Backwater Blues

"So you think that you can do better? Okay. Let's hear you sing this song." Susie said.

Rhonda fronted the mike and counted us in. She got no more than three bars into the song when Susie decided that she had had enough. "Stop! Listen to me, the sign out the front reads 'Blue Note' and that's because this is a blues bar. The punters don't want to come here to listen to this pop shit that you're singing. It will take you some time to get your head around what it is to sing blues, so until then you sing back-up and leave the real blues to me."

"You didn't give me a chance to get into the song."

"It wouldn't matter how many times we went over it, you haven't got the voice to sing the blues, and until that happens, stick to what you can do. You're a good back-up singer and we need you to be that, you are important to our sound as you are, so what do you say, are you with us or not?"

"I suppose so." Rhonda mumbled.

"Good, now let's try again from the top."

The air somewhat cleared and we started to sound better. George stuck his head out of his office. "That sounds great. I was beginning to worry there for a while, if I could have thought of another band to take your place you would have been shown the door." I always knew George was a caring soul, and looked after his friends.

"But why?" I asked Rhonda. "If you wanted to get to me, why kill Tania, and why frame Susie for it?"

"Tania was unimportant, she just happened to be a means to an end. I didn't want to see you in gaol, but Susie going to gaol didn't bother me, in fact it was part of the plan. I just didn't want my father locked up. As for Tania, she was nothing but a common whore."

"Hold on a minute here. You don't honestly think that I'm your father do you?"

"Yes I do."

"Where would you have got that idea from?"

"My mother, she told me that you are my father."

"Well she was wrong, very wrong. There is no way that I could possibly be your father, I'm sure that I am the wrong blood type for starters. If you want proof we can check our DNA to confirm the fact that I am not your father."

"But she told me that I was the result of you having sex with her one night, after you had shoved her in the cells because she was high on drugs."

"I need more information before I can comment on that, but let me tell you that I have never had sex with a woman in the cells in my life. Don't get me wrong, I knew that it happened, it's just that I was never a part of that."

"But she went to the police when she found herself pregnant and made a complaint. She was told that you were the officer that had arrested her, so she assumed that it would have been you that did it."

"They were partly right, there would have been two officers involved in the arrest, and how do you know that it wasn't the other one?"

"Because he was asked and he denied it."

"As he would. You don't think that he would own up to getting a girl pregnant in the cells, do you?"

"But then why didn't you deny it?"

"Because I was never asked, that's why. What is your mother's name, and where and when was this supposed to have happened?"

"Her name was Judy Thomas, and I will be twenty in three months, so it would have happened twenty and a half years ago. She said that it happened at Kings Cross police station."

"Right, that lets me off the hook. At the time that she would have reported this I was no longer at Kings Cross. I had been promoted to another station, which would explain why I was never questioned about the incident. It would seem that my absence was convenient. Also, it would explain why I would never have been given the opportunity to prove my innocence. Out of curiosity, what is your blood type?"

"O Negative, why?"

"That is proof that I cannot be your father. If you want further proof we can have a DNA analysis done. Did you stop to think that, if what you believed to be true was true, that you and I having sex could land both of us in gaol?"

"It would have been worth it. As it is, that is all irrelevant if you aren't my father. If you haven't worked it out by now, I'm in love with you, and I don't care if making love to you would be committing incest."

"You're one sick girl, do you know that? You're beginning to freak me out."

"I don't care. I want you and I don't want Susie to have you. When she told me that she wasn't going to share you with me I had to do something."

"You don't get it do you, I'm in love with Susie and she's in love with me, end of story. Now I have to do something. I'm going to let your real father know that he has another daughter."

"Do you know who my real father is?"

"Yes. He was my partner at the time, and he was known for having sex with female prisoners in the cells. He would promise them that they would get off with a caution, and no convictions would be made against them."

"But how is it that he didn't get into trouble over having sex with my mother?"

"If he was questioned, and that would have been a big 'if', these matters were usually hushed up. As I was saying, if he had been asked, he would have, knowing him, dropped me in it, after all I wasn't there to defend myself, was I?"

"So, tell me, who is my biological father."

"My partner at the time was then Constable Jonas, and is now Detective Inspector Jonas."

"Fuck! That explains it."

"Pardon my ignorance, explains what?"

"My mother died six months ago."

"Not long before you came to sing in the band."

"That's when she told me who my father was. I went to the police to try and confirm it and was referred to Inspector Jonas because he knew of the case. It was he that confirmed you to be my father, and it was he that suggested that you should be made to pay Child Support. Eighteen years worth of Child Support turns out to be a lot of money, more than my mother saw during her life. If you want to know, she turned out to be a prostitute after her family kicked her out for getting pregnant with me. They never spoke to her again, and didn't even come to her funeral, even though they were invited. That really hurt."

"This plan to get at me, was that your idea or someone else's?"

"It wasn't mine initially, but I did warm to the idea as time went on."

"I don't suppose it was Inspector Jonas that planted the idea in your head, was it?"

"Yes it was. But why would he do that?"

"Because it turns out that he was jealous of me, and my career. We were in the same class at the Police Academy, but I got promoted before him. I had a beautiful girlfriend while he flitted from one short-term relationship to the next. If he didn't have a girlfriend at the time he would fuck some drunk or drugged out girl in the cells. He would have made a great porn star except for one little thing."

"What was that?"

"His one little thing, he just about needs a pair of tweezers and a magnifying glass just to find it. He was trapped into a marriage by Trudy, the Chief Inspector's ugly daughter. She took a fancy to him and Daddy dearest gave him the option of marrying her or getting dismissed from the force. He chose her and that made him even more jealous of me and my beautiful steady girlfriend who was to become my fiancé."

"So what happened to her?"

"She unfortunately, was killed in a car accident. Life in the force had lost its appeal around then, what with being accused of arresting the wrong guy on top of losing her, it was all a little too much."

"So, I suppose that it is the good Inspector that I should be suing, is that it?"

"It will do you no good. If your mother was over the age of consent, and that was 16, at the time, all he has to do is to say that any sexual intercourse was consensual, and he's home free."

"But he can't be allowed to get away with it."

"He can and he will. You will probably find that there is a statute of limitations on any charges that could be laid against him. You have got other things going on that you need to be concerned with."

"Such as what?"

"Saving your sorry arse. Such as going to the police and explaining how and why it was that you fabricated the so called evidence that the police have used to arrest Susie, like pointing out that you made sure that the CCTV cameras would pick up a blonde wig that you wore. You would then confirm it by producing the CCTV images, which I have and will give you, of you leaving my apartment building by the service entrance, and returning an hour later. You didn't know that there are cameras everywhere around this building, they saw it all. Given the lack of evidence, the best that they can hope to charge you with is being an accessory, or hindering an investigation. Compared to murder they are small fish. You will be lucky to stay out of gaol, that all hinges on Jonas not pressing charges. There is no forensic evidence linking you to the murder. You could cut a bargain with him by telling him that you had gone to the club to have sex with George, he'd love that, you not being satisfied by me and slipping out for more. When you got there you found Tania dead in his office so you legged it. You can tell him that if he drops any charges that he might have against you, you won't go to the police with evidence of his having had non-consensual sex with your mother, and then lying when questioned about it. You should insist on a paternity test to prove that he is your father. You can hint that there will be Child Support payments owing from him, which you will be pursuing, and that will run into thousands of dollars that he can't afford to pay. I don't think that he would want this to go public, for starters his wife would kill him, you should see her, built like a brick shit-house and she's got him right where she wants him."

"You're a devious bastard, aren't you?"

"You'd better believe it."

"I'll never in a million years get away with this."

"If you're worried about being caught out lying, don't. Just answer the questions asked truthfully, unless you're asked if you killed Tania, in which case, if you actually did it, you're going to have to fudge it. If what I say is bothering you, don't worry. While I have no intention of telling porkys, (porky pies - lies) I will avoid telling him what I know. If I'm asked if I know who did this I will tell them that, as I have no official status and that Susie is my only concern, they are on their own when it comes to the investigation. All that I ever intended doing was to ensure that Susie did not get convicted of a crime that she was never guilty of."

"Why are you doing this for me? I never asked you to come to my rescue. You don't even like me."

"While I might not like you, I like Jonas even less."

My mind shot off in a tangent. The questions that needed answers were, in no particular order; who was it that had the money to not only pay for the hit, but finance a cruise as well. What motive could there be for targeting me. Was I really the target, if not who was? That tangential thought pattern got me thinking, how could I get access to the passenger manifest of a cruise ship that left Sydney in the day or two after Tania's killing?

That part was relatively easy, there were two cruises that had departed Sydney in the days following the killing. One of them could be ruled out straight away, it was one that catered for old farts, and a young cockerel amongst the old boilers in the hen house would create too much conjecture. The other was one of those party cruises for young twenty year olds, full of booze and sex and drugs and sex. Which one of the several hundred male passengers was our man?

This part was not as easy. It took some of my legendary powers of persuasion and more than a few dollars to gain access to the records, but it was worth it. Everything fell into place, now all that I had to do was to prove it.

Slowly, drip by drip, the bucket of my information was filling, and a picture was emerging. But this raised many more questions. The person had obviously counted on several intangibles falling into place. If they hadn't, the whole scheme would have backfired with disastrous results for all concerned, especially yours truly. I was meant to take up the investigation, there was no other reason for getting Susie involved. Detective Inspector Jonas, when confronted by his past in the shape of Rhonda, was meant to use her to wreak some sort of revenge on me. He it was that told her that I was her father, and that she should make me suffer for not taking financial responsibility for her welfare. He had encouraged her to insinuate herself between me and Susie. He it was that gave her the necessary chemical to lace my bed-time hot chocolate and ensure that I would sleep the sleep of the innocent, enabling her to slip out and make sure that the CCTV cameras would see her arrive at the crime scene sporting a long blonde wig that he provided.

What Jonas didn't know was that a certain person knew that he would do exactly that, and had deliberately told Rhonda how it was that she arrived on this earth, and suggested that she should approach the police to get the finer details of this event, knowing that Jonas would take the opportunity to shift the blame for the event onto me.

The next phase of this elaborate plot happened when Jonas reported the theft of his service firearm. This coincided with the release of the ballistics report that matched the murder weapon to the missing gun. Jonas went to great lengths to assert that, at the time of the murder, his weapon was safely under lock and key in his desk drawer. A close examination of the desk failed to find evidence of a forced entry. Things were not looking good for Detective Inspector Jonas and the more he protested his innocence, the guiltier he looked. Public opinion favoured him as the guilty party, but I for one didn't buy it.

My mind was still thus occupied as Susie and I snuggled down later that night. Susie looked at my worried face as she gave up on her attempt to arouse my enthusiasm. "I should be insulted, here I am working my butt off in a futile attempt to get you interested in sex, and you just lay there with this worried look on your face."

"I'm still mulling over what I have found out about this whole messy affair. Jonas has been set up to carry the can for this, and I know that he didn't do it. On the other hand, if I say nothing he will go down for it, and that has a certain attraction for me."

"I don't get you. Here you have the perfect opportunity to get back at Jonas for what he did to you all those years ago, and what he did to me, and you won't take it. Why?"

"Much as I'd love to see him swing for this, I'm not in the habit of knowingly fitting someone up for a crime that he didn't commit. No, something doesn't sit right about this whole stinking mess. I have narrowed it down to two possible suspects. I just have to decide which one did it, and then find the proof."

"Okay Sherlock, tell me, who dunnit?"

"It's a tossup between his ever-loving wife, and her father, the former Chief Inspector and now Police Commissioner."

"How ever did you arrive at that conclusion?"

"Friends in the force have told me that Jonas has been back to his old tricks of taking advantage of vulnerable women in custody, or who are in danger of being arrested and placed in custody. For a sexual consideration he would ensure that their case never reached court. Word of this would most likely have reached the ears of Daddy Dearest, and he would not have been amused."

"Why didn't he just sack Jonas?"

"Because, that would have required him to reveal the reasons for the dismissal, and that would have been embarrassing to him and his daughter. This way Jonas will be found guilty of a criminal offence, not as embarrassing."

"This seems to be a very chancy way of going about getting revenge, don't you think? It has every possibility of failure, and I would have thought that would be even more than embarrassing for them."

"Not really, you have to remember that the guy that carried out the hit was a hired gun, who left the country the day after the murder was committed. And there was nothing linking him with the Commissioner or the murder weapon. He would have most certainly worn gloves, and tossed the gun overboard somewhere out in the Pacific Ocean in the wee small hours. It will never be found. But it has been identified as belonging to Jonas."

"But you managed to find him, why wouldn't the police?"

"Because, by now all records will have conveniently disappeared. Don't worry, they've thought it through."

"So, what are you going to do about it? If you go to the Commissioner I'll probably be sobbing over your grave in the not too distant future."

"Which is why, my Darling, it will not be me that blows the whistle."

"So, who's the lucky person? Don't you dare look at me, there is no way that I'm going to do it."

"Actually no-one is going to drop them in for it. They will not be punished by me."

"I don't believe that you are going to let them get away with this."

"I'm not. I am leaving the outcome to them. If they want to see Jonas charged for this, so be it, it couldn't happen to a more deserving person. But if they do, they will do so in the knowledge that I possess the evidence that will clear him, if it should go to trial. This scenario has the added benefit of them having the knowledge that their guilt will be known by at least one person. They will in effect be punishing themselves."

"What's to stop them arranging for someone to kill you?"

"Because they will also know that, in the event of my death, my Lawyer will release the information to the media."

"So, you are leaving them with the alternative of saying nothing and having to live with that decision, or coming clean and suffering the consequences of their actions."

"You've got it in one. Now I believe that a short time ago you were attempting to interest me in a little horizontal callisthenics, would I be correct in assuming that?"

"As always, you are right." She renewed her efforts with enthusiasm. Sheldon glared at us, totally engrossed in the throes of our carnal delight, and stalked to the end of the bed to ride it out.

A new day, and another new experience for me. I sat staring at the top of the head of Judith Smithers, Commissioner Forster's long serving Receptionist as she busied herself doing something so as not to look me in the eye. Her phone buzzed and she looked up at my smiling face. "You may go in now." She said without feeling.

I went in to be faced by a frosty glare from Commissioner Forster. "What is this important news that can't be handled by someone from my force?"

"It is news that concerns you personally, and involves both your daughter and Son-in-Law, and it is something that I don't think that you would want broadcast among the lesser ranks of your department."

"Go on." His lack of enthusiasm at the prospect told me that he knew exactly what was coming.

Way back in my dim past, when I was at school, I was told by my English teacher that, when answering a set question, you did it in three parts. Basically you say what you were going to say, expand on it, and then say what you said. In other words you briefly answer the question in your introductory statement, then you expand that to fully answer it, and then sum up the aspects of your answer. He sat stony-faced through the introduction and the expanded answer, but his expression changed as I summed up. The realisation that he was caught between a rock and a hard place drained the colour from his face. Impending doom caused the life to drain from his face and body. There was a faint glimmer of hope in his eyes that disappeared when I told him that I had placed all of this information into the hands of my Lawyer, along with my instructions of what to do with this in the event of my sudden demise.

"I have grossly under-estimated you. I thought that you would be content just finding the evidence to convict Jonas. I never thought that you would take it any further."