Chapter 1

ONE

TALLOWWOOD

Detective August Shaw plucked the can of WD-40 from the shelf, flipping it a time or two as he whistled his way to the checkout at the hardware shop.

Winter was almost here, but the weather was warm today, the sun was shining, birds were singing, and his damn office chair was squeaking.

Not that winter had much to do with that. But the can of WD-40 sure did.

Bill had a customer at the counter, but he brightened when he saw August. "Ah, the good detective here might be more helpful than me," he said. "This gentleman here was wanting to know which access roads into the national park were open." He pointed to the map they were both studying. "This road in was closed, or so he said."

August looked at the man. He was short and stocky, had black hair, thick eyebrows, and dark eyes.

"Ah, yeah. Big storm recently made it impassable. They're doing some grading work on it. "

The guy looked disappointed and annoyed.

"You looking to go camping in there?" August asked him.

"Yes," he said. "Camping. Was told it was good for fishing."

He had a thick accent that sounded a little familiar.

"Whereabouts are you from?" August asked with a smile, hoping to sound conversational and not digging for information. "Hope you didn't have to travel too far."

"Come from Sydney," he said.

August didn't believe that. "Nice." He turned his attention back to the map and tapped an access road along the western side. "You can enter the park in through here. Bit of a trek to the river though, but you won't be the only one there. It'll be busy with the nice weather. Say, what type of fish you hoping to catch?"

The man baulked. "Sorry, English not good."

"Ah, sorry," August said, still being cheerful. He tapped the map again. "This road." He went to the front door signalling for the man to join him. He pointed down the road. "Head left, five kilometres. You'll see the signs."

The man gave him a tight smile, took his map, and went to his 4WD. Two other men sat inside it, looking none too happy.

August took in the details of the vehicle, watching it as it slowly drove away.

"Guess we can expect tourists with warmer days like this," Bill said, ringing up the can of WD-40. "Hope they're not expecting to catch dinner. Bit early for fishing. But whaddya expect from city folks."

August nodded and smiled, as unfazed as he could manage, as he swiped his card to pay. "Yep. "

"Oh." Bill made a face. "I didn't mean you. I don't think of you as a city type. You're a local now."

August snorted, took his can of WD-40, and walked to the door. "Thanks, Bill. See ya at the pub sometime."

"Shall do."

August got into his patrol car and dialled Jake's number. He answered on the second ring. "Hey," Jake said. "What's up?"

"Do me a favour?"

"Sure."

"Google standard Croatian military-issue boots for me and send me a photo."

There was a pause, then a drawn-out "Okay." He heard some tapping on the keyboard. "Sending you the pic now. It says current this year, but who knows? Do I want to know why you need this?"

August's phone beeped and he opened the image, his suspicions confirmed. "Run this number plate for me." He gave the plate number and the vehicle details.

"Hm," Jake replied. "Rental. Let me see what I can find out..."

August sat there a moment, that sinking feeling in his gut getting a whole lot heavier.

"Rented to a Marko Andric, Croatian national driver's licence." More clicking on the keyboard. "Arrived yesterday?—"

August started the engine. "Give Michael and Joshua Hill a call and tell them we're on our way."

There was a pause. "We are? Wh-what for?"

He noted the hesitation, and he didn't blame him. "I'll explain on the way. Pick you up in two..."

Jake climbed into the passenger seat of the patrol even before August had come to a complete stop. He was on duty, so his police uniform was par for the course, but August wasn't sure if this visit called for formalities.

"What happened?" Jake asked as August turned back out onto the street. "I take it nothing good."

"Just ran into a man at the hardware. Something wasn't right." August gripped the steering wheel a little too tight, which Jake noticed, of course. He unpeeled his fingers, trying to convince himself to play it cool. "It's just a feeling."

Jake eyed him. "And when have your gut feelings ever been wrong?"

Exactly.

"You got through to them? Let them know we're coming?"

He nodded. "Spoke to Joshua. He sounded happy about it. Said he'd put the kettle on."

August gave Jake a side-eye. He'd said all he could ever say about Joshua Hill. Jake seemed to like him, maybe because they were the only other gay couple in Tallowwood, but August knew better. They were a couple, yes. Of that, he had no doubt. Michael Hill was a giant of a man. Intimidating and hard, but it was sweet little Joshua who scared August the most. Fun and flirty on the outside, cold-blooded killer on the inside.

August was sure of it.

Not to mention that he'd seen Joshua use a McMillan TAC-50 rifle like it was an extension of his own hands, and when he'd made some enquiries, ASIO had shut him down.

Fucking ASIO.

Which had to mean Michael and Joshua were military or black ops or... something .

Either way, August wasn't too keen to give unannounced house calls, hence the phone call to warn them. He filled Jake in on what very little detail he had on the drive out to their place.

Their house was secluded, off the road down a drive a few kilometres long. Surrounded by woodlands, forests, and a few hundred acres that backed directly onto the national park.

When August pulled the patrol to a stop, Joshua opened the front door. He wore jeans, a grey sweater, and a welcoming smile. "Let me do the talking," August murmured to Jake before getting out.

They walked over and Joshua held the door for them in invitation. "Please come in. We haven't seen you since just before Christmas. Can I get you a cup of tea?"

The house was warm and cosy, the wooden floors freshly polished by the looks of it. August almost felt bad for not taking his shoes off. "No thanks," he said.

"Not a social visit, I take it," Michael said, nodding to Jake's uniform. He stood in the living room, his stance rigid, ready. It was probably hard for a man of his size to ever look relaxed, August realised, but his eyes... his eyes were assessing every single thing.

"More of a courtesy call," August said, as pleasant as he could. "Had some visitors in town this morning."

Michael stood, unmoving. Joshua walked over and, taking Michael's hand, motioned for everyone to sit. "And what does that have to do with us?" Joshua asked, still smiling.

"Three men. One of them at least is a Croatian national. Arrived in the country last night, rented a four-wheel drive, said they were going fishing in the national park. Had no fishing gear, didn't know what fish were local, and his boots were wrong. They weren't hiking boots, or any kind of outdoor boots, for that matter. They were military boots."

Jacob held up his phone screen to show them the photo. "Croatian military boots. They looked like this."

And for the first time ever, there was a reaction.

Michael's eyes hardened, his nostrils flared, and Joshua took his hand from Michael's and sat far too calmly, his hands now in his lap. "Oh?"

"He said they were camping, pointed to a map that was a little too close to your property boundary," August said. "Now, maybe they're legit. Maybe they're here to actually go fishing. Maybe I'm wrong."

"He's never wrong," Jake added.

Michael's gaze went to Jake, and August had to tamp down his urge to protect him.

"I get that impression," Michael said.

"Look," August said, showing his open hands, non-confrontational. "I'm going to be honest with you both. I tried to look into who you both really are, and I got shut down by ASIO. So technically I know nothing."

"Probably just as well," Michael murmured, his gaze hard and flat.

"But what I do know is, these three men turning up here seemed it might be something you'd appreciate knowing."

Michael stared at him, giving nothing away.

"I don't want any trouble in my town," August said. "Not that I expect there will be any."

"Of course not," Joshua said, his sweet smile not reaching his eyes. Their cat jumped up on the sofa and went straight for Joshua's lap, purring. Joshua pulled it close, kissing the top of its head. "We do appreciate you coming to visit though."

"I thought you might," August said. "For what it's worth, I sent them to the western entrance. It might buy you some time to... do whatever you need to do." August didn't want to think too much about what that meant, but he had to look at the bigger picture. "So, just straight talking here, if the Australian government thinks you should be protected, for whatever reason, then it's the least I can do. I won't be adding this to my daily report, just so you know. It's just a friendly house call, after all."

For a moment, August thought Michael might even smile.

He didn't. "Thank you," he said instead. He stood, their meeting now seemingly over, so August and Jake did the same. "Friendly house calls are always welcome."

When August gave Jake a nod to signal that was their cue to leave, he noticed Jake was watching Joshua. But then he gave August a bright smile. "We good to go?"

"Yeah." He gave both a nod and began for the door.

"Thanks for your time," Jake said as they left. "Might see you in town sometime."

They walked to their vehicle in silence and didn't even speak until they were halfway down the long drive. "What do you make of that?" August asked.

Jake shook his head. "That shit's about to go down. And maybe we gave the good guys a head start."

"I'm not sure any of them are good guys."

"Me either. Did you see Joshua's phone?"

August shook his head. "I saw you caught something. What was it?"

"Messages he sent to someone, about five or six, with question marks, and no replies. "

"He's been trying to reach someone?"

Jake shrugged. "At a guess, yes. And someone related to this because why would he double-check a screen with two cops in the room?"

August didn't want to admit he hadn't even seen Joshua holding his phone, let alone the screen.

"Michael didn't give much away," Jake added.

"Yeah, he did. His eyes flinched, and his nostrils flared for maybe a tenth of a second."

Jacob snorted. "You caught that?"

August nodded. "Yeah. Pretty sure we told them something they already knew. Or assumed. Or weren't surprised by. Like we confirmed something. I dunno."

Jake made a face and was quiet for a while. "Did we do the right thing?"

August nodded. "I think so. Like I said, those two men, whatever their real names are, are under ASIO's eye."

"Or watchlist," Jake added. When August told him about the ASIO cease and desist at Christmastime, he'd run through a dozen possible scenarios. Some of them were crazy Hollywood action movie fantasies... well, August hoped they were.

"So where's ASIO now?" Jake wondered. "If they are under ASIO's protection, where are they now?"

August sighed. Confused, concerned, and completely in the dark. "I don't know."

A shrill cry woke August and Jacob up in the middle of the night. They both sat upright in bed, stock still and listening. "What was that?" August whispered, reaching for his phone. It was 2:12 am .

Another cry cut the night.

"That's a kookaburra," Jacob hissed. "Get up!"

They made it to the kitchen when a rap on the backdoor startled them both. August's gaze cut to Jake's. Who the hell would be knocking at two o'clock in the morning?

On the back door?

"Detective Shaw, Senior Constable Porter," a familiar voice said. "Sorry to wake you."

Jesus fucking Christ.

"Joshua Hill," August whispered. He put his hand up, signalling for Jacob to go back to the hall, and August waited for him to disappear before he turned the kitchen light on.

He opened the back door to find Joshua with a grocery bag, smiling somewhat apologetically, and Michael standing on the patio steps behind him holding a cat carrier.

Not what he was expecting.

"Uh, it's two o'clock in the morning," August said. He looked again at the cat carrier, quickly deducing what this was about. "Come in." He stood aside just as Jake walked out.

Joshua came in, standing nervously while Michael put the cat carrier on the kitchen counter. "I do apologise for the late hour but we... we'll be overseas for a while, and I couldn't bear to leave my poor baby Mala. I remembered you saying you had a cat, and I hoped you wouldn't mind." His eyebrows furrowed with worry. "She's fully vaccinated and she's the sweetest thing. I hope your cat won't mind. I brought all the food we had for her. And there's some money in there to cover any costs." He put the bag of cat food on the counter. "I didn't know where else to take her. "

August could see Joshua was clearly upset. "Uh..."

"It's okay," Jake intervened. "We'll look after her. How long do you think you'll be gone for?"

"We don't know," Michael answered. "Could be a while."

Right.

Michael put his huge hand on Joshua's shoulder, and Joshua nodded. He leaned down to the cat and whispered something through the cage door. Something not in English. Something possibly in Croatian...

Oh god.

August wasn't game to ask about the three Croatian camping fishermen.

They walked to the back door, and it was Michael who stopped. "Uh..." He winced, uneasy. "Just so you know, next time someone's at your back door in the middle of the night, don't turn your lights on. You know your house in the dark better than anyone else."

August felt admonished by that. "Uh, thanks."

Michael went out first and he held the door for Joshua. Michael pointed his thumb at the railing. "Uh, you've got some visitors on your patio."

August craned his neck, his heart hammering.

"Oh, kookaburras," Joshua said. "The same that visited us"—he looked back at August and Jacob—"the first day we met you."

"They're here for me," Jacob said simply. Both Joshua and Michael stared at him. So he explained. "They look after us. Probably sounds crazy to you, but?—"

"No, it doesn't. It's not crazy at all," Joshua said. He smiled at Jake. "I like you, Jacob Porter."

Oh.

August wasn't sure what to make of that .

Joshua seemed to steel himself again, shaking off his emotions. "Please take care of my baby."

Jacob nodded. "She'll be here when you get back."

Joshua smiled as if that was a beautiful thought, whereas Michael didn't seem so hopeful. The bigger man simply nodded, and they disappeared into the dark without making a sound. Not a footfall, not a breath. The gate didn't make a sound. Pure silence.

Jesus.

August closed the door, locking it twice, and breathed for what felt like the first time since he'd woken up. Fucking hell. He put his hand to his heart and followed Jake back to the kitchen. "What do you make of that?"

"I can guess it has something to do with the three men who turned up in town today," Jake answered. "But why they're now going overseas, or where, and what for, is anyone's guess. Not sure I want to know, to be honest."

August had to agree.

"What are we supposed to do with their cat?"

Jake snorted and opened the carrier door. He scooped the little cat out and held her to his chest, and she immediately began to purr. Jake grinned.

August sighed, scrubbed his hand over his face, and flicking the laundry light on, he turned the kitchen light off. "I'm going to bed. Show her where the kitty litter is. If she craps in the house, you're cleaning it up."

"Why me?"

"Because Joshua Hill said he likes you."

Jake laughed, but August still didn't think it was funny. Not because he was jealous.

But because he was pretty damn sure tomorrow would involve opening a triple homicide case of three Croatian lambs that August himself had led right to the lions for slaughter.

And now, as if that wasn't bad enough, they were babysitting their cat. Correction: they were now the owners of the damn cat because it was extremely unlikely they'd ever see Michael or Joshua Hill again.

And for the life of him, as he was falling asleep, August wasn't sure why that bothered him.