AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Less than half an hour later, just as they were finishing their meal, Nash arrived, and the mood sobered again. He was here to take everyone’s statements. Indy quickly went over the facts in her head. She had nothing to hide, so she’d tell the truth. Steve offered Nash the small caravan as an interview space, and Daniella slipped him a beef sandwich as he went off to set up, which he accepted with a smile. Daniella wasn’t normally the mothering type, but Indy knew she had a special soft spot for Nash, who’d come along at a particularly vulnerable time in Skylar’s life, and now they were such an amazing couple.
Indy offered to help Bindi with washing the dishes; she needed something to keep her mind off what was going on insidethe little van. Dish towel in hand, Indy dried the plates and cutlery and Mack put them away for her.
“Indy, can I have a word?” Daniella asked, appearing at her shoulder as if from nowhere.
“Yes, certainly.” Indy handed the dish towel to Mack and followed Daniella around the back of the tent, where they could have some privacy.
“Don’t worry, this has nothing to do with the…” Daniella waved her hand in the air, furrowing her brow in a frown, showing her distaste for the whole murder scenario. “I didn’t want to bring this up in front of anyone else,” Daniella went on. “But I’ve had two calls from your ex-employer over the past few days. He seems desperate to get in touch with you.”
“Patrick?” Indy exclaimed. What the hell would Patrick want with her?
“Yes, Patrick Mountvey. That’s him.” Daniella smoothed back a non-existent stray strand of hair. “He said it’s urgent. He’s sent you quite a few messages, but you’re not replying.”
“Well, of course not.” Indy looked around and shrugged. There was no cell phone reception out here.
“Anyway, I promised I’d pass on the message to you.” Daniella regarded Indy for a second. “He seemed rather…demanding. Is everything all right? I know Steve said Patrick wrote you glowing references for this position.”
Indy heard thebut, even though Daniella didn’t say it. The last thing she needed was Daniella worrying that she’d done something wrong in her last job. Indy’s heart squeezed as she thought about Patrick. That bastard had no right to contact her.
“I’m sure it’s nothing,” she assured Daniella. “I’ll check my messages when I can, and get back to him.” There must be somewhere she could get reception, even if she had to take a car and drive halfway back to civilization.
The rest of the day passed in a hazy blur of restrained impatience. The crew wasn’t used to sitting around all day with nothing to do. It was too hot in camp to sit near the fire in the midday sun, and people retreated to the shade of the surrounding trees, or to their tents. Indy watched from her spot beneath her tree as Finn was called into the van by Nash. Her heart was in her mouth as she wondered about the conversation going on in there right now.
A reprieve from their inactivity came in the form of Constable Willow, when he told Steve they could load up Swampy’s truck and he could be on his way. It only took two people, three at the most, to load a truck, but they all wandered over to watch the proceedings and help where they could.
Swampy looked like a bald, bearded thundercloud, growling at anyone who came near him. Indy couldn’t figure out if it was because he was now on the police list as a person of interest, or whether it was as simple as the fact his next job had probably now been cancelled because he was running late. Whatever the case, Swampy was desperate to get out of this stock camp, and Indy was just as happy to see the back of him.
They all stood around the holding yards and watched the large truck with the double trailers grind up through its gears in a haze of dust as it slowly wound down the gravel road.
“I’ve organized for another truck to be here tomorrow morning,” Steve said to the assembled crew. Which meant the poor cattle had to spend another night in the holding yards. But it was the best Steve could do, under the circumstances.
“Indy.” She looked up to see who called her name. It was Mack, striding toward her. “Your turn,” he said with a grim smile and her heart leaped into her throat.
“Thanks.” She nodded, biting her lip.
“It’s not a problem,” Mack said in a low voice. “Just tell them the truth.”
“I know,” she agreed, but her feet felt like lead weights as she slowly walked toward the van. Why did she suddenly feel this way? Like Mack said, all she had to do was tell the truth. Just because she and Finn had found the body didn’t mean anything. It didn’t mean she was a suspect. Nope. Her feeling of dread came from the fact she now knew Finn’s true identity. Wondering what Finn had said to Nash. Wondering what she should say to Nash.
Two steps led up to the door of the van, which was open, and Indy took them slowly.
“Come in,” Nash said, standing up in the cramped surroundings to offer her a chair in the corner. It was hot in here, despite the caravan being parked in the shade and the electric fan rotating slowly on the countertop.
She removed her hat and took the proffered seat.
Nash sat and shuffled some papers on the counter, which was serving as a makeshift desk. He lifted his head and smiled at her, and some of the tightness loosened in her chest. She knew Nash. He knew her. They were friends. Or at the very least, good acquaintances. This was all going to be okay.
“This is just routine,” he said. “You can relax. You’ve already been through the worst of it when you found the body.”
She grimaced and then dropped her shoulders. Was it that obvious she was so nervous? He was right. She’d already been through this with him when he arrived. This was just a formality. She looked up to meet his bright-blue eyes. Skylar was one lucky lady, because Nash really was a catch. Curly, blond hair, tall, surfer good looks. She’d often thought he’d look more at home on a tropical beach than he did here in the outback. But then Nash’s face became serious, and she remembered he was also a cop with a job to do. He had a reputation as a good, fair police officer, but that didn’t make this any easier.
“Before we start, I can confirm that Finn has spoken to me. We are now working together to solve this case.”
Indy gave a relieved sigh. Finn had told Nash everything, then.
“He’s asked me to reiterate to you how important it is to keep his secret.”
“Yes. I know that,” Indy replied.
