Force of Nature (Aaron Falk #2)(79)
‘Oh yeah?’
‘He says Sam liked to show off a bit about his old man, boasting he knew stuff the police didn’t, that sort of thing. Sam brought them out here twice.’ King nodded at the thin trail at their feet. ‘The bikie wasn’t sure exactly where it was, but knew about the North Road and a couple of other landmarks – there’s a gorge a bit further up – so we were able to narrow it down. He reckons he might still have a bit more to add. He’s hammering out a deal with his lawyers as we speak.’
‘And you believe him about Kovac?’ Carmen said. ‘He hasn’t just stumbled across this place on his own and is trying to dress it up?’
‘Yeah. We believe him.’ King sighed. A tiny pause. ‘We’ve recovered some human remains.’
There was a silence. Falk looked over. ‘Who?’
‘It’s a good question.’
‘Not Alice?’
‘No.’ King shook his head. ‘Definitely not. They’re too old. Couple of other interesting things up there as well – you’ll see for yourselves – but no sign of her yet.’
‘Christ,’ Carmen said. ‘What has gone on there?’
Somewhere deep in the bush, invisible kookaburras laughed and screamed.
‘Another good question.’
Day 3: Saturday Night
Beth heard the crack of her hand against Alice’s cheek a beat before the smarting sensation flooded her palm. The sound seemed to reverberate around the cabin as her hand throbbed, hot and stinging.
For a single moment, it seemed to Beth like they were balancing on a knife-edge from which she – they – could still step back. Apologise. Shake hands. File a report with human resources on their return. Then, outside, the wind blew and Alice made a tight, angry noise in the back of her throat and, all together, they teetered and fell. When the shouting started, it came from every corner of the room.
Beth felt Alice grab her hair and drag her head downwards. She lost her balance and her shoulder crashed against the floor. Her lungs emptied, winded by her own weight. A pair of hands pushed her face against the ground and Beth could feel grit scraping her cheek and taste the rank dampness. Someone was pressing down on her. Alice. It had to be. In the closeness, Beth could smell the faint whiff of body odour and part of her mind found the space to be surprised. Alice had never seemed the type to sweat. Beth tried to claw back, but her arms were pinned at an awkward angle and she struggled, grasping at clothes, her fingers sliding off expensive water-resistant fabrics.
She felt a tug and another pair of hands scrabbling to pull her and Alice apart. Bree.
‘Get off her!’ Bree was shouting.
Beth wasn’t sure who she was talking to. She tried to twist free, then felt the thud and crash as Bree unbalanced and fell on them. The trio rolled heavily to one side, smashing into the table leg and sending it squealing across the floor. There was a sharp bump and someone across the room gave a cry of pain. Beth tried to sit up but was pulled back down by a hand in her hair. Her skull hit the ground hard enough to send a sickening wave from her gut to her throat. She saw white spots dancing in the dark, and under the weight of the fumbling, clawing hands, felt herself go slack.
Chapter 21
The track became only more difficult to navigate the farther they walked. After an hour, it disappeared almost completely as it crossed a stream, then re-emerged to veer erratically towards a steep drop by the side of the gorge King had mentioned. Sentry rows of identical trees started to play tricks on Falk’s eyes and he felt increasingly grateful for the occasional sight of police tape. He didn’t like the idea of doing this stretch alone. The rogue temptation to wander astray was ever-present.
It was a relief when Falk began to spot splashes of orange in the surrounding bush. Searchers. They must be getting close. As if in answer, the trees slowly gave way and a few steps later he found himself entering a small clearing.
In the centre, squat and bleak behind the lines of police tape and the flash of officers’ high-vis jackets, lay the cabin.
It was well camouflaged against the muted tones of the bushland and it looked purposefully lonely. From its gaping vacant windows to the unwelcoming sag of the door, it reeked of desperation. He could hear Carmen breathing next to him and, all around, the trees whispered and shuddered. The wind blew through the clearing and the cabin groaned.
Falk turned in a slow circle. The bushland pushed in from every side, with the occasional orange splash of searchers barely visible among the trees. From the wrong angle, he imagined the cabin would be almost impossible to see. The women were lucky to have stumbled across it at all. Or unlucky, he thought.
A police officer stood on guard near the side of the cabin, while another did the same a short distance away. Each had plastic sheets covering something at their feet. Both sheets sagged a little in the middle, but gave no hint at what was concealed.
Falk glanced at King. ‘Lauren told us they found the remains of a dog.’
‘Yep, that’s it there.’ King pointed to the nearest plastic sheet, the smaller of the two. He sighed. ‘The other one’s not though. The specialists are on their way.’
As they looked, the corner of the nearest sheet lifted in the wind and flapped back on itself. The guarding officer crouched to fix it, and Falk caught a glimpse of an exposed shallow ditch. He tried to imagine what it had been like for the women out here, alone and afraid. He suspected whatever he could conjure up would not even come close.