’s not rational, but I almost feel like I let Dad down too. The shrink in London that Dad paid a fortune for was no help at all. The month I spent in the UK seeing her was the longest I stayed anywhere. I kept clear of other journos because everyone knew what happened.’ She sighed. Felicity didn’t speak, so Ellie filled the silence.

  ‘Catching up last Christmas with Don McMaster, the American journalist who helped me get Nina out, did more good than any counsellor could. I got drunk, rip-roaring drunk like I never have before, and had a massive hangover the next day. I must have cried on his shoulder for hours. To his credit he listened without lecturing. At the end of the night he poured me into my hotel room and arranged for a full English breakfast the next morning. He rang to check on me before he went back to the States. His advice was to go home and see my dad. That I was a crazy woman if I thought my dad loved me any less because of what happened.’

  ‘Don was right,’ Felicity said. ‘It’s been hard for Tom, not having you around. He’s so incredibly proud of you, both of you, but you especially and the way you’ve carried on working, making a difference. Your story about the floods in Bangkok made it into our national paper and he kept a copy in his wallet for ages. You should never doubt how much he supports you carrying on with your work.’

  ‘And I have to work – I have to have a purpose, or otherwise what’s life for? I always used to worry when Nina and I were away together, wondering how Dad would feel if we both died. I think I’ve been more cautious for the last two years, but I shouldn’t have run out on him. I should have at least stayed with him during the inquest, but I didn’t want to know. I still haven’t read the report.’ She shook her head, feeling the burn of tears. Felicity reached across and squeezed her shoulder.

  ‘You did everything you could, Ellie. Nina looked after Nina. You looked after everyone else, just like now. You’ve dropped whatever project you were working on to come running back here to support us in our fight against O’Sullivan and his corrupt council. Nina would never have done that.’ Felicity tossed back the last of her wine. ‘And now, to the real question – what was the go with Nicholas Lawson in the council chambers?’

  Ellie let her change the subject and laughed. ‘Ah, yes, your delectable Mr Lawson is very impressive in a raging temper. I wasn’t going to tell you in front of Alex, but he did accuse me of eavesdropping and I got so damn mad. But there’s something about him . . .’ She searched for words to downplay the incident. ‘He threatened me for attempting to gain information improperly, but what I overheard was that there’s a shipment of something due within four days.’

  Felicity shot a questioning look at Ellie. ‘And this was the information about the cargo drop you mentioned the other day at the urgent meeting I couldn’t attend?’

  Ellie nodded.

  ‘Now I understand why you didn’t explain this to Ron. He’s terrified you’ll get hurt. I think he’s regretting asking you for help.’

  ‘Ha – if the water in Africa isn’t going to get me, then Nicholas Lawson hasn’t got a hope in hell.’

  Felicity sighed. ‘Nothing exciting ever happens to me.’

  ‘Because you’re too smart to get caught eavesdropping. You just read the mail. Which reminds me, anything else come through? Ron said you had something for him.’

  ‘Just a couple of big land tax accounts that seemed to be redirected into another section. I gave Ron a copy of those as well as the spreadsheets. I don’t trust O’Sullivan. I’m sure he thinks he’s above the law. You take care. I wasn’t joking the other day when I said he just about has a heart attack when he hears your name. Some of his subcontractors aren’t the sorts of people you’d ask around for a drink, either.’

  ‘Dealers?’

  ‘Enforcers, more like it. They look like hard men capable of anything.’

  ‘Dan’s certain about the drugs?’

  ‘Yeah, but he’d have a complete meltdown if he knew I’d passed information on to Ronnie.’ Felicity frowned. ‘The White Bird’s been having the worst run of catches, but the engines have just been refitted. You don’t do that with a credit card.’

  Ellie nodded. ‘Does Dan know where the drugs are coming from?’

  Felicity lowered her voice. ‘A Korean freighter went through a couple of weeks ago. Normally they run the outside channel. This one didn’t. Came through at night at about half the normal speed. The lads of the Lady Nell saw The White Bird heading out to it. By the time the fleet got in next morning, they’d already moored up and gone home. No fish, but suddenly there’s money.’

  ‘It’s not proof, though.’

  ‘True, but one of the deckies has loose lips when he’s up to his eyeballs in rum.’

  ‘And that’s where Mavis heard whispers about it too?’

  ‘Yep.’

  They were both silent.

  ‘Going to be hard to prove, Flick.’

  ‘I know. I don’t understand Dan’s reluctance to go to the police. You know his brother overdosed on heroin four, five years ago?’

  Ellie nodded. ‘I remember the funeral. Too sad.’

  ‘It was. He won’t tolerate drug users on his boat, yet he’s turning a blind eye to this. I’m sure he knows more than he’s telling me. I know it makes Dan really angry, but he’s not prepared to dob them in.’

  ‘Maybe he’s scared for you and the kids?’

  ‘Maybe, but if he went to the cops they’d have to do something. He could do it through Crime Stoppers, stay anonymous.’

  ‘He’d be lost without you guys.’

  ‘I don’t know. It’s eating at him so he should do something.’

  ‘When we get more evidence, we’ll be doing that anyway. But we haven’t positively tied O’Sullivan into it yet.’

  ‘Circumstantial only. He’s friends with Gazza who owns The White Bird. They’ve been spotted out and about too many times for it to be a coincidence. And you know how much money goes into elections round here.’

  Ellie snorted. ‘Bugger all, normally.’

  ‘Not this time. O’Sullivan had an advertising campaign that must have run to a couple of mill.’ She shook her head at Ellie’s disbelief. ‘No, really. It was huge. TV ads, print media, paid advisors and spin doctors. He wanted it bad.’

  ‘He certainly got in on a landslide.’

  ‘That’s right. There were people who’d never voted before being bussed in from outlying communities.’

  ‘Rigging the vote?’

  ‘No law against helping the poor folk exercise their democratic right, apparently.’

  ‘Fixing an election as well as taking bribes from developers and maybe drug running.’

  ‘We just need to take it carefully. The Independent Commission Against Corruption doesn’t seem to want to get involved.’

  ‘ICAC should be right in the thick of this!’

  ‘Ron tried, but they fobbed him off. Don’t think the drug squad even got back to him. The local police sergeant seems like a good man, but . . .’ Felicity topped up the wine glasses as Ellie shook her head in disgust. ‘Didn’t say no exactly, but neither has anyone actually done anything. We still don’t have hard evidence.’

  ‘Bloody bureaucracies. ICAC was started specifically to stop this sort of thing happening. If I can blow the issue wide open with a front-page story in the national papers, they’ll have no option.’

  ‘Yeah, but take it carefully. O’Sullivan’s contacts are not nice people. Nicholas Lawson is definitely a step up in the world. Like I keep telling anyone who’ll listen, we should be working on seducing the man. Plenty of volunteers.’ She shimmied her shoulders.

  ‘Oh, yeah, we can always try that
if all else fails.’ Ellie held up her glass. ‘To Half Moon Bay and its sexy mums ready to sacrifice all for a good cause.’

  ‘To having you home.’

  ‘Thanks. It’s so lovely to just sit and chat. I miss this when I’m on the road.’

  ‘Here’s to friends.’

  ‘To friends.’

  The sound of a sports car pulling up outside broke the mood.

  ‘Brother Alex is back to take you home. See what O’Sullivan had to say and let me know if there’s anything else that needs doing.’

  ‘I will, Felicity. Thanks for dinner, and for listening. Give the kids another hug for me in the morning.’

  Ellie whistled softly and Shadow came padding silently along the front verandah. ‘Come on, big fella, let’s squeeze you into the back of the Porsche again.’

  Alex was silent on the drive home and Ellie relaxed back into the soft leather seat, the two glasses of wine making her head heavy with sleep. Time to ask questions in the morning. She didn’t feel like it just now.

  ‘So how badly do you want to stop this development, Ellie?’ The edge to Alex’s voice jerked her awake.

  ‘What do you mean? What will I do to stop it or how much risk am I personally prepared to take?’ The delicate hairs on the back of her neck shivered.

  ‘Both, I guess. Do you have a long-term campaign with money to finance it, or are you planning on chaining yourselves to trees?’ He glanced sideways at her.

  ‘All of the above. We’re already working through the legal angle with two lawyers, but if push comes to shove, then yes, the community will do what it has to in order to win. Why?’

  ‘Just be careful how far you push O’Sullivan. I’ve met better mannered gentlemen in jail.’ Alex’s expression was hidden in the darkened car, but Ellie could see white knuckles on his hands.

  ‘What happened tonight, Alex?’

  He shook his head. ‘I’m still trying to work it out, but I think it’s bigger than you realise. I don’t want to see you get hurt.’

  ‘This is my town. I don’t see how he or Lawson could possibly threaten me and get away with it.’

  ‘What about threats to those around you? What about Ron and Mavis? What if something happened to those two little brats of Felicity’s? How would you feel then?’ His tone was harsh.

  ‘Alex, if there’s something I need to know or a specific threat, just spit it out. Hinting doesn’t work for me.’

  ‘Damn it, Ellie. You’re not your sister. Nina was like a cat with nine lives. She always got out of scrapes.’

  ‘Except the one that mattered most. This is crazy. Why are we arguing over some unspecific threats from a moron of a councillor?’

  ‘Because while he might not have been specific, I know a threat when I’m handed one.’

  ‘Nina wouldn’t have backed away from a challenge like this and I’m not about to either.’ Ellie was angry.

  ‘Don’t say I didn’t warn you.’

  ‘Hinting at vague threats is not going to stop me.’ She glared across the car at him.

  ‘I can’t say any more, Ellie.’

  Tension filled the silence before Ellie backed down. ‘Sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped your head off. I will be careful. It’s not like I’m in this on my own. Most of the community is in on it too. We’ll look after each other. It’s why we all love the place.’

  ‘Yeah and when it really hits the fan? Who’ll be standing by whom? Money has an interesting way of corrupting even good people.’ The undercurrent in Alex’s voice was a concern.

  ‘Alex, I feel like you’re hiding something.’ She reached out to touch his arm and was shocked by his rigid control.

  ‘My gut feeling is that this is bigger than Half Moon Bay, way bigger. People further up the food chain than O’Sullivan are calling the shots. I don’t know where your cute little developer-cum-engineer fits in either. He’s in the thick of it and O’Sullivan trusts him.’

  Was that spite? Ellie held her breath and waited for Alex to finish.

  ‘When I get back to Sydney on Monday I’ll do some quiet digging and, believe me, I do mean quiet. I’ve no desire to see an angry hornets’ nest stirred up. My gut instincts aren’t often wrong. At least you seem to be taking me seriously now. Make sure there’re at least two of you at any meeting. And stay away from Lawson. He is involved, and he’s capable of anything.’

  He swung the car savagely into her driveway and stamped on the brakes. Ellie lurched in her seatbelt, putting out a hand to stop Shadow.

  ‘And there I was wondering how to set up a secret rendezvous with him.’ She leant across to placate Alex. ‘I am listening. You know I trust your instincts. They’ve kept you safe for this long. I’ll let the others know at the meeting, after my presentation to the council on Monday. Now can we just get some sleep? I’m absolutely shattered.’

  Alex turned the engine off, the night silence deafening, then said, ‘Tom doesn’t need to lose his whole family.’ He slammed the door behind him and stalked off to the house. Ellie and Shadow followed sedately. She was more shaken by his parting words than anything else he’d said.

  ‘Dad will understand,’ she muttered. ‘We’re nothing without principles.’

  13

  Nicholas frowned at the computer screen. The taps on the phone lines were all in place, surveillance cameras had been installed and now it was just a matter of waiting and collating. He rubbed the back of his neck. Fifteen years with the Combat Engineers in Afghanistan, Timor and Papua New Guinea should have prepared him for the sort of duplicity and corruption he’d uncovered in the Garrison Council. But the tentacles reaching from Beyond Borders Strikeforce in Afghanistan through Shanghai and right back to a Sydney crime syndicate with Middle Eastern connections were proving hard to identify.

  His fingers flew over the keyboard as he finished off a report. Alex Creighton was an interesting player. There was something not right about him. Tonight’s informal get-together over drinks with him and the mayor had worked exactly the way he’d hoped. Worth the large bar tab. Nothing unlocked a politician more than free drinks. Nick was confident his cover had held, but . . . He couldn’t quite put it all together yet. Alex might well be out of his depth. Did that mean there was trouble headed Ellie’s way from that direction too?

  He felt the instant wave of heat her name sent racing through him. Never, never get personal on a job, he knew that – but she was so frustratingly defiant, innocent, desirable. This had already got personal for him.

  And there was no way he wanted to see Tom Wilding lose another daughter. Not after being responsible for the first one.

  His chair scraped on the tiles as he pushed away from the table. One lean hand left a distracted wave through his dark thatch of hair. He bent to peer out the window of the hotel room. No watchers, no unknown cars. Just a clear starry night with the hint of impending winter chill. He turned back to the room and his decision.

  The truth was his decision had already been made before he’d breathed her deep into his soul, before he’d seen her fire and compassion captivate a crowd. The decision was made in Kandahar as he’d witnessed her fight for her sister’s life, navigating her way through a living nightmare with grace and courage and tenacity. Would he have done the same for his sister? He hoped so, but he knew he was unlikely to ever be tested like that. So whatever it took to keep Ellie safe, he would do, and to hell with the agency’s rules.

  The small division of ICAC that employed him was only new. He was one of the start-up operatives they’d hired and so far he’d had free rein. That would last as long as his unconventional methods weren’t put under the microscope.

  He scowled at the computer again. Maybe it really was time for a complete change from all of this. Time to remember there are good people in the world and maybe find a place amongst them again. War had taken its toll. This job had taken its toll. He should follow his sister’s advice and quit. She was probably tired of placating their mother who, like every good Italian nonna
, wanted nothing more than to see her son settle down and present her with grandchildren. In her case that would be just around the corner from her in Sydney. Chance in hell of that happening. He didn’t stay in the one place long enough to have a relationship, let alone find a woman who’d marry a man like him.

  He knew his mother missed her husband. On the rare occasion he allowed himself to consider the idea of marriage Nick recognised that theirs was not the sort of marriage he wanted for himself. His father was head of the family and everyone else was expected to toe the line. Nick had rebelled and joined the army. That showed the old man who was boss. It seemed a hollow victory now his father was dead, felled by aggressive prostate cancer.

  The whole time the Board of Inquiry had been investigating Nina’s death he was driving between the courts, his father’s hospital bed and his partially restored townhouse in Bondi. The end of the hearing coincided with his father’s death. Add in the fact that he resigned his commission, leaving a job he loved, made for a couple of bleak months. He’d literally worked himself into the ground finishing off the renovations on his home. It didn’t stop the pain, but at least he slept at night.

  He gave in to his mother eventually and took the helm of the family engineering business, which his father had built from scratch. It might not have been the most stimulating job, but it gave him financial security.

  What path would he choose if he could?

  He sat down in front of the computer, his jaw clenched. Without a doubt he’d choose to turn the clock back two years and save Nina Wilding’s life. He’d choose the warmth of a woman’s welcoming smile over tours of duty in harsh and unforgiving countries, over undercover investigations and lonely hotel rooms. He’d choose to be by Ellie’s side while she grieved for a life he couldn’t save.

  He rested his head in his hands, bemused by the sudden sense of loss. How was it that a young woman he’d barely met two years ago could intrude into his ever-so-ordered life, and make him yearn for something he’d never thought he needed?

  He lifted unseeing eyes to the computer again. He might not be able to have her, but he could keep her safe. Telling her the truth wasn’t an option, but he could try some more charm. Playing the arrogant developer had some small rewards.