Max had his hands full as the two men Jack wanted detained for questioning were getting boisterous. ‘Get some fucking security over here or I’ll take you too.’ Max grabbed both the men by the scruff of the neck as he yelled at the site manager, who had been too flustered to know what to do. He jumped on his radio straight way.

  The sound of a siren wailing reached Jack as he pressed the inhaler button two more times. ‘That’s it.’ The kid coughed and almost gagged, his chest heaving as he put his mouth back on the spacer and tried to take in the last two puffs. His hands were shaking but his lips were no longer blue and Jack let out a sigh. ‘That’s it, let those take effect.’

  Two paramedics ran into the worksite. ‘Asthma attack.’ Jack offered. ‘Six, then two more puffs and he’s just starting to respond.’

  ‘Got it.’ The female paramedic lowered herself to the patient and turned the oxygen tank knob, placing the mask over the boy’s face. ‘I’m just going to check your respiratory rate, okay? Keep trying to push out as much air as you can before taking the next breath, and don’t try to take too big a breath. Alright?’ She reassured him with a smile.

  Jack joined Max as two security guards assisted the detective. He kept peering over his shoulder at the boy, whose colour was beginning to return to normal. ‘Looks like you two are going to have to join our union friend over there in a holding cell down the station. Nothing like making life difficult for yourselves.’ Jack turned to re-join the kid as two uniformed officers entered the site. They took two of the antagonists, while Max took the other.

  ‘I’ll stay with the boy for now. I’ll call you if I need a lift back to the station.’ Max nodded and pushed Derek, the union representative in front of him as he left the site. Jack stood in front of the few guys left so that they could see the photo. ‘Does anyone else have any information they’d like to share now, before we have to make more arrests?’

  A few murmurs of ‘no’ and Jack took a deep breath. ‘Alright, looks like you can all go on your break or back to work.’ Jack turned and moved back to the boy who was now breathing normally, still on oxygen, but looking more comfortable.

  ‘Can I ask him a few questions?’ he asked the paramedic.

  ‘As long as you don’t upset him. We’ll need to transport him to hospital for observation. That was a nasty attack. Do you take a preventer?’ she asked the boy.

  He shook his head. ‘Okay then. We’ll let the emergency staff know. They’ll prescribe something for you. This is a dusty place; you really need to take a preventer with asthma as bad as yours.’ The boy nodded and grinned sheepishly from under his oxygen mask at the petite red-head.

  ‘Thanks for your help. You saved his life.’ She offered her hand to Jack and he shook it.

  ‘Police training kicked in, that’s all. Detective Jack Cunningham.’

  ‘Pleased to meet you detective. I’m Nicki Clem. You have a few minutes while we get ready to transport him.’ She smiled at Jack and the kid frowned.

  As she walked away he whispered to the boy. ‘Don’t worry mate, she’s closer to your age than mine.’ The boy’s features brightened. ‘But she might be a little out of both our leagues.’ The frown returned. ‘Now tell me how you know our poor dead guy.’

  21

  Max signed all three men into holding. ‘Keep them apart,’ he told the booking officer. ‘We’ll start interviews when Jack gets back.’

  ‘No worries Max.’ The young female officer smiled, but Max had already turned to leave the cells.

  His stomach grumbled as he made his way down in the elevator. He reached reception and walked out onto Angus Street, rubbing his rough, whiskered chin as he decided where to eat. He could really do with a beer but he was on duty and it was only lunch time.

  Just as he stepped out to cross the road, he was nudged from behind. Not hard enough to push him into traffic but enough to get the heart racing. He turned, ready to offer the assailant a serve and stopped.

  ‘The boss wants to talk to you.’ No-Neck was wearing his signature white t-shirt and blue jeans, even on this hot January day.

  ‘Well you tell him I’m on duty and I’ll ring him tonight.’ No-Neck wasn’t having any of it.

  ‘You’ll need to see him now Max.’ The thug indicated with a nod to the limousine waiting just up the street in the loading zone. The detective sighed and started walking. How the arsehole always managed to find him when Jack wasn’t around was either a miracle or he had other police in his pocket. The latter was more likely.

  Max reached the stereotypical gangster car as No-Neck put his hand on the door and opened it to let him in. A red, angry scratch caught his attention, but No-Neck shoved him inside and jumped in after him. Max took the seat that faced the rear and slowly inhaled to keep his temper in check.

  The car windows were tinted almost midnight black, but Max could still see the pedestrians rushing by, oblivious to the tension that was building right under their noses.

  ‘Max. You’ve been busy.’ The man was in his late sixties, well dressed in a custom-made suit, his dark hair silver at the temples, his beard styled like George Clooney.

  ‘That’s my job. Detective Max. You remember?’ Max pointed to his chest.

  ‘Don’t get smart Max. It doesn’t suit you.’ The man leant forward, No-Neck following to add weight to the comment.

  ‘What do you want Bruce?’ Max crossed his arms defensively and slumped back in the leather trimmed seat.

  ‘Better. Much better. You have two of my associates in custody. You need to let them go before questioning them.’ Bruce sat back, No-Neck followed like his shadow and Max grinned mockingly at the thug.

  ‘Not gonna happen dick face.’ His eyes returned to Bruce, the grin leaving his face. ‘Your son knows who they are. We got their ID’s at booking. I can let them walk, but he’ll just track them down. Then he’ll be asking questions about who let them go.’

  The Judge rubbed his chin as he considered his options. ‘Do they know me?’ He directed the question at No-Neck.

  ‘No boss.’ The thug shook his head.

  ‘Do they know enough to be a problem?’ The thug shrugged. ‘Alright. I’ll talk to the presiding judge. I’ll make sure they get out on bail. Then we’ll deal with them.’

  ‘Like you dealt with that construction worker?’ Max was holding back his contempt. This bastard had been calling the shots, pulling his strings for way too long. Now Liz and Jack were in the mix and he knew he was playing with fire.

  ‘You don’t need to worry your ugly mug with logistics Max.’ The detective grunted and Bruce smirked.

  ‘Then let me out of the bloody car! I’ve got work to do.’ No-Neck opened the limo door and Max jumped out. He leant back inside the open door. ‘Jack’s on this one Bruce. You’ll be hard pressed. He’s too good a detective not to join the dots eventually. I’d kick Malcolm to the curb before it’s too late. Or better still, let him take the fall.’

  ‘Noted.’ No-Neck pulled the door closed and the limo drove off.

  Max stood looking at the rear of the vehicle as it drove away. It was so out of place in Adelaide city. ‘A black limo. Who the fuck drives a black limo in Adelaide anyway? Ostentatious arseholes, that’s who.’ Max crossed the side street and walked to the next block, entering The Wakefield pub.

  He ordered a beer and a steak and watched the greyhounds race while he figured out how the hell he was going to get clear of this mud.

  He was just cutting his first piece of steak when his mobile rang. ‘Great timing Jack.’ He looked at the caller ID and frowned as he recognised the number.

  ‘Detective Max Fitzpatrick,’ he answered.

  ‘Max. You and I need to talk.’ Liz waited. ‘I haven’t told Jack I saw you at Malcolm Light’s party, yet.’

  ‘Shit Liz. You’re in too deep this time. Back off!’ He took a swig of his beer, hoping to calm his nerves but it didn’t help one bit.

  ‘Yeah right. Like that’s going to happen.’

  ‘We can’t talk on the phone. I’ll meet you.’ Max looked over his shoulder, making sure no one was observing him, then shook his head. He was getting paranoid.

  Liz was silent a moment. ‘Alright. But not at my place. I’ll take a taxi to your place after you finish work.’

  ‘I’d offer to pick you up, but Jack and I rode to work together.’

  ‘I wouldn’t ride with you anyway Max. Not for love nor money.’ Liz hung up and Max stared at the phone a moment before putting it down on the table and returning to his steak.

  Her reaction wasn’t exactly unexpected. He hadn’t told Jack the full story. He’d held back on a few details about the history of himself and Liz and he had hoped he never had to share it but Jack was getting personally involved in this case and Max knew Liz was the reason why.

  He hacked away at his steak and stared at the juicy, medium rare meat on the end of his fork, his appetite suddenly gone.

  ‘Damn.’

  22

  The desk in the interview room seemed dwarfed by Max and loud mouth Union man Derek who sat in the dark green vinyl chair opposite the detective. Jack chose to stand behind his partner, his arms crossed, his left leg supporting him as he leant against the wall.

  ‘So, tell me Mr McFarlane, why didn’t you want to share with us that you knew the victim?’

  ‘I didn’t...’ Derek leant back, crossing his arms defensively over his chest ‘know him, that is.’

  ‘Well you won’t mind if I don’t believe you now will you?’ Max’s tone was casual, almost conversational. ‘We know the victim’s identity now. Terry Sullivan was site logistics manager. I find it hard to believe you never met him.’

  ‘He’s management then. That explains it. They don’t mix with us.’ A satisfied smirk spread across Derek’s face and his posture relaxed.

  ‘Still, a big union man like yourself would have known exactly who to complain to if something wasn’t up to Union specs. Isn’t that right?’ Max leant forward across the narrow desk, his body slowly invading the man’s space. His tone was still casual, but it had gained an edge that made Derek frown, but only for a moment. His face hardened quickly. His resolve set.

  Jack moved forward and threw a folder down hard on the table between the two men. Derek jumped, but Max didn’t flinch—he only smiled and opened it up. He laid the autopsy and crime scene photos out one by one, slowly flicking them with intent as they landed right way up in front of Derek.

  ‘Seems morbid to throw him in a hole like that, don’t you think?’ Max’s tone was still casual, but the edge remained. Derek, his arms still across his chest just shrugged, his eyes fixed on Max, not the photos.

  Jack stood back, observing the man’s features. They were hard set. He either didn’t like the guy or didn’t give a crap about his death. The detective moved toward the interview table once more and dragged a chair nosily to the side, spun it around so the back was against the interview desk and lodged himself between Max and Derek. Max eased back to give him space.

  ‘Look Mr McFarlane. Weren’t not saying you had anything to do with this but you must have spoken to the man at least once. A late order of materials? An issue with something? You seem like you are the self-appointed spokesman, or at least you were today.’

  ‘I’m not self-appointed. I’m the Union rep. It’s my job to make sure everything is up to standard. I keep non-union staff off the building site. I ensure that conditions are up to scratch for safety.’

  ‘Well, maybe you stuffed up then?’ Jack slammed the table hard with his hand and Derek jumped. ‘Maybe this was a workplace accident and you missed something you should have noticed? Did you organise to dump the body?’ Max remained silent but drilled the man with his gaze as he looked from Jack and back again.

  ‘No way. I’m not the bloody safety officer. If it was a workplace accident, I would have been straight to the Union on it.’ The accusation had grabbed his attention. His expression showed panic as his eyes moved frantically from one detective to the other. Neither spoke. Max grinned triumphantly and Jack stared with malicious intent.

  ‘Okay. I knew the guy. Vaguely. He was making some noise about faulty materials, but nothing anyone was listening to.’

  Max’s grin transformed into a wide smile as he watched Jack move in. ‘What materials? Maybe the union didn’t want the site shut down? Is that it? Did they pay you to off the bloke and then dump his body?’ Derek looked from Jack’s intense stare to Max’s grin and back again.

  ‘I want a lawyer. There is no way you are sticking this on me. I’m not saying another word until the worker’s union lawyer is here. Got that?’

  ‘That won’t be necessary Mr McFarlane. I think we have all we need for now.’ Jack’s harsh tone was suddenly gone. ‘Don’t you go anywhere though. We might need to follow up with our questioning.’ Jack stood up from his chair and Max scraped his seat back, peering at his watch.

  ‘Interview stopped at 3.26 p.m. You just relax a bit there Derek. One of the uniforms will be in shortly to sign you out,’ Max offered as Jack opened the door and waited for Max to leave first.

  ‘Faulty materials. I need to call Liz. She was talking about photos that came from Becca’s cloud account.’

  ‘You do that. I’ll get the other two bozos ready for interview. Do you think they are our body dumpers?’

  ‘They’re the right build. Has anyone checked to see if either has a stiletto hole in their foot?’

  ‘That would be too easy. That’s the first thing we did after I chucked them in for booking earlier today, but no such luck. Neither of them killed our girl.’

  ‘They could still be the construction worker’s body dumpers. I’ll ask Liz if she wants to come in for a line up. She might remember the guy’s voice or something about him. If they didn’t dump the body, who else could have had access?’

  ‘Maybe they will know. I’ll see you in interview room two in a minute. I need a smoke first. Do you want a coffee?’

  ‘Sounds good. See you soon.’ Jack checked his phone. The reception was always pretty average in the basement, so he took the stairs to the foyer and out onto the street. The traffic noise was in full swing. Peak hour already starting. He moved back into the foyer and dialled Liz’s number.

  She answered on the second ring. ‘Detective.’

  ‘Ms Jeffreys.’ He felt like calling her Madam, since she had the habit of addressing him by his occupation, but shook his head with a grin at the thought of her response. ‘We’ve got two suspects in the dumping of our construction worker. We’ve also identified the victim, so if you have a moment, can you come down to headquarters?’

  ‘Sure. Being on the other side of the line-up glass will be fun.’ Jack didn’t have a response. The image of Liz, dressed in fishnets, red stilettos and a black leather mini just left him speechless.

  ‘I’d also like a copy of the photos Becca sent you if possible. You can email them or bring them on USB if you like.’

  ‘Done. I’ll grab a copy now. When do you want me down there?’

  ‘In about an hour if that suits. We’re still interviewing the suspects. So far, it’s just routine questioning, but if you can try and recall anything about the guys who jumped you, it might be helpful.’

  ‘Okay. In an hour. See you then.’ Liz hung up and Jack stared at the phone before putting it back in his jacket pocket.

  ****

  ‘It was dark Jack. I can’t say for sure I recognise either of them.’ Liz knew two of the men they had interviewed were amongst the eight men in front of her.

  ‘That’s okay. It was worth a try.’

  ‘Look, I can tell you for sure neither is the guy who lifted me off the ground. I’m only small, but he was broad, with huge hands. I scratched one of them pretty deeply, broke an acrylic nail in the process and they are tough as.’

  ‘So these guys could still be the two you saw on the camera?’

  ‘And the two who tried to leave in the van. Like I said in the report, I honestly couldn’t see any faces, but if you want to keep one of those guys on the watch list, it’s the skinny one. It was dark. It won’t stand up in court, but he might still be involved. He’s tall and lanky with crazy hair, just like the silhouette of the guy who opened the gate to let the van out.’

  ‘Got that Max? Get some surveillance ready before we cut them loose.’ Max took a second, but then he nodded and left the room as the detainees filed out of the line-up. He closed the door behind him and made a phone call to uniform branch. He knew Bruce didn’t want these guys followed but what choice did he have?

  He never signed up for murder and if he was going to get out of this alive and not in jail, he was going to have to find a way to nail the murderer without bringing down the big guns. Finding the perp was step one. Step two was having a little chat with No-Neck about his recent scratch.

  ****

  ‘The construction worker’s name was Terry Sullivan. Did you bring the USB?’ Jack explained as they made their way back to his office.

  Liz stopped walking, a look of excitement spread across her face. ‘That’s the link.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘I told you Becca saw someone the night of her murder. It was in her online diary. For goodness’ sake Jack. Really. It takes a call girl to do your job for you. T.S. were the initials she used for her date. He wasn’t a client, he was her boyfriend.’ Liz started walking once more.

  ‘That’s a leap isn’t it? I get the initials, but how does T.S in her diary turn into a boyfriend?’

  ‘Call it intuition but it was something her doorman said to me the other day.’ Liz brought her hand to her lips as she thought. ‘He said she was happy and that maybe she’d eloped. He also said she blushed when he asked her if she had a new man in her life. Becca would never have blushed unless it was real and personal.’

  They reached Jack’s office and Liz was just about to continue the conversation but was interrupted.

  ‘Jack. There you are.’ The Chief Inspector of CIB was sitting at the detective’s desk. She could have sworn he was going through papers but stopped when they entered. Maybe he had a right to, but when she saw Jack’s expression she realised her intuition wasn’t stuffing around.

 

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