Before It Breaks (13 page)

‘I told Byrd to wait until I called you,' said di Rivi.

Clement was already jogging to the station.

‘On my way.' He called Graham Earle and Shepherd as he ran and told them to meet him at the Derby police station.

‘Vests, weapons. If you're there before me, wait.'

It was around two and half hours before they assembled at the Derby police station. Cutting straight across from Dieter Schaffer's shack, a mixture of dirt roads and open scrub, Earle had managed to arrive ten minutes ahead of Shepherd. Even though starting at Jasper's Creek made him geographically the closest, he had faced the worst terrain. Clement had simply hammered full-bore down the highway. Constable Luke Byrd might have only been fractionally taller than Shepherd but his mass was far greater, and it was all oak. Policing outback Western Australia, size mattered. Byrd ran them through what he knew as the detectives strapped on protective vests.

‘Your suspect is Sebastian Kilmorley, seventeen. He's from Fitzroy Crossing. I did a stint there last year and picked him up a couple of times; usual shit, sniffing petrol, bit of break and enter, stole a car. Nothing big-time though, I wouldn't have thought he was hardcore. His girlfriend is Diana. I don't know her second name. Everybody called her “Princess”. I think she was from one of the settlements north.'

‘How sure are you this is the guy?' Earle was struggling to get the vest to sit over his expanding gut.

‘Sebastian drove an old yellow Ford station wagon, exactly like the one the kid with the outboard had, at least as my mate described it.'

‘He could have sold it.' Shepherd establishing a bit of pissing room. Clement almost groaned.

‘Yeah but the girl sounds just like Diana.'

Clement checked his pistol. ‘There's no chance Sebastian could legitimately have an outboard?'

‘Some mate might have given it to him to flog but none of Sebastian's mates would have it legitimately either.' Luke Byrd put his hands on his hips, almost defying them to disagree.

Clement had no inclination to. ‘So where do we look for him?'

‘Fifteen k that way.' The answer came not from Byrd but his sergeant, a dark haired stocky man who introduced himself as Dave Drummond.

‘Sarge has eyes and ears all over,' said Byrd.

‘Costs me a slab twice a year, best investment ever. Soon as Luke told me, I leaned on a couple of contacts. They said the boy and girl are camping at a place they call Smooth Rock.' There was a large map of the region on the wall. Drummond stabbed a location to the east. Like a body surfer in a wave's aspic, Clement allowed the momentum to carry him; he felt his speech quicken.

‘We'll take two cars. Constable, you ride with me. Shep, you're in with Sergeant Drummond.'

Earle drove, Byrd in the back. It was five degrees hotter here than Broome, sparse, primitive. We're like an old-time posse heading after the outlaw, Clement thought as he stared through the bug-smeared windscreen. He had been in this kind of situation before. Confronting a young psycho with a weapon was never routine. Logic might tell them to put down the weapon but logic did not camp in the minds of young stoners. An image of Phoebe mourning her dead father barged its way into his brain. He dismissed it but not before reminding himself he was supposed to get her this evening, which would not be possible now, whatever happened. He dialled.

‘Yes, Dan.'

Did Marilyn save the world-weary tone especially for him or was Brian subject to it too?

‘I'm in the middle of this thing. I can't get Phoebe today.'

‘Don't worry about it. She was invited to go on Ashleigh's boat anyway, but didn't want to hurt your feelings.'

He knew she was waiting for him to ask who Ashleigh was thereby confirming he wasn't really part of the family unit only an interested onlooker.

‘This might be done by tomorrow sometime.'

‘That's not going to work. I just told you, they're sailing.'

She hadn't explained it was for the whole weekend but what did that matter? She had the high moral ground.

‘I'll call her when this is wrapped up.'

‘Okay. Good luck.'

His relationship with Marilyn had devolved into a series of skirmishes that were never decided in his favour. And yet he sometimes felt she could have been a more ruthless foe if she really
desired. Clement was aware the other men were staying studiously deaf.

‘Up here,' said Byrd, pointing at a turn-off.

Earle turned down the narrow, rutted dirt track. The usual savannah-style topography gave way to something dense. Clement checked the rear-vision and saw Drummond and Shepherd follow. A couple of minutes in, Drummond flashed his lights. Earle read the signal and pulled over.

The men clambered out of the vehicles and were instantly desiccated. There was no breeze and the smell of bush grasses was strong. Drummond pointed at a grove of trees.

‘Likely just down through there.'

The words were no sooner out of his mouth than two shots rang out, blended with a volley of screams.

‘Shit.'

Clement couldn't even be sure which of them had said it. He was already running through the bush, changing direction to home in on shrill shouts. The others were either side and behind him. They emerged into a small clearing. A yellow station wagon was parked under a gum tree. A bare-chested young man, really only a boy, was pointing a rifle at a girl. He turned, confused and half-dazed at the commotion.

‘Sebastian, put the gun down.' Byrd put his hand out in a calming manner. Earle and Drummond already had pistols drawn. The girl let loose a stream of invective at the boy.

‘You dumb shit. I told you. You're fucking dumb.'

The boy's eyes were white bubbles. They darted between her and them. Clement could see it was a Ruger 22 he was holding.

‘Put the gun down, Sebastian.'

‘I'll shoot her.'

‘Fucking try it.' She leapt towards him, blocking their lines of fire and tried to beat him with her fists. He shoved her backwards towards them and was gone into the trees in a flash.

Clement hollered, ‘Shep, stay with her!'

With the girl's expletives ringing in their ears, Clement and the others broke into the bush which was surprisingly thick. Clement pointed right.

‘You guys that way; don't fire unless you have to.'

He and Earle started left but quickly slowed. There was no sign of the boy in the surrounding bush which varied from sparse tall grass to squat thick clumps.

Clement called hopelessly, ‘Sebastian this is pointless. We just need to talk to you. Nobody's going to hurt you. Put the gun down and come out.'

Nothing.

It was hot and uncomfortable in the vest under the baking sky. This was the boy's territory but Clement had to pursue. He and Earle edged carefully forward listening. Not even a rustle of leaves. If Sebastian had been running, Dan figured there would have been some sound so he reasoned if the boy came this way he was lying somewhere, motionless. Catching Earle's eye, he signalled they split again and circle in opposite directions. Crouching low, he pushed along the rough, hot ground through tall grass, wary of the weapon in his hand. He had never fired at anybody. The last thing he wanted was to accidentally shoot a fellow cop. He fixed on a clump of trees fifteen metres ahead as a likely hiding spot. Slowly he began to flank it. Whenever he paused longer than a few seconds ants crawled all over him. He flashed back: schooldays, Bill Seratono, him, a couple of others playing sniper, honky nuts as ammunition …

There, from the thicket, a sound like somebody edging backwards. He stood and advanced.

‘Sebastian, we need to talk. I'm not holding a weapon.'

Too late he heard the sound behind him and swung round. Sebastian pointed the rifle, a smile spreading over his crusted upper lip.

This was Clement's nightmare made real: a desperate young man probably off his face, a deadly weapon in hands. And that weapon pointed right at him. It was impossible to tell if Sebastian was sneering or amused.

‘Gotcha a good one.'

‘Yeah, you did. Now Sebastian, please.'

‘I'm not going to jail. They'll take her back.'

‘Who?'

‘Princess's family.'

‘We can talk about that, just put down the gun.'

Sebastian's aim shifted from Clement's chest to his head.

‘That jacket not gonna stop a bullet in your head.'

Behind Sebastian, Earle appeared, his Glock 9 pointing, ready. Clement tried not to make eye contact. He spoke more firmly.

‘Sebastian, put the gun down.'

The boy's focus phased in and out. Then he sighed and let the weapon drop. Earle launched at him from behind, drove him down into the ground and pinned him as he wriggled and swore.

‘So Princess, how did you get that outboard motor?'

The girl looked sullenly over at Clement. They were seated in the small interview room at the Derby station. Clement had decided to start with her first. Sebastian was still high on something.

‘Princess, you answer him.'

Earle stood behind Princess, playing bad cop. When they had checked the back of the station wagon, there was the outboard motor.

‘You want some more Pepsi?' Clement offered the squat fat bottle.

Princess nodded. Clement poured it slowly into a plastic cup so it plopped and fizzed and was impossible to refuse. He held up the cup, tempting.

Princess snatched it and gulped. ‘Found it.'

‘You found the outboard motor?'

‘That's right.'

Another gulp and the Pepsi was gone. The claustrophobic bare brick room smelled of disinfectant. Clement had the air-con on as low as he could stand it.

‘At Jasper's Creek?'

‘Yeah. That one she pointed at the wall to indicate her beau whom she assumed was beyond it somewhere, he's an idiot. I told him leave the fucking thing. We got no need of that. We can't sell it. He don't listen.'

She shoved the cup out and Clement obliged with more Pepsi.

‘You took a rifle too,' said Earle. She answered without turning to him.

‘Well that's useful, you can shoot some parrots or roos to eat, except he wastes all the bullets firing at nothing.'

‘And a wallet too, right, you took that?' Clement, smooth, casual.

‘Nope. No wallet.'

Her eyes dove down. She was lying about that. He moved on though.

‘So, what did you find exactly at the creek?'

‘We were parked, right? We were going to camp.'

According to Princess they heard music nearby and snuck a look. They eased towards the sound and came upon the clearing. The car door was open, the headlights on, nobody around. They figured somebody might have got drunk and gone to sleep in the tent, so they called out and when nobody answered they checked. The tent was empty except for some chicken. Flies were already helping themselves. Around then, the car battery must have died because the music stopped and the light went out. They were trying to work out what to do when Sebastian saw the empty boat floating just off the bank. The motor smelled like it had been used. He remembered there was supposed to be a croc in that creek.

‘We figure the croc got him.'

‘Him?'

‘Don't know any women go camping out there.'

‘So you figured whoever this car belongs to, he's dead, we might as well take his wallet, gun and outboard.'

‘That wasn't my stupid idea.'

Clement pretty much had confirmation on the wallet now but chose not to go there yet.

‘What time did you get there?'

She cast for the memory, lost focus.

‘Eight? Nine? Midnight?'

‘I dunno. After nine.'

‘You saying you didn't see anybody at the camp.'

‘That's right. Hey, if a croc got him we're not going in there to look.'

Earle looked over at him, wondering what he thought about this.

‘So how did you get the boat?'

‘It was close. Dickhead got a branch and kind of pulled it in.'

‘What about the blood?'

‘What blood? I didn't see no blood.'

‘It was all over the tent.'

‘I didn't see it. It was dark.'

‘You said you checked the tent then the car lights went out.'

She shrugged. ‘I didn't see any blood.' Then she understood. ‘Hey, you saying we hurt somebody?'

‘Does Sebastian own an axe or machete?' Earle walked around so he was in front of her, a looming threatening presence.

‘We didn't do anything. We found that stuff.' She was growing strident.

Clement pulled her attention back to him. ‘You didn't find any clothes, say?'

‘I told you. Seb took the motor off the boat and we left.'

‘And the gun?'

‘The gun was under the car seat.'

‘Did a man find you stealing his things come back and fire at you?'