Jill poured more tea into her cup and wondered if Robbie had gotten in over his head with his gambling debts. It was true, he’d paid off Billy Veland, but he could have owed money to somebody else.
‘What do you think he was doing at Callan Park?’ Jill asked.
Katrina stirred her tea and stared past Jill as if thinking what to say next. ‘No idea, I’ve been wondering the same thing.’ She looked up. ‘Robbie told me his father had epilepsy or was it schizophrenia? Maybe Robbie had a fit or something. Was there anything in the autopsy report about it?’
‘We’re still waiting on the autopsy. Robbie’s case is low priority.’
Katrina nodded, dabbed at her eyes with her fingers. ‘I’m sorry, but I can’t believe Robbie would have taken his own life.’ Katrina leaned in as if sharing a confidence, she lowered her voice. ‘Have you considered he may have been pushed?’
Jill was surprised, maybe even a little relieved, that someone else was following the more sinister line of thought. But she couldn’t let her guard down, not with a journo. ‘There’s nothing much I can tell you, without an autopsy report.’ Katrina Andrel could just be digging, hoping to find a story. It took a moment for Jill to compose herself. She shrugged. ‘There’s no evidence to suggest it was anything other than suicide.’ Jill changed the subject. ‘Is there anything else you can tell me?’
‘I know Robbie was worried about Fin, worried what she might do.’ Katrina Andrel paused and sipped her tea thoughtfully. ‘I think he was at the end of his tether with her.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Fin was depressed; drinking too much, hanging out with the wrong crowd. Robbie found out she’d lost her job. He told me he was worried there might have been something more serious going on and he’d been trying to get her help. But she’d refused.’
‘What exactly did he think was wrong with her?’
‘He didn’t say, but he told me he’d visited a few mental health sites and had been reading text books on behavioural problems.’
‘What about drugs? Do you think Fin or Robbie was using? He never touched them when I was with him but…’
‘Robbie? No, definitely not, he was scared of them. He told me he’d been tempted once…after an addict told him taking heroin was like sitting on your mother’s lap. It made you feel loved and like no one would ever hurt you.’
Jill raised her eyebrows.
‘I’m not sure about Fin, though. Robbie let something slip once and I got the impression she was involved in something illegal.’
‘What did Robbie say?’ Jill asked.
‘I think it was to do with someone she was seeing.’
Jill was surprised Katrina knew so much about the Calloways, considering she’d only known them both for a short time. A pang of jealousy hit her; it appeared Katrina Andrel knew more about Robbie’s life than she did.
Katrina continued. ‘Robbie was outraged mentally ill people were living on the streets because of a lack of state government funding. He said Callan Park should never have closed and he couldn’t understand why the Master Plan hadn’t been approved.’ Katrina’s phone rang and she looked at the caller ID. ‘Look, I have to take this.’ She stood to leave.
‘One last question,’ Jill said.
Katrina answered the call. ‘Give me a second, will you Naomi.’ She pressed hold on her phone and looked back to Jill. ‘Yes, what did you want to ask me?’ She picked up her coat and bag and placed a five-dollar note and some loose change on the table.
Jill had decided since first meeting Katrina Andrel at Callan Park that she didn’t like the woman. Yet she had brought up the idea Robbie may have been pushed. Why? Was she an ally or was she involved in some way? She felt like saying: yes, I have considered Robbie was pushed and who’s to say you weren’t the one up there with him? But instead she decided to find out if she had an alibi.
‘Where were you the night Robbie died, before you turned up in the news van?’
‘I was meeting one of my sources.’
‘Can you give me a name?’
‘Sorry, Jill, I never reveal my sources, not even to my editor.’
‘Can anyone else confirm your whereabouts?’
‘I have no alibi, if that’s what you’re asking.’ She narrowed her eyes. ‘So, you agree with me? You don’t think Robbie’s death was suicide.’ She gave Jill a satisfied smile.
Jill kept her cool, attempted a smile. ‘No, it’s just one of those questions I have to ask. Thank you by the way. I appreciate you contacting me.’
Katrina tugged her ear. ‘I just wanted to help in any way I could. Robbie was special.’
Jill nodded and Katrina went back to her phone. ‘Sorry, Naomi…’ She walked out of the café, giving Jill a quick wave.
The waitress was wiping down the next table and Jill asked her for a strong black coffee — her first for a while. She’d thought giving up caffeine would help her insomnia, but so far her abstinence had had no effect. She was also tempted to ask for a vanilla slice or one of the Portuguese tarts she liked so much, especially given she’d skipped lunch, but she resisted. While she waited for her coffee to arrive, she went over the conversation she’d just had with Katrina Andrel. There was something not quite right. What was it about the woman that unsettled her? Was it the way she swept out of the café, the fake tears at the start of their conversation? She wondered if Katrina Andrel was playing with her and decided to run a background check. She wanted to confirm her story that she’d covered the protest at Callan Park.