The Survivors(34)

The two girls left Mia’s house together, walking another twelve minutes to the Evelyn Bay Community Library. They had taken a one-day writing workshop there that summer and wanted to work on their short stories. They returned their books, borrowed some more, and got started. After nearly an hour, the librarian heard what sounded like a muffled argument from their table behind the shelves and asked them to keep it down.

The ‘Asian girl’, the librarian had told Sergeant Mallott and Constable Renn later, was in tears and packing her belongings, while the ‘tall one’ appeared to be trying to convince her to stay. She was seemingly unsuccessful, as both girls left a few minutes later, together but – the librarian wasn’t sure – perhaps not speaking. She had warned them as they’d left that rain was expected.

The walk home had taken them past Gabby’s house, which was quiet and empty, Mia had told Mallott and Renn when it was her turn to be called into the station. They hadn’t stopped, instead continuing down to the beach.

Why? Mia said Renn had asked. Because you were arguing?

They hadn’t been arguing, Mia had insisted. Gabby had given Mia some honest feedback on her short story and Mia had taken it to heart. She hadn’t wanted to stop at Gabby’s house, so Gabby had followed her. It had all seemed important at the time.

By Mia’s account, she and Gabby had walked a short way across the sand, watching the dark clouds gathering on the horizon. By then Mia was getting cold. She wanted to go home before the rain came. Gabby had tried to persuade her to stay a little longer but Mia had picked up her own backpack of library books and said goodbye. She had left Gabby sitting alone on the beach.

They had parted on good terms, Mia told Mallott and Renn. This was slightly contradicted by Mia’s own mother, who was later overheard confiding in a friend that she had battled her way home from a rained-out engagement party to find her daughter ‘upset’ in her bedroom. Mia, in turn, had insisted that wasn’t the case. She had simply been tired and increasingly unsettled by the storm now raging outside.

Gabby was officially sighted only once more that day, thirty minutes later at 3.50 pm. She was seen standing on the large flat rocks that jutted out from the beach, her hair billowing and her striped backpack over her shoulder. Then the clouds drew closer and the waves began to swell and roll in a way they rarely, if ever, did along that stretch of coast, and Gabby Birch was never seen again.

A string of storm-related injuries began flooding into Evelyn Bay’s overwhelmed medical clinic shortly after 5 pm. The most serious, including Kieran, were transported to hospital in Hobart. Within ninety minutes, the phone system was down along a sixty-kilometre stretch of coast. The streets were deserted. Motorists were advised, then warned, then forced by conditions, to stay off the roads. The medical centre remained overrun as treated patients, including Olivia, had no option but to stay and shelter in place. The bodies of the two local men recovered from the water near the caves lay covered by sheets in Clinic Room 2.

And so it wasn’t until the next morning that Patricia Birch was at last able to leave the clinic after a double shift, with her daughter Olivia in tow. They returned home, both weary and battered, to discover that Gabby’s bed had not been slept in.

Neighbours’ doors were knocked on, school acquaintances were summoned, and when there was still no sign of the girl, a search was mounted. Volunteers helped pick through the debris of their broken town as boats scoured the water. A handful of ‘missing’ posters were printed, but in the chaos no-one managed to put up a single one. Perhaps because in their hearts no-one in Evelyn Bay really thought Gabby was missing. They all knew where she was; it was just a question of whether or not the sea would give her up.

The search continued for two long days. On the third morning, Gabby’s purple-striped backpack washed ashore.

Kieran and Verity gave Pendlebury the short version. The girl, the beach, the storm, the vanishing, the bag. The grief the town shared with her family, and the questions that inevitably lingered. The details were all on file somewhere, if Pendlebury was that interested. Mia perched on the armchair nearest the door, holding her baby daughter. She said almost nothing.

When they had finished, Pendlebury tapped her pen against her chin. She glanced at Brian, who was watching them from his corner.

‘Is there any particular reason why Mr Elliott thinks I’m here now about Gabby rather than Bronte?’

‘No.’ Verity’s gaze was unflinching. ‘He’s just confused.’

Kieran blinked in surprise, and also sensed Mia tense a little behind him. Neither corrected Verity. But Kieran felt uneasy. They’d already told Pendlebury that the details of Gabby’s disappearance were all on file. If she was at all curious, it would take her two minutes to discover what Verity was now failing to mention. Kieran debated, then took a breath. Verity turned her head and met his eyes, and he closed his mouth again. Maybe Pendlebury wouldn’t bother. She had enough on her plate.

The officer asked a few more questions and they told her what they could – how Bronte had chased Audrey’s hat into the sea; how Kieran and Mia had seen a car driving by so fast that Mia couldn’t even be sure of the colour; how they both thought that Bronte had seemed ‘fine’ at the Surf and Turf, whatever the opinion of two people who didn’t know her at all was worth.

At last, Pendlebury flipped her notebook shut with a word of thanks and stood. She made her way to the door, taking out three business cards and handing one each to Kieran, Mia and Verity. Her finger tapped on a fourth as she glanced through at Brian, still sitting in his armchair, then she returned it to her wallet.