Violent Exposure (8 page)

As it turned out, this time it was nothing.

‘Cause of death was laceration of the ascending aorta resulting in massive blood loss,’ Sam said, stripping off her gloves. ‘Manner of death is homicide and you have the weapon. Also, there’s no sign of adhesive on her skin to suggest she was bound
by that tape.’

The Crawfords’ nursery was near Moore Park, and the car park was busy despite the early hour.

‘I guess somebody was here to open up,’ Ella said.

They walked in through the tall gates. The air smelled of wet soil. The staff wore bright green shirts and Dennis held out his badge to the nearest, a young man with black hair and a pierced nose and a nametag that said
Damon
. ‘Is the
boss in?’

Damon looked nervously from Dennis to Ella and back again. ‘The manager’s here, the owners aren’t.’

‘Manager’s name?’

‘Kerrie Rowley,’ Damon said. ‘Office is this way.’

They followed him between shelves of pots and plant food and around displays of potted plants. A tall boy watered a row of palms, the spray shining in the sunlight, and Ella tried to remember when she’d last even
looked at her roses.

The office was a timber shed behind the shop. The door was ajar. Damon knocked.

‘Yep.’

Damon said, ‘It’s the police.’

The woman came to the door. She was trim and tanned and in her early fifties. She looked surprised. ‘Hi.’

‘Detectives Ella Marconi and Dennis Orchard,’ Ella said. ‘Can we have a word?’

‘Sure,’ Kerrie said. ‘Come in.’

The shed was cramped with the three
of them standing in it. A desk with a computer took up one side, the wall above it pinned with rosters, a calendar and pictures of plants torn from magazines. An electric jug sat on top of a bar fridge in one corner. A bare lightbulb overhead was on. The air was cool and dusty and smelled of fertiliser.

‘Connor and Suzanne Crawford own this business, is that correct?’ Ella said.

‘Yes.’

‘Do
they work here every day?’

Kerrie shook her head. ‘Maybe half the days of the week for Suzanne, from nine or ten till about four. Connor comes and goes on his own schedule. He does the accounts and bookkeeping, and works mostly from home.’

‘Do you expect them here today?’

‘Suzanne, yes. Actually I thought she would’ve been here already.’

‘When was the last time you saw them?’

‘Suzanne was
here yesterday morning for a while then left about lunchtime. Connor was here for about an hour just before closing, doing paperwork. He left at the same time as I did, about quarter to six.’

‘How did he seem?’ Dennis asked.

‘Good,’ she said. ‘Something has happened to them, hasn’t it?’

‘Did you ever see them fight?’

‘No.’

‘Has there ever been trouble with the business?’

‘We’ve had vandals
a few times, but that’s it.’

‘No financial problems that you’ve known about?’

‘I’m not sure they would tell me, but I’ve never overheard anything,’ she said, voice breaking. ‘Just tell me.’

‘Have you heard from or seen Connor this morning?’ She shook her head.

‘You’re certain of that?’

‘Yes.’ Tears welled in Kerrie’s eyes.

Ella said, ‘Why are you crying?’

‘Because something’s obviously
happened.’

‘How about you take a seat.’

‘Oh God.’ Kerrie sat heavily in the chair.

Ella said, ‘We’re sorry to have to tell you that Suzanne is dead.’

‘Oh my God. How did it happen? Where was she? Is Connor okay?’

‘Connor is missing.’

‘Like, lost?’

‘Missing,’ Ella said again.

Kerrie’s eyes went round. ‘You asked if they fought. You must think he’s involved.’

‘We don’t know anything for
certain yet,’ Dennis said.

Ella said, ‘Did they ever have friends visit? Or call?’

‘A couple of times,’ Kerrie said. ‘One was a woman called Peta, she’s maybe in her early thirties, kind of short with curly hair. I’ve seen her quite a few times. Then recently there was a man, maybe around thirty or so, with real beach-blond hair. I don’t know his name. That’s only who I’ve noticed, though. I
can’t say I’d see everyone who visits.’

‘Were they visiting Suzanne? Or Connor?’

‘Suzanne. I never saw anybody visiting Connor.’

Ella took a look at the computer. Lots of spreadsheets, accounting stuff, rosters – and then some documents and an email account in Suzanne’s name, all password protected. ‘Do you know these passwords?’

‘I don’t, sorry.’

Ella checked the noticeboard but there were
no scraps of paper with likely looking words stuck there. She ran her fingers along the underside of the desk but there was nothing there either. ‘We’ll have to get the tech people to pick it up.’

‘But all our stock supply stuff’s on there,’ Kerrie said.

‘Sorry,’ Ella said. Nothing got in the way of a homicide investigation.

Kerrie pressed her hands to her eyes. ‘I can’t take this in.’

‘You
need to,’ Dennis said. ‘You have to organise your staff so we can speak to each of them.’

‘Should I close?’ Kerrie said. ‘The Streetlights kids are coming in today. I’ll have to deal with them as well. Oh God. I don’t know where to start.’

‘Shut for the day and get all the staff together,’ Ella said. ‘That’s enough to begin with.’

As Kerrie and Damon and three other staff members in green shirts
apologetically herded the customers out the gates, a group of six teenaged boys ambled in.

‘Streetlights boys,’ Kerrie said to Ella. ‘It’s a kind of community work thing. Suzanne organised for them to come here.’ She teared up again.

Ella nodded. ‘Let them in.’

When the gates were locked, she and Dennis waited while the group gathered before them. The staff shot Kerrie anxious looks. The Streetlights
boys looked either bored or studiously at the ground. Ella guessed they’d been in trouble with the cops before, and narrowed her eyes.

‘I’m afraid we have some bad news,’ Dennis said. ‘Suzanne Crawford is dead.’

Ella watched the reactions. Shock. Grief. Dismay. Even from a couple of the Streetlights kids, the rest of whom looked interested.

‘We’re going to speak to each of you in turn,’ Dennis
went on. ‘It’s nothing scary, just a few questions to help us with our investigation.’

One of the female staff raised her hand. ‘How is Connor doing?’

‘No questions now, sorry.’ Dennis pointed to Damon. ‘You first, please.’

*

None of the staff ever saw the Crawfords fight. The female employee who’d asked about Connor, a thin blonde girl named Deborah, even said she caught them ‘canoodling’
among the statues one day.

Ella said, ‘Canoodling meaning . . . ?’

‘They were standing really close together and then they kissed.’ Deborah turned a delicate shade of pink.

Hmm.
‘Were you aware of Connor seeing anyone else?’

‘No way. Never. He wasn’t that kind of guy.’

‘How can you be so sure?’

The girl went pinker. ‘He told me.’

‘Under what circumstances?’

She pulled her ankle up hard
onto her knee. The defensive triangle wasn’t lost on Ella.

‘I saw Suzanne with Emil one day, and Connor saw too, and I kinda said to him, goose and gander, you know, but he said he wasn’t like that.’ She was positively fluorescent.

‘Say that again and this time add detail.’

‘One day I saw Suzanne with Emil, one of the Streetlights boys, they were in the palms, they were talking, and then they
kissed, and I saw them and then I saw that Connor was watching as well. He turned away and I hurried to accidentally on purpose run into him, and it was really awkward but I liked him, and I thought that if she was, you know, with somebody else, then maybe he would, um, hook up with me.’

‘You asked him outright?’

‘Not really.’ She tugged at her bootlaces. ‘I said what’s good for the goose is
good for the gander, and he looked at me like he didn’t really know what that meant, and I put my hand on his arm and slid it up his sleeve but he said he wasn’t like that.’

‘Like what?’

‘Well, he didn’t say. He just walked away. I felt so embarrassed I had to go home sick. But he never mentioned it after, never even looked at me funny. He’s a good guy.’

‘When was that?’ Deborah thought for
a moment. ‘I guess three, four months ago.’

‘Is Emil one of the boys out there?’

‘No, he left a while ago. Maybe six weeks?’

‘Did you ever see Suzanne behaving like that with anyone else?’

‘No.’

‘You ever talk about it with her?’

‘No way,’ Deborah said. ‘She might’ve fired me if she knew I saw.’

‘You weren’t afraid to proposition Connor though.’

‘It was stupid of me. She was the one who
dealt with the staff and I reckon he never told her about what I did or I would’ve been out the door.’

‘Thanks for your time,’ Ella said.

They spoke to four of the six Streetlights kids and got shoulder shrugs, dunnos and minimal eye contact. The fifth one was lanky with blue patches in his hair. His name was Craig Price and he was seventeen. He sat back in the chair, arms and legs crossed,
glancing at Ella’s breasts.

‘You right?’ she said.

He met her glare. ‘Yep. You?’

Dennis kicked the leg of Craig’s chair. ‘How long have you known Suzanne and Connor?’

‘Since I came here. A month, maybe.’

‘How well do you know them?’

‘Well, they haven’t had me round for a barbie yet.’

Ella stared at him.

He shifted in his chair. ‘Okay. I don’t know them much at all. I seen her every time
we’re here, like three days a week, and I seen him maybe once a week. She’s nice and talks to us, she’s helpful and that. He doesn’t seem to really see us.’

‘Is Suzanne close to any of you boys?’

‘Close?’

‘Yes,’ Ella said. ‘Close.’ A shrug. He picked at the scuffed knee of his jeans. Ella shot Dennis a glance.

‘What did you think of her yourself?’ Dennis asked.

‘Nice lady.’

‘And?’

‘And
what?’

‘Did you ever kiss her?’

He smirked.

‘Did you?’

Ella’s phone rang. She looked at the screen. Daniel Farley. ‘Excuse me.’ She stepped outside and answered. ‘What’s up?’

‘Connor was dropped by taxi at the Paddo pub where he had drinks with Barnley yesterday,’ he said. ‘We’ve traced the taxi from CCTV outside the pub and spoken to the driver, and it picked him up on Illawarra Road in
Marrickville at one thirty. It’s right around the corner from Westwood Street where Aidan Simpson lives.’

Crap.
‘Head round there,’ she said. ‘Make sure he’s in one piece but don’t scare him. And keep in touch.’

‘Will do.’

Back in the little office, she ignored Craig and gave Dennis an urgent look.

Dennis nodded but said to Craig, ‘Tell her what you just told me.’

‘I never kissed her but
I know two other boys who did.’

‘Who?’ Ella said.

‘Two other Streetlighters. Aaron’s out there now. Emil left.’

‘When did this happen?’

‘Three weeks ago, I s’pose, for Aaron. Couple of months ago for Emil,’ Craig said. ‘They just kissed – what’s the big deal?’

‘Where did it happen?’

‘Out there in the plants.’

Ella narrowed her eyes. ‘Did you actually see it?’

‘They told me.’

‘So you didn’t
see it,’ Dennis said.

‘They
told
me.’

Yeah, Ella thought, and kids never lied, did they? Especially not kids who were already having problems. ‘Where’s Emil working now?’

Craig shrugged. ‘Baker’s or some shit. I don’t know.’

‘Where is Streetlights?’

‘In the Cross. By Kellett Street there.’

Ella wrote it down. Kerrie had said Suzanne was the one who organised for the boys to come here. She
and Dennis would talk to the Streetlights people – maybe Suzanne had a friend there, maybe the blond man Kerrie mentioned – and also track down this Emil.

After Craig had slouched his way out of the office, Ella told Dennis what Daniel Farley had said. ‘Aidan could be the next target. Might be worth putting surveillance in place.’

Dennis nodded. ‘Call Daniel and tell him to stay with Aidan till
we finish here.’

She pulled out her phone. It went to voicemail and she left a message.

Dennis went to the door and looked at the Streetlights kids who stood in a tight circle kicking the concrete in the sun. ‘Aaron Maguire.’

A muscled boy with brown hair and an eyebrow ring spat on the ground then strolled over. In the little office, he folded his arms, bunching his biceps, and Ella watched
him glance admiringly down at them.

‘You kissed Suzanne Crawford,’ she said.

‘Yep. So?’

‘When?’

‘Bout three weeks ago, I s’pose.’

‘How did it happen?’

Biceps flex, glance down. ‘She’d fancied me for ages.’

‘She told you that?’

‘I can just tell.’ Flex, glance. ‘She came onto me when I was watering one afternoon. Came up and talked to me about the plants, checking me out close up, you know.
I sprayed her a bit then sorta brushed it off, saying oh sorry, sorry. We were up real close and then she kissed me.’ He smirked.

‘Then what?’

‘Then she looked kinda flustered, and hurried off.’

‘Did either of you say anything? Talk about it later?’

‘Nup,’ he said. ‘I knew she’d be back for more sometime though.’ Flex, glance.

‘You know she’s dead.’

‘Yeah, you said.’

Not a shred of emotion.

‘So I’m guessing she won’t be back after all,’ Ella said.

‘Plenty more fish.’ Flex, glance.

Ella wanted to twist his ears right off his head. Before she could speak, Dennis said, ‘Who else did she kiss?’

‘I ain’t no snitch.’

‘Names.’ Darkness in Dennis’s voice.

Aaron rolled his eyes. ‘Emil said she tongue-pashed him good. The others only wished she looked at them like she looked at me.’ Flex,
glance.

Smartarse little bastard.
Her phone rang and she almost dropped it in her anger. ‘What?’

‘It’s Daniel.’ Alarm in his voice. ‘Aidan’s not here and there’s a smashed pane of glass in his door and blood everywhere.’