Senior Sergeant Rob Mendez walked back to where Berry and Nate were standing. ‘No, it’s paint, not blood, but I get why you thought that when you drove up.’
‘Do you think the car that ran me off the road had something to do with this?’ Berry asked, thankful that she had Nate’s warmth beside her. Things had gone from bad to worse and she was rattled.
‘We won’t rule anything out. Have you had any altercations with anyone?’ Mendez asked.
She shook her head. ‘No, everyone has been really welcoming since I arrived in Harlington.’
‘Maybe not everyone, honey,’ Nate said as he glanced down at her. ‘What about what happened yesterday, with Worth?’
‘Oh? What happened?’ Mendez asked.
‘Laurie Worth came around and tried to pressure me into selling Stone Gully Farm to him,’ Berry explained. ‘I told him the other day that we weren’t selling, but clearly he thought he knew better.’
‘So, he turned up yesterday to try to convince you?’
‘That’s right. He got annoyed when I said that it wasn’t going to work, and then he implied Nate was trying to “romance” the place out of me.’
The Senior Sergeant looked at Nate. ‘I see. I suppose if you bought Stone Gully it would expand Tarantale Downs.’
‘What are you getting at?’ Nate’s eyes narrowed. ‘Yeah, it probably would be a bonus if we bought it—only because it would make for a pretty horse trail. It’s not like we need more land.’ He paused before continuing. ‘But for total disclosure I should tell you that Dad said if Berry was stuck, he’d buy the place.’
‘I’m just following a line of questioning, that’s all. We have to know the details so we can start eliminating some of them,’ Mendez said. ‘So, why would your dad make Berry an offer if you didn’t really need the land?’
‘I asked him the same question,’ Nate said, relaxing a little and taking Berry’s hand in his. ‘He said that Jordy McCalister had been his friend and buying Stone Gully Farm seemed a way he could help the family.’
Mendez’s eyes widened. ‘I hadn’t realised they’d been that close. I know he was upset on the night of the … well, you know,’ he said, looking away from Berry.
‘Yeah, I hadn’t known that either, but apparently they were friends,’ Nate said, turning to Berry. ‘Tarantale was going through a bit of a rough time and your dad helped.’
‘Really?’ Berry said. ‘I had no idea.’
‘What sort of trouble?’ Mendez asked as his dark eyes fixed on Nate.
‘Financial, I think, but I’m not a hundred percent sure—I was just a kid. I remember something about an accident and some of the horses got hurt.’ Nate rubbed his head as if trying to stir up old memories.
Berry looked at him for a second as a frown flitted across her brow. ‘If it was financial trouble, I’m not sure how my father could have helped. From what I can remember, we weren’t great in that department.’
‘Maybe it was emotional support. My dad is a very private person, but if they were mates maybe he was just able to share his troubles with a friend,’ Nate said. ‘As it was, my grandmother was able to help us out. She sold up everything and saved Tarantale.’
Berry smiled. ‘That’s incredible.’
‘I know. It was just the type of woman she was. She lived with us for a long time—we only lost her last year. I still miss her,’ Nate explained.
‘She sounds like she was a wonderful person. But that thing with our fathers, giving each other support is really precious. I don’t know why but it kind of makes me happy to think that they were friends,’ Berry said before turning to Senior Sergeant Mendez. ‘Would it be all right if I go in? I think I need to sit down.’
There was a flash of concern in his eyes. ‘I don’t think that’s a good idea. This is a crime scene, and besides that, I don’t think you should be alone tonight.’
‘It’s all right, Berry can stay with me for a couple of days,’ Nate said as he reached down and took her hand.
‘Are you sure?’ Berry asked. ‘I could go to the Cumquat, but it’s getting late and I don’t want to disturb Andrea.’
‘Of course it’s okay. Besides, I’ll feel better knowing you’re safe.’
Berry looked up at him and, despite the shock and drama of the evening, smiled.
Nate and Berry drove in silence all the way to Tarantale Downs. Nate spent most of that time trying to get his emotions in check. He figured that the last thing Berry needed tonight was him ranting. Instead, he played out a whole lot of scenarios in his head about what he would do to whoever was responsible for this. He was fairly sure that it was that oily Laurie Worth who was behind this, but he wanted to be sure before he slammed the bastard up against a wall. As they turned into the driveway of Tarantale he glanced over at Berry. She was staring out the window as if in a trance—she seemed a million miles away.
‘Hey, how are you holding up?’ he asked.
She turned to look at him. ‘I’m okay, really. Are you sure this is all right—I mean, about staying here?’
‘Of course it is—why wouldn’t it be? My place isn’t as grand as the main house but I like it better,’ he said as he pointed to the elegant lines of a two-storey house, which loomed in front of them.
They drove for another minute or two, past new stables and a riding arena. Nate veered the car away from the main drive and turned down a small track. Ahead a large peppercorn tree gently swayed in the night breeze and behind it stood an old brick building. It was two storeys but not particularly big. An outside staircase ran up the side of the building to a glossy black painted door. On the ground floor, two separate horse stalls were still evident.
‘It’s amazing,’ Berry said as she looked up at it.
‘Yeah, I love it—it’s got so much character,’ Nate replied. ‘Come on, I’ll show you around.’
He led her up the staircase to the small landing at the top, then opened the door and stood aside as Berry walked in.
‘Basically, it’s a one bedroom, but I pretend it has two because there’s a small room over there that I use as an office,’ Nate said, pointing to a door off to the right. ‘Other than that, there’s the bedroom, bathroom, and this is the kitchen/living space.’
‘It’s gorgeous, I love all the exposed brick walls,’ Berry said.
‘Take a seat,’ he said as he gestured to the dark grey couch. ‘I’ll make you a drink and then organise where you’re sleeping.’
‘Please don’t go to any trouble. I could just stay here,’ she said as she sank into the couch. ‘It’s really comfortable.’
‘No, you take my bed and I’ll crash on the couch.’ He held up his hand as she opened her mouth in protest.
‘I insist. You’ve had a shock and an awful night—just take the bed.’
She gave him a smile and nodded her head. ‘All right. Thank you.’
‘Not a problem,’ he said as he walked into the small kitchenette to switch on the kettle.
Nate left her sipping her tea as he headed into the bedroom and did a quick tidy up and changed the sheets. It didn’t take him long, but by the time he got back to the lounge room, Berry had fallen asleep. Nate sighed and took a moment to watch her. Her quiet breathing seemed to accentuate the soft lines of her face, and he felt a warmth inside, and a basic desire to protect her, and hold her close. He closed his eyes for a moment to clear his head before lifting her up and taking her into the bedroom. He placed her on the bed and marvelled at the fact that she didn’t even stir.
He removed her shoes and covered her with the thick doona, taking another second to brush a strand of hair from her face before leaving her.
Berry woke with a start as the sound of the front door banging open resounded through the entire place. For a moment she was confused, unable to remember where she was. But almost instantly the events of the previous evening flooded back. Sitting up, she looked around the room and realised that she was in Nate’s bed—the problem was that she couldn’t remember how she got there.
She smiled as she stretched her arms above her head. He had been there for her when she needed him the most and there was something very comforting in that. However, her warm and fuzzy feeling evaporated as she heard angry voices waft into the bedroom.
‘Where the hell have you been? We’re going to be late if we don’t leave in the next twenty minutes.’
‘Dad, can you keep it down! I messaged you and told you I’d be a bit late. Not that it should matter—everything’s ready for when Constantine arrives.’ Nate’s voice was lower than she had heard it, as if he were trying to placate his father.
Berry threw off the covers and sat on the edge of the bed in confusion.
‘I know the stable’s ready for him—I double-checked it last night,’ his father snapped. ‘We’re meant to be on the road already if we’re going to get to Heritage Stud by midday and pick him up.’
‘Look, can you take Justin or one of the other stable hands with you instead? There was a bit of trouble last night and I think I should stay here,’ Nate said.
‘What sort of trouble?’
‘I did send you a message explaining everything, but I guess you didn’t read it,’ Nate said, and Berry could hear the thinly veiled frustration in his voice.
‘No, I didn’t.’
‘Berry was run off the road last night,’ Nate said.
‘What?’ his father snapped. ‘Why am I only hearing about this now?’
‘Well, if you’d read your messages …’ Nate started and then stopped. ‘She was run off the road and called me to come and get her. It wasn’t an accident.’
‘Are you serious?’
‘Unfortunately, yes, I am,’ Nate answered. ‘Some jerk purposely ran into her car. Thankfully, except for a cut on her forehead, she’s okay. I thought that was enough, but when I drove her back to Stone Gully, someone had painted a warning over her front door in red paint.’
‘A warning?’
‘They wrote Leave. It looked like blood.’
Berry listened—though she didn’t really have a choice as both Nate and his father’s voices carried.
‘God, who would do such a thing?’
‘I don’t know for sure, but probably someone who wants her to sell up and leave Harlington,’ Nate said.
‘You’ve got someone in mind?’
‘The police will have to look into it but, yeah, I have my suspicions.’
‘Like who?’
‘Anyone who offered to buy the place and was annoyed when she turned them down—the top of the list has to be Laurie Worth.’
‘Why him?’
‘Because I was with Berry the other day when he turned up at Stone Gully. Let’s just say he was doing his best to talk her into reconsidering his offer and then got shitty about me being there. So much so that he even accused me of trying to get the place myself,’ Nate said.
‘That guy has always been an arsehole.’
‘That’s what I thought,’ Nate agreed.
Berry opened the door and walked out of Nate’s bedroom just in time to catch Sam Tarant glare at his son.
‘Chill, Dad—I took the couch,’ Nate said quietly.
‘Good morning, Mr Tarant,’ Berry said with a smile. ‘I’m really grateful that Nate let me crash here last night. As you can imagine I was a bit rattled.’
Sam gave her a smile. ‘Of course. I’m so sorry about what happened. You must have been scared.’
‘I was when the car ran me off the road, and the graffiti was, let’s just say, unnerving.’
‘And do you think you know who did it?’ Sam asked.
‘No, I don’t. A lot of people offered to buy Stone Gully. Which means there are a lot of people annoyed that we’re not going to sell it. Mr Worth was the most vocal about it, but that doesn’t necessary mean he did it,’ Berry said.
‘We told the police about him,’ Nate said as he glanced at Berry and managed a smile. ‘They’ll be in touch when they know more.’
‘Well, I guess it will be a while until you can go home,’ Sam Tarant said. ‘Feel free to stay here as long as you want. In fact, it’s probably a better idea that you do—at least that way we know you’ll be safe.’
‘Oh, Mr Tarant, I couldn’t.’
‘Of course you could. Stay, at least until the police catch the culprit.’
‘Thanks, Dad,’ Nate said. ‘I think that’s a wise idea.’
Sam nodded. ‘You don’t want to take any risks. I’m sure that everything will be wrapped up pretty quick—it’s not as if Harlington’s the crime capital of Victoria. You can stay here if you want, or if you’d rather, there’s plenty of room in the house.’
‘Thank you, Mr Tarant, I really appreciate it,’ Berry said.
‘It’s fine,’ he answered, waving his hand as if to brush off her thanks. ‘Now, I’ve got to get going—I’ve got a horse to pick up. You stay here, Nate. Berry might need you. I’ll take Justin with me or go by myself.’
Nate looked at his father for a moment. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Of course,’ Sam said as he started to turn away. ‘I’ll see you both when I get back.’
‘Bye Dad,’ Nate said but his father was already walking out the front door. He sighed and then turned back to Berry. ‘Well, it looks as if that’s all sorted. Are you okay here or would you prefer to go into the house?’
Berry gave him a smile. ‘I think I like it here—if that’s okay with you?’
He took her by the hand and looked into her eyes. ‘More than okay.’