Fifty Fifty (Detective Harriet Blue #2)(10)

I exhaled smoke into the thin morning air. ‘I have so many problems with what you just said, I don’t even know where to start.’

‘Oh really?’

‘Yes, really.’ I looked at the town in the distance. ‘You want to sit down with me so I can download your operational concerns? Who the fuck gave you authority over this case?’

‘ I did,’ he scoffed. ‘I’m Federal. Did you miss that?’

‘How could I? Maximum operational confidentiality? Who talks like that?’

‘I do.’

‘Yeah, you and G.I. Joe. ’

‘Well, you know I’m the Fed in this relationship. So I’m in charge.’

‘You’ll be in charge when we establish this is radical Islamist terrorism,’ I said, flipping the pages of the diary. ‘Which, if this diary gives us any indication, is going to be never. There’s nothing even mildly Islamic-looking in here. All I can see thus far is praise for dickhead white-boy school shooters.’

‘That diary is pure terrorism, and I’m the terrorism expert, so I have jurisdiction,’ he said.

‘Nope.’

‘Yes!’

‘Nope,’ I repeated. ‘You can have jurisdiction when the Attorney-General flies his big golden helicopter into the middle of nowhere, waddles his fat arse up the hill to where I’m sitting and tells me you have jurisdiction.’ I put my feet up on the dashboard. ‘Until then, it’s a three-way partnership. You, me and Vicky.’

Kash laughed, leaned in. ‘Officer Snale’s experience is in chasing down lost cattle dogs and wrangling drunks out of the local pub. She’ll be useful for local intel only.’

I ignored him. ‘My next concern is with your presumption that I’d leak operational information even if this was a federal case. Are you serious?’

‘Of course I’m serious,’ he said. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of newspaper. I couldn’t stop a grimace rising to my face at the image of me on the front page of the Telegraph, my legs splayed over the body of Prosecutor Woolfmyer. I looked like a pint-sized Wonder Woman action figure, my breasts straining against the ridiculous blouse. I tried to contain my fury.

‘Is this not you?’ Kash gave a crooked, patronising grin.

‘Oh, fuck off.’

‘No one told me I was going to have to babysit an insubordinate, dangerous state cop while I was posted here,’ he said. ‘This was supposed to be a very exclusive task force. Me, advising the local authority.’ He jabbed a thumb in Snale’s direction. ‘That’s how it works with this type of case. You get an expert in, and he infiltrates, taking the suspects down when they show themselves. If I have to have you along, I don’t want any of this kind of behaviour.’

He thrust the newspaper page at me. I let it slide to the floor of the car.

‘Maybe you’re feeling hostile because of your brother’s situation,’ Kash said. ‘Maybe you’re always like this, and that’s some indication of why Samuel did what he did. I don’t know. But I don’t want you going off half-cocked and hurting someone on my watch. I’m going to need you to keep it contained while you’re out here, Officer.’

‘I’m going to need you to call a dentist.’ I put my legs down, leaned in to his face. ‘Because the next time you talk to me like that, I’m gonna kick you in the mouth.’

We watched each other. Only Snale drew our eyes away, approaching the car, her notebook still in hand.

‘We’ve got our first lead,’ she announced. ‘A suspect. It’s not good news.’





Chapter 17


A GROUP OF men in Akubras had assembled by the edge of the road, talking animatedly, now and then pointing towards the town. Angry, and unable to look at each other. This didn’t bode well. Snale had managed to rein in her grief but she had the sunken look of someone who had much crying to do yet. She stood beside the passenger-side door with Kash, looking in on me.

‘Chief Campbell retired about six months ago,’ Snale explained to me. ‘I’m the only cop on active duty in the town. It was a long handover, and sometimes Soupy would help me out if I needed it. He got special approval to keep his handgun and cuffs for that very reason. Everything’s been fine. You know, the usual sort of stuff. Drink-driving is my main problem around here. But I have been having some troubles with this kid named Zac Taby and his little crew of misfits.’

‘How old’s Taby?’ I asked.

‘Fifteen,’ Snale said. ‘One of our senior students.’

‘ You guys have got your own school down there?’ I looked at the tiny town below us. It hardly seemed to have enough buildings.

‘Of the town’s seventy-five residents, twelve are kids,’ Snale said. ‘There’s a little schoolhouse behind the post office. Two teachers. Five seniors and seven juniors.’

‘And those guys reckon this Taby kid’s written the diary?’ I said. ‘Makes sense. The book’s full of praise for idiot teens. So they think they’re looking for an idiot teen. Who are they, anyway?’

‘They’re just local farmers.’ Snale glanced back at them. ‘They say they’ve seen Taby around the junkyard over in Tibooburra playing with engine parts. He’s basically everybody’s first suspect when anything happens around here. I have questioned Zac but I wasn’t convinced he had anything to do with the diary.’