Lucifer's Apostles

Lucifer's Apostles Episode 25

Tank Dodge was born in Rutherglen, in the Central West of New South Wales. Tank was the second child of Jack and Sue-Ellen Dodge. He had an elder sister, Jane and a younger brother, Jimmy. Tank’s maternal grandparents, Allan and Rita Goodwin, own a sheep station outside of Denison, a village near Rutherglen, which Jimmy currently manages. Allan and Rita’s only child, Suzy, met Jack at a dance at the Rutherglen Drovers Hotel. Jack had not long come to town, taking the position of local sergeant. Allan was unhappy with the eight-year age difference when Jack asked him for Suzy’s hand in marriage. Nonetheless, Jack was adamant they were in love, and Allan blessed them. Suzy had fallen for Jack, and they married soon after.

The three Dodge children all did their schooling at Rutherglen Central School. Life would have been easier for the three if their parents had taken money from Allan and Rita that they would often offer. Jack was a proud man who wanted to provide for his family without help. Tank never wanted to be a cop. His paternal grandparents owned a cattle station in the southwest of New South Wales. Tank spent every chance he could with his grandfather, Herb. He loved the scones and pikelets his nanna Ethel would make him. He learnt how to ride horses and motorcycles, both the two and four-wheeled variety. He could drive the old jalopy ute Herb owned as a paddock basher from when he could reach the foot pedals and see over the dashboard.

Jack had a week off work when Tank was in his teens. He took Tank and Jimmy to his mother and father’s cattle station for a week. Jimmy spent much of his time at the sheep station. Sometimes Tank went with him although he was usually busy trying to catch a local girl’s attention in town. Jack thought it would be good for Jimmy to spend a little time around cattle.

They were in a small town near the cattle station to get Jimmy a hat he had forgotten to pack when a young man in his twenties attempted to grab an older woman’s handbag. She hung on tight. The assailant punched the woman, knocking her to the ground. Jack was on him in a flash. Even though he was off duty, he arrested the man and called the local constabulary. From that second on, Tank changed his mind. He always knew that Jack was a cop, but now, in Tanks eyes, his father was a hero, and he wanted to be just like him.

Tank was bullied at school because of his size. Everybody wanted to fight the big kid. He was not a fighter. He walked away every time until the school bully pushed him too far. Tank walloped the bully before being pulled off by a teacher. Both boys were suspended, and when Tank returned to school, no one ever approached him to fight again.

When Jane was old enough, she left school before taking off from Rutherglen and never looked back. Before she left, she wiped out her mother’s ‘for a rainy day’ money. It was a touch over fifteen hundred dollars. It was a big enough deal to make The Rutherglen Observer weekly newsletter, thanks to young Jonathon Dodge telling anyone who would listen. After Jane had stolen the money from their mother, Jack said to let her go. He said she could buy all the drugs that she wanted now. Tank and one of his mates tracked her down one day not long after. Jane told Tank that she was finished with the family. After trying to appease her, he lost his cool and told her never to return. She disgraced the family. Tank never told his mother about that day and never spoke to Jane again.

Tank left school with high marks, not as high as Louise or Katie, but still high enough to be proud of. His father was delighted when he applied for the police academy and was accepted. It was well known that Tank had been given his name there by one of his teachers. Tank accidentally bumped into a teacher on his first day. The teacher said, “Holy crap, you’re bigger than a Sherman tank”.

After the Police Academy Tank was stationed in Kings Cross, it was the nightlife spot of Sydney housing strip joints, brothels, and nightclubs. He witnessed a lot of bribes that he said nothing about. He never received one, but he was guilty of not telling anyone what he had seen. When an anti-corruption enquiry found that there had been some kickbacks for some of his fellow officers, they were asked to resign from the force. Tank never gave any information to the investigating unit. Being a rookie cop, he did not want to make waves. Someone else did. Tank had been interviewed several times and was cleared of wrongdoing.

Deciding to become a detective, Tank set his mind to it. A high school friend of his had been murdered in an inner-city suburb. Her parents begged Tank to help, but he could do nothing. He studied and passed to become a detective. His first gig as a rookie was here at the brand-new police station under Sergeant William Clements. He had been offered positions at two new super stations, Central and The Southern. He chose The Southern as he wanted a change. The Southern Police Station had been built in Southern Palms to be the hub of Sydney’s south policing district. It was a massive area. Although the district gained a much larger workforce, several smaller stations had been closed.

Bill taught him the ropes. Tank met his now ex-wife Angela at the local hotel after rugby training. She was a bartender, and he asked her out. She was not interested. Angie told Tank that she was already seeing someone. He left it at that, and they became friends until she told him she had feelings for him one day. She broke it off with her boyfriend before Tank and Angie started dating.

They had their first daughter, Tiffany, before they were married. When they married, Pete Hogan was his best man, and Angie’s sister Wendy was her matron of honour not long after she gave birth to Dahlia.

Tank had always been wrapped up in his work, and some thought he hit the bottle too hard at home. He and Angie fought a lot but came together by the time their son Aaron was born. Angie suffered from post-partum after the birth, which lasted close to twelve months. She blamed Tank and his work. She despised him, believing that he was not there for her. He took leave to help her as best that he could. Her sister Wendy and Bill’s wife Colleen were marvellous with the whole family. When Angie got over her depression with Aaron, everyone thought it might help her if she went back to work. Wendy, Colleen, and Angie’s mum, Caroline, shared the babysitting duties.

Angie met Simon while working at the pub. By that stage, Tank was drinking hard. The pressure from his work and constant arguing drove him to the brink of alcoholism. She stayed with him until Aaron was two before changing the locks on him. Angie said he was drinking too much and that she didn’t want to argue in front of their children anymore. Tank stopped drinking that day, and he has not touched a drop since. Angie filed for divorce and moved in with Simon, who was a legal investigator. They live in Wollongong. Simon and his brother own two offices, one in Wollongong and the other in Southern Palms.

Now, here he was today. He believed he had become a better person because of his past. He had good friends like Bill, Deng, and Mary. He would forever miss his best mate, Pete. He had personally told Pete’s wife, Natalie, and Pete’s parents of his death. It had been the most challenging thing that he had ever done. Natalie punched into his chest before collapsing into his arms.

Besides that, the day had gone quickly with no results. Many different items had been seized in raids, although nothing of significant value. Tank looked at his exhausted team, which had started with six this morning, swelled to fifty-five in the late afternoon, and was now back down to Deng, Mary, and Owen. “Let’s have a break. Everyone looks worn. We’re no good to each other, tired and upset. Chief Superintendent Hawkins has green-lighted Marty to return tomorrow morning for desk duties. We start tomorrow at 6:30 in the morning, if you’re going to be late, call me. I don’t want to have to call you. No muffins for me in the morning, but a coffee will be good, please. I put a fifty in the tin. Try and get some rest and get your mind off the job. Tomorrow, we will try and catch these bastards again. This time, we need to succeed”.