‘How young would you estimate?’
There it was again, that look in Marty’s eye. Those bright blue eyes sharpened like the flash of a blade.
Jet thought about his question for a while before answering. ‘I read the news reports. They were suggesting she was sixteen.’
‘But you think otherwise,’ Marty finished for her.
Jet nodded, feeling sick, and glad of his perceptiveness.
‘How old do you think she was?’
Jet closed her eyes. She still saw the girl in her dreams. The paper’s called her Crystal, but it wasn’t her real name. Her real name would be Asian, but from what the media were reporting, they didn’t even know what country in Asia the girl was from.
Jet opened her eyes again. ‘I can’t be sure, but I’d say as young as thirteen or fourteen.’ She hoped it was fourteen, but did that really make it better? She cleared her throat. ‘She was a prostitute?’
‘An underage one, yes.’
‘She didn’t look like a prostitute.’
‘Obviously I’m not privy to the full details of the investigation but Gordon did mention that to me. What gave you that impression?’
‘By how young she looked. She wasn’t wearing any make-up and she had a pretty dress on. There was nothing remotely sexualised about her appearance.’ Jet’s heart broke again for the girl who had lost her life so young. ‘The papers are saying she was found dead in the pool, yet it’s being investigated as a homicide.’
‘There was a nasty contusion on her head to suggest foul play, but I didn’t tell you that.’
Jet hugged her arms to her chest. ‘She died before she reached the water?’
‘We won’t know until the autopsy has been carried out, which can sometimes take months.’
Jet closed her eyes again, feeling dizzy. She heard Marty clear his throat and met his gaze again.
‘Jet, you don’t need to be thinking about this more than you already have.’
‘I can’t help it. It’s always there in the back of my mind. It’s the reason I’m here.’
Marty’s smile was gentle. ‘I’d hoped we weren’t that bad.’
‘Oh, you’re not!’ Jet exclaimed. ‘Truly. Under different circumstances ...’ Under different circumstances, what? She had her life in Sydney. The Hunter Valley was charming, but it was never going to be part of her life.
‘Dan’s asking questions,’ Marty said.
Jet’s eyes widened. ‘That’s my fault. I overreacted at the restaurant the other day. It was silly, but I was caught off guard and—’
‘And you reacted like someone in your situation would react. Nice hair, by the way.’
Jet’s heart rate calmed at the hint of humour in Marty’s expression. ‘It’s awful, isn’t it? Dan hates it.’
Marty’s eyebrows shot up. ‘He told you that?’
‘Not in so many words.’
The twinkle in Marty’s eyes faded. ‘I didn’t tell him who you are.’
‘So you lied to him?’ Jet’s stomach clenched.
‘No, I didn’t lie. I talked around the truth. It’s a skill I learned years ago and it’s one you need to learn for yourself now as well.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I know this is hard for you, but you have to stop trying to be someone else so much. Just be yourself.’
‘But how can I be myself? I’m here under false pretences and I’m using a different name.’
‘So? It doesn’t mean you’re still not yourself.’
Jet looked down at her hands resting on her lap and tried hard to articulate the feelings she hadn’t put a voice to before. ‘Maybe I haven’t felt like myself for a long time.’
Marty nodded, like that was the answer he’d expected all along. ‘The celebrity spotlight didn’t suit you.’
‘No, I hated it. Still hate it. After this, I’ll forever be in the news.’
‘Not necessarily. People have fickle memories.’
Jet could only hope so. ‘I’m sorry to burden you with all of this. I still can’t believe you’ve taken me in and put you and your family at risk.’
‘Life is all about risk. And no one here knows who you are, so it’s not a big risk for us. From what I can see, the biggest risk so far is losing a damn fine event planner down the track and not being able to find anyone who even comes close to her.’
Jet smiled at the compliment, but it was a sad smile. ‘I can put some feelers out. I know a lot of people and I’m sure we could find someone competent to fill the role.’
They’d have to now with the amount of weddings Jet had managed to book up to twelve months in advance.
‘I don’t doubt it. But you know that’s not exactly what I meant. You’ll always be welcome here, Jet. Even after all this settles down—and it will settle down.’
‘Thank you.’ Jet stood up to go. She wanted to believe Marty about both of those things, but found it hard to. Would her life ever be the same after this investigation came to a close? And while Marty might think highly of Jet, she very much doubted Dan and Cynthia would welcome her back with open arms after they learned of her duplicity and the way Marty had lied for her.
It didn’t matter. By the time this was all over, she’d be long gone, anyway.
Chapter Fourteen
Andrew openly surveyed Edie’s petite frame sitting across the desk from him. A moment earlier she’d breezed into his office like she owned the place and was currently seated in front of him reapplying her lipstick. The bright red colour contrasted the navy jacket and skirt she was wearing. At first glance it looked like she was in office attire like any of his other female employees. He didn’t recall any of his staff daring to wear a skirt that short though. The way the jacket unapologetically hugged her tiny figure and the cut of the lapel that led his eyes to the low-cut top she wore beneath it was deliberate. He was sure of it. Edie was like a CEO’s hot office fantasy brought to life, but he was smart enough to recognise she was an actress playing a part. It didn’t prevent him from directing an appreciative glance at her pert cleavage.
Edie snapped the compact mirror shut and dropped it and the lipstick into her Chanel handbag. ‘Nice office.’
Andrew raised an eyebrow. ‘Nice suit.’
Edie straightened in her seat, pushing her shoulders back to give him an even better look. ‘Thank you. I would have made a good corporate woman, don’t you think?’
Andrew doubted that very much. ‘To what do I owe the pleasure?’
Edie’s usual self-confidence faltered momentarily and she cleared her throat. ‘I heard from her.’
It was Andrew’s turn to straighten in his seat. He reached out and gripped the edge of the desk. The expanse of glass was more of a showpiece than a desk, but right now he didn’t care if he left smudge marks like he was usually so careful to avoid. ‘Juliet?’
‘Yes.’
It was amazing how one word could have so much power over him. Andrew noticeably sagged with relief in his seat. ‘When? What did she say?’ Somehow he managed to keep his words calm, but there was no mistaking the note of demand in his voice.
‘See for yourself.’ Edie plucked a mobile phone from her bag and Andrew watched impatiently as she searched for a message.
She handed the phone to him.
The screen showed an email titled ‘Update’. Below the subject line were three short sentences.
I’m sorry I left without saying goodbye. I’ll be back when things calm down. Please don’t worry.
Andrew shoved the phone back towards Edie in disgust. After waiting more than three weeks for some contact from Juliet, this was no better than Commissioner Gordon’s platitudes.
‘Aren’t you happy she’s alright?’ Edie’s usually coy demeanour was gone.
Andrew pushed back the chair and stood, turning to cast his eyes over the city shimmering in the brilliant morning light. ‘I know she’s alright,’ he said, almost adding ‘silly woman’ to the end of it, but he caught himself. ‘
What I want to know is where she is. This message tells me nothing. It’s sent from an unfamiliar email address I bet was created for just this purpose. I can have it traced, but Juliet’s not stupid.’
‘What do you mean you know she’s alright?’ Edie enunciated the words slowly, like she was practising a line.
Andrew turned around and shot her a derisive look. ‘With my connections you don’t really think that’s a question I haven’t already been able to answer? You may hold some sway among the celebrity pages, but you don’t have anywhere near my power.’
Edie eyes narrowed, their deep blue darker than normal. ‘And you didn’t think to tell me all this time that Juliet was safe?’
Andrew shrugged dismissively, secretly enjoying Edie’s indignation. More than once since the night of the Logies he’d thought of Edie’s taut little body. He didn’t care to examine why he found her all the more tantalising when she was angry. It was a simple fact.
Edie sprung up from her seat and rushed around the desk towards him. Andrew watched on in an amused silence, but it was an amusement filled with expectation.
‘You’re a bastard, Temple. No wonder Juliet got in touch with me and not you.’ She stood mere inches from him, her chest rising up and down rapidly and her eyes flaring with hatred.
He knew it was wrong, but the fire in her eyes pleased him. When Juliet had been angry, she’d always kept that fire in check and it had made him even more determined to spark the flame. With Edie, her fire burned bright and hot and he enjoyed being the oxygen.
‘Hardly surprising, given Juliet hasn’t been able to trust me ever since I wasn’t able to keep it in my pants, don’t you think?’
The fire in Edie’s eyes grew hotter, but it wasn’t with hatred anymore. He might be a bastard, but Andrew knew when a woman wanted him.
‘I don’t trust you either,’ she hissed.
‘And I don’t trust you.’
‘But you want to fuck me,’ she announced.
Andrew’s smile was knowing. ‘And you want to fuck me.’ Away from the bright lights of the Logies, Andrew didn’t shy away from using the word. Judging by the glimmer of satisfaction in Edie’s eyes, he understood she didn’t feel any disloyalty to her friend. They both knew what they were proposing was so far from what he and Juliet had it was impossible to compare. Sex with Edie would be sex—nothing more. Andrew felt himself grow hard and didn’t attempt to hide it this time.
‘I want you to take me on this desk,’ Edie told him.
Andrew’s eyes held a challenge. ‘What? Now?’ He was already imagining pushing that much too short skirt up to her waist.
‘Now. Or is that too daring for someone like you who always likes to be in control?’
This was why whatever it was between them was hard to resist. The others need for control was a challenge neither of them were prepared to back down from. Which one would be the first to relinquish that control only heightened the attraction.
He didn’t take his eyes off her as he reached for the phone and put it to his ear. ‘Hayley, hold my calls. I don’t want to be bothered for the next half hour.’
Edie cocked a dark eyebrow and waited until he’d ended the call. ‘Half an hour? This should only take a few minutes.’ She was already reaching for his belt buckle and undoing it with practised hands.
He caught her wrists. ‘It will take as long as it takes and end only when I say so.’
Edie grinned at him, dragging her teeth along her bottom lip. ‘That’s more like it.’
***
Your ex-husband is looking for you.
Jet was powerless to stop the words from repeating over and over again in her head. It became a sort of rhythm in her head as she ran. With every fourth or fifth footfall the sentence would start anew like a bad dream she couldn’t wake up from, the nasty voice taunting her endlessly.
It was why it was barely dawn and she was out for her morning run already. Lying awake in her bed back at the cottage, she’d felt tormented and trapped. She might not be able to escape the voice in her head, but at least running released some tension.
Was that why she’d stupidly contacted Edie?
Jet still couldn’t believe she’d done it. It was the sense of powerlessness that had driven her to send the anonymous message, but she knew it was absolutely no excuse. As soon as she’d sent the message, the need to do something—anything—had instantly abated. A sick sense of dread swiftly took its place.
What had she done? She’d broken the trust of the man who was protecting her and endangered not only herself, but his family.
Desperation had been a big part of it. The constant thought of her ex-husband using every means at his disposal to find her was almost worse than the thought of a killer coming after her—if that’s truly what the hit-and-run accident had been. The police weren’t taking any chances and neither was Jet, except for one stupid message to Edie in the heat of the moment.
Jet’s thoughts were a sad reflection on her failed marriage. Andrew was a powerful man—too powerful—and when he wanted something he usually got it. If that meant going against the wishes of New South Wales’ most senior commanding police officer, Jet didn’t doubt he would do it.
She’d hoped by sending the message to Edie, it would get back to Andrew. Jet would never be so brazen as to send Andrew a message directly. That wasn’t just stupid, it would give him the wrong idea.
Jet shook her head at herself, flicking a few droplets of sweat from her face as she did so. She’d always been fiercely independent, but even more so since their divorce. If Jet relied on Andrew in any way, it would only add to his sense of power.
Not for the first time since Jet had been in the Hunter Valley did she think that maybe it was time to lose the Temple name. The feeling of missing Edie, Sydney and her business was a constant dull ache, but her time in the Hunter Valley had been unexpectedly freeing. She hadn’t realised the true extent the weight of the Temple name carried until it had been lifted from her shoulders.
Would he keep looking for her now she had sent the message? She knew Edie well enough to know she’d tell Andrew. Edie enjoyed being in control just as much as Andrew and she wouldn’t waste the opportunity to prove to him she had the upper hand when it came to Juliet. At times Juliet felt like a young child the two of them fought over.
Juliet was so lost in her thoughts she wasn’t sure how long the car had been there. Her first sense that something wasn’t quite right was the low hum of the engine behind her. Usually when Juliet was out running the cars would pass her in a careful, orderly fashion one by one, but this car was sitting back for some reason. Unlike the city, there was no footpath to run on, so Juliet kept to the side of the road and only ran along lesser used roads. While it wasn’t particularly safe to share the road with cars, in some ways it felt safer than in the city. Out here it was only locals or wine tourists enjoying the scenery, both of which were always happy to give her room.
Juliet didn’t change her pace, but she did cast a quick glance back over her shoulder.
Your ex-husband is looking for you.
It was a black European model car with tinted windows. Her brief look suggested it was probably a Mercedes. It was almost fifty metres back and Jet forced herself to breathe in and out, in and out. Andrew might be looking for her, but that didn’t mean the car behind was anything to do with him.
What about the killer?
If there even was one, Jet reminded herself. Another few breaths in and out. A Mercedes was hardly unusual in the Hunter Valley, Jet told herself. Wine tourists came from all walks of life, but many had plenty of cash. Juliet imagined the occupants to be an older well-heeled couple, given it was the middle of the working week. Perhaps they were just lost and reviewing the GPS without pulling over.
Juliet tried to put the car out of her mind and focus on the gradual incline up ahead. It was deceptively steep. In a car, the gentle hill was nothing more than another scenic highlight, but Jet knew from experience t
he hill required her full attention. She wasn’t the type to back down from a challenge and she was proud enough to want to make it to the top without becoming winded.
Jet did her best to regulate her breathing and push past the expected sting to her thigh muscles as she began the climb. The next few minutes became an exercise in moderating her breathing while ignoring her straining muscles as well as the car behind her.
Close to the top she was brought out of her reverie by the deep growl of an engine. In the split second Jet had time to look back, the Mercedes was almost on top of her, accelerating at a rate much faster than her already pounding heartbeat.
Jet cried out in shock and wrenched her body out of the way as the sleek car sped past, quickly disappearing over the crest of the hill. Forced to the edge of the road, Jet lost her footing and toppled backwards onto the nature strip.
It took her several long seconds to realise she was hurt, and even longer for her heartbeat to slow. She didn’t move for a minute. Confusion was the dominant emotion, but underneath was sick sense of fear.
Gingerly, Jet raised her forearms and looked at the damage the fall had caused. Grazes criss-crossed her wrists. The soft skin on her arms looked like she’d had an altercation with a particularly nasty tree, which she supposed was close to the truth. The mess of leaves, twigs and branches lying by the side of the road hadn’t been a nice way to break her fall.
Jet stood slowly and saw that her right knee was bleeding. Fortunately the cut didn’t look too deep and she didn’t have much choice but to let the blood trail down her shin. With a start, she felt a trickle of blood run down her cheek. She must have hit her head too. Jet carefully touched her fingers to her forehead and winced.
With a shaky exhalation Jet started walking back to Rhodes Wines, wiping blood from her cheek as she went. Technically she was still capable of running but she didn’t need to encourage blood flow right now. The skin on her knee felt tight and stung with every step, and now she was moving, her head pounded where it had been cut.
Don't Let Me Forget Page 9
