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Back Dead Horse Gap Save as PDF
Chapters (58)
  1. COVER PAGE
  2. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  3. DEDICATION
  4. Prologue
  5. One
  6. Two
  7. Three
  8. Four
  9. Five
  10. Six
  11. Seven
  12. Eight
  13. Nine
  14. Ten
  15. Eleven
  16. Twelve
  17. Thirteen
  18. Fourteen
  19. Fifteen
  20. Sixteen
  21. Seventeen
  22. Eighteen
  23. Nineteen
  24. Twenty
  25. Twenty-one
  26. Twenty-two
  27. Twenty-three
  28. Twenty-four
  29. Twenty-five
  30. Twenty-six
  31. Twenty-seven
  32. Twenty-eight
  33. Twenty-nine
  34. Thirty
  35. Thirty-one
  36. Thirty-two
  37. Thirty-three
  38. Thirty-four
  39. Thirty-five
  40. Thirty-six
  41. Thirty-seven
  42. Thirty-eight
  43. Thirty-nine
  44. Forty
  45. Forty-one
  46. Forty-two
  47. Forty-three
  48. Forty-four
  49. Forty-five
  50. Forty-six
  51. Forty-seven
  52. Forty-eight
  53. Forty-nine
  54. Fifty
  55. Fifty-one
  56. Fifty-two
  57. Fifty-three
  58. Acknowledgements

Poppy began to stir, and Eva rose from the table and went to put the weary pre-schooler to bed before she woke up entirely. Vanessa hurried out to check whatever amazing dish was being kept warm in the kitchen, leaving Ryder and Jack alone.

‘You know these mountains like the back of your hands, don’t you?’ Ryder asked, pushing aside his personal thoughts and bringing his focus back to the case. ‘You’ve trekked and camped all over them, right?’

Jack nodded slowly. ‘Yep.’

‘Did you ever hear anything, or see anything that made you suspect a drug ring was operating and controlling the turf down here?’

‘No, but I was only here during the winter months. Everybody knew drugs were for sale in Jindabyne during the ski season if you wanted them. I assumed they would have been brought in by one of the city gangs.’

‘Not necessarily,’ said Ryder.

‘I can run it past my contacts if you like? The army trains out in the back country. They spend a lot of time in the area.’

‘That would be great—’ Ryder began, then stopped as Vanessa came in carrying a heavy baking dish laden with lamb shanks and roasted vegetables. Ryder jumped up and took it from her. Leaning across the table, he set the main course on the large placemat in the centre as Vanessa sat down.

‘I’ll keep my eyes and ears open,’ Jack said, low enough for only Ryder to hear.

Sixteen

A white sheet of paper pinned to a freestanding partition in the foyer of the council building read ‘Pending Development Applications’. Ryder ran an eye down the list until he came to number eight, White Winter Station. Beneath the name was a web address where further details could be accessed.

‘I can log in,’ said Flowers, taking out his phone.

‘Just make a note of the website. We can check it later,’ said Ryder. ‘I’d rather speak to someone.’ That was the difference between him and his younger partner. Flowers would look online for everything. He wouldn’t even make a dinner reservation if the restaurant didn’t have a website, whereas Ryder still always picked up the phone and called.

‘We’d like to talk to the person in charge of your subdivision team,’ he said to a woman sitting behind an old-fashioned desk. ‘I’m Detective Ryder.’ He glanced at Flowers. ‘This is my partner, Detective Flowers. Sydney Homicide.’

‘May I ask what it’s in relation to?’ said the woman, looking a little taken aback.

‘We have questions about the White Winter Station development.’

‘Oh, yes.’ She picked up the phone but kept the receiver in her hand. ‘Mhanda Van Engelen, our town planner, has been heading up that application. She’d be the best person to speak to.’

‘Great. Do you know if she’s in?’ said Ryder.

The woman pushed a button on the phone. ‘I saw her in the carpark this morning.’