Opal Fields 09-Her Stolen Bones, page 1
part #9 of Opal Fields Series
Her Stolen Bones
Opal Fields, Volume 9
Fiona Tarr
Published by Fiona Tarr, 2026.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
HER STOLEN BONES
First edition. May 30, 2026.
Copyright © 2026 Fiona Tarr.
ISBN: 978-1923402560
Written by Fiona Tarr.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Supporting Character List
Thank You!
Books by Fiona Tarr
Chapter 1
Jenny’s tray table jolted as a shudder rocked her chair. She steadied the cup of barely touched filtered coffee a heartbeat before it could topple to the floor. The seatbelt lights flashed as a ping chimed throughout the cabin.
Her friend Penny slept at her side, open-mouthed, blissfully unaware of the turbulence.
‘Can I take that for you?’ The slim flight attendant held her hand out over Penny. ‘It’s pretty ordinary coffee anyway,’ she smiled.
Jenny passed her the coffee, along with a few items of rubbish from her seat pocket. ‘It’s certainly not my caramel latte.’
The flight attendant chuckled politely, but Jenny didn’t miss her cringe.
Very few people understood Jenny’s unique taste in coffee. Even her fiancé.
She gripped the armrests and checked out the window as another shudder vibrated through the small aircraft. The clear blue sky and red dirt disappearing to the horizon failed to explain the rough ride.
She glanced at the forensic tech, soon-to-be bridesmaid, snoring softly at her side and decided her friend could probably sleep through a cyclone.
‘I hate these little planes,’ Nellie whimpered from her single window seat across the aisle.
Jenny rolled her eyes at Coober Pedy’s newest constable. ‘You said the same thing on the way to Adelaide.’
Nellie nodded toward Penny as her fingers dug into the armrest. ‘I knew I should have drunk more at your bachelorette party.’
A stocky woman with wispy brown hair swivelled in her seat to offer Nellie an easy smile.
‘I’ve taken this flight more times than I can count. We always get turbulence over the Gibber Plains. The hot desert heat rises, creating little bumps in the air. These smaller prop planes fly too low to avoid them.’
‘Good to know.’ Nellie used one hand to shove in earbuds and squeezed her eyes closed, quickly returning her hand to grip the armrest. ‘Sorry if I’m being a snob, but I think I’ll try to zone out.’
The woman smiled, then coughed, collected a tissue from the pocket of her shorts and wiped her lips. Jenny noticed her pale complexion, then saw a speck of blood on the tissue as the woman shoved it back into her pocket.
She turned to Jenny with dull eyes, but a smile eager to chat. ‘When is the wedding?’
The question threw Jenny a moment, then she recalled Nellie’s remark about the bachelorette party. At Penny’s insistence, they flew to Adelaide, caught up with her cousin, aunt, mum, a few friends from the Victor Harbor Police Station and partied.
‘Not this weekend, but next.’ Talking about the wedding made her wish she was back home with Nick. She shifted, ready to sit back and relax, but the woman continued to make polite conversation.
‘Are you on a property?’
Jenny leant across Penny who continued to snore softly, unperturbed by the conversation going on around her.
‘Sort of. My fiancé is a grazier, but I’m a local cop.’ The woman’s smile faded as a hacking cough racked her body.
Jenny studied her casual clothing and lace-up work boots, considering why her new chatty friend might take this flight as often as she mentioned.
Coober Pedy was the destination for plenty of fly-in fly-out workers. Some worked at the local iron ore mines. Others were busy on civil projects like the tediously long upgrade to the Stuart Highway.
The woman sipped the last mouthful from a bottle of water as the coughing subsided.
‘Are you a FIFO worker?’ Jenny wondered aloud.
‘Yes, but I don’t work locally. My fiancé does.’
‘Oh, really? That’s so cool. When are you getting married?’
The 34-seater aircraft had two seats on one side, one on the other. The woman rotated sideways in her seat and leant into the aisle as Jenny continued to lean across Penny.
‘Soon.’ She patted her stomach. ‘I’m finishing up with my job, then I’m taking maternity leave. Hopefully I can find a better place to work when the baby is born.’
Jenny considered the woman’s abdomen, unsure how many months along she might be.
‘Are you planning to stay in Coober Pedy?’
‘We’re not sure. Depends on where Luke finds work. The contract he’s been on finishes up soon, but he has family in the area. Leaving might be tricky.’
‘Oh. I hope you can stay around. It would be nice to have a new face in town. There aren’t a ton of young people locally who aren’t FIFOs.’
‘Yeah. Coober Pedy is a bit like that.’ The woman leant her elbows on the armrest and wriggled with excitement. ‘With the wedding so close, I’m guessing you’ve got your dress sorted.’
Jenny grinned despite the fiasco that was her wedding dress hunt. She loved Nick, and she was so saddened that his mother wasn’t alive to see the wedding, but she was relieved not to have any more opinions on what dress she should buy.
Between her Coober Pedy adoptive mum Marj, her own mother, her cousin, and her grandmother, there was no shortage of ideas on what her dress should look like. Lace, no lace. Tight fitting, flowing, off the shoulder, chiffon, silk, satin. The tastes were diverse and all way too fussy for her.
‘I’ve gone for a simple one. It might be a spring wedding, but it can still cook you this time of year.’
‘Can I see a picture?’ The woman’s eagerness melted Jenny’s defences.
‘Sure.’ She retrieved her mobile phone from her pocket, slid photos sideways, but stopped as the woman coughed harshly. Instead of a tissue, she reached for the sick bag from the pocket in front of her.
The dry retching made Jenny nauseous. ‘Are you okay?’
The woman’s already pale complexion greyed as the liquid sloshed in the bottom of the bag. ‘Morning sickness,’ she mumbled as the flight attendant scurried down the aisle.
Another jolt of turbulence forced the attendant to grip the seats either side of the aisle a moment before dropping to her haunches. ‘Can I get you more water?’
Jenny watched the top of her new friend’s head nod. As the attendant hurried away, she noticed patches of missing hair on the woman’s scalp. Jenny knew some women lost a bit of hair during pregnancy, but the patches were large, and the skin angry.
Unclipping her seatbelt, she squeezed past Penny’s long legs. The forensic tech stirred but remained asleep.
‘Are you sure this is only morning sickness?’ Jenny bumped Nellie’s legs as she hovered over the woman’s seat. Nellie’s eyes whipped open. A second later, she realised something was wrong.
She joined Jenny hovering over the single seat as the woman slumped sideways. The vomit bag dropped to the vinyl floor, oozing bloody bile over the woman’s feet.
Jenny hurried around to the woman’s knees and struggled to lift her torso as Nellie tried to recline the seat and raise the armrest.
‘We need help!’ Jenny called to anyone in earshot, then spotted the flight attendant halfway back with the water. ‘Do you have a resus mask, oxygen?’
Her eyes widened. ‘No oxygen on board, but I’ll get the first aid kit.’ She rushed away.
Jenny’s arms strained, her back twinged, but she ignored it all as she struggled to adjust the woman’s position and access the seatbelt. Holding her breath, she ignored the thud of her heartbeat in her ears and finally got her hand on the belt.
Lifting the latch, she fought her frustration when it failed to release.
Penny’s arm appeared over the top of the seat, her fingers searching for a pulse as Jenny tried again. The seatbelt clipped free.
‘Her pulse is weak.’ Penny’s voice was calm, methodical.
Jenny watched for a chest rise. Put her cheek to the woman’s mouth, ignoring the foul odour of vomit and tried to feel for a breath of air.
‘She’s not breathing.’
All three women hurried to manoeuvre the unconscious woman from the seat, into the aisle.
‘Move her down this way.’ Jenny wriggled her hips into the tight space between the seats. ‘I’ll start compressions.’
Her index fingers found the top and bottom of the ribcage and her thumbs met in the middle. She was on her second round of using the lyrics from Stayin’ Alive for rhythm when the resus mask arrived.
Penny ripped it from the attendant’s hand, sidestepped into the next footwell down and opposite Jenny, then started breaths as soon as Jenny ceased compressions.
‘Do you have a defib?’ Nellie’s voice was calm and clear.
‘No.’ The attendant’s voice wavered. ‘What can I do?’
Nellie waved her hand at Jenny and Penny working frantically to save the woman’s life.
‘She’s in the best hands we have right now. Call ahead. Get an ambulance ready for when we land.’
Chapter 2
The heat haze shimmered over the tarmac. Jenny closed her eyes, fighting back the burning sensation. Rubbing them, she inhaled slowly before opening her eyes to watch the black bag slide into the ambulance.
‘I don’t get it?’ She sniffed, swallowed hard and focussed on fully releasing each breath so she wouldn’t cry. ‘She was chatting one second, then she was gone!’
Penny rolled Jenny’s cabin luggage toward her and gestured for her to sit. Jenny rolled the bag onto its side and dropped down, put her elbows on her knees and covered her face.
The image of bloody vomit, chest compressions and Penny breathing for the woman forced her to open her eyes.
Penny adjusted her own cabin luggage and dropped down alongside Jenny. Her friend’s arm wrapped around her shoulder and squeezed. ‘An autopsy might give us some answers.’ The waver in Penny’s voice made Jenny face her friend.
The same sadness ripping at Jenny’s heart was reflected in Penny’s eyes.
‘She was pregnant Pen.’ Jenny stopped speaking as the ambulance lights flared to life and the engine revved.
They silently watched the vehicle drive without urgency along the tarmac and out the service gate behind the terminal. It disappeared, signalling the finality of a young woman’s life.
Nellie squatted next to Jenny and patted her forearm. ‘You did everything you could.’
Jenny swallowed, trying to find her voice. ‘We all did.’ She absorbed the shared sadness a moment, until something else replaced the emotion. She slapped Penny gently on the arm. ‘She wasn’t only vomiting Pen, she was coughing up blood. We need to investigate.’
Penny’s expression grew worried. ‘Give yourself a minute Jen.’
Jenny shuddered. Penny was a forensic tech with years of experience at crime scenes. Dead bodies were her job. Jenny knew Penny wasn’t seeing it as she was.
‘No Pen. There was something seriously wrong with her. We could be dealing with a contagious virus.’
‘Don’t go crazy on me Williams.’ The gruff voice of Sergeant Mackenzie made her fight back tears. Not because he upset her. But because, after getting off on the wrong foot, the man had become her strongest advocate, a solid father figure she respected and trusted.
He reached for her hand and encouraged her to her feet.
‘Sometimes people don’t seek help before an infection gets into their heart.’
She studied his expression. ‘Are you speaking from experience Sarge?’
Sergeant Mackenzie pursed his lips. ‘I’ve seen it more than once.’ He patted her shoulder. ‘But in case, I got the ambos to run an RDT. It was negative. No Ebola or rare Asian Flu.’
Jenny wasn’t deterred.
‘So not a pathogen.’ She gazed out over the tarmac and expansive, flat red landscape beyond, not seeing it, as her mind searched for an explanation. ‘What else can it be?’
‘I’ll organise a sample of her vomit for the lab.’ Penny pointed to the lowered plane steps and looked to Sergeant Mackenzie. ‘I’ll need to use your forensic kit.’ He nodded. ‘I’ll do my best to process it as a crime scene in case it turns out to be more than a sudden cardiac death. They aren’t as rare as people might think, but I trust your gut, Jen. If you think something is off, I’ll treat it seriously.’
‘Thanks.’ Jenny accepted a bottle of water from Nellie as Constable Philips and Sergeant Mackenzie reached for their bags and started across the tarmac toward the small terminal.
‘This isn’t the way we planned your bachelorette party to end.’ Nellie jabbed Jenny in the ribs playfully as they followed their colleagues.
‘Me neither Nell.’ Jenny hurried to catch up to Sergeant Mackenzie, reaching him as they rounded a barrel with orange flags marking the walkway. ‘We need to find her fiancé.’ She suddenly realised she never even asked the woman her name. ‘Do we have an ID?’
Sergeant Mackenzie lowered the baggage to the ground with a sigh. ‘You’re not on duty Williams.’
‘I’ve got over a week before my wedding Sarge. I am most definitely back on duty.’
Sergeant Mackenzie and Philips exchanged a knowing look.
‘Woman’s name is Emma Griffin. The address on her driver’s licence is Semaphore Adelaide.’ Sergeant Mackenzie retrieved her bags and continued toward the terminal.
Jenny hurried after him. ‘She said she comes here often because her fiancé works locally, has family here. But she works FIFO too. Do we have her employer?’
‘All in due course.’ The sergeant continued walking.
‘She said something about taking maternity leave early and finding a better job. Maybe she was having work trouble?’
The sergeant rounded on her. His expression hard to read. ‘This is just a random death Williams. Don’t read too much into it. You’re in shock.’ He pointed to the tiny terminal building at the edge of the airfield. ‘Let’s get you and Nellie home, rested and let us handle notifying the family and fiancé. They can tell her employer if they want. It’s tragic, but it’s paperwork. Philips, O’Connell and I’ll handle.’
‘Thanks Sarge.’ Nellie’s smile popped against her naturally dark skin and Jenny wished she could be like Nellie.
The newest addition to the team was professional, eager, but somehow able to keep herself detached, something Jenny never managed to do. Some said it was why her clearance rate was so high. She never gave up. But Nellie was the same. Her cold-case blogging history was testament to that.
Maybe she used that broad smile to cover up her anxiety. Or maybe she was better at compartmentalising everything.
Philips shoved the terminal door open with his shoulder. Cool air drifted out as they entered, making Jenny realise how hot it was outside. The flight attendant from the plane huddled with another behind the check-in desk.
‘Philips. Load these bags and get the attendant’s statement before she leaves.’
‘You got it Boss.’
‘I’ve got those.’ A deep voice at the terminal entrance made Jenny’s chest tighten.
‘Excellent.’ Philips passed the bags to Nick who accepted them, then hovered in front of Jenny with a crooked grin.
‘Missed you.’ His crystal blue eyes studied her lips.
She pressed up on her tiptoes and brushed his lips with hers. ‘I missed you too,’ she whispered.
‘Heard you had a tough flight. UHF was buzzing with the news.’
‘That’s an understatement,’ Nellie interrupted. ‘She was the heroine of the day.’
‘But the woman died anyway.’ Jenny’s eyes searched Nick’s. He knew it wasn’t the first time she’d administered first aid. But it was the first patient she’d lost.
‘I know you did everything you could Jen.’ He dropped the bags to the industrial lino floor and wrapped his arms around her. She resisted a moment, unwilling to relax into his embrace for fear of tearing up again.
‘We’ll take these out,’ Nellie offered. Sergeant Mackenzie led the way from the airport.
Jenny swallowed hard, closed her eyes, but pressed back from Nick’s embrace as visions of the woman’s vacant expression replayed in her head.
‘I hate being such a sap. Look at Nellie.’ She eyed her smiling and chatting colleague literally skipping toward the sergeant’s Police Landcruiser.
