A reporter can be heard shouting, ‘But why, why have you taken them out of there if that’s where they live? What kind of report did you get to trigger the raid?’

Masonwells said, ‘I’m not going to go into that.’

This went on for a bit longer, with reporters yelling questions, and Masonwells not giving much away, and then a reporter from News Limited, Joe Potter, a bloke with better contacts that most reporters, who had been standing back waiting for his moment said, ‘According to my sources, the Department only placed nineteen children in the care of Delaney House, but you removed twenty from that property today, didn’t you?’

Where he got that little tidbit from, I can’t tell you, but it was certainly an interesting angle and the rest of the reporters could do nothing but hold their little tape decks and microphones up a bit higher, to make sure they got whatever answer Masonwells was going to give.

Watching the TV tapes, you can see Masonwells swallowing, and pausing, and then he said, ‘Your information is correct, in that we have removed twenty children from Delaney House today, yes.’

Potter continued, ‘But the Department only placed nineteen children in that house.’

Masonwells said, ‘I’m not sure what your question is, but it’s probably one for the Department.’

Potter wouldn’t give up. ‘Well, my sources have told me that the Department placed nineteen children in the house, so where did the twentieth child come from?’

But clearly Masonwells had reached his limit. ‘Joe, I’m sorry, mate, that’s as far as I’ll go. We might be in a position to reveal more information as it comes to hand but I think we’re probably done for today. It’s an ongoing investigation . . . I thank you all for your interest and your patience today. Appreciated.’

There would have been journos who walked away from that media conference reasonably satisfied, story-wise, with what they had: twenty kids removed from a carer after some kind of tip-off from a member of the public, but there was more to come, most of it revealed by Joe Potter in a report that had a big EXCLUSIVE tag across the top in The Daily Telegraph the very next day:

New South Wales police uncovered a medieval House of Horrors during yesterday’s raid on Delaney House in Bondi.

Seven children were found so malnourished they were barely able to walk to waiting ambulances.

At least another dozen children were found tethered by medical tubes to their beds.

All wore heavy collars, tagged not with their names but with numbers.

Police sources have told the Telegraph that all of the children were subjected to bizarre medical practices, designed to keep their behaviour under control.

Maybe you can see what he’s getting at. In case you can’t, the headline gave it away. ‘UNSPEAKABLE,’ it said, and under that, the words that nobody could quite get their heads around:

‘THEY CUT OUT THEIR TONGUES.’

Chapter Twenty

Dear Jack,