The Great Divide by L. .J. M. Owen

Author:L. .J. M. Owen [Owen, L. .J. M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, crime, Australian, Tasmania, Detective, Police Procedural
ISBN: 9781760686093
Publisher: Bonnier Publishing Fiction
Published: 2019-08-10T02:39:08+00:00

Chapter Ten

District Hospital

Monday, 2.51 p.m.

‘As in Melbourne?’ Jake asked.

‘Where else?’ Murphy sounded pleased with him­self. ‘Said her name was Lilith, not Matilda, but everything else fits.’

‘Great find, mate. Anything else in the record?’

‘When she was found she said she didn’t have a last name, didn’t know where she came from, and had no idea how she ended up there. The police interviewer’s file notes indicate that she believed she was telling the truth. The psychiatric assessment didn’t support her having amnesia, but the psych also said she seemed to be telling the truth.’

‘Apart from her distinctive eyes, what makes you think she’s Matilda?’

‘She said she lived in a cottage near a vineyard with a huge hedge and other girls but no parents.’

‘And they never tracked down where she came from?’

‘File says they assumed she came from country Victoria, maybe the hills around the wine country. Says she might have come from one of the hippie communes up there where they don’t believe in surnames.’

‘Any way to trace her now?’

‘She was adopted out of the foster system.’

‘Have you got a name and number for the adoptive parents?’

‘Yes an—‘

‘All right, send it to me now and I’ll give them a call.’

‘Actually, I’ve already left them a message, just waiting to hear back.’

Fuck. Murphy finally shows some initiative, then goes too far. ‘That’s great, but listen: we want to let this information out in a controlled way, okay?’

‘Ri—ight.’

‘Have you told anyone else yet?’

‘Just the boss.’

‘Okay. Let’s keep it to just the three of us for now.’

‘Why?’

Murphy’s edge of resentment had returned.

‘We want to see how certain people react when they’re told.’

‘What people?’

Jake took a deep breath. The constable wasn’t an intuitive learner apparently … but he would only develop if Jake took the time to teach him. ‘How about we see if Kelly will approve both of us going to Melbourne to interview her, and I’ll walk you through it?’

‘That’d be great!’

Headed toward the rolling dark grey peaks that surrounded Dunton, Jake had to wonder at how easy it was to manipulate his offsider’s mood.

An hour later, descending the other side of the mountains, Jake plunged his vehicle from the glorious sunshine of a sunny winter’s day into the blanket of fog that filled the valley, enveloped by a sense that he was entering a hidden world, an otherland of isolation and secrets.

*

Returning to the station that evening, Jake first called Matilda’s adoptive parents and then Matilda herself and arranged to see her the following day. He could see Amelia at the hospital first thing, then go straight to the airport. Perhaps tomorrow would yield an all-important clue that allowed him to identify Ava’s murderer.

Wrapping up work for the day, he received a welcome surprise on the home front—the electricity in his cottage had finally been connected. He switched the reverse cycle air conditioner to full blast and tested the hot water temperature in anticipation of a long, hot shower. Only since moving to Dunton had Jake come to fully appreciate plumbed hot water and touch-button heating; life-changing conveniences he had previously taken for granted.

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