Saving Billie (10 page)

‘Says you. That woman who rang me. What're you playing at? I've been trying your mobile for hours ever since.'

‘As she told you, she's Billie Marchant's sister. Hang on.'

I went to the stairs and listened but heard nothing.

‘What now?' Lou snapped when I got back on the line.

‘I've got her with me here. We've had developments. I found Billie.'

‘Great. Where is she?'

‘Still where I found her. Listen, Lou, it's all a bit tricky. But the sister knows where Billie's son is and she's halfway to helping us get hold of Billie. So calm down.'

‘All right, all right. But you know how important talking to Billie is to me.'

Me, me, me, I thought. I said, ‘To you, yeah. But Billie's strung out and with some dangerous and strange people and there's the kid's safety to consider.'

I could sense her fighting for control, trying to keep the aggression and impatience out of her tone. ‘You're calling the shots,' she said.

‘Sort of. I want you to come to my place tonight and talk things over with Sharon. She's about your size and she needs some clothes, something functional—jeans, a blouse, a jacket, sandals, like that.'

Lou laughed. ‘She's naked? Hardy, you devil.'

I let her have that one. ‘And some money.'

‘Shit. How much?'

‘Say a hundred bucks.'

‘All right, you had me worried for a minute.'

‘The subject'll come up again, I guarantee. And one more thing, Lou—don't tell anyone about this, and I mean anyone. Okay?'

‘Sure, but how about you give her the hundred and put it on your account. I don't think you've knocked down that retainer yet.'

‘The cheque hasn't been honoured yet.'

‘It will be. What's the address and what time do you want me there?'

I looked at my watch. ‘About seven. We'll be having a curry. D'you like curry?'

‘No,' she said and hung up.

Despite myself, the election talk was sucking me in. The opposition was promising free health care for citizens over seventy-five. Not yet. The government wanted to make it easier for small business to sack people and was swearing to keep interest rates low. No appeal for me there. If small business had its way they'd be putting people on and laying them off as it suited them, and devil take the hindmost. And I didn't have a mortgage any longer.

A while back I'd helped a lawyer who was trying to get a refugee out of a detention centre. Didn't happen. The detention centres hadn't rated a mention so far to my knowledge. I couldn't think of a single reason to vote for either of the major parties. The Greens in the Senate, maybe, to keep the bastards honest, the way the Democrats hadn't.

10

S
haron got up and heard me working on the computer in the room next to where she'd slept. She came in wearing my flannie.

‘What're you doing?'

‘Just seeing what I can find on Clement.'

‘Much?'

‘Too much and probably all bullshit. I looked up that community protection mob as well. All very churchy, but there was a bloke mentioned as a counsellor that I've heard of, a Maori.'

‘And?'

‘Used to be standover man working for a fight promoter.'

‘He probably got born again.'

‘Yeah, in his case it wouldn't hurt. How're you feeling?'

She fingered the shirt which came down to her knees. ‘This's more like me. Wouldn't go with the sandals though.'

I told her Lou Kramer was coming over with some clothes and to have a talk.

‘You said we could discuss that first.'

‘I know. Sorry. She called and there wasn't any other way to handle it.'

She wasn't happy but she let it go. She called her daughter and told her she was in the city for a day or two with a friend. She grinned as she listened.

‘Behave yourself. Listen, darling, my car's parked at the pub. Could you get Craig to run you out there and pick it up? You've got a key. You could hang on to it for me for a couple of days . . . In your dreams. Thanks, love. Bye.'

She hung up. The conversation had improved her mood. ‘She worries about my love life, or lack of one.'

‘Sounds as if you get along well.'

‘We do.' I'd taken another glass of red up to the computer with me and she looked at it. ‘I could go some of that now.'

‘Do you like curry?'

‘Love it. Take out, right? I looked around your kitchen and didn't see any cumin and coriander.'

‘That's right. When I curry something, mostly sausages, I do it with the help of Clive of India.'

‘Yuk. Well, if you had the fixings I'd offer to make it, but you don't and I don't reckon I'm quite up to cooking just now. I can, though.'

‘That's okay. You've had a hard day and there's a very good place up the street.'

I went out on foot to the Taste of India. A little light rain had fallen, laying the dust and setting free the scents from the gardens. When I first got to Glebe the small spaces in front of most of the terraces were filled with weeds, rubbish, and supermarket trolleys. Now they sprouted well-tended native gardens, and the old, rusted, gap-toothed wrought iron fences had been replaced by intact modern versions of the same thing. The security doors and window bars were another innovation.

We had the food spread out in its containers on the eating bench in the kitchen by seven o'clock. We were both hungry and got straight into it. We ate and drank in silence for a while.

‘No woman, Cliff ?' Sharon said as she took a pause.

‘Not as of now.'

‘Why's that?'

‘They don't stick around, or I don't, or both.'

‘Can't commit?'

I forked in some rogan josh and chewed on it. ‘Maybe,' I said, ‘but it's more than that. It's to do with the work. If you'd lived in Canberra, say, that's where I'd be tonight.

Anyone living with me'd be on their own a good bit of the time. Hard to plan a night out.'

‘Let alone a family.'

‘Let alone.'

‘So, no kids?'

‘I've got a daughter I didn't know about until she was grown up. For one reason or another her mother didn't let on to me. I see her from time to time now but that's about it. I'm glad she's there and doing okay, but I can't claim any credit for it.'

‘I can claim it for mine.'

‘You're lucky.'

She ate a few mouthfuls, then shook her head. ‘Has to be more to it than that. These days there's lots of professional women leading busy lives, working odd hours. They don't require their blokes to be home by six for tea. And there's more to you than you say. I've had a look at your books.'

‘I suppose so. But when I'm working, and that's pretty much all the time to make a living, I get very preoccupied. Nothing much left over.'

‘Are you happy about it?'

Before I could answer the doorbell rang.

‘That'll be Lou.'

‘What's she like?'

‘Tricky.'

Lou trooped in wearing jeans, a white T-shirt and a denim jacket. She carried an overnight bag, her backpack and a bottle of white wine. I introduced the two and Lou handed over the bag. ‘Some clothes as requested. Hope they're your size.'

‘Thanks,' Sharon said, ‘I'll get them back to you soon as.'

‘I can make you a sandwich, Lou.'

She shook her head and smiled. ‘I was just pissed off with you. I like curry. Got enough?'

We finished the food down to the last grain of rice and scrap of pappadum. Sharon had had a glass of red and accepted a small one of Lou's white. I poured myself a bigger one. Lou said she'd wait for coffee. ‘I've still got work to do tonight. Can we get down to it?'

We sat around the low table in the living room and I ran quickly through the events of the day. The two women eyed each other off in a way that didn't fill me with optimism. A mutual dislike was immediately apparent.

‘My sister's in a very bad way,' Sharon said. ‘I reckon her physical and mental health are in danger and I'd like to get her away.'

‘Understood,' Lou said, ‘and you think your knowing where the kid is gives you some leverage.'

‘I wouldn't put it quite like that.'

‘How would you . . . never mind. Why can't we just get some sort of court order? Have the cops take her away?'

‘I don't think it'd be quite that easy, Lou,' I said. ‘You'd have to give some sort of notice of the proceedings and the people she's with would probably just move her. From what I can gather there's a sort of vigilante network out there. They'd probably know as soon as some outside cops or social workers got anywhere near the place.'

Lou drank her coffee in a couple of gulps and I topped her up. ‘Okay,' she said. ‘You mentioned money on the phone, Cliff. What's on your mind?'

‘If we can get Billie away there's going to have to be money to take care of her—doctors, detox, rehab—all that.'

‘How much?'

Sharon almost snapped to attention. ‘I know what's on your mind, Ms Kramer. You're thinking I'm in this to do myself some good.'

Lou shrugged. ‘You said it, not me.'

‘Shit,' Sharon said. She went out to the kitchen and I heard the cork coming out of the bottle.

‘Flaky, like her sister,' Lou murmured.

‘Take it easy. She's your only avenue to Billie.'

Sharon came back in and stood behind her chair. ‘I don't know about this, Cliff.'

‘I was hasty,' Lou said. ‘I'm sure I can organise some money. Would twenty thousand do it?'

I tried not to react too obviously. I had no idea how much Lou's advance had been, but the fact that she was still working at the paper suggested it wasn't a lot. How would she lay her hands on twenty grand? The only answer I could think of was Mr X, and that gave me something else to worry about.

Lou had turned on the charm as she spoke, something some people can do at will. She smiled, repeated her apology to Sharon and sucked her in, at least for the moment.

Sharon said, ‘That amount would probably do, but I still don't know how to get Billie away. I mean, if there was some way I could tell her about the help we can offer and that she could see Sam, she'd probably cooperate. But how?'

They both looked at me. Luckily, I thought I had an answer but I wasn't going to tell them, particularly Lou, just yet. ‘There could be a way. I'll have to work on it.'

Lou tried to grill Sharon about Billie's state of mind— her memory, her grasp on reality—but Sharon wasn't forthcoming. Eventually Lou gave up. ‘Keep me informed, Cliff. A bit better than you have so far, if I may say so. And I'll see what I can do about the money.' She gave Sharon a nod and I showed her to the door.

‘Don't get distracted,' she said as she walked out. I stood at the gate and watched her until she was safely in her car and driving away. All part of the service.

Sharon was quietly swearing. ‘I wish I hadn't had those cigarettes. I gave them up years ago and that burst has brought the craving back. Haven't got any, have you?'

‘No. I could go out.'

She shook her head. ‘No, just have to see it through. I didn't care for your client.'

I started to clean up the mugs and glasses. ‘I noticed.'

‘She's not the kind of woman other women trust.'

‘I'm with the other women.'

‘You don't trust her?'

‘No. For one thing, probably minor, her retainer cheque didn't clear. And she's holding things back.'

‘What things?'

‘I don't know. People who hire private detectives think they have a problem. Usually they have a couple of problems, sometimes ones they don't know about.'

She thought that over as she drank the last of her wine. ‘You ought to write a book on it.'

‘No way.'

She yawned. ‘I'm tired even after that kip. Probably the wine. Hey, the curry was good.'

She helped me clean up and stack the dishwasher, not that there was much to stack. Lou's bottle went into the milk crate that forms the halfway house to the recycling bin. I jiggled the cask. ‘We hammered the red a bit.'

‘Yeah. Well . . .'

It was one of those moments that could've led to something intimate, but we both realised it wasn't the time. I jumped in with practical points.

‘Before you go up, is there a neighbour anywhere near your place up there in the sticks?'

‘Yes. Why?'

‘It'd be a good idea to give them a ring in the morning and ask them to keep an eye on the place. You can come up with some story about a nuisance. One of your students or something. Would the neighbour cooperate?'

‘She'd love it. D'you think . . . ?'

I was thinking a number of things. Whether Lou, despite my warning, had told Mr X, and whether he had a significant finger in the pie. What Big John Manuma's motives were. But I reached out and gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek.

‘No. Just being super cautious. Goodnight, Sharon.'