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  After listening to Chelle and Natalie say hello and exchange pleasantries, Amelia walked out into the kitchen. ‘Hi!’ She watched as Chelle held out her arms and her mother turned away.

  ‘Hey there, you! How are you feeling?’

  ‘Not bad. Bit tender, but not bad. What about you?’

  ‘Fine.’ Chelle half-smiled and Amelia realised she’d picked up on the tension in the house. That was the problem with having a doctor for a friend and cousin: Chelle was trained to watch for this sort of thing. ‘Check out this cake your mum’s made! Isn’t she clever?’

  Good old Chelle, Amelia thought. She was incredible at putting people at ease.

  ‘Yeah, it’s amazing.’ The two love heart-shaped cakes were slotted together like ying and yang symbols and coated with white fondant. Little chocolate love hearts were scattered over the top like confetti.

  ‘What type is it, Aunty Nat?’ Chelle asked. ‘Please tell me it’s mud cake on the inside!’

  Natalie smiled but shook her head. ‘Sorry, it’s actually an old-fashioned fruit cake.’ She laughed as the girls’ jaws dropped. ‘That’s Dani’s favourite.’

  ‘That’s nothing short of disappointing,’ muttered Chelle, looking crestfallen.

  ‘Sorry about that!’ Natalie turned back to the chicken satay skewers she was putting together.

  ‘Come on down to my room,’ Amelia said with a grin, gesturing for Chelle to follow her. ‘We can chat there.’

  ‘Ooh,’ said Chelle as she started forward, ‘just like we’re teenagers again. See ya, Aunty Nat!’ To Amelia she said, in a stage-whisper, ‘Tell me you’ve got One Direction on your iPod.’

  Amelia rolled her eyes. ‘Not that teenager-ish,’ she answered as they went down the stairs, before saying in a low voice, ‘Sorry, Dad just had words with Mum when I questioned some of Graham’s spending.’

  ‘Oh, nothing new with your brother then?’

  ‘Apparently not. So what’s going on with you?’ Amelia asked as she sat down on her bed and leaned against a pillow. She reached out, grabbed the other pillow and hugged it to her still-sore chest.

  ‘Ha! You’re organised,’ Chelle said with a laugh. She plopped on the other end of the bed and put her feet up near Amelia.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Getting ready to laugh, aren’t you? With the pillow?’

  ‘Oh Chelle, I wish I was, but I really don’t feel much like laughing. This whole thing is pissing me off. I’ve been hopeless with work today. Can’t concentrate.’

  ‘Well, no wonder,’ Chelle said as she pulled off her shoes and massaged her feet. ‘You’ve been through so much in such a short time . . .’

  But Amelia suddenly couldn’t focus on what her cousin was saying. ‘Do you have to put your dead skin all over my bed?’ she asked, her face screwed up as she eyed Chelle’s cracked heels. ‘That’s just gross. And you being a doctor!’

  ‘Oh shut up! I’m rubbing my feet. They’re tired. It’s been a busy day.’ But Chelle swung her legs around and lay on her tummy, facing Amelia. ‘So which bit is pissing you off the most?’ she prompted.

  ‘All of it. I can’t decide what’s upsetting me most today.’ She took a breath. ‘And what you told me about Jim Green and Grant Hink has really got me thinking.’

  ‘Tell me about it, then,’ Chelle said, dropping her head to the bed.

  ‘Well, who has the ability to go on to farms all the time without causing suspicion?’

  ‘A stock agent,’ Chelle answered, her voice muffled.

  ‘Yeah and a vet. And a truckie who carts wool.’

  ‘True.’

  ‘But look, I have to tell you something. I reckon there’s a woman involved—and I have no bloody idea who it could be.’

  Chelle looked up quickly, her eyes wide. ‘A woman?’

  Amelia nodded before telling her cousin exactly what she’d remembered when she was out at the crime scene.

  Chelle listened in silence. ‘Interesting,’ was all she said with a frown, before adding: ‘But, look, those other names and the fact they’ve got access to farms, that’s worth mentioning to Dave, I reckon. If he doesn’t already know.’

  ‘I thought so.’ Amelia wondered if her cousin didn’t believe her about the mystery woman, but what was the point in arguing about it? She let it go.

  ‘Okay . . . and to completely change the subject, because we don’t actually work for the police force, what about Paul?’ Chelle cocked an eyebrow. ‘We need to organise a “makeup” scene.’ She paused and put her finger up, like a teacher instructing a class. ‘Involving make-up sex, of course, but first we need to set the scene because you made a little stuff-up.’

  ‘Thanks, Chelle, like I needed reminding,’ Amelia said with a groan.

  ‘Look, you weren’t yourself. You’ve had a belt on the head and understandably you’ve been pretty emotional. You were bound to overreact.’ Chelle shrugged. ‘I’m pretty sure Paul will come around.’ Then she grinned and cocked an eyebrow. ‘Especially if you get a Brazilian . . .’

  ‘What?’ screeched Amelia, starting to giggle. ‘Oh God, don’t make me laugh!’

  ‘. . . and lie on the bed in sexy black or leopard-print lingerie.’

  ‘I don’t think so!’

  ‘Maybe you should even have a note stuck to you. In a love heart, of course: Beautified just for you, or I am your sex slave for the evening.’

  Amelia snorted, then her eyes widened. ‘How did you just think of that?’ she gasped. ‘Oh no!’ She waved her hands in front of her. ‘Don’t tell me. You’ve already done it, haven’t you? Chelle!’

  Her cousin smiled a very wicked smile.

  Chapter 25

  ‘Here you are, Belinda,’ Amelia said, dropping a couple of bags of frozen chips onto the bar. ‘Aunty Kim says to give her a yell if your order doesn’t turn up tomorrow and she can send some more over.’

  ‘Cheers, Milly. Can’t believe we’ve run out! A lot more meals on the weekend than we expected. Appreciate you running them over, especially with your ribs being so sore.’ Belinda eyed her and Amelia wondered if she was looking for some gossip.

  ‘Oh, it’s fine. I can handle a couple of kilos. It’s been a whole week and I’m nearly back to my old self.’ That wasn’t completely true, but now the whole town would think it was.

  Belinda grabbed a wine glass and poured a healthy slug into it. ‘Here, on the house. Thanks for your help.’

  Amelia was about to thank her when a voice boomed out.

  ‘Give us three beers, love.’

  She took a sip of her wine and watched as Belinda poured the beers for Mike Andrews then picked at the coins on the bar to get the amount she was owed. Mike slid one down to his brother Tony, and the other to Jim Green who was further down the bar.

  Geez, she thought as they downed them in a couple of gulps and ordered another round. Friday night was looking like a big one! She walked away from the bar and sat at a table, then picked a few peanuts out of the bowl in front of her and popped them into her mouth, just as Mike yelled, ‘Get that into ya, Jimbo! It might shut you up for a bit. You and your bloody mouth.’

  ‘You can talk, ya mug,’ Jim called back. ‘Always yappin’, you are.’

  Chrissie pulled out a chair opposite Amelia, sat down and met her eyes. ‘Full of shit, that one,’ she muttered, taking a slug of her wine.

  ‘Hello to you too.’ Amelia smiled. ‘I didn’t know you were coming in tonight.’

  Chrissie put a finger to her lips. ‘I’m not here,’ she said with a grin, ‘but I needed a wine before I went home. Anyway, I wouldn’t have thought you should be here either, with your ribs. What if you get bumped?’

  ‘The pub was out of chips, so Kim asked me to drop a couple of bags over when I called in to see her. Anyway, I need some Dutch courage. I’m heading out to try and fix everything up with Paul after I leave here tonight.’ She’d told Chrissie all about the Paul situation in a long phone call.

  ‘A pub without chips
would have to be better than a pub with no beer,’ quipped Chrissie, who’d always loved Slim Dusty, before taking another sip. ‘So, fixing it all up with Paul, hey. How do you think it’s going to go?’

  ‘Buggered if I know.’ Amelia sighed, twisting her glass around and mopping at the wet ring with the hem of her T-shirt. ‘I don’t want to think about it, so change the subject please! Why was your day so full on?’

  ‘Just busy. That little bit of rain has got all the croppers excited. They’re coming in to pick up their chemical orders so they can start spraying. Spent most of the day on the forklift.’ Chrissie glanced around, then leaned forward. ‘People can’t stop talking about all the thefts that have been going on around here, and the things Dave said at the crime forum. The whole town’s spooked, waiting for the next—’

  Above Chrissie’s head there was a flash of movement and then a crash of glasses. Amelia stood up so quickly that her chair tipped over behind her. One man had another in a headlock, their backs to her. More glasses smashed. The men twisted for a second, not long enough for her to work out who they were.

  Chrissie grabbed her arm, pulling her towards the wall. The movement caused a twinge of pain in her ribs and she caught her breath.

  ‘Bloody idiots,’ she said above the yelling and grunting.

  There were shouts of ‘Hey!’ and ‘Stop!’ as others tried to pull the men apart. Or were they joining in the fight? Amelia stood frozen, her heart pounding—she hadn’t seen a full-blown pub brawl before.

  Belinda yelled out from behind the bar, ‘I’m calling the cops!’

  From the side, Danielle came running in. ‘Leave him alone!’ she screamed and jumped on the back of a man who had someone in a headlock.

  ‘What . . . ?’ With growing fear, Amelia realised it was Graham at the bottom of the pack, and Jim Green was the one who held him. The two hefty Andrews brothers had their hands on both men, their faces red with exertion. ‘No. Dani! Graham!’

  Amelia tried to go to them, but Chrissie put a hand on her shoulder and slid an arm in front of her, holding her back as gently as possible. ‘Don’t be stupid, that’s the last place you need to be. You’ll get hurt again.’

  ‘But Graham . . .’

  ‘Is old enough to look after himself.’

  ‘I just want to make sure he’s all right. He’s got his engagement party on tomorrow night. What the bloody hell is he doing?’

  They watched as more people joined in. Amelia wasn’t sure who was really helping. Jim’s mate Kev was somewhere in the mix, and Grant Hink had managed to pull Danielle away and was holding her firmly around the shoulders so she couldn’t go flying back in there.

  Two tables were upturned, crockery smashing across the ground. A chair splintered. There were yells and the sound of fists thumping into flesh. Things seemed to be escalating. A man stumbled back from the scrum and crashed into the wall close to Amelia, making her jump.

  ‘All right, time to get outta here,’ Chrissie said.

  Amelia nodded, her eyes wide. They walked gingerly towards the dining area.

  A siren sounded and a few seconds later the two Barker policemen ran in through the front doors, yelling, ‘Stop! Police!’

  Amelia and Chrissie ducked into the dining area, then out the back way to the street. ‘What the hell was that all about?’ Amelia asked, her hands twisting nervously. ‘And Graham and Dani? I have to see if they’re all right.’

  They walked to the front of the pub where the police car was parked. There they watched, Amelia’s heart sinking, as the cops marched out Graham and Jim. Danielle ran after them, mascara dripping down her face.

  Amelia followed her and put a hand on her arm. ‘Dani!’

  Rounding on her, Dani shook her off before narrowing her eyes and getting in Amelia’s face. ‘Leave me alone,’ she said, her voice high and shaky. ‘You’re the reason this has happened. Just leave us alone!’ Then she turned and strode away.

  ‘What the hell was that all about?’ Chrissie hissed to Amelia.

  Stunned by the ferocity in Dani’s tone, Amelia shrugged and stood back, even though her impulse was to run to her brother’s side. ‘I have no idea,’ she muttered, trying to contain her shock. ‘Maybe she reckons Graham was standing up for me.’ Was Amelia really going to be at their engagement party tomorrow? It was hard to imagine. She watched as Andy asked Dani to move back and the young woman refused. He took hold of her arm, opened the police car door and ushered her in before shutting it. Amelia could see she was crying.

  ‘Good move,’ Chrissie said with a smirk. ‘Those doors have got child locks on them. She won’t be able to get out.’ Then Chrissie seemed to spot something, and her voice changed. ‘Hey! Look who’s here.’ She nudged Amelia, who turned and saw Dave hurrying towards the flashing lights.

  ‘Right-o, you lot, show’s over.’ Dave’s voice boomed out across the night, before he turned to the small gathering who’d come out of the pub to watch. ‘Head back inside and have another drink—a softie.’ He paused before adding: ‘And don’t any of you even think about getting in a car and driving home. Jack and Andy here are going to be busy with the breatho once we’ve dealt with these two.’ He turned to Graham and Jim, who were standing sullen-faced, their arms crossed and with a policeman on either side of them. ‘What’s going on here, eh? Bit of a lover’s tiff?’

  ‘Nothin’,’ Jim said. ‘It was nothing. Just got a bit hot under the collar after I’d had a coupla drinks.’

  ‘Pretty hot for nothing,’ Dave observed, taking out his notebook. He stepped closer to the men and lowered his voice as he continued to question them.

  ‘That was the best “get out of here now” line I’ve ever heard!’ Chrissie said with glee. ‘Did you hear that?’

  Amelia shook her head, her gaze still trained on the body language of her brother and Jim.

  ‘Go home now,’ Chrissie said, in a terrible but hilarious imitation of Dave’s deep, commanding voice, ‘otherwise you’ll be breath-tested!’

  That made Amelia glance at her friend and smile, despite the butterflies in her stomach. She moved closer to Chrissie, who looked at her strangely.

  ‘What’s up?’ she asked.

  Amelia screwed up her nose. ‘This is just so weird. I’ve never known Graham to get in a fight. How much trouble is he going to get into? I really should help him somehow. No matter what Dani says.’

  Chrissie nodded. ‘It’s strange for him to fight, yeah. Always thought he was a bit prissy.’ She shot Amelia an apologetic look. ‘Sorry, but you know what I mean.’

  Amelia gave a half-smile, but fear was getting the better of her. ‘What if . . . ?’

  Chrissie held up her hand. ‘This has nothing to do with you and the attack,’ she said sternly. ‘This is Jim and Graham we’re talking about here. Two idiots in a bar. Nothing more. Graham’s probably shitting himself over the engagement party and sealing the deal with Dani. Men always lose it at times like this.’ She put her arm around Amelia’s shoulders. ‘Don’t be paranoid.’

  ‘You know, I look around here and see all these people, and I can’t help but wonder if any of them were involved. Stupid, I know.’ Amelia leaned into her friend and Chrissie stroked her hair.

  ‘I wouldn’t think that’s silly. I’d say that was normal. Now, didn’t you say you were going out to see Paul?’

  Amelia nodded.

  ‘Well, like Dave said, you’d better head off. Otherwise he’ll get Andy and Jack onto you with the breatho.’

  ‘I need to stay for Graham.’

  Chrissie shook her head firmly. ‘Actually, you don’t. Dani’s here, even if she’s gone slightly mad.’ When Amelia hesitated, Chrissie gave her a push. ‘Go on, Milly, get going and fix your love life. Graham can look after himself.’

  Driving out to Eastern Edge, back in good old Pushme, Amelia’s anxiety grew and grew. The knot in her stomach made its way up to her throat and she felt sick. If she’d been driving out here two hours ago, it would have bee
n the fear of what lay ahead with Paul. Now she was also worried about Graham.

  She tugged at her lacy black bra. It was the scratchiest thing she’d ever come across, compared to her well-worn, comfortable sports bras. And as for the French knickers . . . Bloody hell! Cursing Chelle for talking her into this plan, Amelia glanced down at the box beside her. It held rose petals, candles and another sexy outfit she could put on later in the night. She also had wine, beer and tinned oysters. Thinking about them, Amelia made a face. She couldn’t stand them, but she knew Paul loved them. She’d brought brie and biscuits for herself.

  But it was so late now that she figured Paul would probably be in bed. There might not even be a chance to seduce him and make things right. Still, maybe, if everything went according to plan, they could have a midnight feast.

  Graham pushed back into her thoughts and she shoved him out again. Now was the time to concentrate on Paul.

  Pulling up and parking under the pepper tree, Amelia saw that the house was bathed in darkness, so it looked like he was definitely in bed. Moonlight lit the path leading to the kitchen door. Clutching the box of goodies with a heavy heart, Amelia walked up the steps and knocked. Silence. She knocked again, then pushed open the door and called out, ‘Paul? Are you here?’

  There was a rustling and a tap-tap-tap on the floor—then something brushed past her legs and she gave an embarrassing squeal. She turned to see Peanut running into the bushes. Bloody cat.

  Fumbling for the switch, she turned it on and light flooded the room. For a moment she stood, speechless. The changes inside were incredible—it looked like they were almost finished. The stove was now in place and the wood-stained cabinets shone brightly. The Pigeon Pair freezer and fridge were stainless steel, and the kitchen sink sparkled.

  Amelia stood there, taking it all in, before tiptoeing over the newly polished wooden floorboards and pulling open the pantry door. It was huge! Looking up, she saw a fan in the ceiling, then realised the small shelf to her right had a power point just above it. She was sure that was where Paul’s bread maker would go; he loved his homemade bread.