Free Web of Deceit by Katherine Howell

letter?’
    ‘Well,’ Chloe said, ‘we’ve both been under a bit of stress. He tends to worry about money, and more so lately because he wanted to be in a house before we had kids, but it’s not going to happen and he feels bad about it. And also there’s this guy at my work.’ Her eyes welled up for the first time. ‘This plumbing contractor, Simon Fletcher. It started about four months ago. Fora while, he was just sending me flowers with no note and I thought it was Marko, but it wasn’t – when I thanked him that first time, he got angry and upset. And then they kept coming. It was freaky. Marko wanted to go to the police, but we just told the florist near work not to deliver anything. After the first couple of weeks, he started mailing notes to work instead, saying things like he lovedme from the moment he saw me, I was so beautiful, he knew we were meant to be together. He didn’t put his name on them though, so I still didn’t know. I was going to go to the police then, but this Fletcher came into the office and asked which of the bouquets I’d liked the best.’ She shivered.
    ‘What did you do?’ Ella asked.
    ‘I told him to get out. He said he just needed to expresshis feelings, and wasn’t that what women wanted from men nowadays? I told him again to get out, that I didn’t want his flowers, I wasn’t interested, I was married. He said he respected a woman who respected her vows, then leaned over the desk like he was going to try to kiss me. My boss, Bill Simpson, came in and told him to get out, that he was fired from the job, and shoved him out the door. Thatwas about six weeks ago.’
    ‘Did you end up going to the police?’
    She shook her head. ‘There didn’t seem much point. As soon as I knew it was him, it all stopped. And Bill improved security a bit so I felt safe there too.’
    ‘Have you seen or heard from Fletcher since?’
    ‘No,’ she said. ‘Could it be him who died and had Marko’s wallet?’
    ‘No, it’s not him,’ Ella said.
    Audra hugged her knees.
    ‘Has anything unusual happened recently?’ Murray said. ‘Hang-up phone calls, someone prowling the building? Damage to your car?’
    ‘We have had a few hang-ups,’ Chloe said. ‘But we’ve had trouble with our line on and off for as long as we’ve lived here, so I thought it was just people trying to call and not being able to get through properly. And there wassomebody lurking in the garden one night, but one of the other residents shouted they were calling the cops and whoever it was ran off. And the car’s in the garage every night.’ She peered at the clock on the wall. ‘They must’ve hit some traffic.’
    Ella said, ‘Do you know a Daniel Truscott?’
    ‘He and Marko work together.’
    ‘Is there any reason why Marko would’ve been driving hiscar this afternoon?’
    Audra said, ‘I thought you said it was a train accident?’
    ‘Marko had a minor collision in that car in Ultimo this afternoon. He was taken to hospital, all the while claiming somebody was after him,’ Ella said.
    ‘I don’t understand.’ Chloe frowned. ‘Why would he have done that?’
    Murray said, ‘Is there any reason he might want to catch a train to Bankstown?’
    ‘None that I can think of.’
    ‘You don’t have friends or family out that way?’
    ‘Nobody,’ Chloe said.
    Audra said, ‘Was it at Bankstown that, that…’
    ‘No,’ Ella said, then went on gently, ‘Chloe, we need to ask you: has Marko ever tried to hurt himself?’
    ‘No.’
    ‘Clo,’ Audra said.
    ‘Oh, okay. Yes,’ Chloe said.
    ‘When was that?’
    ‘Years ago.We’ve talked about it since though. After he started the medication he said he’d felt really low but he’d been afraid to tell me because he thought I might leave him. He said he realised it was the depression making him think that. I told him I love him no matter what, and that I always want him to tell me how he’s feeling, especially if he feels so bad. I said we’re a