Dad doesn’t like Wolfmother. He likes, I don’t know, stuff like . . . God, I don’t even know what he likes.’
‘Exactly.’
After Chloe had stuffed the envelope away there was a moment of silence. She probably wanted to take her boyfriend but that wasn’t the deal.
‘Look, I don’t have a daughter,’ I said. ‘If I did, I’d want one just like you.’
‘Yeah, right.’
‘I would. And you know what? I’d want her to take me out from time to time. It wouldn’t matter where we went. I’d just want to spend some time with her. I know your dad feels the same way about you.’
‘You think so?’
‘I know so. So take him out and have a good time.’
When we reached the service station I gave her my mobile number and she keyed it into her phone.
‘If ever anything goes wrong for you when you’re out with your friends, call me,’ I said. ‘Anything at all, okay?’
‘Thank you.’
I tugged Hooch’s lead and said, ‘I’ll be walking him a bit from now on. Might need a buddy. Interested?’
‘Sure. What about Ella? Hear you’re getting back together?’
‘Yeah, we’ll see.’
She got in the car, started the engine and wound down the window. ‘Thanks again.’
‘We never had this conversation, Chloe.’
‘What conversation?’
She smiled cheekily, winked at me and drove out of the forecourt.
38
ST KILDA FELT DIFFERENT that Saturday, everything still. Traffic on the Esplanade was light, the beach near empty. Even Luna Park was unusually silent. No music, no screams. After months of almost relentless heat there was a crisp breeze in the air, reminding me that everything came to an end.
Hooch tugged at the lead, pulling me towards the water. Already I knew he would grow into a powerful dog, and a sense of pride filled my gait as we crossed the grassy foreshore together. Funny how life dealt its cards, I mused. Working the Dallas Boyd case had been a lesson in irony. Through the loss of life came the saving of life, and the clarification of my own. Hooch was the perfect reminder of this. I no longer had certainty in my career, but I didn’t mind.
When that call came through over the radio and I found Dallas Boyd’s body in the loading bay at the rear of Café Vit, everything changed. I’d been back on deck only a month and thought I was ready for anything, but I was wrong. The case had cost me dearly. I’d fallen out with my boss, made vital mistakes in the investigation, and for the second time in my career I’d almost lost my life. But seeing Ella in hospital was the final straw. From then on the direction of my life would change forever.
To get what you want, you have to know what you want. Think carefully about what you want, for knowing what you want is often harder than getting it. As I guided Hooch around to the Stokehouse courtyard, I finally understood my mother’s wisdom.
‘Easy boy,’ I said, tying Hooch to a palm tree and heading inside.
As usual, Logan was there, loading a dishwasher and wiping down the bar. He smiled as I approached, then noticed the bandage on my neck. ‘Hey big fella, I heard you copped a bit of a flogging. Didn’t think I’d see you for a while.’
‘It’s been a big week,’ I said. ‘And I’m rooted.’
‘You look it, man. Maybe you need a break.’
‘Yeah, but give me a beer first.’
Logan filled a pot and handed it over, nodding quickly, no payment needed. My hand trembled as I lifted the glass to my lips and I had to rest it back on the bar.
While Logan served some other customers, I watched a television news report about the web of paedophiles netted over the past few days. The sound was muted but it wasn’t hard to read what was happening. Will Novak had been charged with murder and was on remand. Together with his cooperation, the laptop had provided enough evidence to arrest the priest, Miles Jorgensen, along with several other staff at Back Outside, all members of The Holy Brethren. Perhaps more significantly, a senior bureaucrat from the health minister’s office had also been implicated. No charges had been laid as yet, but the bureaucrat’s face had been all over the news and the wheels were in motion to bring him down for receiving kickbacks after advising the minister to approve the joint-funding package to Back Outside and CARS the previous year. In response to this, as well as the revelations