Exiles (Aaron Falk #3)(79)

“We’re done,” Raco said with a grin, at the same time as Rita said firmly, “God, no. No more.”

“Fair enough.” Naomi smiled and accepted a cracker from the box Rita had conjured from Henry’s baby bag. Hungry after all the excitement, the four of them crunched on handfuls as they ambled along.

“And how about you, Aaron?” Naomi said lightly, offering the box to Falk. “Any thoughts on—?”

“Naomi,” Rita warned, but she was laughing. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what?” Naomi’s blue eyes were wide.

“You know what. Leave the poor man alone.”

“I was just going to make a very general observation that some kids—male teenage stepchildren, for example—might sound like hard work on the surface but—”

“Yep, we can all guess what you were going to say.” Rita smiled. “Aaron included. So how about you don’t and just hand me the crackers instead, would you?”

“Fine.” Naomi nudged Falk gently as they walked. She nodded back toward Rita and Raco. “You do know they’re as nosy and invested as me, don’t you? They’re just playing it cool.”

Falk smiled at her. “I do know, yeah.”

“Good.”

They came around a bend in the road, and up ahead, Falk could make out Joel and Zara walking together, their heads close. They must have fallen well behind the rest of the group.

“Is that something of Kim’s that Zara’s got on?” Naomi squinted into the light.

Over her dress, Zara was wearing a flowing blue fine-knit cardigan, despite the warmth of the day. She had it wrapped tightly around her, the hem flaring a little as she walked.

“Yeah.” Rita nodded. “Rohan brought up some of Kim’s clothes and books and things for her.”

“I thought I recognized it.” Naomi’s smile faded. “Is Zara finding today hard with Kim not here? I couldn’t see her face in the church.”

“A bit, I think.” Raco nodded. “Kind of a reminder, isn’t it? Knowing Kim would’ve been here along with everyone else.”

“I suppose so, but do you think—?” Rita started, then stopped.

Raco looked over at his wife. “Think what?”

“Do you think Kim would’ve actually come, though?”

“Yeah, of course.” Raco frowned. They had reached the start of the vineyard driveway, and Falk could see guests’ cars parked at the other end. “Why wouldn’t she?”

Rita shrugged. “I mean, I know Rohan’s here, but he’s only in town because of the appeal. And I hadn’t seen Kim socially for a long time. A couple of years, at least. I just feel like she’d moved on from all this. Which is understandable; she’d have had new friends in Adelaide, and work was probably keeping her busy.”

“No, she’d stopped working,” Naomi said suddenly.

Rita looked over in surprise. “When she had Zoe?”

“Earlier. A few months before she was even pregnant, I think.”

“She never told me. Did you know?” Rita asked Raco, who shook his head.

“She didn’t tell me, either,” Naomi said. “I only found out by accident when I was in the city one day, and realized I had a meeting in the same building as that design firm she’d gone to. I stopped by during lunch, but they said she hadn’t worked there for a while.”

Raco frowned. “Seriously? Why wouldn’t she mention it? Had she been fired or something?”

“No, I don’t think so. The others in the office seemed friendly, but it was obviously a bit awkward because I’d shown up and didn’t even know Kim wasn’t there anymore. They said they hadn’t seen her since she left. Asked me to pass on their best when I spoke to her.”

“And did you speak to her?” Raco said. They were weaving their way through the cars parked outside the cottage, and Falk could hear music and laughter floating through the air.

“I tried,” Naomi said. “I know I called her, probably would’ve sent a follow-up text, too. Saying hello, asking if she’d moved on.”

“And what was the response?” Raco was still frowning, and Rita gently touched his arm as they headed around the side of the cottage to the barn where their guests were waiting.

“The usual for Kim,” Naomi said as three different people spotted Rita and Raco and simultaneously set off toward them at a trot. “She didn’t reply.”





26


“Strictly between you and me, it’s any height restrictions for the AFP that worry me, you see. My grandson’s always been a little—well, look, my daughter says I’m not supposed to use the word short in front of him, but I told her, Cheryl, I really don’t know what else you’d call it—”

“Right. I understand.” Falk nodded politely, trying without success to catch Gemma’s eye across the barn. He’d spotted her immediately, looking a little like a conversational hostage herself as she was cornered between tables by an older couple Falk didn’t recognize. He’d started toward her only to be rather impressively hijacked by this woman who’d introduced herself as Raco’s former clarinet teacher and was very keen to discuss the entry requirements her grandson might have to meet to apply for the federal police.