The Dark Series

by Catherine Lee

  “What do you mean, it wasn’t sent?”

  “It’s a draft. My guess is that both users know the password to the hotmail account, and they communicate using draft messages. One person logs in and writes the message, saves it in the draft folder. Next person logs in, reads the draft message, then deletes it. The message is never sent, so there’s no electronic record of it. I’ll try, but don’t get your hopes up. These guys don’t want to be found.”

  “Then how did we get this one? Or should I say, how did Jill Fisher get this one?”

  “Good question.” Zach wheeled a chair over from a nearby vacant desk and sat. “It looks like a cut and paste job. Could be one of the users decided to keep a copy for some reason, maybe insurance against the other guy. He couldn’t send the message without the other one knowing, so he cut and paste the contents into another document. That could also explain why I had so much trouble with it. Cut and paste from email can stuff things up. Anyway, your victim might have found the copy somewhere.”

  That made sense. The email talked about packages and delivery schedules; the author was clearly unhappy about deliveries that were taking too long or not turning up at all. Vince Macklin was mentioned as a threat to the email recipient, in terms of Macklin being unhappy and not likely to forgive any further occurrences. There was nothing specific that could tie the gang or Macklin to anything illegal, but the implication was clear.

  “Did you find anything to link this with Fisher & Co?” Cooper asked Zach.

  “I got something from the metadata. The details are in my report there, but the bit you’ll be interested in was that the document was created on a Fisher & Co computer. More specifically, Jill Fisher’s terminal.”

  “So she made the copy of the email?” Cooper asked.

  “No, that’s not what I said. It was made on her computer, which was logged in to Fisher & Co’s system using her password at the time. But I can’t tell whose fingers were on the keyboard.”

  “Right, of course.” Jill Fisher’s desk had been in the middle of an open plan office. Zach was right: they couldn’t prove it was her. “But if she didn’t make the copy, she must have at least found it. That’s why it was on the memory stick.”

  Zach shrugged. “Not my job to make assumptions like that, Coop. If you can get me her office computer I might be able to find more for you.” With that he left them to it.

  “What do you think, boss?”

  “Regardless of who’s behind this document, I think we have a clear link between Fisher & Co and the Chiefs. It was created on one of the office computers and mentions a member of the gang in what seems to be a conversation relating to drugs.”

  “And two people who saw or at least could have seen that document are dead,” added Quinn. “But we just got told not to go near the Chiefs.”

  “I think this changes things.” Cooper stood, picking up the papers. “Munro needs to see this.”

  * * *

  “Can’t we just get a warrant for Jill’s work computer? See what Zach can find?” Cooper had been arguing the point with Munro for over ten minutes, and he wasn’t getting anywhere.

  “Doesn’t work like that, Coop.”

  “But if JOCG get involved now the focus shifts to a drug investigation. We’ll never get to the bottom of these murders. We don’t really have enough for a joint investigation yet, do we?” The Joint Organised Crime Group was a collaboration formed a few years ago between the Australian Federal Police, Customs and Border Protection, the Australian and NSW Crime Commissions, and NSW State Police. Their focus was organised drug importation and distribution, and Cooper knew these were the guys who had to handle whatever might be going on at Fisher & Co. He was all for a joint effort, but he wasn’t ready to hand it over just yet.

  “My hands are tied on this,” said Munro. “As soon as we get anything that looks remotely like an importation offence, we need to get them involved. I have to take it to Rochford, who’ll say the same thing.”

  Typical, thought Cooper. Superintendent Rochford, head of Homicide, was always quick to pass on an investigation. Another one off his books — that was all he cared about.

  “I’ll contact Grayson,” Munro continued. “He’s been with JOCG since the start. He’s a good guy, he’ll keep you in the loop.” With that Cooper was dismissed.

  Back at their desks Quinn was waiting expectantly. Cooper shrugged. “He’s handing it over to JOCG. Probably on the phone already.”

  “So that’s it? It’s their case now?”

  “Not quite. There’s a guy over there, Grayson, used to work for Homicide. If he runs it, we might get to stay on the investigation. It’s up to us to make sure these two murders don’t get lost once they start with the drug angle, got it?”

  “Got it, boss.”

  “Good. I’m not going to let anyone get away with murder.”

  26

  “Looks like you’ll be getting rid of us already,” said Meg, putting her mobile phone in her pocket. “That was Detective Cooper. There’s been some new information.”

  “Do they know who killed my sister?” asked Beth, anxiously.

  “No, sorry. That’s not what I meant. They’ve found something in Mr Dorman’s computer cloud account. They think it came from the USB stick Jill gave you. It’s a good lead, Beth, and it’s got nothing to do with your family’s past.”

  “Oh. So you’re leaving?” Meg’s handbag was on her shoulder, keys in her hand.

  “Yes. We don’t think you’re in any danger with regard to the ancestry research. It’s good news, Beth,” she added. “Why don’t you look happy?”

  Beth thought quickly. She knew she should tell the detective about the email from last night, but what did that mean in relation to this new information? If she wasn’t in danger, why was she being threatened? And if she was in danger, would telling the police about the threat make it better or worse? The email hadn’t specifically said not to tell the police, but she needed to be smart about this. Far from putting her off, the email had only made her more determined to find out the truth. But if she told Meg about it now, there’s no way they’d let her finish. She was so close: she just needed to get the last pieces of the puzzle from Bryce Allen. In the meantime she could lay low, pretend she was complying with the email. In which case there was no reason to tell Meg.

  “Sorry, I had a fight with Louis last night. My mind isn’t exactly on the ball today.” It was the best excuse she could come up with.

  “I know how that feels,” said Meg, accepting the explanation easily.

  “Thanks, Meg. Does this put you closer to finding Jill’s killer?”

  “I can’t go into too much detail about the investigation, but yes, Cooper thinks this could be quite a break. Don’t worry, Beth. We’re doing everything we can to catch the bastard. I’ll keep you informed.”

  When Meg was gone, Beth went back over what she knew. Her sister had given her a memory stick, which she said contained a back-up of her ancestry research. Then she’d been murdered. Beth had given the memory stick to another man, a stranger to her, who’d also subsequently been murdered. The police had apparently found something on the memory stick that was suspicious, which didn’t have anything to do with the Fisher family’s ancestry. But Beth had been warned not to continue the ancestry research, threatened with the same fate as the others if she did keep going.

  The thing that didn’t fit was the police finding something unrelated to the ancestry research. Everything else made sense. Well, it made sense if there was something in the Fisher family’s past worth killing to keep quiet. Maybe what the police found was different, but that didn’t necessarily mean Beth was way off base as well. No, she had to keep investigating. But if Bryce Allen wasn’t back until next week, what was she going to do in the meantime?

  “Lunch?” asked Gail from the door.

  Beth looked at the clock on her screen. “It’s a bit early.”

  “Yeah, but I’m hungry. Come on, don’t try and tell
me you’re doing anything important. Hey, where’s your tail?”

  Beth smiled and grabbed her handbag. On the way to their favourite cafe she told Gail why the police were no longer following her. She also found herself opening up about doing the research herself, and finally the email.

  “What? So the police have it wrong?” asked Gail as they took their seats at a table outside in the sun.

  “I’m not sure whether they have it wrong, or whether there’s two things going on here.” Beth opened the menu, then closed it again. She looked up at her friend. “I know I should have told Meg about the email, but something stopped me. I can’t explain it. All I know is that I have to get to the bottom of this. I have to find out what the big Fisher family secret is.”

  “Jesus, Beth. Do you really think that’s a good idea?” At least Gail stopped short of telling her she could end up dead.

  “I don’t believe for one second that the person behind the email is going to hurt me. An anonymous email is a cowardly act. If you’re serious about threatening a person, you do it out in the open. Not like that. It didn’t scare me, Gail. It pissed me off more than anything. It’s my family, I have a right to know where we came from.”

  “Yes, but so did Jill. How can you think it’s not a valid threat when two people are already dead?”

  “I don’t think the person who killed them is behind these threats. Whoever killed my sister and poor Mr Dorman was a vicious psychopath.” Beth noticed a few looks from patrons at the cafe’s other tables, and lowered her voice. “Vicious psychopaths don’t send warning emails.”

  “But—”

  “No. No buts. The police have a strong lead, they said. I think they’re right. They’ll find whoever killed Jill, and it won’t be some anonymous weed behind a computer.”

  Gail looked like she was going to say something else, but thought better of it. Good. Beth had made up her mind: she was going to finish Jill’s work.

  “Besides, all I need is an hour or so with Bryce Allen and it’ll be done. Shame I have to wait until next week, though.”

  “What if he’s the one who sent the email?”

  Shit. She hadn’t thought of that. “Why would he?”

  “Didn’t the police tell you he was having an affair with Jill?”

  “That’s what they suspect, but what does that have to do with it?”

  “Maybe nothing. Maybe everything. You don’t know the guy, Beth. You just met him. Maybe he doesn’t want you anywhere near him in case his wife finds out about Jill.”

  “But he said he’d help me.”

  “That was before the possible affair came out. It could be different now.”

  Beth tried to think of a reason why the email couldn’t have come from Bryce, but failed. Her friend was right. If she was honest, he was a likely suspect. The email came the day after she met him, so he knew she was trying to do the research. She couldn’t trust anyone.

  “What should I do now, then? I have to get to the bottom of this, Gail. I can’t let it go.”

  “I’ll help. Where are you up to?”

  “I have a fair bit on that website you referred me to, and here, I’ve written it all out by hand as well.” Beth opened her handbag and pulled out the hand-drawn family tree she’d been adding to for the past week. She pointed to Charles Fisher. “I’m stuck here. I know that Charles was the father of James, founder of Fisher & Co. But there are two Charles Fishers on the website from around that time, and I can’t find anything to tell me which is the right one. Bryce Allen said he was descended from Charles’s sister, oh, what did he say her name was? Margaret, or Mary, something like that. Anyway, he was going to give me Charles’s details, and his father and grandfather, who arrived on the First Fleet.”

  The waiter came and took their orders as Gail studied the family tree. “So we need to find out which Charles is yours. What other sources of information are there?”

  “The library has parish birth and death records, but they weren’t much help. You can request birth, death and marriage certificates from the registry office, but we’d have to start from the beginning.”

  “Okay. Let’s do that then. I’ll give them a call.”

  27

  Cooper had spent the last four hours going over the facts of the case and lamenting that he’d have to hand it all over to someone else. He’d never been involved in a JOCG case before, and he was slightly curious as to how it would all fit together, but mostly he was nervous the multi-agency approach would dilute their importance and jeopardise the murder investigation. There wasn’t much he could do about it, though.

  It was just past two in the afternoon when the first meeting of the hurriedly-assembled group took place. They’d kept the Strike Force Braddock name, but they’d been allocated a larger area of City Central — one floor above where Cooper and the rest of his team had been working. Superintendent Rochford had insisted they switch desks to join the strike force team upstairs, but Cooper hadn’t yet got around to claiming a desk up here. It was petty, but he wanted to show his resistance for a little longer.

  Detective Inspector Grayson ran the meeting, and was officially in charge of the investigation. Cooper liked Grayson — they’d worked together on a couple of cases in Homicide, and Cooper found him enthusiastic and easy to get along with. His promotion to Inspector was reasonably recent, and Munro had mentioned this was Grayson’s first big JOCG case as Officer In Charge. That usually meant any history between them was irrelevant, with the newly promoted and more senior officer eager to prove his worth. Cooper would be interested to see how their relationship was affected by the change in position.

  Cooper took a seat near the back of the room next to Quinn. He recognised some of the people in the room, at least by sight, if not by name. There were three members of State Crime Command’s Drug Squad on his left, all looking as disinterested in the joint operation as he was. At the front of the room were two guys in Customs uniform, and another two suits next to them who Cooper guessed were also from Customs and Border Protection. Behind them were six more suits, two of them women, who Cooper assumed were either NSW or Australian Crime Commission. One of the men from the NSW Crime Commission he’d met in a previous investigation. The guy was alright, but all about procedure and paperwork. The rest of the room was filled with analysts and office staff, given away by their more casual clothing. There were about thirty people in all, including Cooper’s own team of six. Munro didn’t join them on this occasion.

  The room finally quietened and Grayson introduced himself. He also pointed out the key teams, and encouraged them all to get to know each other after the briefing. He was keen to get on with things, which Cooper took as a good sign.

  “We’ll hear from each of the team leaders in a minute,” Grayson continued, “But first I just want say one thing. JOCG was formed five years ago, as most of you know, so we’ve had enough time to bed down the initial issues and figure out the best way to run these joint investigations. I think we’ve got a good thing here, and I’d encourage you all to respect the process. I know that being part of a multi-agency approach is new to some of you, and it might seem like things don’t work the way you’d like. Let me assure you, we know what we’re doing. If anyone has any issues, though, please bring them directly to me. If we work together, I’m confident we can get a good result.”

  Pep talk out of the way, Grayson moved onto the business at hand. As it had been their homicide case that had brought the investigation together in the first place, Cooper and his team were invited to outline the case for the rest of the group. Cooper chose to do the speaking himself, and gave a succinct rundown of the two murders and their investigation so far. He fielded a few questions, and made sure to emphasise that although the possibility of disrupting a major drug ring was exciting, their priority must remain with the victims. Two people were dead, and they deserved justice.

  Next to speak were the Drug Squad, and Cooper listened carefully. Detective Senior Sergeant DeSousa, who
Cooper recognised as the headline act from the foursome who’d practically stormed Munro’s office yesterday, had a lot to say about the Chiefs. They’d been watching the motorcycle gang for the best part of the last two years, and had even had a guy on the inside briefly. He’d had to get out quickly, but the Chiefs didn’t discover him. There’d been a few raids, and one cook-house had been dismantled, but Cooper knew that wasn’t enough to stop a major operation. You take one down, they get two more up and running in no time.

  Drug Squad had been preparing to hand their investigation into the Chiefs over to the Organised Crime Squad when this JOCG investigation cropped up instead. Cooper could tell DeSousa wasn’t happy either way, and he understood how the guy felt. You put months or years into a case, only to hand it over when someone up the chain who has no idea about anything decides it’s time to move on. Usually it’s a financial decision, which is the worst, because your investigation is more or less shut down. At least in this case it would continue, albeit with a new team and a new leader. But all the work you’ve done up until now barely gets noticed, and the new leader invariably ends up taking the case in a direction you wouldn’t. DeSousa had all the front of a team leader in the drug squad, but Cooper could see beyond that. He decided to keep an eye on him as a possible ally down the track.

  The rest of the groups in the room had their say, with a few more interesting facts coming to light. Customs had no information on the Chiefs, but they did talk about their past dealings with Jill Fisher as a liaison officer. They’d had no suspicions about her, and everyone at Customs had agreed she was easy to work with. Most had expressed their sorrow at her loss, and indicated they would do whatever they could to help find her killer.

  Customs also shared their records of all routine inspections that had taken place on goods coming in on Fisher & Co controlled ships for the last twelve months. They were completely clean, no trace of drugs or anything else illegal found.