Read Online Blood Secret by Jaye Ford - Free Book Online

by hand – when she’d last seen Max, where they’d been, who they were with, what he’d been wearing, where she’d looked, the text message. And the incident with the kid in the four-wheel drive. Rennie had no problem repeating the licence plate number. It wasn’t the kind of detail she forgot. Then she signed a statement and it was official: Max was missing.
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7
    â€˜Does Mr Tully have any favourite places, somewhere he might go?’ the officer asked.
    Rennie checked her watch, impatient with the cop’s unhurried questions and slow, neat handwriting. It was after eight; Max had been gone nearly twelve hours and urgency felt like a nervous tic in her gut. But she had enough experience of police procedure to know they followed the steps whether she was shouting or not. She took a breath, tried to think where Max might go.
    He was a social guy. There weren’t many people in Haven Bay he didn’t know and he liked to have a drink with his mates, with James. But he didn’t stay out and forget the time, or flop on someone’s lounge if it was late, or sleep in the car if he’d had too much alcohol to drive. He called or texted if he was late and he always came home. ‘His office, maybe. But his cousin checked and he wasn’t there. I’ve called friends, too. No one’s seen or heard from him.’
    â€˜Anywhere he likes to go on his own?’
    He loved the lake. They’d watched sunsets and sunrises and storms making their way across. But he didn’t go there on his own. Quiet and alone wasn’t his thing – being trapped in a collapsed mine put an end to that.
    â€˜Maybe the reserve at Garrigurrang Point. We take fish and chips out there sometimes.’ In summer they ate on the jetty, in winter they stayed in the car keeping out of the wind. Except there was nowhere in Haven Bay to buy fish and chips after ten o’clock.
    The officer wrote it down. ‘Anywhere out of town? Family or friends he might visit.’
    His parents retired to their old holiday spot in Yamba on the Far North Coast and his sister lived in Perth. Not exactly places he could drop into. He had a couple of schoolfriends in Sydney he caught up with every now and then but she didn’t think he’d go on the spur of the moment. ‘No.’
    â€˜Is he taking medication that might make him confused?’
    â€˜No.’
    â€˜Has he been unwell recently?’
    â€˜No.’
    â€˜Is there any reason he might want to go somewhere for a while?’
    â€˜No.’
    â€˜Has he had been involved in any conflicts?’
    â€˜Only the one with the kid in the four-wheel drive.’
    â€˜Okay.’ The officer put her pen down and gathered the papers she’d been writing on. ‘Thank you for your assistance. I’ll update the computer with your information and we’ll continue with our inquiries.’
    Was that it? ‘Have you checked the licence plate number I gave you?’
    â€˜We’ll be following it up.’
    â€˜What about hospitals?’ Last night she’d imagined him lying hurt somewhere but maybe there was more to it. ‘It’s possible he was injured and someone found him and took him to get medical help.’
    â€˜Our inquiries will include calling the local hospitals.’
    â€˜That kid threatened him. If he assaulted him, he could’ve stolen his wallet. He could be unconscious or confused in a hospital without ID.’
    The officer didn’t nod, didn’t take a second to think about it, didn’t acknowledge her theory in any way. ‘It’s worth keeping in mind, Ms Carter, that people are reported missing every day and most of them are located quickly and without our help. As I said, we’ll be following up on the information you’ve provided and we’d appreciate it if you let us know if you hear from Mr Tully or find out where he is.’
    It was said