Into The Fog (Georgie Harvey and John Franklin Book 3)

Book Summary

In "Into The Fog," Melbourne journalist Georgie Harvey and Daylesford cop John Franklin face a harrowing race against time. Three children vanish during a police-run camp in the Dandenong Ranges, sparking a desperate search amidst a fierce storm. Battling frustration and a ticking clock, the duo uncovers chilling cyber links to a predator, leading to a perilous quest to prevent another tragedy. Their story intertwines urgency, mystery, and the relentless pursuit of truth.

Excerpt from Into The Fog (Georgie Harvey and John Franklin Book 3)

Hannah’s heart beat hard and fast in her chest. She checked the time so often it was driving her crazy, but she couldn’t help it. The back of her hoodie was still wet from before – which was annoying because it reminded her how close she’d been and how lame she was. For forgetting her jacket. For letting him stop her, and ending up back inside the dumb summerhouse.

She looked at the clock on the wall above Riles and Coops. Not even a minute had passed. She was going to explode. What if it all went wrong? She’d be totally devo, that’s for sure – there might not be another chance.

She checked the time and took a breath that hiccupped: 4.07pm. It could already be too late.

*

On the outskirts of Ballarat, a vibration against Senior Constable John Franklin’s hip signalled a text message. He hooked his mobile and eased it out of his pocket, while his eyes never left the house across the road.

‘Bull’ Jenkins would have his balls on a plate if he fucked up the surveillance job, which wouldn’t be a good start to his detective training, especially if he ended up posted here full time after DTS.

Another tremor through the phone meant he’d received a second message. Just then, the detective beside him pulled out his own mobile and took a call in a low voice. Franklin used the opportunity to check his messages.

The first was short, typical of his daughter Kat. ‘All gd. L8er. K xx’

The second was longer, just as typical of Sam Tesorino, the constable under his wing. ‘Kids settled. Weather awful but all going well. Place is posh! Wish you were here – not fair after all our planning. Speak later, Sam.’

He slid the phone away, relieved that the camp had kicked off well. Still, the acid wash in his stomach marked his disappointment that Tim Lunny, his sergeant at Daylesford, had to step into his place.

*

In Mount Dandenong, about 200 kilometres from Ballarat, the door of the summerhouse opened, letting in another blast of cold air. Georgie Harvey shrugged deeper into her leather jacket as Kat Franklin and Josh Curtis entered. She watched the response to the teenagers from the four families of younger kids spread around the room. Several visibly sparked up and little Cooper sang out, ‘Josh!’ That was exactly why they’d been included – the teens bridged the gap between the kids and other camp supervisors.

Josh waved to the boy, while he flicked rainwater from his cropped hair. He turned to fire Kat a grin, and Georgie’s antennae picked up interesting vibes, especially when Kat ducked her chin and Josh rubbed the tattoo trailing his neck.

Georgie realised that by occupational hazard she’d slipped into journalist mode, standing back to note the conversations, dynamics, body language and other nuances happening around her. Unlike the Camp Silvan instructor, Seb, who hunkered down to talk with two sisters, his manner easy even though the girls stayed subdued. They were lucky to have him too, being over-complement on the supervisor-to-child ratio after the last-minute dropout of three kids.

Georgie’s mind jumped back to her role on camp. She wasn’t here to research a story. The hope was that she’d help these kids express themselves through words instead of internalising their troubles, though she realised they’d probably rather play outside. Her eyes grew. If the weather didn’t let up, outdoor activities would be off and she’d be up for more than she’d imagined.

Josh side-tracked her with, ‘Who wants popcorn? It’s ready in the kitchen. Or Twister in the library?’ He leapt aside to let everyone past, landing on the balls of his feet, the physicality of the teenage boxing coach reminding Georgie of a panther.

*

Sprinting from the summerhouse to the main building, Sam Tesorino yelled, ‘Who’s going to get there first?’ She and Sarge Lunny led the race but pretended they couldn’t keep up, and soon let most of the group overtake them.

Sam half-turned when Cooper and Riley circled back. But drizzle blurred her sight. She knew Kat and Josh were to follow at the rear and would look after them, so she continued to jog across the waterlogged lawn as a curtain of fog rolled in.

The next minutes were bedlam as they all kicked off their shoes and dried themselves with extra-large towels that they dropped in a mound in the laundry before splitting in different directions.

Sam headed for the kitchen, stepping back as Noah and Tom whizzed around the island bar, giggling. Technically, they weren’t running and the owner of Upalong House, Mr Belfrage, had left with a case and suit bag shortly after they’d arrived, so she grinned.

What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.

She watched Tom, thinking she’d rarely seen him smiling, let alone gurgling excitedly. The little guy suddenly stopped and gazed at her. Sadness swelled in her chest. He’d managed to let go for a few minutes but shrivelled back into himself in front of her eyes.

She wanted to tell him I’m not your poor mum. I’m not going to tell you to be quiet or to shy away from your happiness, lost in my grief. It wasn’t her place though. She had to reach him in a different way.

A burst of high-pitched laughter came from the mezzanine library and broke into Sam’s thoughts. The dramatic voice of the sarge resounded in another direction and she swallowed a wave of nostalgia for Tesorino clan gatherings – people, laughter and food everywhere. Yet in her family there would be at least twenty-five, not the eight kids and six supervisors in their group. Although, anyone who walked through the door here would think there was heaps more than that based on the volume level.

Sam felt another tug of homesickness before her mind turned to the hush of possible snow in the frigid air outside. Their scheduled trek up the 1000 Steps in the National Park at nearby Upper Ferntree Gully postponed from earlier today seemed just as unlikely for tomorrow.

So, not an ideal start, but overall Sam thought the camp was going really well.

*

The housekeeper, Elke, waddled into the kitchen saying, ‘Dark for this time of day.’

She was as laconic as her husband and their accents reminded Georgie of a Dutch couple she’d recently interviewed for a fluff piece for Champagne Musings, her regular magazine gig.

As the woman lowered the blinds at each end of the room, Georgie saw her shiver and clutch her belly.

‘Are you okay?’

Elke rotated clumsily but didn’t meet Georgie’s eyes. ‘Yes, thank you. Someone walked over my grave.’

Georgie hiked her brows while the housekeeper shuffled away. Elke wasn’t as aloof as her husband, but she was definitely strange. Hopefully the woman’s oddness wasn’t a sign that she’d pop out her baby over their five-day camp – judging by her size, she must be due soon.

A boom of thunder shook the ground. One of the girls squealed and glassware tinkled in the cupboards.

Tim Lunny whistled in the family room. ‘That was a beauty!’

Josh said, ‘Reckon a tree came down?’

No one answered him and a moment later, Nicole commented in a voice too sage for her eleven years, ‘I think storms are louder the closer to the sky you are.’

Sam said, ‘You could be right.’

The lights flickered and Seb went ‘Wooooooooooo’ then laughed.

‘Can’t see anything out there now,’ Noah yelled. ‘It’s black like the middle of the night, except when lightning comes.’

‘Must be bedtime then.’

Georgie hid a smile, waiting for the kids’ reaction to Sam’s suggestion. It didn’t take long: they yelled over the top of each other.

‘It’s only four-thirty!’

‘No way! We haven’t had tea yet. I’m starving.’

‘It’s too early for tea – have some popcorn.’

‘Don’t want popcorn. I want real food.’

The kids quietened and the housekeeper mumbled, ‘I have started dinner. We will have it when Mr Agterop is home.’

Rings under the woman’s eyes had darkened since they’d met earlier in the day and the way she cradled her stomach and simply stared at the blind over the kitchen window made Georgie wonder what worried her – besides the fourteen of them lobbing in at short notice.

*

Although Franklin maintained a visual with their quarry and listened to his offsider gripe and gossip periodically, he wasn’t really present in Ballarat. He kept thinking about the camp in Mount Dandenong. Whatever they were up to, it’d be more fun than his shift tonight, which boiled down to babysitting.

Inevitably, his thoughts narrowed in on Georgie. He’d been looking forward to some bonus time together. Now she and everyone else was a few hundred Ks away while he was stuck in Ballarat.

Can’t have your cake and eat it too.

He squirmed in the car seat, knowing he wanted just that: promotion to detective while not letting go of his place in the Daylesford station and community, and a life with Georgie. Eventually, something would have to give.

Boomer glared at him. ‘What’s wrong with you? Worms?’ He laughed too loudly, in keeping with his nickname.

Franklin hid his blush by tucking his chin into his chest.

*

Georgie slunk through the formal living rooms. When she reached what the owner had called the south wing, she released the breath she’d held through the expanse of marble, parquetry and crystal.

Some people would be impressed by the swankiness, but it sickened her. Only two people lived in this mausoleum – one wasn’t even in the country, while the other had headed off to stay in the CBD about ten minutes after greeting them. Her curiosity about the couple piqued, Georgie searched the house for photos of Patrick and Catherine Belfrage. But there weren’t any.

The lack of photos was bizarre, but she couldn’t pass judgement on them for that or for not travelling together. Look at her and Franklin: she stayed at his place in Daylesford part of the time and came back to Richmond for the rest, when not away on assignment. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t figure out how it would work any other way.

With a dry chuckle, Georgie slipped into the bedroom she shared with Sam and Kat. After she’d pulled on a warmer top, she headed deeper into the mansion. Of the three doors at the far end, only the middle one stood ajar.

She knuckled the door and said, ‘Hey, you two.’

Anna and Sara were sitting on the floor, leaning against one of the beds. They stared up at her as she entered.

Georgie sank next to them and crossed her legs. ‘Having a good time?’

The sisters nodded, yet a shadow flitted over Sara’s face. They were too bloody sad for their age and it made Georgie’s heart twist. She wished she had something better to offer them than I’ve been through it too, except that it was my dad nearly nineteen years ago, and I still miss him like crazy. It’d be zero consolation for them losing their mum.

She wanted to believe camp would be a positive turning point for Sara and Anna, but doubt niggled.

The three sat awkwardly for a few minutes, then Georgie said, ‘Coming out?’

Anna glanced at Sara and waited for her to answer. Georgie had noted that Sara, a year older than her sister, often acted as their spokesperson.

‘In a bit.’

Georgie sighed inwardly and left them to it. She was about to knock on the other girls’ bedroom door when she heard someone exit the bathroom.

She turned away from Nicole and Hannah’s room and spotted Josh stop beside Kat in the foyer. When the backs of their hands grazed, Georgie figured she had two options: embarrass them or disappear.

She slipped through the external door and shivered on the front steps.

*

Sam turned to pull the drapes and a face on the other side of the window made her jump.

She clamped down her reaction when she recognised Willem Agterop. The caretaker smirked and continued to secure external shutters over the French doors. Sam didn’t like the man. Franklin had taught her to trust her instincts, so she decided to keep a watch on him.

Jags of lightning ignited the skyline through the unshuttered windows, illuminating Agterop and a horizon of massive trees. The storm was almost on top of them. Sam closed the drapes, unsure if Agterop or the proximity of the gumtrees bothered her more.

Rain fell harder, pounding down on the roof, and Noah squealed from upstairs. ‘This is so cool! It’s hailing marbles now!’

Some of the others belted up the spiral staircase to the mezzanine, chattering excitedly, leaving Sam to suspect she was the only one who didn’t enjoy electrical storms.

She saw Georgie enter from the kitchen. Struck by a thought, she asked, ‘Have you seen –’

A crack of thunder cut off the first syllable of Hannah? but Georgie nodded and said, ‘She’s with Sara.’

Sam rubbed her hands together, pleased. She hadn’t expected the kids to mingle beyond their own siblings on day one. At that, a loud bang came from outside and the house groaned and trembled.

Georgie raised her brows saying, ‘Sounds like a tree came down.’

Sam’s neck tingled. Maybe the camp wasn’t going so well after all.

*

At a loose end, Georgie propped on the island bar and scoffed popcorn.

Lunny touched her arm. ‘Georgie. A word?’

She followed him into the glitzy room off the kitchen. ‘What’s up?’

‘How do you think Noah and Nicole are going?’

With an apologetic grimace, Georgie lifted her shoulders. ‘I’m not the right one to ask. I don’t know any of the kids well.’

‘Yes, but that means you’re more objective.’

‘Maybe.’ She wrinkled her nose. ‘I’d say, as well as any of the others. They’ve all got their problems. But Noah’s obviously enjoying the storm, and everyone’s cracked a few smiles.’

Except for the arrogant caretaker.

Lunny smiled at her last comment, but the skin pulling across his cheekbones revealed his strain.

‘They’ll be okay.’

‘You don’t think all this,’ he swept his hand around the room, ‘is rubbing their nose in things at home?’

Georgie was truthful. ‘Who knows. Hopefully not.’

Lunny nodded.

‘Maybe being spoilt for a change will lighten things up when they go back.’ She frowned as she said it.

If they’d been able to go to Camp Silvan as planned, Lunny’s question would’ve been moot. The trip would’ve been cheap and cheerful, in no way exacerbating Noah and Nicole’s situation. She looked around. How could kids from a family virtually on poverty line come to a place like this, live richly and return home in five days without a chip on their shoulders?

Still doubtful, she told Lunny, ‘They’re good kids and they’ll be okay.’

She flicked her eyes around again. Something else bothered her.

*

Sam’s mouth watered at the aroma of roast beef wafting from the industrial-sized oven. She couldn’t wait for dinner, not that anyone could cook a roast as well as her mum. Mamma made a special concoction of garlic, red wine, Italian herbs and spices rubbed in with olive oil. She wouldn’t even tell her daughters the exact recipe. Whenever they asked, Mamma gave a huge wink and a shrug saying, If I tell you, I have to kill you. She’d then point to Sam adding, Or my police-girl will!

Sam smiled to herself, then spoke to the housekeeper. ‘Are you sure I can’t help, Elke?’

‘No need.’ The woman glanced at the wall clock. ‘I am not sure what time my husband will be in though.’

Sam frowned. Was the caretaker still outside? She barely knew the man and hadn’t taken to him, but felt uneasy at him being out in this weather. Perhaps he’d been injured when the tree came down…or perhaps all was well and she was just letting the storm get to her.

She decided to give it a little longer before she shared her concerns with the pregnant woman. With any luck, her husband would return in the meantime.

*

‘Holy sh–heck.’

Georgie swivelled towards Lunny. She didn’t care if he swore, but it’d be out of character in front of kids. And his tone was weird. Shrill, panicked.

The lanky white-haired man raced down the spiral staircase calling, ‘Riley? Cooper?’ He repeated the names, his increasing anxiety obvious. Then he added their sister. ‘Hannah?’

Georgie trailed him to the bedroom wing, shadowed by Kat. Lunny rapped on the bathroom door.

A voice said, ‘What?’ It was one of the girls.

‘Hannah?’

‘No!’

A pause followed. Over the toilet flushing, the girl said, ‘Anna!’

Georgie and Lunny locked eyes, then split between the bedrooms.

He moved to check the one she shared with Sam and Kat. A moment later he yelled, ‘No one in here.’

Georgie knocked, then burst into Sara and Anna’s room. Sara screamed. She was alone.

Kat pounded on the panelled door to Nicole and Hannah’s bedroom. She flung it open, disappeared, then shouted, ‘Empty.’

The three of them knotted together and Georgie’s stomach fell as Lunny’s face drained and Kat wrapped her arms around herself. Sam sprinted down the hallway and joined them.

‘The Savage kids.’ Lunny searched Sam’s face and looked back to Georgie and Kat. ‘When did you last see them?’