A Light in the Dark (Taylor's Bend, #3) Page 5

  ‘Of course. Where’s the bathroom?’

  He pointed to the hallway leading to the front of the apartment. ‘First door.’

  She nodded and left him to it.

  Arlo frowned as he pressed the green button. What could Riley want? It was a school night and he rarely called during the week unless he wanted something.

  ‘Hi, matey. How are you?’

  ‘Dad, I want to live with you.’ His voice cracked in distress. ‘Please say I can.’

  ‘Hang on, what’s going on? What’s happened?’ He’d never heard Riley so upset. Usually he was the typical monosyllabic teen who wanted to be left alone to get on with his life in his own way.

  ‘I can’t stand it here anymore. Mum treats me as though I’m a baby. She won’t let me do anything. I hate it here and I hate school.’

  ‘You’d have to go to school if you lived with me,’ Arlo said mildly. What the hell?

  ‘I know but it’d be different. Can I come? Please?’

  ‘What does your mum say?’

  ‘She won’t care. She’ll be glad to be rid of me. She’s too busy with her boyfriend.’

  ‘Who? James? You like him.’ Surely they hadn’t split up? Debra, James and Riley had gone on holiday to Fiji together a few weeks ago and he said they’d had a great time.

  ‘He’s all right but he’s not my father … can’t I live with you?’

  ‘If it was up to me I’d say yes but I have to talk to your mum about it, you know that.’

  ‘She’ll say no.’

  ‘Have you asked her?’

  ‘She says no to everything I ask her.’

  ‘Riley, that’s not fair and you know it.’

  ‘I want to live with you.’

  ‘Put her on.’

  ‘If you don’t let me I’ll run away and come anyway.’

  ‘Let me talk to her, please.’

  ‘Okay.’

  Scuffling sounds, footsteps, Debra’s voice saying something he couldn’t understand then, ‘Hi, Arlo,’ in the defeated, angry voice he knew so well.

  ‘Hi, Debra. What’s happened?’

  ‘He’s being impossible, as usual. This time I vetoed a party. We don’t know the family at all and the boy is a couple of years older.’

  ‘Fair enough. He said he wants to live with me.’

  ‘Right now I’d be more than happy to let him. I’ve had it with his tantrums and his attitude.’

  ‘I’d be happy to have him.’ His boy needed him and for once he could be there for him. The truth of it slammed home.

  ‘Sure you would, until something came up and he was a nuisance.’

  ‘I mean it. I’d love to have him. He didn’t come last holidays because of that trip you took and … I missed so much before … I don’t want to miss everything.’

  She gave a short bark of laughter. ‘Better late than never? Sometimes it’s better never than late.’

  He let that slide by. ‘He sounds pretty upset. Maybe we should let him come for a while. See how we go, see if he settles down. Willoughby High is a good school. The kids catch the bus from here and he already knows some of them from when he visits me.’

  ‘I don’t know. You mean pull him out now at the beginning of the term?’

  ‘Why not? If he’s that upset he’s not going to do any work, is he? He’s more likely to get into trouble. Is there a problem at school?’

  ‘Not specially that I’ve heard although his results aren’t brilliant. Why?’

  ‘He said he hates school. Maybe there’s something going on there.’

  ‘I’ll find out. Arlo … thanks for the offer. I’ll let you know.’

  He knew that tone. She didn’t think he meant it, or at least, thought he did for now but would rethink tomorrow and pull out. He couldn’t blame her. He gave it one final try.

  ‘I think it’d be good for him and for me. He needs to get to know his dad and I want to get to know him. And it’ll give you a breather.’

  She said nothing for a moment. ‘You might be right. We haven’t been getting on very well all year actually. He seems to resent James all of a sudden and I can’t do anything right.’

  ‘James is a good bloke but he’s not his dad and Riley knows it.’

  ‘Okay. Let’s do it. Till Christmas. Six months.’

  ‘Really?’

  ‘Yes, but remember you can’t just send him back if it gets too hard.’

  ‘Deal. Can he fly here? If you send him to Wagga I can pick him up.’

  ‘I can but he’ll have more stuff than he can carry on a plane. We might have to drive. I’ll let you know.’

  ‘Thanks. I’ll let you tell him. Earn yourself some brownie points. I’ll get onto the school and warn them of incoming.’

  Arlo disconnected in a state of disbelief. Had that actually happened? Riley coming to live with him? Not just for a week or two but properly living here? He’d have to get his act together. So would Riley. That school bus left town early. Seven forty-five.

  ‘Judging by the smile on your face I’d say that was good news.’ Mia sat down.

  ‘I think so.’ He told her the decision. ‘I missed a lot of his childhood with work. It’s time I stepped up and shared the responsibility.’

  ‘How long have you been divorced?’

  ‘Five years but we separated earlier. Her new man is a good bloke and they were very supportive while I was ill. I’ll be forever grateful for that.’ Enough. He picked up his wine glass and put it back down. Empty. ‘Anyway, you’re not interested in my doings. I’d better check the sauce or my reputation will be in tatters.’

  ‘I stirred it on my way back. It looks fine. Not that I’m any sort of cook.’

  ‘Hmmm.’ He got up and had a look for himself, added water and took the wine bottle back to the living room.

  ‘Good thing I can walk home,’ she said.

  ‘I’ll walk you.’

  ‘Thank you. How about I call Linda?’ Her expression was intent, eyes focused on his. He cursed himself for an idiot.

  ‘Okay.’ Mia wasn’t interested in his personal life or him, she wanted action on her problem which was why she would have accepted the dinner invitation. ‘Sorry.’

  ‘That’s okay. I don’t mean to push you but it’s a good time seeing as we’re both here.’

  She had her phone out, scrolling through for the number.

  Arlo went to get his notebook and pen from his jacket pocket. When he returned she was saying, ‘It’s a bit depressing but I’ve packed up a lot of it … Yes, I know but I’m fine, really … Thanks, Linda … I know you did.’ She glanced at him. ‘Why I’m ringing—I have the local newspaper editor here, Arlo McGuiness … Yes, he was. He knew them both … I know … he wants to do a piece on Dad, about what sort of man he was and to remind people he wasn’t a monster and why they all liked him. I want him to do it. He’d like to have a chat with you. Is that okay? … Great, thanks. Here he is. Bye.’

  She handed the phone to Arlo.

  ‘Hello, Linda, Arlo here. Thanks for talking to me.’

  A gush of words hit him in the ear basically saying she was more than happy to help set the record straight about what a lovely man Tony was. He asked a few innocuous questions about her memories of him and took notes as she rattled on then, when she paused for air, he said, ‘Mia mentioned you told her that you thought he and his wife were murdered. What gave you that idea? Was it anything specific?’

  ‘Only that he didn’t have a vicious bone in his body. I’ve met some real bastards in my time and believe me the signs are there if you know what to look out for. Starts out as jealousy and control dressed up as love and concern and goes from there. And depression, my eye. Tony never got depressed. He was the most positive, optimistic man I’ve ever met. He rarely got angry and he never raised a hand to me or any other woman and that’s a fact. I know a few girls he dated and they all stayed friends with him. The abusive ones always say their ex was a maniac, and oddly enough so were all their ex
-girlfriends. It’s never their fault the relationships went bad. They blame everyone else. Tony wasn’t like that. He was more likely to give me a kiss when I annoyed him. He’d make me laugh.’ She sniffed loudly.

  ‘I don’t mean to sound sceptical, Linda, but you hadn’t seen him for a long time and people can change.’

  ‘Some do, that’s true but not at their core they don’t. If someone’s a miserable young bastard he’ll be a miserable old bastard and if they’re an optimist they’ll always be an optimist. That was Tony. And honest as the day is long. If something was going on he didn’t think was right he’d call it out. Put a few noses out of joint that way.’

  ‘How badly?’

  ‘Well, as you said, this was going back a long time so I think that’s all water under the bridge by now. Everyone from that crowd has moved on from those days.’

  ‘That’s all really interesting. Thanks, Linda. Mind if I call you if I think of anything else?’

  ‘Not at all. Do right by Mia, won’t you? She’s a sweet girl. Tony taught her to be independent and she’s smart as paint. She’s all on her own now so she’ll need to be.’

  ‘I will and I agree with you. Thank you. Goodnight.’

  He disconnected and gave Mia her phone. ‘She’s a character, isn’t she?’

  Mia nodded. ‘What do you agree about?’

  ‘She said you’re as smart as paint.’ He smiled. ‘I’ll put the water on for the pasta.’ A sweet girl? She was no girl, she was all woman—but maybe … sweet hadn’t sprung to mind but under the circumstances it wasn’t surprising. Independent? Definitely. Intriguing? Very.

  Chapter 5

  Mia hadn’t ever eaten dinner alone with a man in that man’s house. Not even in her two previous relationships. Not that this was a date, not by a long shot, and she mustn’t make the mistake of reading more into his invitation than there was. This man was a reporter through and through and she’d just handed him a very juicy story. Whether he knew it or not his whole manner changed when he accepted that there may be another reason for Dad and Glenda’s deaths. She could almost see his nose twitching like a hound who’d sniffed his prey.

  No matter what he told himself about the local stories he covered for his paper, potholes didn’t make it against a murder investigation. And she was glad.

  Sitting opposite him at the table was comfortable. Eating alone wasn’t much fun, used to it though she was, and so, she assumed, was he.

  ‘This is nice.’ The words fell straight from her mind to her mouth and out into the space between them. She closed her mouth swiftly and concentrated on serving herself salad.

  ‘Yes,’ he said. ‘It is nice to have company for dinner. Thank you for coming.’

  ‘Thank you for inviting me.’ She flicked a smile on and off and twirled spaghetti onto her fork. He was being polite—but he’d assumed she meant the company not the food.

  ‘I mean it,’ he said. ‘I’m enjoying having you here.’

  His tone had changed. She looked up to discover him watching her, and smiled properly.

  ‘You have a wonderful smile,’ he said. ‘It’s like a burst of sunshine. A sunflower.’

  Other people had told her that over the years. Her father, Glenda, Linda, sundry friends, men. Somehow, when Arlo said it the words meant more.

  ‘Thanks. I’ll try to smile more often.’

  ‘You should.’

  ‘When this is over I will.’

  His smile faded. ‘You’re right. I’m sorry. You haven’t had much to smile about.’

  ‘No, but a compliment is always welcome.’

  Arlo emptied the bottle into their glasses.

  ‘You will have to walk me home to hold me up at this rate,’ she said.

  ‘If you’re not up to it you can sleep here. In the spare room,’ he added quickly.

  ‘I’m far from being incapable of walking,’ she said. ‘How many bedrooms do you have? This place looks quite small.’

  ‘Two. The second one is really a study but there’s a bed in there.’

  ‘You might have to move when your son comes to stay.’

  ‘We’ll manage. He stays here in his holidays.’

  ‘With just one suitcase of gear.’ She cocked an eyebrow his way. ‘I have a friend with three teenagers, two boys and a girl, and they have enough stuff to fill this whole flat. And you’ll need a bigger fridge. Fourteen, you said? He’d eat what we both ate tonight all by himself.’

  ‘You’re kidding.’

  She shrugged and ate salad innocently. ‘Tina says they spread themselves from one end of the house to the other. A four-bedroom house with a family room and a living room.’

  ‘Well, he won’t be able to,’ Arlo said.

  ‘Is there space in his room for a desk as well as a bed?’

  ‘Not really. Maybe. He can use this table to study.’

  ‘What about when he has friends around?’

  ‘What about it?’

  ‘They’ll want some privacy.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Because they’re teenagers. Think back. If you can.’

  ‘Maybe I should rent your house. After you’ve renovated.’ He smiled at her and she laughed but stopped suddenly.

  ‘Do you think anyone will want to rent it or buy it? Should I just have it bulldozed and sell the block?’

  ‘You might want to live here one day.’

  She shook her head. ‘No, I wouldn’t. If I renovate the kitchen and repaint it should be okay. Dad kept the place in good order.’

  ‘Some people won’t mind its history.’

  ‘Is there a market for rentals here?’

  ‘There is. People are moving out of the city and we do have a couple of refugee families coming later in the year.’

  ‘I wouldn’t want a massive rent for it. I don’t need the money. Who do you recommend to do the work?’

  ‘Depends what you want done. I think you’d need to go to Wagga for a decent kitchen company but there are local tradesmen who can do flooring and benchtops. Giorgio Mendez is a good local painter.’

  ‘Thanks. I’ll call him tomorrow.’

  Arlo collected the dirty dishes and took them to the sink. ‘I didn’t get dessert, I’m sorry. I wasn’t planning to entertain tonight. It was a spur of the moment invitation.’

  ‘I’m glad. And I don’t generally eat dessert.’

  Arlo sat back down. ‘It’s strange. I feel as though I’ve known you for ages but we only met today.’

  ‘We met at the funerals,’ Mia said. Her throat had tightened. What was he saying? Was he trying to get her to stay? As attractive as he might be she wasn’t ready for anything else, anything that might distract from the purpose of their liaison. A more intimate relationship would be a complete disaster. Messy and unnecessary.

  ‘Sort of.’

  ‘Half a bottle of wine might be helping.’

  He smiled. ‘Possibly. You’re right. It’s good to have company. You said so yourself.’

  She relaxed against the back of the chair. Okay. ‘Yes, it is. You’ll have plenty of that when Riley arrives.’

  But would his son deflect his attention from her problem? As if he’d read her mind he said, ‘I’m going to ask around about Glenda’s ex tomorrow. Find out what he does and I might drop in on her parents.’

  ***

  The paper deliverers arrived early in the morning. Arlo had brought the stacks into the office and begun bundling for the areas covered. Marlene and Henk were, as usual, first to arrive. They lived a couple of houses along and did the run out to Jindalee, dropping papers at The Grange and the other farms along the way. They’d been bitten by the cruise bug a year or two ago so when they returned Henk always did a travel feature complete with photos. Their next jaunt was soon.

  ‘When are you off?’ Arlo asked.

  ‘Next Monday,’ Henk said. ‘Just a short trip round the Pacific Islands this time. Nine days.’

  ‘Take lots of photos.’

  �
��As always.’

  ‘I hear Mia Petros is in town,’ Marlene said. ‘Poor girl having to clean out that house all on her own. It’s an awful job at the best of times.’

  ‘Yes, I had a chat to her yesterday.’ No point pretending he hadn’t. The town would know already and half of them would know what they’d had for dinner.

  ‘What’s she going to do with the house?’

  He reported what he knew.

  ‘Who would buy it? Who would want to live there?’ Marlene shuddered.

  ‘People with nowhere else to go, newcomers to town,’ said Henk. ‘It’s a nice house. Tony looked after it. He was in the real estate business so he knew. And he was a bit of a handyman.’

  ‘Did you know him well?’ asked Arlo.

  ‘Yes, I did. We played golf together.’

  ‘Did he say anything about the gun club?’

  ‘Like what?’

  ‘Why he joined, what was the attraction …?’

  ‘Not really. He liked the sport aspect, said it was a challenge. He wasn’t interested in guns per se. He said it was a good place to make contacts. He always had an eye on business, Tony did, but not in a pushy way. He made friends easily and if someone showed interest in a project he’d follow up but if they didn’t, he enjoyed their company and vice versa.’

  ‘Did he have any particular projects in mind?’

  ‘There was always something cooking. There was that development on the far side of Willoughby. You know the one? They want to build a country club type place with apartments on site and a restaurant. Barry, Glenda’s ex, is involved in it but back then they were having trouble getting approval. And the same mob has something else going on near Bindubi. A housing estate project with five-acre blocks. Actually, it was …’

  The door opened and a crowd of deliverers came in chattering, and effectively stopped more conversation.

  At ten Georgia came in with Charlotte in a stroller.

  ‘Sorry, I had to bring her. The minder rang and said she woke up with a raging sore throat.’

  ‘That’s okay. She gets bigger every time I see her. How old is she now?’

  ‘Nearly two and a half.’ She lifted Charlotte out and took off her woolly beanie and jacket. ‘Thank goodness it’s stopped raining. It’s clear as can be. Cold though.’