Chapter 23

A New Witness

Cindy began 2010 consumed with dread at the prospect of a new trial. She had no idea when it would begin, although she guessed it would be late that year.

‘It’s even worse than last time,’ she told Dr Singh. ‘Back then, I had no idea how hard it would all be.’ This time, she knew.

Dr Singh tried to allay her anxiety. ‘You are stronger than you think,’ he said. ‘You have done this once, and you can do it again.’

‘But my basket is empty this time,’ Cindy replied, flicking the rubber band against her wrist. ‘Don’t go there,’ she reminded herself. But she couldn’t banish the thought of the trial.

The tensions that had subsided with Isaiah’s birth now returned tenfold. When Cindy wasn’t struggling to get out of bed, she was in tears or in combat. The house was in turmoil all over again.

Stephen had organised a summer holiday for the family in the Victorian seaside town of Lakes Entrance, hoping a break would relieve the tension and restore some sense of calm.

The four-hour drive from Winchelsea to Lakes Entrance took them through the undulating countryside to Melbourne’s east, where dairy farms surround the giant towers of the State’s power plants. But Cindy, fast asleep in the front passenger’s seat, never noticed the farms or the towers, or the green countryside beyond.

Stephen had booked a camping site a short walk from the coast. While Cindy fed Isaiah and organised food for the other boys, Stephen set about pitching the tents that would be their home for the next ten days. But it seemed nothing could overcome Cindy’s obsession with Rob and his trial.

She was constantly ruminating over his refusal to see her during his years of incarceration. It only made sense if he wasn’t being honest with her. The thought weighed more heavily than ever.

A few days into the holiday, she received an unexpected phone call from Gerard Clanchy. ‘Hi, Cindy,’ he said. He explained that a new witness had come forward, a woman motorist who appeared to have been the last person other than Robert to see the children alive. She’d contacted police after she learnt of Robert’s successful appeal.

Cindy’s mind was whirling. If this woman could come forward and make a statement after so long, perhaps it was time Cindy amended her own? There were things about Rob she hadn’t told the police yet, and maybe now was the time to tell them.

Cindy took a breath. ‘I think I need to make a new statement.’

Clanchy sounded pleased. ‘I’ll come down and see you.’

‘I think I’ve just made your day,’ Cindy said wryly.

‘No,’ the detective replied. ‘You’ve just made my year!’

But in the short term, deciding to make a new statement about the man she’d been married to unleashed all the suppressed anger Cindy had been feeling. That evening she yelled wildly at Stephen until she was hoarse, eventually retreating into their tent in tears.

Next morning, the manager of the campsite approached with a purposeful stride.

He called Cindy and Stephen away from the children. ‘I need to talk to you in private,’ he said tactfully. Their noisy argument the previous night had disturbed other campers. ‘Perhaps it is time for you to think about moving on,’ he suggested.

Stephen apologised profusely and explained the background to the ugly scene. The manager was sympathetic. ‘It must be terrible for you,’ he said, holding Cindy’s distraught gaze. ‘But no more arguments – it can’t happen again.’

‘It won’t,’ Cindy promised.

Stephen and Cindy spent the rest of their holiday in a state of subdued tension, desperately trying to put all thoughts of the trial out of their heads. Nothing was going to change in a week, Cindy thought, flicking the rubber band on her wrist and wishing the whole business would go away.

After they returned to Winch, Cindy’s shopping addiction returned with a vengeance. She was back on eBay, searching for toys, clothes, electrical items, jewellery, perfume atomisers, shoes – anything and everything. She’d arrive home from the Geelong shops laden with carry-bags full of things she didn’t really want or need. Soon, unopened boxes were scattered around the house and her wardrobe was overflowing with clothes, many still sporting their price tags. As soon as she’d bought an item, the thrill of the hunt subsided and she lost interest.

Her uncontrollable spending caused constant arguments in the house. ‘Why are you spending like this?’ asked Stephen sternly.

Cindy looked defiant. ‘It’s my money!’ she snapped. Stephen was lost for words.

She’d also put one of her compensation payments towards the $65,000 cost of a new bright purple customised Holden and had the number plates personalised for her sons, ‘JTB 123’. Now, wherever she drove in her purple car, everyone would remember her children. It was a fitting legacy, she told herself.

Rob’s father, Don, was in the last stages of terminal cancer when Rob was released on bail. Rob was able to visit his father in his final weeks and attend his funeral in February.

Not long before Don died, Cindy ran into his partner and carer, Jenny, who told her that Rob’s dad was a broken man. It was as if the accident haunted him.

Cindy had wanted more than anything to visit Don, to talk with him, to find out whatever it was that he needed to share, but she suspected the family wouldn’t allow it. These days, she felt they were holding her accountable for everything that had happened.

She wondered if Don had believed that Rob was guilty. Whatever it was that was troubling him, it was a secret he took to his grave.

Cindy was distraught when she learnt of Don’s death. She immediately rang one of Rob’s sisters and left a message on the answering machine. ‘Thanks for letting me know,’ she said sarcastically. She was upset that she’d been denied a chance to say goodbye to her children’s grandfather.

On 29 January, Cindy and Stephen received subpoenas informing them that Rob’s new trial had been set for 17 April 2010 at the Supreme Court, though they were advised that they might not be required in court on that particular day.

As the date of the trial approached, Cindy thought more about the implications if, as she now suspected, Rob had deceived her all along and was punishing her for ending their miserable marriage. It sent a shiver down her spine to think that Jai, Tyler and Bailey were pawns in a heinous payback plan calculated to ruin the rest of her life. Worse still, she thought hopelessly, the plan had already succeeded.

Through her despair, bursts of anger appeared from nowhere. But now the rage she’d sprayed at the family for the past four years was being redirected at the man who had caused her such pain. Making a new statement to police would be a step in the right direction. There were things the police needed to know – things that might have been considered incriminating if she’d mentioned them earlier.