Ember Flowers (2 page)

Onward quickly
to the lift, not much they could do from the ground other than
stare up and wave.

A soft ping of
the elevator, expensive carpets, room numbers and a swipe of the
card. Their man decided the penthouse balcony was the most apt
place for a swan dive.

As the senior
Officer, she edged forward first, his head turned as he heard the
door unlock. Facing the assault of gravity front on, his arms
strained behind him as he held on to the polished bar. Backs of his
knees pressed against the glass. Copper hair sifted in the
wind.

Roy stood
back.

“Sir, my name
is Sergeant..”

“Go away! Can’t
you see I’m about to off myself?’

Standing still,
she put on her best calm voice, coolheaded from years of
experience.

“Sir, that’s a
big decision, maybe you’d like to talk about it before doing
anything rash?”

“Not much to
talk about.” His voice was a bitter slur.

Roy’s radio
crackled and he turned away to answer it, he spoke, whispering
softly.

She took a step
forward when he turned his head. “It’s Jamie, right?”

His voice came
out a little hoarse, the exertion of hanging on increasing his
stress.

“Yeah. Jamie.
They tell you that down stairs?”

She nodded,
then affirmed with her voice when she realised he couldn’t see her.
No sudden moves, keep him calm.
“That’s right Jamie, they’re
worried about you.”

He laughed, the
sarcasm rich in his voice. “They don’t give a fuck, they fired me
yesterday.” A sweaty hand gripped the rail tighter, he turned to
look at her and she held up her hand.

“Jamie, be
careful. I’m staying right here OK?” Another step closer when his
head turned to look at the crowd below.

“OK.”

“Jamie, listen
really carefully. Your girlfriend down there doesn’t want to see
anything bad happen to you, right?”

He panted, a
scuffle of a plastic tread on gritty concrete. “Lisa’s down
there?”

“That’s right.
She’s hoping you’ll come back over this side of the railing, where
we can work this out.”

“Not a lot to
work out. Lisa dumped me this morning.”

She frowned.
“That’s too bad, but I’m sure you still don’t want her to see this,
right?”

A sigh. “I
don’t care anymore.”

Another couple
of steps closer. Another foot or so and she’d be able to grab on,
adrenaline flushed hot through her veins.

“Jo..” A hushed
whisper of caution from behind her. She heard a siren, the fire
department was arriving down stairs.
They’d have a basket, they
could bring him down. She just had to keep him talking.

“What the hell
is that?” Another ragged breath as he strained to look down.

Her heels
wanted to edge forward. ”Don’t worry about it Jamie. Just focus on
me. It’s the fire department. They’ve been called just in case.
People are worried about you..”

He shuffled on
the ledge, changing his grip. His foot turning a little.

For a second he
glanced over his shoulder, skin pasty, he looked faint. She wanted
to rush forward.

“Jamie?”

“I..I don’t
feel so good..”

“It’s OK..just
listen to me..” Her arm extending as she stepped closer. The
banister creaked.

Her grey eyes
flew open, it seemed to happen in slow motion. One moment she was
standing still, a few feet away. The next she was hanging onto him
with all her might, her slender fore arms under hooks straining to
take his weight. His sudden slip had driven her flying forward. A
quick blind grab just in time.

Roy had run to
her, and was pulling her backward. They all crashed to the floor of
the balcony in a heap of momentum.

A little
rattled, Jamie turned to look at her with unfocused eyes. He
smiled, sucked in a deep breath, then ruined her nice clean
shirt.

Chapter 3

She used to
live closer to the bay, close enough to smell the sea spray and the
salt in the evenings when they’d chat over trivial things. Her
sailboat had been tethered in the harbour.
A lot
changed.

Now she had
decided her piece of acreage skirting the bush, extending over the
hills, was pretty close to heaven. It was none the more obvious
when the sun came up through the trees in the morning.

Painting
shadows like blots of ink over the dusk tinted grass. Horses
nickered by the fence, two of them, recent purchases. Happily
snuffling the chaff with their whiskered chins and velvet
noses.

She was alone,
but she liked that those two could keep each other company.

An old
homestead completed the rural scene, perched atop a rolling tree
spotted dale. The view over the paddock and lower valley of
bushland quite spectacular. It was easier to take in those kinds of
details without the pauses for conversation. The vista helped fill
the silence. A long gravel drive led out to the road, dotted with
ghost gums, a towering avenue of white and green.

It was quite
the commute to the city, a little under an hour. But that wasn’t
unusual. Those settling in newer estates out of town faced the same
drive each morning. She couldn’t complain, life had given her
roses, besides the odd, painful thorn.

A steaming cup,
a click of the morning radio, and tanned legs extended out onto the
dark rattan of the table. She spent a lot of time out here on the
porch, looking out over a meandering embankment that led down to
the trees.

Jean looked
over at her ute, it had rained overnight, she’d taken in the tools
to stave off the rust. From the front you couldn’t see the bald
metal skirting where the indicators used to be. The old grill
reminded her of a face, two headlights for eyes. It was silly to
give personality to a tool, but it had been with her a long time.
Maybe the thump to the back was the hint she’d been
ignoring?
A last repair before she would sell it for scrap.

She mused,
sipping her coffee. It surprised her that the blonde woman had been
a cop. She should’ve known better than that. Obviously distracted,
not practising what they preached. The look on her face after they
hit looked like shock, even though it was only a nudge and broken
plastic.

The gardener
wondered if she was really all right.
Perhaps preoccupied by bad
news?
She wondered if the leggy blonde had given it a second
thought, seemingly distant. Aside from the bill she’d have to pay
and the inconvenience. She pulled out her smart phone, thumb
flicking quickly through, checking her mail.

Two from
Scottie, a lewd joke, the other a follow up from yesterday. Another
hit her inbox as she looked through. Another sip of her beverage, a
scrunch of her brows.

‘
Dear Ms
Patterson,

My apologies
for yesterday, your repairs will be organised promptly. I have made
the necessary calls, you should be hearing from the garage today or
tomorrow.

Drive
safely.

Sergeant Joanne
Myers.’

The email ended
with a signature the same as the card, station details and a direct
landline.

“Hmm. Early
riser too.” She responded with quick taps of her roughened
fingertips.

‘
Dear
Joanne,

Thanks for
being organised. Was concerned that your vehicle may have been
un-roadworthy after the damage done by mine.

P.S - You need
to update your card, your title is different.

P.P.S - My
mother was called Ms Patterson - I’m not that old - yet.

Thanks,

Jean

The gardener
smirked and hit send. She placed the phone back on the black canvas
cushion beside her. Lacing her hands behind her head. A deep
breath, the air was fresher out here than in the city.

A soft peep,
another email.

“That was
quick.” Another little mutter to herself followed, with a self
deprecating roll of her eyes,
talking to yourself was a sign of
going crazy
. Scott always told her that, right after he
threatened to put her in a home.
Prick.

‘
Dear
Jean,

Yes, thanks to
your work ute I am now paying out a cool three grand. Lucky it
wasn’t the squad car, or I’d never live it down. Serves me right
for not watching the road.

P.S - Yes, a
recent promotion. I will request new stationery.

Regards,

Joanne.’

The older woman
smiled to herself. At least she had a sense of humour about it.

Her coffee
savoured, a quick shower upstairs, and she was looking for
something to wear. She settled on long khaki shorts, and a polo.
She’d had a few made up with the company logo. A fresh leafy motif
with white writing. A faded matching decal was weathered on her
ute.

A grasp of the
keys and she was out the door.

***

Scottie was
waiting for her at the office, a small unit that faced the street.
A render of biscuit coloured plaster making the old building more
modern. He’d called her at quarter to seven, saying he had bad
news. The broken glass of the front window gave her a good
indication of what had happened.

She sighed as
she pulled herself up out of the ute. Her eyes drifted over the
muddy boot prints on the rain soaked carpet.

“How much did
they take?”

A shrug of his
shoulders. “Was just about to call the cops. Came by to pick up my
laptop and saw it like this. Had a quick look around. Lap tops are
gone Jean, your computer too.”

A groan as she
rubbed her face with her hand.
Thank god for off site
backups.

Her off sider
pulled out his phone.

She watched
him, getting an idea. Calling the non-emergency number always too
forever.

“Hang on
Scottie, I’ve got a better idea.”

Chapter 4

She wasn’t sure
why she’d agreed to it, there were plenty of other Officers with
smaller piles of paperwork than she had overflowing on her
desk.

She’d picked up
her cell and answered the unfamiliar number. At first, she had been
wary, worried it would be her ex, Owen, using another number as he
sometimes did to get her attention.

“Hello?
Sergeant Myers speaking.”

A slight pause.
“Hello, is this Joanne Myers?”

“Speaking.”

“Oh, hi. This
is Jean, from yesterday.”

A soft sigh,
she hoped this wouldn’t be embarrassing, she looked around the
desks and cubicles, at least everyone was engrossed in their
work.

“Hello Jean, do
you need something?”

“Actually, yes.
But I’m not sure if you can help?”

“Can you be
more descriptive?”

Crunching of
boots over bitumen. Crackly in her ear. “Well, I was about to call
the non emergency line, and then I thought I might have better luck
calling you. My office was broken into this morning, I wanted to
have someone check it out.”

A brisk nod.
“Sorry to hear that Jean. I’ll see if I can organise someone to
come out and assist.”

“Sure. That
would be great. I appreciate it - just a busy morning, clients
waiting y’know?”

“I understand.
I’ll have someone come out to you, may I have the address?” She’d
inconvenienced the woman yesterday, the least she could do was put
her forward in the queue.

“It’s on the
card, but I’ll give it to you again if you like?”

She fished
around on her desk. “Right. Yes I see. OK. I’ll see what I can do
for you.”

“Thanks Joanne,
I appreciate it.”

A soft click
and the call disconnected. She looked down at the leafy motif and
photograph of the water feature surrounded by blossoms.

She got up and
walked to the hall. The policewoman knocked softly on the tinted
glass. Her superior was eating breakfast. He looked up at her and
dusted crumbs off his hands.

“Captain, do
you have anyone you can send out to a burglary? Business owner,
place was done over last night.” Blonde locks brushed against the
doorframe.

He took a sip
of his juice, then looked at his screen. “Why don’t you go Myers?
Not much going on. Take one of the keen new Constables with you. Be
good for them to see procedure in action.” Light eyes looked at her
expectantly.

“But?..”

“Go on Jo. I
rely on you so they don’t learn bad habits. You could teach them a
thing or two. Besides, you probably need some fresh air after this
morning?” A little chuckle over his podgy neck. Captain Pursloe
often bantered with her, sharing her humour. Something that made
her colleagues either jealous or wary. He had seen her march into
the locker room with a ruined shirt, cursing under her breath.

He made a
shuffling motion with his hand.

She groaned
inwardly.
Hopefully the older woman wouldn’t complain about the
accident. An eavesdropping cadet was the last thing she
needed.

***

The scuffling
of the rookie in her passenger seat was adding to her anxiety. He
adjusted his clips and straightened his shirt, asking her questions
he already knew answers to. Barely eight a.m. and already she’d
been startled, puked on, and now had to rehash her embarrassment.
By the time she pulled in to the small parking lot her sunglasses
were firmly on as much as the scowl.

She forced a
smile as she opened the driver’s side door. A quick glance at the
nearby work ute, black duct tape patched over the back bumper, she
cringed. Footsteps over gravel, the brunette was visible as she
hung up a call. She had a blonde man with her, he was checking his
watch. Obviously impatient to start his day too. A quick inventory
of the things she needed, forensics would come later if there was
anything to be gleaned from the scene.

In her dark
cargo pants, well shined black boots and cornflower blue uniform
shirt she probably looked imposing. The brunette greeted her
amiably with an extended hand. Her blonde colleague followed suit.
The public sometimes found her intimidating, that or the opposite
reaction. She shirked off unwanted interest with a pointed barb.
Usually sending curious parties away to sulk.