Chapter 22
Falk left Raco and Rita once again battling with the kids’ car seats and walked back to the vineyard alone, thinking hard. He beat them this time, too, and was about to let himself into the guesthouse when he heard his name being called.
“Aaron. G’day. Do me a favor and come and try this, mate.” Charlie appeared in the doorway of the large barn. He had a bottle of red in his hand and was holding it up to the light, frowning slightly.
Falk walked over. The barn had been closed since he arrived, but he followed Charlie inside now to find a large, cool space with high ceilings and exposed beams. Wide shutters lay open to let in both the breeze and the glorious view of the vineyard stretching out beyond.
The concrete floor looked recently swept, and the place smelled clean and fresh.
Someone—Charlie, presumably—had started to set out trestle tables and chairs.
Falk could see another man rummaging in a storage cupboard across the room.
Rohan, he realized, as the bloke straightened and stepped out, brushing dust from a barbecue gas canister.
At the far end of the barn, Zara was sitting cross-legged in a patch of sunlight, blowing bubbles for Zoe.
Naomi was there, too, a forgotten stack of silverware half organized on a table in front of her as she sat absorbed by the sight of the one-year-old stretching up her soft little arms to the bubbles floating in the air.
“Great space,” Falk said as Charlie handed him a glass with a splash of wine in it.
“Thanks. We hire it out for weddings sometimes. Getting it ready for tomorrow.”
“This is for the christening?”
“Yeah, well, afterward at least.” Charlie grinned and nodded at the wine in Falk’s hand. “Anyway, have a taste of that. Rohan?” He beckoned, holding up the bottle. “It’s last year’s grenache. Thinking about opening some for tomorrow.”
“Oh yeah? G’day.” Rohan nodded to Falk as he came over. He accepted a glass, examining the liquid before taking a sip. “I won’t have any more, I’m driving. But yeah, good. Tannins are nice and smooth.”
“I thought so, too.”
“Definitely. Come up well, mate.”
“What do you reckon?” Charlie turned to Falk, who took a swallow.
He had never been a big drinker and, although he didn’t tend to admit it out loud, usually chose wine based on price and what fell at eye level on the shelf.
He focused now on the inside of his mouth.
The wine was … nice. Think of another word.
Red came to mind. Charlie was watching for his reaction, genuinely interested, and Falk felt under pressure.
“It’s”—he took another sip—“fruity?” he tried.
“Really?” Charlie frowned at the bottle. “It’s supposed to be at the slightly lighter end.”
Falk smiled. “That’s probably what I meant, then.”
Charlie grinned at that. “All right. Just tell me this, do you like it?”
“Yeah,” Falk said honestly. “I do.”
“Great. That’s all I really need to know,” Charlie said, reaching for a fresh glass as Naomi wandered over. He poured a taste for her without needing to ask, and their hands brushed as she took it. Across the room, Falk saw Zara watching.
Naomi took a sip as she turned to Falk. “Hello, good to see you again.” Her voice was warm, and she stretched up and kissed him lightly on the cheek, then looked past him to the door. “Is Henry back, too?”
“On their way. Shouldn’t be long.”
“I hope so.” She glanced at her watch. “I’ll have to head off soon. Just wanted to see the little man himself ahead of tomorrow.”
Zara’s eyes slid from Naomi to her father and back again, then down to the tube of bubble mixture in her hand. Naomi drained her glass and placed it on a nearby trestle table.
“That’s a nice one, Charlie.”
“Thanks, I’m pretty happy with it. Good to get another opinion, though. Shane’s no help, now he’s completely off the booze.”
“Still?” Rohan seemed both surprised and impressed. “That’s great. Not at all?”
“No. Been a few years now,” Charlie said, and Naomi nodded.
“Well,” Rohan said. “Good on him. Goes to show.” He put down his own glass, then stepped over to a nearby stack of chairs and lifted off the top two. “We’re placing these along here, mate?”
“Yeah, great.” Charlie moved their empty glasses out of the way and turned to Falk. “And listen, I’ve been meaning to say, thanks for helping Shane out the other day. He said you showed him a shortcut with the invoices or something.”
“No worries, it was no trouble.” As Falk went to grab a couple of chairs himself, he noticed a small bottle of paint thinner among a box of supplies. He thought for a moment, then picked it up. “Hey, can I use some of this?”
“Sure.” Charlie waved a hand. “Help yourself to anything.”
“Thanks,” Falk said. “And it was easy. Showing Shane. He got it straightaway.”
“Of course he did.” Naomi looked up from her phone at that, fixing her gaze pointedly on Charlie. “He’s a smart guy. He just hates that accountant you’re using.”
“He doesn’t hate him.”
“He does, Charlie. Open your eyes. That’s why he’s so stressed lately. He’s constantly worrying about stuffing things up.”
“Shane’s fine.”
“No, Charlie. I’m not sure he is.” Naomi’s brow creased. “Not about this.”
“Okay, but that’s dealing with accountants for you. It’s no one’s favorite part of the job, is it? Shane used to tie himself in knots getting the paperwork ready for Dean as well.”
“Not in the same way.”
“Yeah, Naomi, pretty much in the same way. Dean was always having to chase him for stuff. It caused issues then, it’s causing issues now.
” Charlie was sounding a little stressed himself.
“Look, Shane’s got a lot of strengths, and okay, this isn’t one of them, but it still needs to get done, doesn’t it? ”
“Well, whatever, Charlie. It’s your business. I’m just saying, he’s not happy.” Naomi checked the time again. “Anyway, I’d love to hang around all day and help you boys set up, but I’ve got to get back to the clinic.”
“Have there been any updates on Dean, by the way?” Rohan asked quietly as he lifted a chair down from the stack, and Naomi paused. “Every time I talk to Rob Dwyer these days, it’s about Kim, and I forget to ask.”
“Not as far as I’ve heard,” Naomi said, and beside her Charlie was also shaking his head.
“I think technically they’re still looking for the blue car,” he said. “But it’s been—how long now? Six years. Doesn’t feel like anyone’s holding their breath.”
“Bullshit, isn’t it?” Rohan put down the chair with a clatter and rubbed his eyes with his finger and thumb. His voice had changed, and taken on a hard edge. “Dwyer’s a joke.”
Naomi hesitated. “I suppose—” she started, but Rohan shook his head.
“He is.”
The barn swallowed up noise, but Falk saw Charlie glance toward Zara and Zoe. They were still chasing the bubbles, and didn’t seem to have heard.
Rohan exhaled, deep and heavy. “Sorry.” He took a breath in, then cleared his throat. His voice sounded closer to normal. “Sorry.”
“No, Rohan, we get it.” Naomi put a hand on his back. “We—”
They looked up at the sound of a car crunching to a stop on the drive. A moment later a door slammed and Henry’s babble floated in through the open barn door.
“That sounds like your godson.” Rohan smiled at Naomi. “Thanks. I’m fine. Go and say hello.”
Naomi just looked at him, then put her arms up and drew him into a long hug. Charlie turned back to the chairs, his face hard to read.
“I know it’s difficult,” Naomi said as she pulled away. “We all feel the same.”
Rohan nodded, and she gave his hand a final squeeze before walking over to greet Rita at the door and scoop Henry up into her arms. Eva weaved past her mother’s legs, making a beeline for the bubbles. Outside, a car lock beeped, and a moment later Raco appeared.
He headed over, waving an arm at the work they’d done around the barn. “Wow, this is looking very—”
“What’s wrong?” Charlie cut him off immediately. He put the chair he was holding down with a sharp tap against the floor, and frowned at his brother.
If Raco had a professional fault, Falk thought, it was his lack of a poker face. The guy wore his emotions all over him. Despite his smile, it was as clear as day that he was still thinking about their discussions at the festival.
“Nothing’s wrong.” Raco glanced at Falk, who’d had a few more years to perfect the art of inscrutable neutrality, then at the other two men. “Why?”
“Has something happened? You’ve been at the site, right?” Rohan was already reaching for his phone. “Has something come from the appeal?”
“No.” Raco shook his head firmly. “Look, no, mate. I’m sorry. If there was anything, we’d hear from Dwyer.”
Rohan’s face tightened at the mention of the sergeant.
“Yeah, I suppose,” he said, as he breathed out slowly and put his phone away.
His eyes found his daughter and rested there for a long minute.
Eva was encouraging Zoe to chase the bubbles now, holding out her hands to help the little girl balance. Finally, Rohan frowned and turned back.
“Hey, has Dwyer asked any of you to go over your statements from the night?” He blinked as Charlie shook his head, then looked to Raco and Falk. “No? What about Shane? Naomi?” Rohan glanced to the barn door, where Naomi was still talking to Rita.
“I don’t think so,” Charlie said. “Not that I’ve heard.”
Rohan gave an odd reflexive laugh. “Just me, then.”
There was a silence.
“He can ask the rest of us anytime, though,” Charlie said. “We’re always around.”
Rohan didn’t look convinced. “I suppose so.”
“Can I ask what he wanted to check?” Raco said.
“Mainly things I thought we’d already gone over,” Rohan said. “A few times. Like, why didn’t Kim and Zoe come to dinner with my parents and me?”
“And what did you say?”