Little Girl Lost by Janet Gover

and seemingly everything they did or thought had proved useful to him in his official role at times. But tonight wasn’t one of those times.
    He put the money on the bar and headed out into the night.
    He stayed up late, working in his shed, replaying his conversation with Tia. Replaying every flash of her eyes and those rare but wonderful moments of her laughter. Hearing again the way she said his name. For once, he could not lose himself in the joy of working with his hands to turn something old and abandoned into something new and beautiful. His mind was elsewhere. When at last he went to bed, it was all he could do not to think of the lines of her body under the motorcycle leathers, and that tattoo that peeped from beneath her top.
    He was tired and still restless when dawn came. He got out of bed, donned his uniform and his professional demeanour and opened the station early. He was about to do something he had never done before – use his position for personal reasons.
    He powered up his computer and logged in to the police department system.
    He didn’t give himself time to think. He typed in the name he had seen on that driver’s licence last night. Felicity Walsh. He added the Brisbane suburb listed on the licence as her old address. The search found nothing. No traffic tickets or outstanding warrants for her. No criminal record of any kind. He was surprised to find himself breathing a sigh of relief. He hadn’t realised how worried he was that the search might show something that would force him onto a path he did not want to take.
    One more thing to check. He typed in the Harley’s reggo.
    The details flashed up on the screen – and his eyes widened. The Harley was not registered in Tia’s name. It was in the name of Andrew Kelly . The reggo address was the same as the address on Tia’s licence. The bike had not been reported stolen, in fact, the reggo had been paid just a few days before. Presumably by the owner; this Andrew Kelly. Why would he pay for reggo on the bike if it was stolen? Maybe there was some sort of relationship between Tia and this guy. He should check him out. See if he had a record.
    Max frowned. Despite what his instincts were telling him, there was no crime he could see. And he was going to stop there. There was a mystery about Tia. But it was one Max would solve – as himself, not as Sergeant Delaney. He reached for the mouse to close the window before he could be tempted to look any further.

Chapter Ten
    ‘Dad. Are you sure you’re feeling up to this? I can handle it. Honestly.’
    ‘Now, Sarah. Leave it be. I’m not dead yet, and until I am, I’ll work.’
    The words cut through Sarah like a knife, as did her father’s anger. She took a half step back, biting her bottom lip to help maintain her calm.
    ‘Oh, Sarah, honey, I’m sorry.’ Ken’s face softened. ‘I didn’t mean to snap at you. And I didn’t mean to say … well, I’m sorry.’
    ‘It’s okay, Dad.’ Sarah stepped close to her father and wrapped her arms around him. Ken was thin and looking frail, and as she buried her head in his chest, she realised that he smelled different now. The cancer and the drugs he was taking to treat it had changed him. But he was still her dad and she loved him just as she had when she was a little girl, curled up in bed falling asleep to the sound of his voice reading her favourite stories. She loved him even more now she was an adult and knew enough about the world to understand what a good man he was. She loved him so much and she was so desperately afraid she was going to lose him.
    His arms tightened around her and he placed a gentle kiss on the top of her head, just as he had always done when she was upset; ever since she was a small child.
    ‘All right,’ his voice was rough with emotion as he broke the embrace. ‘Let’s get to work. We need this storeroom tidied up by this afternoon. We’ve got a lot of new stock coming. I’ve decided to start carrying a small