The Girl Who Never : A twisted crime

by HC Michaels

  The Girl Who Never

  HC Michaels

  Copyright © 2021

  by HC Michaels

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  For Angela.

  Sometimes family is about more than just blood.

  Above The Surface

  Detective Hooke set down his phone on his desk, his heart hammering. It didn’t matter how many years he’d been in the job, that rush of breaking a case wide open never left him.

  He leant back in his chair and drew in a deep breath, wanting to enjoy the feeling for a few moments before he launched into action.

  It was hard to believe what he’d just been told. When he’d made the phone call, he’d thought he was chasing up a loose end. A formality and nothing more. But now...everything made sense. Not just the whodunnit but the whydunnit, too.

  Normally, he thought of life like a pond, with so much more going on under the surface than what could be seen floating on top. But the family caught up in this case were more like a porcelain vase that had been knocked off the shelf. The pieces could be glued back together, but they’d never look quite the same. This latest revelation was going to leave the family so shattered, the only way to piece them back together would be to rearrange the fragments to form something new.

  He picked up his file and flicked through the pages until he came to the photo he was looking for. The face of the person he now knew was responsible for the most heinous of crimes. A soul so tortured by their own misfortunes that they felt they had to bring down those around them.

  As the detective studied the photo, he thought of the five victims caught up in the case—his reason for doing this job.

  Two of the deceased were from this broken family. Three further victims had just been unlucky enough to have been near enough to the family to have been caught up in the carnage.

  He bent over his desk and turned to the photo of the young girl, her dark eyes staring out at him as she smiled, oblivious to the fact she was never going to grow up. It broke his heart to think of the way she’d drowned when all she’d wanted was to be a kid and have some fun.

  He turned the page to the photo of her grandmother with the same dark eyes that could no longer see. She may have been older, but she was by no means old. So many wasted years she could have lived.

  Shaking his head, he went to the photos of two young women. Both healthy. Both beautiful. Both robbed of the opportunity to choose their own fate by having their lives snubbed out.

  But it was the photo of the nanny that disturbed him most. With curly brown hair and bright green eyes, she haunted him with the way she smiled innocently at the camera. Was that because he knew she’d never smile like that again? He pushed away the thought of the state her body had been in when she’d been found and went back to the perpetrator’s photo, studying it more closely.

  Perhaps in this case it wasn’t the vase that had broken. It was this twisted individual. A person who’d become so successful at living a double life, they’d even fooled themselves.

  And to think this crime streak came to a head in a place called Sunshine Island. The irony was too much to bear. He thought moving up north would give him the chance to step back from work. But it seemed murderers enjoyed the sunshine just as much as any middle-aged police detective.

  Detective Hooke looked down at his phone, shaking his head at the information he’d just heard. Now that he’d made this breakthrough, all he had to do was ensure the person responsible paid for what they’d done.

  Which meant sifting through all the clues and going right back to the start…

  14 Days Before The Break

  Tessa recoiled as she watched her boss screw up her face in the way she did when she was displeased. Unfortunately, this was an expression Tessa saw often, and despite being fifteen thousand kilometres away, it still had the same frightening impact.

  “Well, this is very inconvenient,” Elvira snapped.

  The internet connection froze, and Tessa was left staring at Elvira’s lemon-sucked face.

  She tapped the screen of her phone, trying to bring Elvira back to life. There was a limit to the amount of time anyone could spend subjected to that scowl. She’d gone to the Greek islands to get away from it, not be haunted by it on a frozen screen.

  “Are you there?” Elvira’s face launched back into motion, the scowl etched even deeper into the lines of her face as she squinted at the camera.

  “I’m here,’ said Tessa. “All good. Look, I’m really sorry I’m messing you about, but it’s only an extra week. I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

  Maybe she shouldn’t go back at all. It was far nicer waking up in this villa with a gorgeous man by her side than in her cramped single bed in her tiny room at Elvira’s house. That was why she’d told Elvira there was something wrong with her plane ticket. There was something wrong—she didn’t want to come home.

  Elvira opened her mouth to say something but was pushed out of view by a freckle-faced toddler, her black curls spilling out over the edges of the screen as she tried to press her nose up against the camera.

  “Tessa! Tessa! My Tessa,” she cried.

  Tessa’s heart spilled over with love. That little girl right there was why she was coming back.

  “Sit back, Amelia, you’ll damage the screen,” Elvira said more sharply than necessary.

  Tessa resisted the urge to yell at her phone. Leave her alone! Can’t you see how precious she is? You’re the luckiest woman in the world to be her mother!

  “Hi, Millie, baby,” she cooed instead.

  “No baby.” Millie crossed her pudgy arms and pouted, her scowl far more endearing than her mother’s.

  “No. No baby,” soothed Tessa. “You’re a big girl.”

  She glanced at her own image in the top right section of her screen to check what Millie could see. Her wavy brown hair had become streaked blonde by the sun and her green eyes were a direct contrast to Millie’s dark features. Although, after two weeks in the sun she was starting to rival Millie’s natural Mediterranean tan.

  “Home, Tessa. Tessa come home!” Fat tears spilled down Millie’s cheeks. “Now, Tessa.”

  “Soon, sweetheart. I’ll be home soon.” She fought the urge to join Millie with her tears. It had been tough being away from her the past fortnight. She hadn’t realised when she accepted the position as a live-in nanny that she was also accepting her heart be filled with love for a child who wasn’t hers.

  It felt like she was hers, though. She spent more time with Millie than Elvira did. Millie had even started talking with her British accent, instead of her parents’ Italian-Australian hybrid twang. And when Millie woke at night, it was Tessa she called for, not her mother or father.

  “And what am I supposed to do with Amelia next week?” Elvira’s face edged back into the screen, her dark bob and severe fringe replacing Millie’s soft features. She was so angular compared to her daughter. She didn’t have a spare ounce of fat on her body, most likely because she barely ate. “We were expecting you back on Thursday. I’ve just had two weeks off work. I can’t exactly take any more leave.”

  “You could take her to work with you?” Tessa suggested.

  Elvira laughed. It was a sarcastic laugh, not one lit by humour. Not that Tessa had meant it to be funny.

  Elvira was the manager of a marketing department at one of Melbourne’s electricity companies. Surely, she could bring her adorable daughter into the office if she ne
eded to. What was there to market anyway? Didn’t electricity sell itself?

  “And I can just imagine how much work I’d get done with Amelia at my desk,” said Elvira.

  “Your parents could take her?” Tessa tried.

  Elvira rolled her eyes. Her parents had sold their Brunswick house along with their successful panel beating business a few years ago and moved up north to Queensland. Elvira had struggled with the decision, mainly because the house they’d sold had been next door to her own. She took it personally.

  Tessa thought perhaps it was personal. After all, they’d never once returned to see their only granddaughter. It was unlikely they’d return now just because Elvira needed a babysitter.

  “Tessa home! Now!” Millie started wailing. “Now, Tessa!”

  Guilt pooled in Tessa’s stomach. “Soon, Millie. I’ll see you soon.”

  The agonising sound of Millie’s grief slowly faded away.

  Tessa didn’t need the camera pointed at her to know Millie was stomping off to her room to throw herself dramatically face-down on her bed, her angry fists beating at her pillow. It was one of her signature moves. Cute at three. It probably wouldn’t be quite so cute in ten years.

  “I’ve been finding her asleep in your bed every morning.” Elvira sighed deeply. “I don’t know what to do with her.”

  It was these rare glimpses of Elvira at her most vulnerable that kept Tessa working for her. She was firm in her belief that there was no such thing as a total bitch. People had many facets to their personality. It was true that some had slightly more negative facets than others, but everyone had some kind of redeemable feature buried inside. Even Elvira. She’d produced Millie. She couldn’t be all bad.

  And she was married to Paul, who was a perfectly lovely man on the rare occasions he was at home.

  “I’ll ring the airline again,” said Tessa, contemplating if she might catch her scheduled flight home after all. She needed more time to think before she made a decision. “I’ll see if there’s anything they can do. It’s peak season, not that easy to get in and out of Mykonos. Everything’s booked.”

  “Then catch a ferry. Please, Tessa,” Elvira begged. “I’d be very grateful. Amelia’s beside herself. So am I, to be honest.”

  Tessa heard a noise at her door. Too early for housekeeping. There was only one other person it could be.

  “I have to go.” Tessa’s finger hovered over the red button. “I’ll talk to you as soon as I’ve figured something out.”

  Elvira nodded. “Bye now.”

  Tessa put down her phone and went to the door. Millie needed her. As wonderful as this holiday had been, it might be time to bring it to a close. She had responsibilities.

  “Kosta,” Tessa said, as her olive-skinned lover slipped through the door, removing his clothes and leaving them scattered on the floor as he made his way to the bedroom. He smelled like the ocean, his short dark hair still wet from the swim he took each morning when he finished nightshift at the bar. Often, he managed to slip into her bed to wake her, but Elvira had beaten him to it today.

  It was hard to believe she’d only known him for two weeks. Her brother had gotten married on the island, which was the reason for her coming here. Kosta was the reason she’d stayed so long and was reluctant to leave. She’d been planning on island hopping after her family returned to London, but so far had only managed to hop on one spot. Mykonos had Kosta. How could the other islands compete?

  He leant on the doorway, his lean frame stretching out, making him seem even taller.

  He hadn’t told her how old he was, but he had to be at least thirty, making him about five years older than Tessa. He’d grown up in Australia—his accent made that obvious—but other than that he hadn’t told her much about himself at all.

  He was a mystery. An extremely hot one at that. And she didn’t mind in the slightest. It sure beat the last boyfriend she’d left behind in London. He’d been so keen to share every detail of his life that she’d once joked he should write an autobiography. His face had lit up as he’d gone to his bag and pulled out a notebook filled with scribblings of exactly that.

  ‘But you haven’t done anything interesting!’ she’d said before she could stop herself. He’d been so heartbroken, she’d decided to finish the job properly and dump him on the spot.

  She looked across at Kosta, noticing he was as ready for her as always. She wouldn’t be surprised to learn he’d been born with a hard on.

  “Are you coming?” he asked.

  “I’m sure I will be in just a moment.” She giggled in the same sort of way Millie did whenever she said the word ice-cream.

  All thoughts of Millie were pushed away as she slid into Kosta’s arms and allowed him to carry her to the bed.

  She’d make a decision about her flight later. There was no hurry to do it right now.

  Elvira both hated and loved Tessa. The two emotions reminded her of those little bowls of olive oil and balsamic vinegar that restaurants served.

  The silky-smooth oil would sit in the bowl all pure and golden, refusing to be marred by the dark stain of vinegar tipped into its heart. The two ingredients just did not mix.

  When in Tessa’s presence, Elvira found herself swaying between feelings of envy, gratitude, annoyance, dependence, and fear. The concoction made her dizzy.

  She knew Tessa was just as confused about her, but there was nothing much she could do about that. Thankfully, there wasn’t much need for them to spend too much time together. She paid her to spend time with Amelia, not with her.

  Elvira was sitting on Amelia’s bed, waiting patiently for her daughter’s chest to stop heaving with the pain of missing Tessa so that she could extract her face from her pillow.

  How did Tessa cope with these tantrums? Surely, Amelia must have them when in her care?

  She reached over and put her hand on Amelia’s back.

  “Darling,” she said. “You’re being very silly.”

  Amelia’s head turned and she shot her mother a glare before burying her face once more.

  “Give Mummy a cuddle?” she asked, aware the sternness in her voice made it sound more like a command than a suggestion.

  “No, Mummy. Tessa cuddle. Tessa my mummy.” Amelia sat up and pulled her strong little legs to her chest, her cheeks blotchy and her hair flying in messy waves.

  Elvira felt like Amelia had just stomped on the already broken pieces of her heart. If she wasn’t Amelia’s mother, then whose mother was she? Perhaps she wasn’t a mother at all. No, that was bullshit. She hadn’t gone through twenty-seven hours of agonising labour to hear her child call someone else her mummy.

  “I am your mummy. Do you hear me?” Her voice rose into a higher pitch than normal. “I am your mummy. Not Tessa.”

  “Tessa my mummy,” Amelia repeated.

  “Listen to me.” She grabbed Amelia by the shoulders. “She. Is. Not. Your. Mummy.”

  Amelia’s eyes widened and Elvira dropped her hands.

  “I’m sorry, darling,” she said, as Amelia shrank back into her pillows, pressing her back against her bedhead.

  “Everything okay?”

  Elvira turned to see Paul in the doorway, wearing his running gear. She hadn’t heard him come in. Usually tall, dark, and handsome, right now he looked more tall, damp and hostile.

  “Daddy,” cried Amelia, scampering off the bed and running into his arms. “Mummy hurt me. Ouchie, ouchie.”

  Paul lifted her from the floor, and she wrapped her legs around him, pointing to her shoulders.

  “What happened?” He raised his eyebrows at Elvira.

  “Why don’t you ask her mummy, Tessa.” She pushed past them and headed for the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Let Paul deal with Amelia for once.

  It had been quite a strain looking after her these past two weeks. When Tessa had asked for a fortnight off, Elvira had seen it as an opportunity to spend some quality time with her daughter. She’d imagined them walking to the ice-cream shop,
playing at the park, and dressing up Barbie dolls as princesses. They’d done all of that, except the happy little girl she’d imagined hadn’t been present. Instead, she’d been joined by a sullen little girl who’d whined about Tessa every moment she got.

  Tessa pushes higher! Swing higher. Tessa higher…Tessa sings teddy song. Sing teddy song like Tessa. No, Tessa song…Tessa makes egg soldiers. Not that. No, Mummy. Do it like Tessa.

  Tessa, Tessa, bloody Tessa.

  Hiring her had been the worst and best decision she ever made. She’d wanted a nanny her daughter would love. She just hadn’t wanted one her daughter would love more than her.

  Maybe there’s a reason regular nannies from overseas can’t stay for more than six months. If only Tessa didn’t have dual citizenship thanks to her Australian born father, then she’d have moved on long ago before Amelia got so attached.

  But what was she to do now? Fire Tessa and deal with the horrific aftermath? She knew what it was like to have someone ripped from your arms and she could never do that to Amelia. She loved her too much for that.

  And she needed Tessa. Without her, she wouldn’t be able to work and that was the only thing that kept her mind busy enough that she was able to stay sane. Having two weeks off had been an acute reminder of why staying at home wasn’t a possibility for her. It was far safer to develop a five-year plan for her workplace than for herself. She could barely see five days ahead.

  No, she had no choice but to keep Tessa on as long as she was able. Hopefully, at least until Amelia started school. Nannies didn’t normally stick around that long, though. At least if she left, it would be Tessa’s decision and Amelia wouldn’t be able to blame her for it.

  She turned on the taps in the bath, deciding that was the best way to remain locked in here for the maximum time possible. It would feel good to soak away the stress Amelia’s tantrum had caused. Maybe she could stay in here until Amelia’s beloved Tessa returned from Greece.