Amy didn’t want to talk about Brandon behind his back. “Have you booked your flight to Melbourne for when you get out?”
“Not yet. Izzy’s telling me she doesn’t need any help with the baby.”
“Be patient with her. She might be fine, or she might see you coming as being a failure.”
“She’s never a failure.”
“Then tell her,” Amy said. She would have loved her brother to have been kind to her. “And if she’s adamant she doesn’t need you, I’m sure you’ll always have a bed at the Ridge if you need it.”
He nodded. “Darcy and Bran both mentioned that. They’re good people.”
“They are,” she agreed.
At the airport she parked and got out, hugging the large man. “I hope I see you again.”
“Same.” He slung his bag over his shoulder and entered the small terminal.
Amy’s phone beeped with a message from Lee to say he’d emailed through the photos and asking her to check them. She got back into her car and flicked to her email. Even on her small screen the photos were spectacular. There was one of a sunset over the ridge, the farmhouse in the foreground, and another contrasting the turquoise ocean with the red sand. Brandon and Darcy would love them.
She continued to scroll through. The last one was of the machinery shed, but nothing interesting. A couple of people were chatting. She frowned and zoomed in on the photo. It was Taylor, so it must have been taken a while ago. The other guy stood side on but it wasn’t Matt, Darcy or Bill. She enlarged it further and her mouth dropped open. It was the guy who’d broken into the house, the one they’d seen at the caravan park. Why was he talking to Taylor, and when had the photo been taken?
She couldn’t see the photo properties on her phone to get the date. But she wanted answers.
She checked the time. Still an hour before Lara’s event. The others would be unloading Starlight and calming Lara. She had time to drive into town and find Dot.
Amy drove as fast as she dared, though if she was pulled over for speeding at least she’d find the person she was looking for. When she arrived at the police station, the closed sign on the door made her swear. Saturday. Damn it. It had a generic phone number to call, but she didn’t want to deal with someone who didn’t know the situation. She wasn’t sure where Dot lived, but Lindsay would know. She drove to the shopping centre and headed inside the supermarket. Lindsay stood at the cash register.
“Hi, Amy! I thought you’d be at the gymkhana today.”
“Just heading there, Lindsay,” she said. “I wanted to take Dot a gift for all her help with the crash, but I forgot the station is closed on Saturday. Do you know where she lives?”
“Yeah. The station has a house behind it for the officer in charge. But she’s probably at the gymkhana. She mentioned she liked horse-riding.”
Of course. Half the town would be there and Dot took the adult lessons with Faith. “Thanks.”
“I’ll see you down there. My staff should arrive soon, and I’ll pop over to watch.”
“Great!” Amy returned to her car and drove back past the police station to knock on the door of the house, but there was no answer. Hopefully Dot was at the gymkhana.
The pony club was on the edge of the town and cars had already filled the small car park and were lining the road. Amy joined the line and got out, hurrying down the road to the entrance. Inside the fence were a bunch of horse floats and people unloading horses. The Ridge float was opposite her and Starlight was tied to a nearby railing. Both Brandon and Darcy were by Lara’s side as she got ready. Only ten minutes until Lara’s event. Damn it. She didn’t want to miss it.
A car door slammed across the road and she glanced across.
Taylor.
He smiled at her. “Hey, Amy. Shouldn’t you be in there already? Isn’t Lara competing?”
She narrowed her eyes, her anger at his casual greeting catching her by surprise. She wanted answers, but was it wise to confront him herself? There had to be a logical explanation for the photograph. They’d sat across from each other at dinner almost every night until he’d been fired. They’d laughed and played cards together. Still the lessons she’d learnt as a teenager on the street urged her towards caution. “I had to go into town for something.” Her phone was a comforting presence in her pocket.
“Hey, I never got that photo from you,” Taylor said. “The one of me with the mackerel I caught. Can you send it to me now?”
She had no decent excuse to refuse. They were about a hundred metres from the gate into the pony club and people stood collecting an entrance fee. “Sure.” She retrieved her phone and Taylor stood next to her, looking over her shoulder. Too late, she realised she still had Taylor’s incriminating photo on the screen. She tilted her phone away from him and flicked past it, but not fast enough.
“What’s that?” He snatched the phone. Fear widened his eyes. “Where did you get this?” He looked both ways down the road and moved so he was between her and the gate into the pony club.
She stepped away from him. Her best chance was to go on the attack. “When was it taken?”
His hand shook. “Who has seen this?”
