Stanton Box Set

Suspect one: Coby Allender. Natasha met him at the prison and he took a liking to her.” He gestures to Jesten. “Hopefully Jesten Miller who was a prison guard at the prison he is in can shed some light on this situation. Allender has an accomplice on the outside and Natasha had her apartment broken into before we left Sydney and some very personal things were taken. Allender told her he had them and it was brushed off as scare tactics, however the items were returned months later and we now know that this man…” He puts a picture from the security vision up on the screen of the dark-haired man leaving Natasha’s apartment. “Has gone to see Allender in jail and a definite link was made for the first time. When police went to arrest him he wasn’t there but they found photographs of Natasha and the other victims strewn all over his apartment. These men raped, tortured and killed twelve young women.” Ben points to the photos of the dead young women along the bottom of the whiteboard; their bodies were mutilated.

My eyes flick to Nicholas as he frowns in horror at this news.

Jesten shakes his head in disgust.

He runs his finger over the photographs of the dead women. “The other women in the photographs have all been murdered along with Natasha but…” He hesitates as he takes a drink of water. “Natasha’s disappearance does not fit the murders of the other young girls and, to be honest, I am having a hard time believing that this murder was carried out by the same men.” He shakes his head. “It was a different country and we know that this particular man is not wealthy and he hasn’t left the country on his own visa. However, he could be travelling under an alias.”

Jesten rubs his hand over his face.

“Natasha’s murder involved drugging, a boat and getting around security guards. I think it was out of their league.”

We all nod.

“Suspect two,” Ben continues. “James Brennan. Joshua recently found out that his father is not his biological father, and that his biological father has been blackmailing his mother and beating her for many years.”

“Bloody hell,” Jesten whispers and I bite my bottom lip to stifle my smile.

“He has extorted millions of dollars from her and Joshua had recently demanded the money back or he was going to the police. This man stands to lose everything and with Joshua in jail for murder, he is a free man. He hasn’t been seen for five weeks by his family as he is on a business trip. He has the money and motive to carry something like this out. We have just this morning traced his visa to London and we have consequently hired intelligence to try and find him over there. They will be trailing him until we find out more.”

We all nod. I think it’s him.

“Suspect three,” Ben continues. “Joshua was mugged in a suspected hit just over twelve months ago.” He plays the security tape from the garage and we all sit and watch it. God, it’s violent. Jesten rearranges himself uncomfortably in his seat as he watches. The three men attack Joshua, he fights back and then one of them pulls a gun but the police siren sounds and they jump in his Aston Martin and speed away. “We don’t know who ordered that hit.”

“How do you know it was a hit?” Jesten asks.

Ben replays the tape and points to the man at the back of the screen. “See, he has a gun.”

Jesten frowns. “He was just pissed that Joshua was whipping their asses. If it was a hit they would have just shot him straight up.”

Nicholas nods as he thinks.

“True,” Ben replies. “But then when Joshua was in hospital four days later they showed up—the same three men showed up there.” He produces photos of the three men in the hospital. “If it was random why were they at the same hospital unless they were looking for him? It could just be a coincidence but we have no way of knowing.”

We all nod.

“Suspect four. Four years ago Joshua’s company developed an app and sold it to a company for millions. Unbeknown to him another man had made a similar program and the company was in talks with him first. They bought Joshua’s instead of his. His name is Julian O’Reilly. He has tried to kill Joshua on three occasions and Adrian on one. This is why bodyguards follow the two of them everywhere they go.”

Nicholas’s horrified eyes meet mine.

“Each time it has been by a shooting in a public area. Adrian was coming out of a restaurant when he was shot at and Joshua the same the other three times. Luckily Julian’s a hopeless shot. He has not been seen for eighteen months and is mentally unstable. He has paranoid schizophrenia and as far as the pharmaceutical records go he is not taking any medication. His estranged wife and children have no idea of his whereabouts.”

“Suspect five,” Ben carries on.

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” Jesten snaps. “You can’t be serious.” He runs his hands over his head. “How many people hate this prick?”

Cameron glares at him and I drop my head to hide my smile.

“Joshua hooked up with a woman in Sydney a few times before he got back with Natasha. She came to his house a few times. Then months later when he was in a relationship with Natasha she contacted him and demanded money. She had filmed them together and was going to take it to the press.”

Jesten laughs. “Dumbcock.”

“It was revealed that she was a high-end prostitute and was blackmailing many men for money. Before it came to a head she was found murdered, hogtied and shot in the back of the head.”

“Bloody hell.” Nicholas sighs. “This is ridiculous.”

I nod and raise my brow. It sure is.

“Why is she a suspect?” Cameron frowns.