Opportunity Knocked, Innovation Answered

On what was an otherwise unremarkable day for him, Quatorze, a friend of Stourton, was minding his own business at a coffee shop, when he noticed a male known to him, Umburto. That male had a female companion. Quatorze then recognised the female companion to be Limoges, the wife of Stourton. Limoges and Umburto got very familiar with each other.

Quatorze overheard Limoges making plans with her lover to get together later and those plans did not resonate well with Quatorze.

A text message to Stourton was required, he thought. The text message he sent read:

“We have not seen each other for too long. Dinner at The Steakhouse Bar tonight at 7:00 pm. No excuses. Be there.”

The reply from Stourton read: “OK, tonight is Steak night.”

The Steakhouse Bar

Quatorze was the first to arrive at The Steakhouse Bar and he secured a table for he and Stourton. He waited until the food ordering was done and served before he delivered the bad news.

Quatorze: “Limoges, the event planner wife of yours was kind enough to interrupt my lunch by planning the wrong kind of event. She was planning the infidelity two-step with another male known to me, that male obviously being not you.”

Pausing his eating, a stunned Stourton replied: "What do you mean?"

Quatorze: "Your wife was always about the glitz and the glamour. The big events, the fancy parties. But she ignored the most important event of all: your marriage."

It is not really a surprise to see her so caught up in her own world and her own desires,  planning events for others, that she would neglect what should be the most important person in her own life."

Stourton understood enough of what was told to him, even if he did not process all of it.

The men finished their meals. Conversation between them did not dwell on the infidelity of Limoges, but focussing on other topics was difficult for Stourton.

Quatorze did not press him, he tried to be supportive. It was the kind of bad news he did not enjoy delivering, and to the extent that he could, he tried to be supportive.

The Kidnapping

As far as Limoges was concerned, her marriage had become predictable and dull. In stark contrast to the exciting job she did. Of course, she took no responsibility for her marriage not producing the excitement and variety she apparently craved.

Stourton being a fairly high-level engineer at a pharmaceutical company developing a revolutionary new energy source was not enough to meet the excitement needs of the now very important and demanding Limoges. As she got caught up in the excitement of her event planning, she became prone to gossiping. Applying some circumspection to sharing details of work information her husband shared with her did not occur to her.

The paths of Limoges and Umburto crossed at one of her planning events. He seemed younger, vibrant and exciting, in contrast to the solid predictability that was now apparently a problem for her husband. So the dalliance started and it became an affair.

Limoges was also an interesting moment of excitement for Umburto. His work had not delivered the results he desired, so he left his employer for a rival company. What Umburto did not tell Limoges initially was that he worked for the same pharmaceutical company as her husband. A company that was making real progress with a breakthrough drug. Umburto desired his own kind of results, so he took his disgruntled self off to a rival company.

With her mind focussed acutely upon herself, Limoges did not think too much about the work information her husband shared with her. She also enjoyed moments from time to time where he was definitely not good enough for her and sharing his information with others was not beyond her pettiness.

The disgruntled Umburto was happy to hear information from Limoges about Stourton and his new drug. He may be able to use that information to advance himself. The life of disgruntled Umburto was resplendent with poor choices. The pharmaceutical company employer he left, when he worked with Stourton, was having success with a breakthrough drug. The rival company for whom he now works was desperate to gain a competitive edge.

The poor decision-making of Umburto to share the information about a new drug from his former employer to his new employer triggered catastrophic consequences. The desperate to gain a competitive edge, rival company hired a group of criminals to kidnap Stourton and force him to reveal the secrets of the new technology. If this pharmaceutical company crew could monetise their stupidity, they would be very wealthy.

Quite a contrast was now in play, thanks to the lack of thinking of Limoges and Umburto. The new employer of Umburto saw Industrial Espionage as a legitimate motivation for the kidnapping of Stourton. Umburto was their useful idiot in their plan to circumvent the hard worm and intellectual dedication that is so much a part of most success.

Proper research was not a constituent component of the business plan of the new employer of Umburto. They did not bother to research the group of criminals they hired to kidnap Stourton and force him to reveal the secrets of the new drug.

The day after Quatorze revealed the infidelity of Limoges to Stourton, the criminal masterminds put their plan into action and kidnapped Stourton. The criminals told Stourton, if he does not cooperate and give the criminals what they want, they would kill his wife.

Now in the custody of the kidnappers, Stourton assessed the situation as one where he faced an uncertain future. Stourton took the view that if these geniuses were true to their word, he would not feel unhappy about the outcome. He adopted the approach of telling the criminal mastermind kidnappers that he does not negotiate with terrorists.

Upon hearing their captive Stourton declare that he does not negotiate with terrorists, the kidnappers did not respond well. Two (2) of them departed the scene and attended upon the location of Limoges, where they proceeded to shoot and kill her. Predictably, chaos ensued.

Shortly thereafter the criminal mastermind kidnappers, and now murderers, were arrested and charged with kidnapping and murder.

Locating the geniuses who kidnapped Stourton did not take the police long and he was freed to return home.

The Police Perspective

The nightmare was not yet over for Stourton. The police felt they needed to spend some more time with him.

The humourless Detective Harper interviewed Stourton at the city centre police station.

Harper to Stourton: "So, you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time?"

Stourton: "Correct, Detective. I was minding my own business, and suddenly, I was kidnapped."

Harper "And you are sure you do not know why you were targeted?"

No hesitation from Stourton. "I am certain. I have no enemies, no outstanding debts. It was a random act of violence."

Detective Harper had no evidence to suggest Stourton was not telling the truth.

Harper: "Alright, then. We will do our best to find out who is responsible for this."

"In the meantime, I suggest you try to relax and let us handle this. You have been through a lot."

The Train Station Interlude

Stourton left the police station and proceed home after his eventful day, happy that he had not been charged with any offence. There was no reason he should be charged with any offence, but things had not gone well for him recently.

He made his way to the train station and waited patiently for his train.

Helping pass the time during that patient wait was a conversation her overheard between two lawyers known to each other and waiting for their respective trains. As is the want of lawyers, they shared a war story. This one was colourful.

The Bank Job Gone Wrong

The professional bank robbers entered the bank. They had planned this heist meticulously, down to the last detail. They had studied the layout of the bank, its security systems, and the routines of its employees. They had even gone so far as to create elaborate disguises to help them blend in with the crowd.

But as they were about to make their move, chaos erupted. Two drug-addled individuals, clearly under the influence of heroin or methamphetamine, stumbled into the bank, shouting and swearing at the top of their lungs. The robbers were taken aback, and from that moment, they were put off their game.

Oblivious to the danger they were in, the two junkies continued to cause a commotion, drawing the attention of both the employees and customers of the bank. In their panic, the robbers were forced to act quickly, but their usual precision and coordination were thrown off by the sudden and unplanned junkie interruption.

The attempts of the bank robbers to carry out their plan were thwarted. They found themselves struggling to keep up with the unpredictability of the situation. The junkies continued to cause havoc, making it impossible for the robbers to complete their heist without being detected.

Just as the robbers were about to give up and abandon their plan, the police arrived on the scene. The chaos created by the junkies had tipped off the authorities, and now the robbers found themselves surrounded by blue lights, sirens and police.

In a desperate attempt to escape, the robbers tried to fight their way out, but they were no match for the police. They were quickly subdued and taken into custody, their plans foiled by two very drug-affected junkies they might have included in a better thought out plan.

The reputation of the most professional bank robbers in the business had been shattered, all because of two junkies high on drugs. It was a bitter pill for them to swallow, and one that would haunt them for the rest of their days.

Unsurprisingly, the two junkies were oblivious to the impact they had just had on the lives of the bank robbers. The junkies were taken away by the police, still high on drugs and still causing havoc wherever they went. Their actions had inadvertently saved the day, but they would never know it.

The trains then arrived for the lawyers and the overheard conversation ended.

Homeward Bound

Stourton did not have to wait much longer for his train.

When he arrived home, Stourton closed the door to his residence and to this sorry episode in his life. The silence of the apartment was comforting to him.

He made his way to his entertainment cabinet and browsed his collection of recorded television shows. He selected an old DVD, the kind he had not watched in years, its details hazy in his memory. It was just an hour of dated drama, perfect for switching off. He settled onto his couch, the familiar opening credits of "Fatal Obsession" flickering onto the screen.

Fatal Obsession

The air thickened around her, a suffocating blanket of dread. An ultra-feminist, utterly consumed by a narrative of male menace, she stepped off the train, the station’s artificial calm doing nothing to quell the rising tide of her fear.

“He is there.” Her mind screamed, a phantom presence at her back. “He has seen me.”

As she walked, the familiar sounds of the suburb warped into sinister omens. Every rustle of leaves, every distant car engine, became a confirmation. She picked up her pace, her knuckles white around her bag strap.

“He is closer. I can feel him.”

A relentless loop of danger, her internal narrative tightened its grip. 

For just a fleeting, panicked moment she glanced over her shoulder, seeing only the shifting shadows that her paranoia shaped into a man following her.

Her conviction solidified into chilling certainty. This was not just fear; this was a pursuit. Her walk quickened, then lurched into a desperate sprint. She swerved abruptly down a side street, her breath ragged. The pavement became a blur beneath her, the world a disorienting rush of colour and noise.

“I have to lose him!”

She cut hard through a narrow alley, then burst onto a busy main road, headlights flashing like malevolent eyes, horns blaring in what seemed a deliberate cacophony. Oblivious to the true dangers, her focus was fixed on the unseen malevolent male figure she imagined to be at her heels.

A car horn blared, a prolonged, angry shriek. But to her, it was white noise. She charged forward, a desperate, fragmented desire for freedom overriding all sense. The heavy traffic on the main road became a fluid, terrifying gauntlet. The fast-moving motor vehicle was upon her before the terror could truly register. A sickening thud, a screech of tires, and then, silence.

Just a few paces behind, her cousin Marcella stumbled to a halt, panting, her arm outstretched. "Wait! I just ... I just wanted to ask you about ..."

As the closing scene of Fatal Obsession finished, Stourton fell asleep.

Welcome To The Terrordome

The Boiled Brew Café

A seemingly unremarkable evening was winding down for Mr Dresden Leipzig. He was out socialising with friends and as he was preparing to make his way home, alone, he called in to an eatery near the train station for a snack and a drink. Dresden was not exactly a regular at the Boiled Brew Café, but he had dined there enough to have some familiarity with the staff and the occasional patron.

As was customary for The Boiled Brew Café, the television was tuned to the news. Leipzig had finished his snack by the time the news broadcaster announced the result of the national election held earlier that day. Digesting the news of the new government was a lot more problematic for Leipzig than was digesting his Tofu Wrap. It is quite the understatement to say that the new government was not to his liking.

The news broadcast informed Dresden that the new government had immediately appointed the Chief of The Stasi and he will head the Climate Integrity Commission. The Chief of The Stasi announced that Climate Integrity Lines would be established immediately for members of the community to report instances of Climate Hoax activity and the location and any identifying details of Climate Hoaxers.

The heart of Dresden stopped. He was once a staunch and very public advocate of climate change and publicly advocated for “Deniers” to lose their rights and be subject to intense government and community scrutiny. Now Dresden was an infidel Climate Hoaxer, thanks to the change of government.

The news broadcaster announcing the message from the Chief of The Stasi:

• “We are coming for the Climate Hoaxers and we will not be taking any prisoners”.

kept repeating in the head of Dresden.

Someone at a table near the newly classified Infidel Dresden proclaimed loudly:

“Life is about to get very uncomfortable for Climate Hoaxers. Good.”

The news was a combination of a personal tsunami and earthquake for Dresden. He may have finished eating his food, but finishing his mug of chai tea was a challenging exercise. Dresden was torn between leaving immediately for home and staying and listening to the remainder of the news broadcast. He immediately hoped no one recognised him, although it seemed to him the pounding of his heart might drown out the audio of the television news.

Continuing the confronting news broadcast, The Chief of The Stasi went on to announce that a Climate Integrity Commission had been created and there would be a public awareness campaign, including billboards, posters and flyers, about the Climate Integrity Lines. Those people in the community who had relevant information about Climate Hoaxers were encouraged to use the Climate Integrity Lines to inform on and about Climate Hoaxers.

The political party Dresden did not want to win the national election was successful and they immediately kept their election promise: Those who had advocated for Climate Change and who advocate for Climate Change were now Infidels and those Climate Hoaxers were very much considered public enemies.

Dresden wanted to leave the eatery, but he could not move. He also wanted to stay and hear the rest of the news broadcast and to try to gauge the reaction of the eatery patrons to the news of the new government and its attitude to the newly created Infidels, Climate Hoaxers. His mind was running at a million kilometres an hour. He could not think straight.

Ultimately the subject news broadcast was short, yet earth-shattering for Dresden. His initial inability to move worked in his favour. He heard all of the relevant news broadcast and then the broadcast moved on to other inconsequential news.

The longer Leipzig remained at the Boiled Brew Café, the more he became aware of the positive attitude of other patrons of the eatery to the new government and the Climate Integrity Commission. Dresden was stunned that introduction of the Climate Integrity Lines was greeted with loud approval. He was not comfortable with what he was seeing and hearing and it was clear him engaging with any of the eatery patrons would not be a positive experience for him.

Dresden remained at the Boiled Brew Café for about another fifteen (15) minutes. He walked to the counter, paid for his meal and proceeded to the train station to make his way home.

That journey home was resplendent with thoughts of impending personal terror. Leipzig realised that there would be a digital record of his attendance at the Boiled Brew Café and possibly close circuit television video. There would definitely be video surveillance of his attendance at the train station and his train ride home.

What does he do about his employment on Monday? he thought. Does he turn up and risk being revealed to the authorities as an Infidel? Does he stay home? His absence from work will draw attention to him. Does he try to run and create something of a new life somewhere else?

Unbeknown to Leipzig, after he left the Boiled Brew Café one of its other patrons was skimming through a somewhat dated magazine provided by the eatery while he ate the meal he had ordered. That magazine had a Climate Change Advocacy article by Leipzig. That patron realised Leipzig had been in attendance at the eatery earlier in the evening. It was clear the patron was no friend of Leipzig. He started making notes about the article and the attendance of Leipzig at the Boiled Brew Café that evening, fully intending to subsequently use the Climate Integrity Lines to inform on Leipzig.

The new world was taking shape and it was one that offered no comfort to Dresden Leipzig.

Workplace Reaction

The next day, Sunday, management of the data analysis firm that employs Dresden Leipzig had something of a crisis meeting in response to the election of a new national government and the establishment of the Climate Integrity Commission. There was no resistance proffered to the suggestion that all climate change related work be stopped. It was not a significant amount in financial terms and management thought the business could endure the loss of that income while replacement income generating work was sought.

Somewhat surprisingly management took a benevolent view of Dresden Leipzig.  He was the only staff member of the firm that did climate change related analysis work. Apart from that work, management thought he did other work of value for the firm, so ending his employment was not necessary at this time.

That situation would be reassessed should the Climate Integrity Commission focus its attention upon him. The attitude of management was much less benevolent when pondering that hypothetical scenario.

On Monday, the first work day after the election of the new national government, workplace chatter at the data analysis firm was almost exclusively about the new government and the Climate Integrity Commission. A staff member already had a war story about someone they knew who had appeared before court charged with being a climate hoaxer. Naturally they were convicted and ordered to be microchipped and forced to submit to digital ID. The surveillance web site was already in operation.

No staff member was interested in being part of that cohort which was subject to surveillance and no one was speaking favourably about Dresden Leipzig. The staff were quite content to view him as an Infidel, due to his climate change work and advocacy. He was now most definitely an outcast and friendless in his workplace. If Dresden chose to attend work subsequent to the election, a hostile workplace would greet him.

The Legislative Powers of The Chief of The Stasi

By the time those staff members had arrived at work The Chief of The Stasi had already publicly announced that he has the power to draft and create valid legislation. Relevantly he did so in respect of Climate Hoaxers. His legislation denies the Hoaxers a right to a criminal law trial. They may get a trial, but they do not have a right to a trial. The arresting or apprehending Stasi Sandman (the police of the Climate Integrity Commission) has the discretion / power to decide if the Infidel should get a trial.

Those Stasi Sandmen were already well into their work. Vogel Heidlemeir was an otherwise unremarkable adult male having lunch at the Trance Cafeteria. Vogel noticed the wife of his good friend Creole Endicott in the company of another man, who was clearly not her husband. The observant Vogel did not contact Endicott, he immediately contacted The Climate Integrity Commission and made a complaint that the “cheating wife” was a Climate Hoaxer. Within minutes a Stasi Sandman attended upon the scene and arrested the “cheating wife” and transported her for micro-chipping and Digital ID.

By midday The Chief of The Stasi had publicly announced the apprehension and prosecution of the adultress as a Climate Hoaxer. There was no mention of her infidelity. All that was needed was an allegation that she was a Climate Hoaxer.

The Chief of The Stasi emphasised justice in the new regime would be swift and brutal for Climate Hoaxers.

Justice: Climate Stasi Style

While Dresden was ruminating upon whether to attend work, an unrelated random Infidel was arrested for the crime of making a climate hoax statement in public. He was promptly arrested and brought before the court. When his case was ultimately brought on, he was allowed to have legal representation. His court-imposed punishment was that he would be microchipped and have to have a Digital ID.

Dresden decided to attend his work. That train ride to work was fatal to the life of freedom Dresden previously enjoyed. Seemingly no one noticed Dresden on his train ride home from the Boiled Brew Café Saturday night. That was in stark contrast to this train trip to work. Lots of fellow commuters seemed to recognise him and they were happy to let all and sundry know about it. His fellow train travellers made furious use of their mobile telephones to access the Climate Integrity Lines with telephone calls, text messages and photographs relating to Dresden. He knew there was nothing he could do to escape this new found infamy. Dresden now felt trapped in the new regime.

Notification to the Stasi Sandmen was immediate and they boarded the train to apprehend Dresden before he arrived at work.

News of the arrest of Dresden Leipzig made the mid-morning news and it came to the attention of at least one work colleague, who in turn contacted the Climate Integrity Lines and shared with them the involvement of Dresden in Climate Change Advocacy.

Dresden Leipzig was taken from the train directly to the Court. While he was sitting in the dock of the court waiting for his case to be heard, he watched and heard all of the proceedings of the random Infidel arrested for the crime of making a climate hoax statement in public.

When his turn came to be dealt with by the court, Leipzig was not allowed to have legal representation and all of his previous statements were used as irrefutable evidence against him. The Judge told Leipzig the overwhelming nature of the evidence against him meant he was not entitled to legal representation.

The Prosecutor assigned to the Dresden Leipzig case had earlier endorsed the sentiments that Infidel Leipzig ought not be entitled to legal representation, due to the overwhelming nature of the evidence against him.

That Prosecutor informed the Court that a significant amount of the evidence against Leipzig was a product of citizens loyal to the regime using the Climate Integrity Lines to inform about Leipzig. Emphasised by the Prosecutor was the fact that the data analysis work of Leipzig, for which he was seemingly paid well, ought to have alerted him to the truth, that the Climate Change narrative and campaign was a hoax and based on fraud and manipulation. But Leipzig was a zealot and he pursued the Climate Change advocacy for his own political satisfaction.

Also emphasised often by the Prosecutor to the Judge was that Leipzig The Infidel had often publicly advocated for “Deniers” to lose their rights and be subject to intense government / community scrutiny. Leipzig was not a casual advocate for the Climate Change regime, he was an unapologetic and unrepentant zealot. More than once the Prosecutor submitted to the Judge that Leipzig ought be shown no mercy.

It was apparent to all present in Court that when the Prosecutor spoke to the Judge about Leipzig, he did so with disdain and contempt. Nothing about the reaction of the Judge to the submissions of the Prosecutor indicated that the Judge disagreed with that disdain and contempt.

Dresden could hardly believe this new world into which he had seemingly been transported and it certainly was not registering with him that this was the very world for which he had been advocating for people he considered not worthy. His self-awareness was currently registering at less than zero.

In his closing submissions to the Judge, the Prosecutor took some time to emphasise that a significant portion of the evidence against Leipzig was due to fine, upstanding, loyal citizens using the Climate Integrity Lines for their intended purpose, to provide information, intelligence and evidence about Infidels such as Leipzig.

On more than one occasion the Prosecutor commented to the Judge that the evidence compiled against Leipzig and his subsequent prosecution was the system implemented by the new regime working as intended.

The Judge took no issue with any of the submissions of the Prosecutor.

The Court heard no submissions from Dresden. It was apparent to Dresden nothing constructive could be said in his defence.

Dresden Leipzig was convicted of being a Climate Hoaxer and all of those “incriminating” statements were ordered to be placed on his formal record for future reference.

In sentencing Dresden, the Judge said to him coldly:

 “Mr Leipzig, This is your ideology. This is the world you wanted.”

Go Your Own Way

Arcadia Meets with Her Solicitor, Siobhan Blanco
About a week after Arcadia Thiessen had been charged with the fraud offence she attended the office of her solicitor, Siobhan Blanco, and discussed her case and her situation. Blanco told Arcadia she had been in contact with the police again and had received further information about the evidence the Crown proposed to lead against Arcadia.

Blanco told Arcadia, “The police have obtained closed circuit television from the hotels you were in on your relevant work trips. That video evidence was of you and Garlick Duckworth together in the foyer and / or the restaurant and / or entering your hotel room of those hotels. That evidence coincides with the room service bills the police have collected in respect of your hotel attendance.”

“In addition, on two (2) separate occasions Duckworth was also seen with another woman at a hotel at which he stayed with you. The Crown propose to lead that evidence against Duckworth only.”

“In short the case against you, Arcadia, is that there were eight (8) relevant episodes over two (2) years (which is roughly one (1) every three (3) months). It involves $800.00 for meals made up of $50 spent by you on your meal and also $50 spent on the meal of Duckworth for each of the relevant eight (8) separate episodes you two were together.

“The Crown have calculated your accommodation at an average of $220.00 per night per hotel stay and over the eight (8) relevant episodes, it totals $1,760.”

“An expensive outcome for you for what seems to amount to $2,560. Of course that does not include the airfares your work paid to and from Sydney. They are not part of the Crown case.”

“Your offending is said to be aggravated because the aforementioned work resources of your employer were spent on your private life and divorce, which you planned with Duckworth over the course of your relationship.”

“The Crown case against Duckworth will be that he dishonestly gained the benefit of accommodation and food you provided via manipulating your work perks.”

Arcadia took a little time to reply to Blanco, “None of that sounds very good for me.”

Blanco: “That is an accurate assessment, Arcadia. The Crown case is strong and none of it speaks well of you. Knowing what I know about you, I see little prospect of you successfully defending the charge.”

Arcadia: “What does that mean for me?”

Blanco: “Of course you have the right to go to trial on that charge and put the Crown to proof. However if you are convicted after a trial, you will have lost your opportunity to demonstrate cooperation, remorse and contrition. That will mean you lose any opportunity to have your sentence discounted for those considerations. Alternatively if you were to plead guilty to the charge, it could be said to the court that your plea of guilty at an early stage demonstrated cooperation, remorse and contrition on your part and saved the Crown the expense of having to prove the case against you. Your sentence could be discounted accordingly and that may mean the difference of you staying out of jail. The Crown will say this is an offence which was reasonably well planned and took place over the space of two (2) years, thereby demonstrating significant dishonesty and deception on your part.”

Once again Arcadia appeared uncomfortable with what she was hearing. “It does not seem like I have too many choices. If I am going to be convicted of this offence, I do not do myself any favours by going to trial, because I lose any discount on sentence I may receive for pleading guilty at an early stage.”

Blanco: “That is my assessment of your situation, Arcadia, uncomfortable though it may be to hear. If you were minded to plead guilty to the charge, I recommend we obtain a psychological report on you to provide to the Judge and the Crown at your sentence hearing. You may want to take a little time think about what you want to do in relation to the charge. I have not got all the material from the Crown as yet, so I am not in a position to finalise your instructions in that regard.”

Arcadia: “I need some time to think about what I want to do and what it all means.”

Blanco: “We will leave it there for today and perhaps get together again next week and discuss the case further.”

Arcadia: “Yes. I like that proposal.”

Arcadia then left the office of Blanco and went home.

Siobhan Blanco Receives Material From The Crown
About a week later Blanco received the material against Arcadia from the Crown. Blanco skimmed through the witness statements. No surprises appeared immediately to her. She then watched the video evidence of Arcadia and Garlick Duckworth together in the foyer, the restaurant and entering her hotel room of the subject hotels. On each occasion Arcadia was clearly identifiable and she and Duckworth looked like they were a couple when they were together.

Blanco then read the witness statements more thoroughly. They confirmed what had already been told to Blanco was the Crown case and there seemed little room for Arcadia to successfully defend the fraud charge.

When Blanco was finished familiarising herself with the Crown case she telephoned Arcadia and told her the evidence had arrived from the Crown. They made an appointment for Arcadia to attend the office of Blanco at 10:00 am the following day.

Arcadia Meets Blanco To Prepare For Court
Arcadia arrived at the office of Blanco shortly before 10:00 am and they started work on the defence of Arcadia almost immediately.

Blanco told Arcadia, “I have read all of the evidence against you and it does not say anything different to what I had been previously been lead to believe. Before I get into the specifics of the statements, I will show you the video evidence the Crown intends to lead against you. It does not look good for you.”

Blanco then played the video evidence on her computer and Arcadia could see for herself that she was clearly identifiable with Duckworth in the foyer, the restaurant and entering her hotel room of the subject hotels, as the Crown alleged.

Arcadia said to Blanco, “I really do not have any choice but to plead guilty. There seems little point in going to trial.”

Blanco: “The evidence contained in the statements and the room service bills does not get any better for you. The Crown case seems to be compelling.”

Arcadia: “How much of a mess am I in?”

Blanco: “With an early plea of guilty and reasonable to good psychological report, I am confident you can stay out of jail.”

Clearly worried about her situation, Arcadia said, “I will plead guilty to the fraud offence and see a psychologist, so you can get a report on me for the sentence hearing. I do not want to go to jail.”

Blanco: “I will ultimately get signed instructions from you about the plea of guilty and also an authority from you about seeing a psychologist for the purposes of a report for the sentence hearing. I will also read through all the witness statements with you and ask you to comment upon them where relevant, so you are aware of all the evidence against you. The process will also enable you to provide any relevant explanation as to your behaviour and motivation.”

It took Blanco just over an hour to finalise the instructions of Arcadia and get the relevant authority signed. After that paperwork had been completed there was discussion about the Court case itself.

Blanco knew from all of her dealings with Arcadia that she was infatuated with Duckworth, that much of her behaviour was to ingratiate herself with him and be with him. Blanco could also see that Duckworth was a vain, self-obsessed man, who used people for whatever he could get out of them and that he had little concern for anyone but himself.

Blanco: “Shortly I will write to the Crown and tell them that you will plead guilty to the fraud offence, with little challenge to the facts the Crown have presented. Your plea of guilty will in essence be on the basis that you were infatuated with Duckworth and much of your behaviour was to ingratiate yourself with him and be with him. Uncomfortable though it may be for you to hear such a description, it seems to be accurate, based on what I have observed of you. Unless you tell me otherwise, that is what I propose to do.”

Arcadia took a little time to reply to Blanco, “Your assessment is accurate.”

Blanco also said she would brief a female barrister she knew from University to appear for Arcadia at the sentence hearing. Arcadia did not argue with the suggestion.

Shortly thereafter the meeting between Arcadia and Blanco ended and Arcadia went home.

Correspondence with The Crown and The Psychologist
Blanco promptly drafted a letter to the psychologist requesting a report on Arcadia for the sentence hearing and also a letter to the Crown informing it of the proposed plea of guilty of Arcadia.

A few days later Blanco received a letter from the Crown indicating it was happy with the basis upon which the plea of guilty of Arcadia was offered. The Crown also confirmed that Duckworth intended to plead not guilty to the offence with which he was charged and go to trial. The Crown said Arcadia would be arraigned at the start of the Duckworth trial and any sentence hearing would take place at the end of that trial.

Blanco then wrote to Arcadia and told her of the news in respect of both herself and Duckworth. Blanco also said Arcadia would have a conference with the barrister appearing for her the day before she was being sentenced.

When the psychological report on Arcadia arrived at her office, Blanco was not surprised to read that the psychologist found some evidence of Borderline Personality Disorder in Arcadia. Blanco was equally unsurprised to read that Arcadia starstruck by Garlick Duckworth. The recommendation of the report writer was that with some treatment and the end of the relationship with Duckworth, the likelihood of Arcadia repeating this offending behaviour in the future was very small.

Conference with Barrister, Solicitor and Arcadia
Arcadia was nervous when she attended the Chambers of the barrister for the conference about the sentence hearing. The presence of Siobhan Blanco calmed her nerves somewhat. Whilst nothing went wrong during the conference, it was clear to a more experienced observer that Blanco knew more about the matter than did the barrister.

It was explained to Arcadia that the diagnosis by the psychologist of there being some evidence of Borderline Personality Disorder in Arcadia was not something that was expected to have a detrimental impact on sentence Arcadia received for her offending behaviour. The plan was to ask for the Court to make a probation order in respect of Arcadia and also that she do some unpaid community service work. It was also acknowledged that restitution may be sought by the Crown for the amount said to have been wrongly spent in the offending behaviour. It was all the proposed to ask that the Court not record a conviction against Arcadia. However it was acknowledged that that request may be difficult to achieve in the circumstances and that keeping Arcadia out of jail was the main priority.

Arcadia seemed happy enough with what she heard at the conference and she went home without asking many questions of either the barrister or Blanco.

Trial Day
Trial day arrived and there was a degree of excitement around the Court. The case had attracted media interest and media were present for the trial. Arcadia confronted that reality when she arrived at court with Blanco and the barrister. The three (3) of them proceeded directly to the court room allocated to hear the trial.

When she arrived at the court room she saw Duckworth for the first time in many months. He was accompanied by his solicitor and barrister.

Stiles Parsons, Bonham Trudeaux and Marcellus Breadfern became aware of the trial by virtue of the media attention and the three (3) of them decided to attend the trial together. However none of them spoke to either Arcadia or Duckworth. Nor did they speak to any of the lawyers or the media.

As expected once the trial started Arcadia was arraigned and pleaded guilty to the fraud charge. She was then remanded for sentence to the end of the trial and was granted bail on the same terms as she had previously.

Parsons, Trudeaux and Breadfern were somewhat surprised that the trial they would now watch was that of Duckworth alone and not Arcadia. As Duckworth said he was not guilty, all the available evidence was called and it was quite an educational experience for the three (3) male friends of Arcadia. They learned more about her during that trial than they had expected.

During the trial Bonham Trudeaux commented about Duckworth: “Arcadia was going to leave her husband for Duckworth, yet he was clearly just using her for what she could provide for him.”

Marcellus Breadfern added, “Seems he had the same attitude to the other woman with whom he spent time at the hotel.”

During the breaks in the trial the three (3) men commented to each other how deceptive Arcadia was to them and how Duckworth was clearly a complete jerk, to put it mildly.  The video evidence was damning for Duckworth, they thought. Especially of the second woman he accompanied to the hotel. It did not surprise Parsons, Trudeaux and Breadfern when the jury returned with a guilty verdict in respect of Duckworth.

The Sentence
The three (3) men were also very interested in the basis upon which Arcadia was sentenced for her offending.

Stiles Parsons said about the sentence imposed upon Arcadia, “A better qualified barrister or advocate would have got two (2) years probation and 180 hours community service for Arcadia, in addition to the restitution she has to pay, instead of the three (3) years probation and 240 hours community service the Judge imposed. Arcadia may have even escaped without a conviction”

Marcellus Breadfern said, “Whilst I agree with you Stiles, I am not entirely unhappy with that outcome. Arcadia has betrayed all three (3) of us and plenty of others too, it seems. There is a degree of poetic justice in that sentence.”

Bonham Trudeaux said, “I tend to agree with Marcellus.”

Children of Arcadia Hear The News
The media interest in the case of Arcadia extended to Cairns, North Queensland. Before Tabernacle Calderone even knew the news report of the trial of Arcadia and Duckworth was on the nightly television news broadcast, both their children had seen a detailed news report of the trial. The children learned about the infidelity and dishonesty of Arcadia in a way Calderone would have preferred to avoid.

The Carnival Is Over

The Hard Slog Café
Bonham Trudeaux had not seen Stiles Parsons for some time, so he telephoned him and arranged to have lunch with him at the Hard Slog Café near his home. As Trudeaux was walking from his car to the Café he saw Marcellus Breadfern also walking along the footpath. He caught up to Marcellus and spoke with him. After initial salutations Bonham said he was going to have lunch at the Hard Slog Café with a friend and he invited Marcellus to join them. Marcellus accepted the invitation and they walked to the café together.

About three (3) minutes later they were seated at a table at the café. Almost immediately Stiles Parsons joined them. Stiles and Marcellus had not previously met, so Bonham introduced them. It did not take long for them to realise that they all knew and had had interaction with Arcadia Thiessen.

Bonham Trudeaux said that he had received a telephone call from Arcadia informing him that she had genital warts and he may wish to see his doctor to see if he had contracted them.

“I promptly attended my doctor and was told that I had no symptoms whatsoever.”

Upon hearing that news, Marcellus Breadfern revealed that whilst he had relatively recently had a sexual relationship with Arcadia, he did not receive a telephone call from her about her genital warts. Marcellus made it clear that he was angry about not being told.

Marcellus said, “The story Arcadia told me about her history and her marriage lead me to believe she was not promiscuous."

Bonham interjected, “You are not the first man to be mislead or deceived by Arcadia.”

Marcellus continued just as Bonham was finishing, “Clearly that is not the case. I doubt that I need to say it, but I am not happy about her dishonesty”.

Stiles joined in the conversation. “A lunch sharing our experiences and our time spent with Arcadia. I doubt there will be too many positive stories about her. From what I have seen and heard, Arcadia never supported anyone, she was only ever in relationships for herself.”

Bonham: “To my mind the genital warts were evidence of Arcadia having sex with other men.”

Stiles: “Hard to argue with that contention.”

Marcellus: “You two seem to know a different Arcadia to the one she presented to me.”

Stiles: “Arcadia was very good at deception when it came to telling her story.”

Bonham: “But her story does not stack up when people who know her get together and share their experiences, as Stiles and I have done.”

Marcellus: “ The affair Arcadia and I had gave her happiness, enabled her to feel loved, wanted and appreciated. It was more than just travelling to see me or to see each other. It was almost daily contact by telephone and text message to continue the happiness. Her children benefited from the lift in spirits the relationship gave her.”

“Our interaction had to accommodate the children not finding out about the affair. In part that involved me leaving the room during telephone calls whilst she was away from home for work purposes.”

Stiles: “Like I said, Arcadia was very good at deception when it came to telling her story.”

Bonham: “I realised the hard way Arcadia is like a sponge. She will take all of the good from you and give nothing in return, when you get past the sex and meals. It is not love she gives you. It is her way of taking all the attention you can give her.”

Stiles: “It is pretty hard to deal with when you had as much contact with Arcadia as you did, Marcellus, and Arcadia not remember you to tell you about the genital warts she had contracted. Sadly, we all seem to have disappointing stories to tell about Arcadia.”

New Management Goes Over Old Ground
Whilst the three (3) men were having lunch and discussing Arcadia, they were unaware of another development in her life. A change of management occurred at her former employer. An investigation was undertaken into the work travel Arcadia undertook for the two (2) years prior to her leaving the company. The new management formed the view that Arcadia was improperly organising work trips to Sydney so she could be with her Sydney boyfriend, Garlick Duckworth. The investigation revealed that several of the room service bills during the trips Arcadia made contained expenditure indicating two (2) people were present. No approval was ever sought by Arcadia for her employer to pay for the expenditure on another person. Accordingly a complaint was made to the police by her former employer about both Arcadia and Duckworth.

Police Investigation
The basis of the fraud allegation against Arcadia was that she dishonestly gained the benefit of air travel, accommodation and meals when she improperly organised work trips to Sydney, so she could be with her Sydney boyfriend, Garlick Duckworth. The basis of the fraud allegation against Duckworth was that he dishonestly gained the benefit of accommodation and meals when his Melbourne girlfriend, Arcadia improperly organised work trips to Sydney so she could be with him.

Police decided to pursue Duckworth prior to pursuing Arcadia. As part of the investigation he was interviewed by the police. Duckworth admitted that he knew Arcadia was organising her work trips to Sydney to see him and she was providing him with accommodation in her hotel and meals paid for by her work when she did so. He said they were reasons why he was seeing her. He said he never paid for anything when he was with Arcadia, she paid for everything, either through her work or out of her own pocket. Duckworth also told the police as many times as he could remember when Arcadia travelled to Sydney to see him.

The police were armed with the information provided by her employer and Duckworth when they approached Arcadia at her home to accompany them to the police station for a formal interview in relation to the fraud allegations. Arcadia was shocked by the news the police gave her, but showed a surprising degree of enlightenment, given her past behaviour. She told the police she wanted to speaker with her solicitor before she spoke further with the police. The police acknowledged her request and promptly left her premises.

Arcadia Contacts Solicitor, Siobhan Blanco
As soon as the police left her house Arcadia telephoned her solicitor, Siobhan Blanco, and told her about the police request for a formal interview in relation to the fraud allegations. Blanco said she was surprised to hear the news and she would contact the police to see if she could find out the details of the allegations. Blanco could tell that Arcadia was worried about her situation.

Blanco then rang the police and spoke to the detective handling the investigation. The detective told Blanco that the former employer had provided the police with evidence to support the complaint of fraud. He also said the information Duckworth provided in his interview enabled the police to identify a number of specific times when Arcadia and Duckworth were together in Sydney.

Blanco told the police she would be advising Arcadia not to participate in a formal interview.  The conversation between Blanco and the detective then ended.

Blanco then telephoned Arcadia and told her about the telephone call with the police.

Blanco: “The news is not good. From what the detective told me, they have a decent case against you. You certainly do not want to give the police any more evidence by having an interview with them.”

Arcadia: “So what should I do?”

Blanco: “I can contact the police again and tell them you do not wish to be interviewed about the matter. I expect the police will then want to make arrangements for you to attend the police station to be charged. I can go with you when the charging happens.”

Arcadia: “This is all very upsetting for me. I will do as you suggest and I would like you to come with me when I go to the police station.”

Blanco: “I will ring the police and tell them of your position.”

Blanco then telephoned the detective handling the investigation. She told him in accordance with her advice, Arcadia would not participate in a formal interview about the matter. Arrangements were then made for Arcadia to attend the police station the next day to be charged.

Charged
Arcadia was nervous when she arrived at the office of her solicitor the following day. This was an entirely new experience for her and not one to which she was looking forward. There was little conversation between them as Blanco drove them to the police station.

As they got out of the car in the police station car park Blanco said to Arcadia, “Do not say anything whilst you are with the police, with the exception of providing your identification details, of course”.

Arcadia could feel her heart pounding and her mouth was dry. Her reply was brief, “OK”

Once inside the police station Blanco introduced herself and the investigating detective attended upon them shortly thereafter.

The detective said, “This should not take all that long and I am happy for you to be present during the entire process, Ms Blanco”.

That gave some comfort to Arcadia when she heard it.

Arcadia thought she was handling the process rather well up to when the police took her fingerprints. Then her situation became very clear to her. She knew she was in a lot of trouble. She thought her heart was beating so loudly she could hardly hear what the police officer was saying to her. The fingerprinting process took about fifteen (15) minutes to complete in real time, although it seemed much longer to Arcadia.

Shortly thereafter Arcadia was asked to sign her bail undertaking and then the police told her she was free to leave.

Almost as soon as it was given to Arcadia Blanco took the bail undertaking from her and put it in the folder she was carrying.

The investigating detective said to Arcadia, “The effect of all of this is that you have been charged with the offence of fraud and you have been released on bail on your own undertaking, with no special or reporting conditions. You will have to appear in the local Magistrates Court in twenty-eight (28) days from today.

“Mr Duckworth has also been charged with fraud, the same offence as you.  He also has been released on bail on his own undertaking, with no special or reporting conditions. He will have to appear in the local Magistrates Court in twenty-eight (28) days from today. At this stage we expect your cases will be dealt with together.”

“If you have any questions, I am sure your solicitor can answer them for you. You are now free to leave.”

Blanco then gently took Arcadia by the arm and lead her out of the police station. They walked directly to her car. When she got into the car of Blanco, Arcadia burst into tears. Her reaction was not a surprise to Blanco.

After about three (3) minutes Blanco spoke to Arcadia, “Do you want to come back to my office or would you like me to take you home?

Arcadia struggled to answer.

Blanco: “How did you get to my office?”

Arcadia: “I caught a bus.”

Blanco: “I will drive you home.”

The Home of Arcadia
Arcadia composed herself a little more during the drive home. When they got to her house, Blanco went inside with Arcadia and they chatted a little more.

Blanco: “In the next few days I will contact the police and ask them to provide me with the evidence they have in your matter, even if it just a summary at this stage. We can talk then about what you are going to do in relation to the charge.”

“Just in case you were wondering, I would not talk to Duckworth about this or at all, if I were you.”

Arcadia: “OK.”

Blanco: “You seem to be better now, so I will return to my office. We will chat soon about all of this and you will be better informed about your situation.”

Arcadia: “OK and thank you for all your help today.”

Blanco: “You are welcome”

Blanco then left the home of Arcadia and returned to her office.

Word Gets Around

42 year old Mrs Page Abernathy was the Chief Executive Officer and very much the public face of the Keeping Families Together Charity. She created for herself a high celebrity profile and appeared to be a trustworthy public figure. In stark contrast to that public persona she was having an adulterous affair with low profile, Mr Lachlan Tedeschi, a 46 year old litigation lawyer, and also the very high profile and married Mr Herbert Strauss, a 50 year old Chief Executive Officer of the Major Bank.

Art Gallery Opening February 2013
Page Abernathy and Lachlan Tedeschi met at an art gallery opening in February 2013 and immediately struck up a friendship. During their interaction at the art gallery Page was very encouraging of Lachlan and shortly before the function was due to end they went home together to the house of Lachlan Tedeschi.

“My husband understands my affairs, so long as I keep them discreet and he is away a lot on business”, Page told Lachlan, as they were getting to know each other a lot better at his house.

Lachlan replied, “Being discreet is not a problem for me.”

Page: “We can spend a fair bit of time together, work schedules permitting and apart from my husband, you are the only man I am seeing.”

He had no reason to doubt her at the time and she seemed very charming. Their relationship had effectively commenced.

Early the next morning Page Abernathy left the home of Lachlan Tedeschi to return to her home.

Dinner with Friend, Wesley Tunstall
Later that day Lachlan Tedeschi went to work as normal. After work he had dinner with his friend Wesley Tunstall, the nurse, and he told Wesley of what happened the previous evening.

Wesley said, “I have heard of Page Abernathy. She has quite an ability to draw attention to herself. Having a discreet relationship with her would be something of a contrast for her and a challenge for you both, I suspect. I am not surprised to hear her ‘my husband understands my affairs’ line, although it sounds a little cliched and I wonder how accurate that statement may be. Still time will tell, I guess, and ultimately it is a decision for you.”

Lachlan: “It is hard to argue with the cliched observation and as you say, time will tell as to the veracity of her contention in relation to her husband. If history is any guide, we will be discussing this relationship and Page Abernathy from time to time, so we will probably be able to judge the extent to which you are correct.”

Wesley: “I may take a keener interest in the public life of Page Abernathy, now that you have shared your news with me.”

The rest of the evening was uneventful for Lachlan and Wesley and after about another hour, the dinner ended and they each went to their respective homes.

May 2014 Herbert Strauss Appears On The Scene
Page Abernathy and Lachlan Tedeschi spent quite a bit of time together over the next two (2) years, mostly at their respective houses, but sometimes venturing into public together. Because he had spent so much time at her house, Lachlan became quite familiar with it, including where Page kept her diary.

By May 2014 Lachlan noticed something a little unusual in the behaviour of Page Abernathy. The most obvious change was that she spent less time with him than she had done in the preceding months. That behaviour change was due to the arrival of Herbert Strauss on the scene, but Lachlan did not learn of his presence until many months later.

Page Abernathy was not only having an affair with Herbert Strauss, she was also recording significant intimate details of that affair in her diary.

Lachlan was still keeping in touch with Wesley Tunstall and from time to time they would meet to socialise. Discussion of the relationship between Lachlan and Page Abernathy was part of their interaction. Wesley gradually got a clear sense that all was not as well as it could be between Lachlan and Page.

December 2014
By December 2014 Lachlan Tedeschi had a very strong suspicion that Page Abernathy was seeing someone in addition to him and he expressed his concerns to Wesley Tunstall. The diary of Page Abernathy was a part of their discussion by that stage and whether it may contain any details of this possible new man.

Wesley Tunstall: “If you are going to read her diary, you would best do it in circumstances where she is not likely to catch you doing it. I would wait until she is out of the house, if that is possible.”

Lachlan Tedeschi: “I still get invited to her house from time to time, so I will see if any such opportunity arises.”

January 2015
Early January 2015, while Page was out of her house, Lachlan read the diary she kept in her bedside drawers. He discovered entries confirming that Page had been having an adulterous affair with Herbert Strauss.  Lachlan took photographs of the diary entries which described the relationship Page was having with Herbert Strauss in lurid detail.

Once he had taken photographs of the diary entries, he contacted Wesley Tunstall and arranged to meet with him almost immediately. They had a discussion about what Lachlan had discovered and Wesley convinced Lachlan to provide a copy of the photographs to him.

Wesley Tunstall: “I am only telling to you what you have told to me on numerous occasions about controlling and preserving evidence.”

Lachlan Tedeschi: “That is sound advice and I am glad you are giving it to me.”

Within ten (10) minutes Wesley had a copy of the subject photographs on his mobile telephone. That seemed to give some comfort to Lachlan.

Wesley could see that Lachlan was distressed by his discovery and he tried to comfort him, rather than further aggravate him. They stayed together for about ninety (90) minutes and when they parted to return to their respective homes, Lachlan seemed to be in better spirits.

Private Investigator
Wesley Tunstall could see the adverse effect the relationship revelation had upon Lachlan Tedeschi. He decided to take some action of his own and hire a private investigator to enquire into Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss. Wesley had no intention of telling Lachlan of what he was doing, at that stage.

It did not take long for the private investigator to provide photographs to Wesley of the relationship between Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss. Once he had the photographs, Wesley discharged the services of the private investigator. He kept the photographs to himself and did not tell Lachlan of any of this activity or discovery.

January 2015
A little later in January 2015 Lachlan Tedeschi confronted Page Abernathy about her affair with Herbert Strauss. A heated argument ensued for several hours. Lachlan agreed to delete the images of the diary of Page, provided she delete the contact details of Herbert Strauss from her iPhone and iPad. The relationship between Page and Lachlan continued.

1 March 2015 - 2 March 2015
However, a few weeks later, on 1 March 2015, Lachlan discovered Page still had the contact details of Herbert Strauss. Lachlan then threatened to expose her affair with Strauss.

Lachlan challenged Page over the affair again saying: "I want to expose you both for what you have done. I have got enough evidence to do that."

After this argument, Page left the house of Lachlan in the early hours of 2 March 2015. Page formed the view that Lachlan did not delete every photo of the diary and had evidence to damage both herself and Herbert Strauss.

Once again Lachlan contacted Wesley Tunstall and told him what had happened with Page Abernathy. Wesley could see that Lachlan was very distressed and he did not wish to distress him further. He did not tell Lachlan about the private investigator and the photographs of the relationship between Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss. Wesley thought it best to do that at another time.

After about two (2) hours Lachlan Tedeschi left Wesley Tunstall to go home, seemingly in a better frame of mind.

Legal Action
Page Abernathy started legal action in her local Supreme Court to obtain an interim injunction and gagging order under the Human Rights Act. She sought a ban on the publication of the diary entries to prevent Lachlan Tedeschi from leaking details to the media of her affair with Herbert Strauss.

The application of Page Abernathy proceeded in the absence of both Lachlan Tedeschi and Herbert Strauss.

Page Abernathy argued that

• The potential damage which could be done, both to her, as a public figure of trust, and to Herbert Strauss, as a public figure who is married to someone else, is enormous
• If the documents stolen from Page Abernathy and her affair with Herbert Strauss were shared or published in the public domain, “both she and Herbert Strauss would be irreparably damaged, and there would be enormous financial repercussions for both of them”
• Herbert Strauss is unaware of the present situation
• She feared it would “tip off” Lachlan Tedeschi and he would publish the diary entries before she could obtain a court order, if she were to notify him of her application for an injunction.

Sitting in the Supreme Court Justice Baldwin-Taylor granted the interim injunction sought by Page Abernathy.

Justice Baldwin-Taylor

• The hearing was allowed to proceed without Lachlan Tedeschi being present
• The fears Lachlan Tedeschi would rush publication of the diary entries before it was possible for Page Abernathy to gain the injunction were well founded
• The right to respect for her private life of Page Abernathy under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights outweighed the right to freedom of expression under Article 10 in publishing that private life
• On the evidence the reasons for publication are motivated by malice entertained by the defendant Lachlan Tedeschi towards the claimant Page Abernathy

Service of The Court Orders
Within a very short time of the Court granting the interim injunction and gag order that Page Abernathy sought, both Lachlan Tedeschi and Herbert Strauss were respectively served with a copy of the orders.

Lachlan was astounded when he read the orders and he contacted Wesley Tunstall almost immediately. Wesley was not working and they agreed to meet about forty (40) minutes later. Wesley took the photographs the private investigator took of Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss to that meeting.

When they met Wesley could see that Lachlan was distressed and angry. Wesley tried to stay calm and reduce the aggravation of Lachlan, if possible. Wesley was doing his best to remember the advice he had heard Lachlan give on a number of previous occasions.

Wesley Tunstall: “I still have a copy of the photograph you gave me in January 2015. As far as I know, no one knows I have them at this stage and there is no reason for that situation to change. I am well aware that you want to reveal the affair between Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss, but you do not wish to put yourself in a position where you will breach the Court order. I may be able to assist you in that regard.”

“After we met in January 2015 I hired a private investigator to investigate the relationship between Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss. It did not take him long for him to provide photographs to me of their relationship. Once I had the photographs, I discharged the services of the private investigator. I kept the photographs to myself and did not tell you of any of this activity or discovery, because I did not want to distress you further.”

“The significance of this is that you now have independent evidence of the relationship between Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss and that evidence can be released to the media, seemingly without breaching the court orders.”

Lachlan Tedeschi: “At the very least it seems you have paid attention to what I have said from time to time over the years.”

Wesley Tunstall: “It is also worth considering whether my releasing the material to the media might be a better strategy in the circumstances.”

Lachlan Tedeschi: “That is very well done, Wesley Tunstall.”

The Next Day
The next day multiple media outlets ran with a double story: a report on the Court case which revealed no identities of anyone involved; followed by a revelation of the affair between Page Abernathy and Herbert Strauss, accompanied by the independent photographs of them taken by the private investigator.

¹

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1 This story is loosely based on the case CHS -v- DNH [2015] EWHC 1214 (Ch) ^↩

Destination Unknown

Dinner at the same hotel was how their paths crossed. 42 year old Mirabella Northcote was a senior manager in an energy company visiting Rockhampton, central Queensland to speak at a conference. 48 year old environmental scientist Cassidy Cheltham found himself in Rockhampton to inspect a site to see if it could be restored for residential or commercial development.

Initially they were both dining alone. Mirabella made sure Cassidy was aware of her. She smiled at him several times during the early part of her meal. On her way back from the toilet to her table just after Cassidy had commenced his main course, Mirabella invited to Cassidy to dine with her at her table. Her wedding ring was clearly visible to single Cassidy as she extended her invitation to him. He accepted her invitation and took his meal and drink to her table.

After initial introductions and pleasantries, it did not take Mirabella long to tell Cassidy she was trapped in a bad marriage. She did not say much positive about her husband, Derwent Northcote, the few times she spoke about him. She said she was staying with him because it was best for her two (2) children, Miss 10 and Mr 7.

Mirabella put on a good performance. She managed to talk about enough topics to take the focus off her “troubled” marriage and appear charming to Cassidy. When they finished their dinner they talked for a while and then Mirabella successfully asked Cassidy to go to her hotel room with her.

Inside her hotel room Mirabella removed her clothing, but not her wedding ring. Cassidy participated in the encounter and spent the evening with her. So began their adulterous affair.

When they returned to their respective homes, they kept in touch via telephone calls and text messages, with the occasional e-mail.

Throughout their affair Mirabella kept her story consistent in one regard, she complained her husband Derwent was a serial cheat, who had had many lovers before she commenced her affair with Cassidy. From the start Cassidy urged Mirabella to leave Derwent and he continued to do so for the entirety of their relationship.

Mirabella always said she would stay with Derwent because that was the best for their children. If she left him, she was always worried about him doing something to the children. There was never any complaint of physical violence, but there were regular references to emotional abuse from Derwent to Mirabella.

Mirabella was also consistent with her demands that she did not want her husband, Derwent, to know about her affair with Cassidy. Cassidy complied with her request, even though that made contacting Mirabella a difficult exercise at times. She did not always keep her spare mobile telephone close by.

They saw each other as often as their business schedules would permit and they saw the inside of several hotel rooms together.

For eighteen (18) months things went well between Mirabella and Cassidy, Mirabella was a kind, loving, caring woman. Occasionally during that time she would contact Cassidy and seek comfort from him because of what she said was an unpleasant interaction with her husband. Those exchanges were always the same, Derwent had allegedly said something horrible to Mirabella and whilst she endeavoured to stand up for herself, the outcome was unpleasant and very stressful for her.

Mirabella maintained that their children never saw nor heard any of this dysfunctional relationship. As far as they were concerned, their parents had a reasonably happy household. Cassidy and Mirabella disagreed often on that issue and Mirabella never accepted that Cassidy may be correct.

Many times Cassidy said to Mirabella that he was interested in a full-time relationship with her and that she should make plans to leave Derwent for that purpose. Mirabella always rejected that offer and said she would stay with Derwent because that was the best for their children. If she left him, she was worried about what he might do to their children.

During that time there were also four (4) or five (5) hysterical telephone calls from Mirabella to Cassidy after Mirabella got upset over something Cassidy had allegedly done. There were several more occasions when Mirabella telephoned Cassidy seeking his support and comfort after what she said were arguments she had with her husband Derwent. Cassidy was always available and supportive when Mirabella rang. In stark contrast to the carefully controlled availability Mirabella offered him.

Their relationship changed after about eighteen (18) months, when Cassidy learned through social media that Mirabella had become very interested in two (2) or three (3) other men. Mirabella always denied she was having an affair with any or all of those men when she and Cassidy discussed the matter. But she was clearly starstruck by the attention those men were giving her.

Mirabella made herself even less available to Cassidy and whenever she did ring him, it was clear to him that Mirabella was always available for her new men. This caused great friction between Mirabella and Cassidy. He saw several instances online where Mirabella was flaunting the time she spent with her new men.

Cassidy also noticed another change in Mirabella. Ever since she started associating with her new men, her dishonesty increased significantly. There were several things she said to Cassidy that were demonstrably not true. The friction between Mirabella and Cassidy was growing steadily.

The Separation
After about six (6) months of that friction laden, deteriorating relationship, Mirabella announced to Cassidy that she was separating from her husband. By that stage she contended that separation was the best for her and her children. The friction between Cassidy and Mirabella grew significantly once Mirabella made that revelation.

Cassidy received several more hysterical telephone calls from Mirabella telling him she did not want her husband to learn of their affair. Typically those telephone conversations involved Cassidy telling Mirabella that Derwent would see from her social media activity that she was having affairs with her new men. Mirabella always said she was worried about what harm Derwent might do to their children if he ever found out about her affair with Cassidy.

That contention became less credible every time Cassidy heard it, particularly in light of how Mirabella was flaunting on-line her relationships with her new men.

Once Mirabella had separated from her husband, she told Cassidy she no longer wished to continue her relationship with him. She wanted to concentrate on her divorce and she did not want any relationships with other men to complicate that situation. Cassidy was not happy when he heard that news. It was clear from her social media presence that Mirabella had increased her activity with her new men, both online and in person.

From time to time after ending their relationship Mirabella telephoned Cassidy because she wanted something or wanted to discuss something. She never rang him to comfort him. It was curious behaviour on the part of Mirabella, Cassidy thought, when she could easily consult any of her new men for assistance.

A feature of those conversations for Cassidy was how Mirabella coped with the pressure of being a single parent and the primary carer of her children. It looked to him as though she was not coping well. Another Mirabella behaviour Cassidy thought curious was Mirabella continuing to flaunt her relationships with her new men when she said to him she did not want Derwent to know of their relationship. That was an issue Mirabella refused to discuss whenever she rang Cassidy. Yet it seemed to be the motivation for two (2) or three (3) hysterical conversations Mirabella had with Cassidy after her separation from Derwent.

By that stage Cassidy thought the criticism of her husband was a projection by Mirabella of her own problems.

Mirabella never shared with Cassidy that her children witnessed and were subjected to several episodes of severe mood swings by her, once she has separated from Derwent and she had to care for the children all by herself. Nor did she share with Cassidy that she had seen doctors on several occasions to get assistance to sleep when she had to care for the children all by herself.

The Road Trip
Cassidy had not heard from Mirabella for about two (2) moths when she undertook her four (4) hour road trip to her camping holiday with her children. During that last call Mirabella was completely hysterical about her now estranged husband finding out about her affair with Cassidy and Derwent thinking she was having affairs with other men.

Mirabella told her children they were going on a road trip and a camping holiday. When they asked her where they were going, Mirabella replied, “We will find out when we get there”.

To the outside world Mirabella, the mother driving her children on a four (4) hour road trip holiday, was highly educated with a very good professional job. She portrayed an impressive image of herself to the outside world. Mirabella ensured she was well prepared for the holiday by taking a large supply of her sleeping tablets with her. She told herself she did not want to have problems getting to sleep during the holiday.

Soon after the road trip with her two (2) children commenced it became clear that Mirabella had not planned for the enormous stress to which she would feel exposed with her and her children in such close quarters for a long time. During the drive Mirabella became paranoid about her double life with men other than her husband being discovered. Several food, drink and toilet stops interrupted the troubled thought processes of Mirabella, which was fortunate for the children.

The Camp Site
When they arrived at the camp site Mirabella told her children, “This is where we will be staying for the next week.”

The three (3) of them then unpacked the car and set up the tent. All seemed well for Mirabella and her children. Their first night at the camp site proceeded without incident. As did most of the next day.

Dinner on the second evening saw that situation change. Mirabella became convinced that her double life with other men would be discovered by her now estranged husband and he would take her children away from her. She took a large number of her sleeping tablets and put them in the food she cooked for her children that evening.

Not long after dinner was finished the children went to sleep. They never awoke.

Several hours after putting sleeping tablets in the food she cooked for her children, Mirabella drove away from the camp site and returned to her home.

The next day other campers found the children of Mirabella and Derwent dead in the tent in which they went to sleep the previous evening. Of course Mirabella was nowhere to be seen at the camp site and immediately the campers contacted the police.

Later that day the police located Mirabella and took her into custody.

Derwent was devastated when he heard of the news about his children and Mirabella.

Cassidy was also upset when he heard the news. He said to himself the hysterical telephone calls from Mirabella were some evidence of the delusions she created for herself from time to time.

Subsequently Mirabella was examined by a psychiatrist and was found to be suffering from paranoid delusions at the time of her road trip holiday. Having been found to be of unsound mind at the time of the road trip and the offences, the prosecution against Mirabella was discontinued. Mirabella spent a considerable time in hospital receiving treatment for her mental health problems.

When Selfish Is The Primary Focus

Daniel Soames answered the telephone. It was his instructing solicitor Toussaint Wilberforce.

“We have a family law case in Sydney in two (2) days, Mr Soames. I thought I would ring you and confirm that all appears to be in order here. How are things with you?”

“All appears to be in order here as well, Mr Wilberforce”, Soames replied.

Wilberforce: “You will recall, Mr Soames, the mother was living with the father in the Central Coast area of New South Wales. They had two (2) children in their relationship. The mother left the marriage and the Central Coast with the two (2) children to live in Wollongong with her then boyfriend. The four (4) of them then moved to Queensland to live. That relationship did not last and the mother subsequently moved to Rockhampton with her current partner and his two (2) children. The children of the marriage are now settled in Rockhampton, attending school and doing well.”

Soames: “Yes, Mr Wilberforce, I recall.”

Wilberforce: “The Independent Children’s Lawyer agrees with the recommendation of the Family Report writer that the children should remain living with the mother in Central Queensland. The Family Report writer concluded that the children had finally achieved a degree of stability in their lives, although it was limited to that point. Accordingly on the available evidence staying in that environment would be the preferred option for the well-being of the children.”

Soames: “That is a handy position in which to be, Mr Wilberforce. But the attitude of the Judge is the most important factor and that remains unknown at this juncture.”

Wilberforce: “Quite so, Mr Soames, and I sense that our welcoming may not be all that warm in the Court in Sydney.”

Soames: “I share your assessment and concern.”

Wilberforce: “I will see you at the airport tomorrow.”

Soames: “Yes, Mr Wilberforce, tomorrow, at the airport.”

The telephone conversation then ended.

The Airport
When Daniel attended the airport he proceeded through airline security as is normally the case. Quite unexpectedly on this occasion he encountered his friend Conchita. She now worked for airline security and after initial salutations, she spent about ten (10) minutes regaling him with stories of people travelling who are seemingly cheating on their partners. Several of them were people she knew in one form or another.

Their respective work demands meant they could not continue their discussion and so it ended. Daniel proceeded through the remainder of airline security and then went off to meet his instructing solicitor and travelling companion, Toussaint Wilberforce.

Soames shared the news of meeting Conchita with Wilberforce

“What a handy resource she may prove to be in the future”, Wilberforce said.

Soames replied, “Not everything is about work, Wilberforce. However I agree him that Conchita may prove to be a useful source of information in the future.”

That discussion filled part of the time whilst they waited until they could board their plane. The rest of the time did not involve any significant discussion of their case, due to the public nature of their location.

On The Plane
Once on the plane Soames and Wilberforce were seated together and next to Wilberforce was a man who was very keen to chat. Once he found out Wilberforce was a solicitor who practiced in family law, his travel companion was very keen to tell his story of a woman he knew who was on a music podcast. According to the travel companion if you listened to that particular music podcast, the woman co-host progressively revealed her divorce and effectively bragged about her affair with her two co-hosts.

During the telling of the story Soames said to Wilberforce, “Work rarely seems to stop for you”.

Wilberforce replied, “The information and knowledge gained can be useful in the future, Soames.”

Soames: “Point taken” and they smiled broadly at each other.

When the travel companion finished his story, there was little other conversation between him, Wilberforce and Soames.

Soames and Wilberforce spent the remainder of the flight discussing minor matters. It was a pleasant and otherwise uneventful flight.

When Soames and Wilberforce landed in Sydney they went straight to their hotel, checked in and proceeded to their respective hotel rooms. Once settled in his room, Soames commenced preparation for the trial the next day.

The Trial - Day 1
At the end of the first day of the trial, Soames reflected upon its progress. All things considered, the evidence proceeded as he thought it would and no one took an unsurprising approach. The Judge was somewhat more angry at his client, the mother, than he had anticipated, but not so much as to need to fundamentally revise their approach to the trial.

Soames and Wilberforce briefly returned to their respective hotel rooms after the day in Court and then met again for dinner that evening. During dinner, Soames and Wilberforce discussed the case and how the trial was progressing.

Soames: “Mr Wilberforce, I have considerable disquiet about the behaviour of the mother. Rewarding it by allowing the children to remain living with her seems an uncomfortable, perhaps even unsavoury, result.  There were many valid criticisms of the father which were canvassed today during the trial and they counted against the children living with him. However I am not sure the new man in the life of the mother is a significant improvement. He seems to be the same type of man as the father we have been criticising, only nicer.”

Wilberforce: “Nicer, for now, Soames. I expect he will become like the father in time to come.”

Soames: “That is hardly a comforting prospect for the children in this mess.”

Wilberforce: “Indeed Soames, but it is the way these cases invariably unfold.”

Soames: “In fact the more I see of him, the more I tend to not like the new male partner of our client. Happily there has been no need for him to give evidence in these proceedings.”

Wilberforce: “He has also failed to ingratiate himself with me and I have spent considerably more time with him than you have done.”

Soames: “Some of the bad behaviour of the mother seems to have been stemmed since meeting this chap. She has remained living in Rockhampton and the children are now settled in Rockhampton, attending school and doing well. Perhaps he has some redeeming features.”

Wilberforce: “If the new man is responsible for that apparent stability, perhaps he does have some redeeming features.”

The dinner continued in an otherwise uneventful fashion and after about an hour both men then retired to their respective hotel rooms.

The Trial - Day 2
With all the evidence having been completed during day one (1) of the trial, all that remained on day two (2) were final submissions.

In addressing Soames during his final submissions on behalf of the mother, the Judge said, “It was common ground int the trial that the mother had facilitated very little contact between the father and children since they left the Central Coast of New South Wales. That was something to which the father referred often when presenting his case and it was something about which I often criticised the mother.”

“There was significant criticism of the mother that she was not child-focussed in her behaviour and had not been child-focussed for some time. That criticism came from the father, the Family Report writer, the Independent Children’s Lawyer and me.”

“That criticism supported a return of the children to live with the father on the NSW Central Coast.  However it was tempered by the fact that the children had finally achieved some stability in their lives and disrupting that stability to return to the Central Coast would be detrimental to the development of the children. That is a matter of some significance for the case of the mother.”

“Again, the father, the Family Report writer, the Independent Children’s Lawyer and I were all very critical of the mother, that she had organised her life to suit herself and not the children. That meant there was a significant element of rewarding the very bad behaviour of the mother in allowing the children to continue living with her in Central Queensland.”

“You can hardly argue with those criticisms, Mr Soames. I believe I have made it abundantly clear during this trial how unhappy I am about the behaviour of you client, the mother, in this case.”

Soames: “No, Your Honour, I do not propose to argue with the criticisms you have raised and you have made your displeasure with the behaviour of the mother abundantly clear. Notwithstanding all the criticisms of the mother and her behaviour, as Your Honour pointed out earlier, the children have finally achieved some stability in their lives and disrupting that stability to return to the Central Coast would be detrimental to their development. Accordingly in our submission, Your Honour would grant the orders sought by the mother and permit the children to continue living in their present circumstances.”

The Judge retired for approximately two (2) hours to consider her decision.

Opportunity Knocks
As they were waiting for the Judge to make her decision in the trial, Soames and Wilberforce decided to go to a café to get something to eat and drink.

On their way to a café across the road from the Court, Wilberforce grabbed Soames by the arm and spoke quietly in his ear,
“Soames, you know how you told me work never ends for me, well something about which I know a little is occurring right in front of us. The woman in a passionate embrace with the man is known to me. She is from Melbourne and that man she is kissing is not her husband. He is a Sydney local and is known to me too.”

Soames could clearly see the wedding ring of the woman involved in the kiss.

By this stage Wiberforce had used his mobile telephone to take two (2) or three (3) photographs of the embracing couple. Wilberforce maintained his concentration on the couple and noticed they were walking into a nearby hotel. He took more photographs of them entering the hotel and he followed them. Soames followed Wilberforce, without saying a word. When the embracing couple got into the hotel elevator together Wilberforce took his last photograph of them.

It appeared to Soames that the couple were oblivious to the presence of Wilberforce.

Soames and Wilberforce then went to a café and during their meal, Wilberforce told Soames the story of the embracing couple.

Wilberforce: “Some months ago I was retained to assist in a divorce and do a little investigation and advice work for the husband of the woman we saw in the embrace. She travelled quite a bit for work and the husband suspected she was having an affair. I was supplied with some information, including photographs of the wife. It turns out a Sydney solicitor I know also knows the Sydney man involved and he was quite happy to tell me about him. I was told the Sydney man was a giant rat, who likes to promote himself and make fun of other people. He has no loyalty whatsoever.”

“This will be unexpected information for my Melbourne solicitor colleague. I propose to provide it to him as a professional courtesy. I expect he will tell me the wife was in Sydney “on business” or ”working”. The circumstances of the working or business I have seen and photographed may be different to that told to the husband by the wife.”

Soames: “That is very decent of you, Wilberforce. And very alert as well. Experience tells me those are the moments one does not want to miss when it comes to evidence collation.”

Wilberforce: “I thought it warranted an immediate response. I am grateful for your cooperation.”

Soames: “No trouble, Mr Wilberforce. It has added a little more excitement and diversity to our day and our Sydney visit.”

Wilberforce the rang his Melbourne solicitor colleague and told him what had just occurred. The Melbourne solicitor said he made significant notes of the conversation. Wilberforce said he would write to him about it and send the photographs to him when Wilberforce returned to Brisbane.

At the end of the telephone call Soames and Wilberforce discussed the passionate embrace couple a little more and then turned their attention back to their trial.

About twenty-five (25) minutes later the associate to the Judge rang them to tell them she was returning to deliver her judgment. Soames and Wilberforce immediately returned to the Court.

The Decision
Upon her return the Judge gave her decision immediately.

• “I find that the behaviour of the mother since separation and to date in removal of the children, the manner in which she changed their residence and her failure to assist the children in the maintenance of their relationship with their father was inappropriate and reflects poorly on her understanding of parental responsibility.”
• “There is little evidence to date of a willingness on the part of the mother to facilitate a continuing relationship between the father and the children.”
• “There is considerable evidence of the inability of the mother to focus on the needs of the children, preferring instead to focus on her needs.”
• “The attitude of the mother to the responsibilities of parenthood is very unsatisfactory.”
• “There have been repeated relocations and her choice of previous partners permitted to live with the children reveal irresponsible parenting.’
• “An inability to focus on the needs of the children until very recently is apparent.”
• “Notwithstanding these significant criticisms, the children are settled in their current environment and their relationship with their mother.”
• “It would now not be in the best interests of the children to require them to relocate to the Central Coast of New South Wales.”
• “I am not comfortable making orders that seem to reward the behaviour of the mother which has been bad in so many respects, but these orders represent the best interests of the children after proper consideration of all the evidence.”

Court ended quickly after the decision was given. Everyone packed up their material and left the Court room promptly. Soames and Wilberforce went to an interview room nearby and had a short conference with the client and her new partner. They were still holding hands at every opportunity, to the significant annoyance of Soames.

After a brief explanation of the judgment to the client and her new partner, which they both seemed to understand, they announced they had to leave to catch the flight home they had booked. They then thanked both Soames and Wilberforce and left for the airport.

Soames and Wilberforce once again attended the café where they ate during the Judge considering her decision. On this occasion it was an entirely uneventful visit.

From there they caught a taxi to the airport for an uneventful flight home.

Cold, Cold Heart

Barbeque
Hermione McEwan telephoned Jason Haldis to invite him to accompany her to a barbeque to which she was invited. He accepted.

“I will be at your house at 7:30 pm tonight to pick you up”, she said.

Whilst at the barbecue they meet Pedro Devine, a friend of the sister of Hermione. In conversation with him he told them he was the jilted lover of Chastity Lewis. She had dumped him after lying to him for six (6) months about not having other lovers, yet she flaunted them via social media.

During their conversation with him neither Hermione nor Jason revealed to Pedro what they actually did. Jason told Pedro they were both security consultants.

Pedro said, “Chastity was in town speaking at a conference I was attending. We met during the lunch break and she asked me if I would like to have dinner with her. I agreed. At dinner she was extremely charming and told me she was trapped in a bad marriage.”

Hermione interjected, “You are kidding? She said she was trapped in a bad marriage?”

Pedro continued, “No, I am not kidding. That is what she said and her story was convincing. During dinner she was quite seductive, in her own way too. When the invitation to go back to her hotel room with her arrived, I was not going to resist. Chastity had a compelling quality about her. The sex with her was spectacular that night and I wanted to see her again. She told me she would contact me every time she was in town for business and we could see each other then. She seemed happy with those arrangements.”

Jason: “I expect she was very happy with those arrangements.”

Hermione: “How did you contact each other in between times?”

Pedro: “Chastity gave me her personal mobile telephone number and we rang each other and / or sent text messages to each other most days of the week.”

Jason: “I gather her husband did not know anything about this arrangement?”

Pedro: “Not as far as I am aware.  Our contact arrangements were such that he would not find out, so Chastity told me.”

Hermione asked Pedro, “Can you tell me the telephone number of Chastity Lewis, please?”

Pedro located the number and gave it to Hermione.

“I will make some enquiries about her”, Hermione said.

“So will I”, Jason added.

Hermione: “Does Chastity Lewis work for InterStellar Insurance?”

Pedro: “Yes”.

Hermione: Is she a Risk Assessment Analyst?”

Pedro: “Yes”.

Jason: “Does she speak at conferences?”

Pedro: “Yes”

Hermione then showed Pedro her mobile telephone.
“Is that her picture and biography on the Conference Speaker List?”

Pedro: “Yes”

Hermione: “How long did the good times last?”

Pedro: “About fifteen (15) months and then Chastity started lying to me for about six (6) months about not having other lovers, yet she flaunted them via social media.”

Hermione: “Did you see her during those six (6) moths?”

Pedro: “Very rarely. She always had excuses as to why we could not see each other. But she always seemed to be able to travel to see the men she was flaunting on social media.”

Jason: “And then she dumped you?”

Pedro: “A disinterested telephone call was all I got from her telling me our relationship was over. She had clearly moved on to these other men by that stage and I was of no use to her, so she discarded me.”

Jason: “Not a bad life for someone ‘trapped in a bad marriage’.”

Pedro: “It certainly did not make me happy.”

Hermione: “I do not expect it did.”

Jason: “Would you like someone to have a chat with her?”

Pedro responded immediately, “I would like someone to do a lot more than just have a chat with her.”

Then he looked at Hermione and Jason and reconsidered the question. His next response was a little different.

“Yes, I would like someone to have a chat with her.”

Jason: “We will see what we can do.”

Hermione: “You say you managed to keep your affair with Chastity Lewis quiet and very discreet. It would be helpful for all concerned if you were similarly discreet about this conversation.”

Pedro: “I understand completely.”

Jason: “That would be very helpful.”

Pedro: “Here are some of her social media posts about where she is next likely to travel for business over the next few months.”

Pedro then showed his mobile telephone to Jason and Hermione.

Jason read the social media posts to which Pedro referred him.

“Thank you, Pedro. I have made copies of them”, Hermione said.

Jason then returned the mobile telephone to Pedro.

Jason: “We should probably mix with other people here tonight, Pedro. So as not to draw unnecessary attention to ourselves.”

Hermione: “We can perhaps chat again later in the evening, if we need to.”

Pedro: “OK. Thank you for talking to me.”

Pedro then went and joined a group of six (6) or seven (7) people, who seemed to be having a humourous conversation.

Hermione: “I am interested in having a chat with Chastity Lewis.”

Jason: “That is a little forward for you, Hermione.”

Hermione: “My sister has told me many times what a nice guy Pedro is and how much Chastity Lewis upset him by the way she treated him.”

Jason: “Your enthusiasm has captured my attention and so has your proposed project. I am also interested in having a chat with Chastity Lewis. It seems she will be at The Troubadour Hotel next month and you are quite fond of The Troubadour Hotel.”

Hermione: “It is true I know my way around The Troubadour Hotel. It will be no trouble to set up an audio-visual feed in the room in which Chastity Lewis is staying at the Hotel.”

Shortly thereafter Hermione and Jason left the barbecue, without anyone apparently being aware of their departure.

As Hermione parked her car outside the house of Jason, he said to her, “That turned out to be an interesting barbeque and evening, Hermione.”

Hermione: “Pedro Devine was not the reason I invited you. He just happened to be there. But it has certainly been an interesting evening. I will speak with you again tomorrow.”

Jason said “Thank you” and walked inside his house.

Hermione then drove home.

Troubadour Hotel Room Surprise
Eight (8) days later Jason said to Hermione, “So, Hermione, it is off to The Troubadour Hotel.”

“Yes, Jason. I have already installed the audio-visual feed in the room.”

Jason: “If things go as we suspect, Chastity Lewis will have an audio-video souvenir of her adulterous visit to The Troubadour Hotel.”

Hermione: “Which she will share with her family, friends and work colleagues.”

Jason: “Our taxi to The Love Shack awaits.”

Hermione: “Then let us not delay.”

When they arrived at The Troubadour Hotel Hermione told Jason, “I have arranged for us to have a room nearby the Love Nest. It will make our operations a little easier.”

Hermione: “I also managed to upload a bug to her mobile telephone, so I should be able to tell when Chastity Lewis is in the hotel.”

Jason: “Very helpful.”

About an hour and twenty (20) minutes after Jason and Hermione arrived at The Troubadour Hotel Chastity Lewis arrived. A man accompanied her as she checked in.

Hermione said to Jason: “I believe the star of the show has arrived and she appears to have a male companion.”

Jason: “I expect it will not be long before the floorshow starts.”

Hermione: “You would think the companion would be a little discreet about attending here with Chastity. Presenting at the Reception Counter with her draws unnecessary attention to them.”

The Chastity Lewis Hotel Room
After checking in, Chastity Lewis and her male companion proceeded to their hotel room.

Jason: “Your equipment seems to be working very well, Hermione. That is quite a view we are getting.”

Hermione said, “The sound is working too” as she let Jason listen to her headphones.

Jason: “Obviously getting to know each other is a higher priority for this pair than unpacking their bags and the like.”

Hermione: “She is clearly a very willing participant in this interpersonal interaction and a rather vocal one as well.”

Jason: “I suspect her experience is far superior to his.”

Hermione: “Yes and I predict that they will call for room service shortly. That will be our cue. I have enough audio-visual material for our purposes, so we can proceed with the next stage of our plan.”

Jason: “I think I am ready.”

Room Service
As Hermione predicted, ten (10) minutes later, Chastity telephoned for room service.

Wearing an earpiece from Hermione and disguised as room service staff, Jason visited the hotel room of Chastity Lewis with a trolley carrying food. Whilst he waited outside the room and knocked on the door, Hermione told Jason that the male guest of Chastity Lewis had gone into the bathroom, which was just inside the hotel room door.

As Chastity let Jason into the hotel room, she walked over to the table where she said to Jason she wanted him to put the food. Jason detoured from that path, walked in to the bathroom and shot the companion of Chastity dead, using a gun with a silencer.

He then walked back into the main hotel room area and spoke with Chastity, whilst pointing the gun at her.

“Do not say one (1) word”, Jason said sternly to her. “Sit on the bed and watch the television.”

A stunned and scared Chastity did as she was told.

Hermione then played the recording of Chastity entering the hotel with her my companion and the subsequent sexual liaison between the two (2) of them on the television in the hotel room.

Chastity was in shock at what she was watching.

Jason again spoke to Chastity, “Do not worry about your mobile telephone. It has been disabled. And do not get any clever ideas. We are going to have a chat about your infidelity.”

“That very entertaining video you have just watched is going to be shared with a variety of people from the address book of your mobile telephone, including your husband, your parents and your employer.”

Hermione told Jason the video distribution was complete.

Jason continued to Chastity, “I was also going to make you make some telephone calls and confess your infidelity, but that is too much trouble. Instead, you can join your lover.”

Jason promptly shot Chastity Lewis three (3) times and killed her.

Housekeeping
Jason then telephoned one of his contacts and they immediately attended the hotel room, disguised as cleaning and housekeeping staff. Both the dead bodies were put in trolleys covered by soiled laundry. They were then taken downstairs and transported to the Central City Hospital.

As Jason helped the cleaning crew clean up after him, Hermione removed the audio-visual feed she set up for the room. They had all clearly done this before because it was done quietly and with precision. Within twenty (20) minutes they were all walking out of the hotel room and it looked like nothing untoward had happened.

Fifteen (15) minutes later Jason and Hermione were greeted by his friend in the furnace room in the bowels of the Central City Hospital. Without delay the bodies of Chastity Lewis and her lover were put into the furnace with lots of waste from the hospital that was being destroyed. Like that hospital waste, they were never seen again.

Once Hermione and Jason finished the job, they had lunch together.

During the lunch Hermione telephoned Pedro Devine and told him Chastity Lewis and her lover would not be attending any further conferences.