Hector startled awake the next morning with his ma hovering over him, a mug of tea in her hand, considering him like a mortician might consider a body on her slab. With it being still dark outside—dark enough that the ocean looked like dirty old water in a laundry tub from where he lay—and her glowing wide eyes in the murky room, Hector felt a chill crawl up his spine like a thousand baby red backs. "Geez, Ma. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

He should not have said the h-word. Her face crumpled briefly with pain, no doubt reminded of how Luis died, before she placed a finger to her lips and nudged towards the sliding doors. "Come on."

"Ma, it's six in the morning."

"Actually, it's five," his mum corrected.

Hector groaned his disapproval and kicked off the couch, following her out into the chilly dawn where sea mist clung to the air, and soon, clung to his t-shirt, boxers, skin, and hair. He pulled the doors close behind him with a shiver. "What is it?"

"I talked to the Chief this morning," Eve blurted.

Hector wasn't entirely awake to compute her words yet. "You what?"

"I couldn't sleep last night and so I messaged Tony to say that you may need some help, in case, so he called me this morning. Well, he didn't call. He messaged, saying I could call him back, so I did ... when I woke up ..."

"Wait, wait. Hold up. You what?"

Eve sighed in exasperation. "I. Talked. To. Tony. This. Morning."

Well, now that she said that, Hector was bloody wide awake, wasn't he? "You did what?"

"Don't yell at me."

"Ma! I'm not yelling, but, what?" Hector rang a hand through his hair, almost tempted to grip it and actually scream. "Why would you do that when you basically told me to get everything out of Devi before I loop in him?"

"Well." His mother sighed. "You weren't kidding when you said Ms Dhungel can be a little troublesome."

"What does that gotta do with ...?" He began pacing in small circles on the patio. "Fuck, so much for keeping a lid on this thing."

"Well, that's what I wanted to talk to you about." Eve beamed rather self-importantly over the rim of her mug. "Tony agrees. This could be your big break. He was talking about a position in Sydney he can recommend you for if you pull this off. If I hadn't talked to him, he wouldn't have known, honey. Turns out, Brady hadn't said a word to him. So surprising, considering his related on his mother's side..."

Hector gawked at his mother, the chill in the air forgotten. "Why did you have to talk to the Chief, Ma? I'm a grown man. He's my boss, and this is my job."

"And, he's my friend!" she fired back. "Before he was your Chief, he was my friend. More than a friend ... before I met your dad."

Too much information. Hector groaned and leaned against the banister. "You're not helping."

"Oh, I think I am. You wouldn't have asked him directly for a promotion. You're not that outspoken or outgoing. You would have just waited for things to be given to you ... "

"Ma. Do you not realise how embarrassing this is, having you put in a word for me with your ex?" Hector massaged the bridge of his nose. "And did you ever think that maybe, just maybe I want to earn the things I get in life?"

His mother looked stumped when Hector glared at her. He was not surprised. The woman had been born with a silver spoon in her mouth and a large wad of cash and property in her hand. He was talking to the wrong parent about earning his keep. Ma would never understand. She'd barely worked a day in her life.

"Tell me exactly what you said to Chief Higgins." Hector squared off with his mother.

After she was done, Hector felt like he needed a cold shower. "Right. Thanks for your help, Ma." Though he was not thankful at all, he was irritated. Now, I look like I need Ma's help to do my job...

"So, are you going to call him then?" Eve flung the dregs of cold tea onto the green grass before turning to him expectantly.

With his nostrils flaring, Hector stared into the murky horizon.

"What?" his mother moaned. "I did you a favour."

Hector disagreed. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Where's my phone?"

"Inside, charging." Eve bounced on her feet. "I noticed it was low this morning when I came to grab a cuppa, before I talked to Tony, and plugged it in. I'll bring it out to you. Call him. He's expecting it."

With that, his mother vanished like a bunny on LSD, then bounced right back, with his half-charged phone in her hand.

"Hector!" Chief Higgins's voice boomed out of the phone as if the man had been awake for hours.

"Chief." Hector slumped against the banister, watching his ma give him two eager thumbs up from inside the house. "How are you?"

"As expected," he replied, as always. This was the thing with Chief Inspector Tony Grant Higgins and Hector. No hello. Just awkward preamble, ever since Hector had realised, at age fourteen that, once upon a time, before Papi, the man who got down and dirty with his mum was the then Sergeant Higgins.

Hector chewed his cheek. "Ma said she told you about what's going on here?"

"Ah, yes, Eve filled me in on what you've been dealing with this week. Interesting stuff."

Interesting was a word for it. Hector glanced at the sliding door, where Ma hovered, watching him through the glass like a creep. He turned his back to her and walked bare feet onto the grass, towards the cliff, chill and morning dew be damned.

"You have secured the witness?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Good. Has she given you her statement?"

"Not yet, Sir, but I'm about to."

"Hmm," he heard the Chief acknowledge. "Son, do you feel confident that you can handle this alone? That you don't need any assistance? How about your deputy, Stoive, what's his name?"

"Steve Murray?"

"Ah yes, is he still alive?"

"I haven't seen him in days, Sir. His nana was sick, so he's gone home to look after her." Hector rubbed his face against the cold, not knowing why he always covered up for Steve. The guy was as lazy as they came and barely did any work at all most days, anyway.

"Hmm," the Chief grunted again. "Eve was saying you're not happy at Cove."

"Did she?" What the, Ma! Hector turned back to the house, throwing what he hoped was the most disappointed look he could manage back at Ma, who now stood on the edge of the patio, looking at him keenly. "Well, Sir ... I don't mean to sound ungrateful. I mean, you gave me a whole beat to myself my first year out, and I've learned a lot"—of nothing!—"but I feel Mystery Cove can only offer me so much, you know?"

Fuck, I'm blathering. Hector kicked at the pebbles in between the patchy grass. "So I was wondering, is all ... If I can close this case, would you consider moving me somewhere there's more action?" He hated that word, but it was all he could come up with at that moment: action.

"Well, Son. I'm not gonna lie. I didn't think you had it in you to leave Eve behind, all alone," Chief said gruffly, and Hector felt a pang of guilt. "But, she insists she will be alright, and that this is what you want, so I tell you what? You close this case while keeping your celebrity safe; then, I'll see what I can do about that transfer."

"Are you serious?" Hector butted in, excited, surprised. Hell, he was sure he looked like a quokka then.

"But!" the Chief stated. "Provided you can solve this in a timely fashion, Son. You know what that means?"

"Aye." Hector nodded. "ASAP, Sir."

"It's a delicate case. After my chat with your ma, I did some research on this person, your victim, and the world of print is in an uproar ... their beloved author. So handle it quickly and handle it quietly. I will give you any resources you require from my end. I can even come in and mentor you—"

Hector could imagine what that mentorship would look like. First, it would start out normal enough, then, the Chief would take over. He always did, that control freak.

"No, Sir. I'll be fine on my own, and like you said, if I need help, I'll get Stoive on board. Just give me a chance."

"Well then, son. This is your chance. Keep me updated and tell me if you need anything from me. Make your mama proud." With that, the dial tone beeped in Hector's ears like angel's bells.

"So?" Ma rushed down to meet him, tugging at his arm. "What did Tony say?"

As the sun broke the horizon, brightening Eve's dull brown hair, Hector blinked at her. "He said I can have the promotion if I solve Devi's case."

"See. What did I tell you?" Eve squealed, squeezing him into a hug. "My boy's gonna be a big officer!"

"Ma, get off me!" Hector pushed her away and headed for the house.

"What now, honey?" She stayed close to his heels. "What else can I help you with?"

"You can't help"—seeing her puppy dog eyes, with that new spark of excitement, he changed his mind. "You know what. Yeah, help me. Can you get me some paper, pen, and dad's old Dictaphone?" he said, holding out a hand to help her back into the house.

"You have a habit of staring at people sleeping, all serial killer-like?" Devi yawned, pushing up as best she could on her pillow. "Anybody tell you, you are not a light walker."

"I wasn't trying to be sneaky." Hector ignored her comment, placing the tray laden with three cups of drinks—two coffees, one for himself, and a cup of tea—and cookies, a blank notebook, a pen, and his dad's old double-A battery-powered Dictaphone, on the nightstand next to her. Then he pulled the reading chair that was in the corner, closer to the bed, trying to banish the image of his dad sitting in it with a book or newspaper and morning coffee of his own.

"I brought you coffee and tea since I didn't know what you preferred. There's tea and coffee, with milk and sugar each. Again, I didn't know your preference, so guessed." He grabbed the notebook, pen, Dictaphone, and his coffee before sitting down. He tried to emulate his father's relaxed demeanour, like a man who knew what he was doing at all times. On his lap, he placed the blank notebook, a pen, and his dad's old Dictaphone, the one the man used to carry around the household, muttering away plots and twists and bits of dialogue like a crazed man in an asylum.

Hector sipped his coffee and relaxed into the seat, trying not to let his mind wonder—why does mum still have stacks of his blank notebooks in the house when she doesn't use them?

"I take coffee in the morning; no sugar, and as black as my heart." Devi's lip twitched up into a smile as she picked up the coffee and took a sip that told him she savoured the taste. "Tea is for the afternoons, with sugar and milk, made Nepali-style. None of this steeped-only business. We like our tea to be as scorching hot as the sun, or why bother." That smile lingered on.

Another sip of her coffee and she leaned her own head on the headboard. "So why do I have the pleasure of your company this early in the morning?" She glanced past Hector towards the wall clock mounted near the door. "It's barely six," she noted, yet another sip of coffee in her gob. "Am I to take this as a hostile ambush or a friendly treaty?" She eyed the implements on his lap, absently grabbing a cookie from the tray and dunking it in her coffee.

"Neither." Hector mirrored her, grabbing a cookie off the tray then dunking it in his coffee, just the way he liked it. He savoured the way the cookie near-melted in his mouth before popping the rest of it into his mouth and smacking his lips. "You and I made a deal. I get you somewhere safe and you tell me your story. We're wasting daylight, as they say. The longer you keep me in the dark, the faster the evidence—"

"Vanishes." She nodded to his surprise, staring at his face with consideration; he was not her foe today, but a confidant, maybe.

"What?" he asked, without meaning to sound impatient.

She shook her head, returning to the tray for another cookie. "I'm waiting for you to ask questions, Inspector."

"You don't mind, do you?" He held up the Dictaphone as if to show her he came armed.

"Do I have a choice?" Her brows rose in, that smile still tugging at her lips, as if she knew universal secrets.

What? Hector wanted to ask again. What are you smiling at? Was it my hair? Was it his t-shirt? Last night, he'd grabbed the first T-shirt on the pile from his old closet, and he hadn't realised till this morning that it read 'Who's your Daddy?' He'd won it in some stupid game with the boys a few summers ago.

What, it's comfy, he was tempted to say, as he proceeded to press record on the small device instead, but nothing happened.

"Have you ever used one of those before?" Devi softly chuckled.

When he looked up, ready to defend himself, he saw Devi meant no harm by her question. She was looking at him as if she wanted to help. He held the device out to her. "I've watched Papi use it many times, and I figured how hard could it be?"

Devi nodded, placing her empty coffee mug on the tray and looking over the device. It gave Hector a moment to study her, truly study her, without having his defences up. Her face was serene, not unlike his in the mornings, struggling to come to grips with daylight. Maybe she was a morning person. Something about her reminded him of Eve. They both shared the same calm look, that same patience—which he hadn't realised Devi was capable of. She was checking the device for batteries—duh! Why hadn't he thought of that? Five years. Any batteries in it would have drained by now.

"Can I ask you a question?" Hector leaned a little closer to her on his chair. He hadn't meant to.

Her gaze flicked up a moment as she nodded, then back on the Dictaphone as she finally jimmied the battery hull open.

This was yet another surprise for our young inspector. Was this the best time to talk to his victim? Early morning when the day hadn't burned away her patience and warmth? Was Devi warm this morning towards him? Yes, yes she was. Was she open, almost inviting him to ask questions without hesitation?

Hector swallowed nervously, hugging his coffee mug in both hands. May as well test that theory. "Do you have any family? I know you mentioned your sister, but you never mentioned a"—when her gaze met his, he trailed off—husband or kids. He quickly picked up the notebook and pen, flipped to a page, and tapped it with his hands, a nervous tic. "They should know what happened to you, but you never asked me to contact them ..."

Devi remained quiet for a long time, before handing the Dictaphone back to him. "I'm by myself, if that's what you're asking, Inspector Martinez," her voice was low. "And this thing doesn't have any batteries, hence its failure to perform."

Hector felt a blush creep up his neck as hand brushing hers ever so lightly in the pass. "I should have checked. I'll be back. I'm sure mum has some spares ..."

He rushed off down the corridor as fast as he could. The sooner he found the batteries the sooner he could get back to chatty-Devi and quarry her story. He rummaged through countless drawers in the kitchen and pantry in search of a pair of batteries. When he couldn't find any, stole the ones from the TV remote and ran back to Ms Dhungel. Ma could yell as him later.

"Ha. Got it!" He sat back down on the chair, a little out of breath, and passed the Dictaphone back out to Devi. "Do you mind pressing record when we begin? I don't want it to cut your words out ... I don't want to miss anything you say."

Devi took it reluctantly.

"Whenever you're ready." Hector leaned back on the chair and opened the notebook back so he could scribble extra notes. "Start at the beginning. Why were you out at sea on November 25th, 2017?"

"We're going to be that specific?"

"Specificity is key." Hector faintly smiled, finally getting into the groove of things, recalling his training.

Devi stared at the duvet covering her legs as if she were contemplating where to begin.

"Take your time." Hector said. This is boring ass Mystery Cove, so I have all day!

Devi pressed record on the Dictaphone and rested it on top of the duvet a few minutes later. "The thing with aging, Inspector, is that the more you've lived the more you fear your end tomorrow. I'd had a scare earlier in the year, so when my birthday came around, I wanted to do something special." Tears glistened in her eyes as she spoke. "When the friend who bought my old yacht from me heard I was looking to do something special this year, he offered to lend it to me for a week. It's big enough for me, some guests on and staff ... Funny. When I owned it, I rarely used it. The only thing I really did with it was change its name so it no longer reminded me of Charlie ... that and I took it out on the harbour on New Year's eves for fireworks. So when he offered, I thought, why not? I could use some nostalgia."

"Charlie was my husband. Charlie Le Fontaine. Rich, handsome, devastatingly charming. Dead."

What scare happened earlier this year? Hector wanted to ask, but he was afraid to interrupt her flow. Devi's voice was getting lower and lower as she spoke and he leaned closer and closer to hear her better.

"We boarded the yacht, Marg—leant to me for a week—from the Marina in Darling Harbour on the night of the 24th..."

"We?" Hector whispered, absently moving to sit on the edge of the bed.

"We. My guests and I." Devi gave him a small smile. "Shall I continue my story?"

Hector poised his pen for action. "Please do."