“But why…” Kat was stuck for words. She couldn’t associate Euan, the man she’d got to know, with such a terrible act. It was true he had kept her at arm’s length but she had put that down to there being no love lost between Euan and Pappou. There was no way Euan would purposely poison his neighbour’s vines.
“He has never liked the way we do things at River Dynasty. He thinks no one can make wine like he can. And…” Pappou stabbed a finger in the air at her, “he has never forgiven me for buying that piece of land right out from under his lazy nose.”
“Theo, are you sure?” Yia-yia asked. “Euan is an honest man.”
“Who else would poison my vines? It has to be that Levallier fool.”
CHAPTER 26
Keely sat in the front of the tray-top ute beside Flynn, watching the scenery whiz by as he drove them in to town. She was going with him to collect boxes of his wine to bring back to Levallier Dell, so they could stick on the labels ready for the weekend cellar-door sales.
Her first glimpse of the labels had sent a surge of excitement through her. Not that she had said too much. Maggie had been enthusiastic but Flynn had remained aloof when he handed over a label for her to look at. She hadn’t known how to react. Perhaps he was disappointed with the finished label but she thought her sketch of Euan had come up really well.
The paper colour was Tuscan Tan, an off-white, and the printer had deepened the hues of her sketch, so that the Euan on the label had a much darker brown hat and quite ginger hair. They had used gold to depict the straw stuck in his hat and gold for the lettering. She had been relieved to see that Flynn at least gave a small smile when she said she was pleased with the result.
She gripped her bag tighter as they neared the outskirts of town. Flynn had offered to go via the school. She’d told him not to worry, but he’d said it was no trouble. She’d run out of excuses and any strength to say no had deserted her. She could talk to the principal but she would be gone from Margaret River before he called her to do any relief teaching.
She looked away from Flynn, out the window, to the school buildings as he pulled into the carpark. Her stomach churned. Suddenly, she was back at her previous school feeling trapped and alone. Faces leered at her, smirking and taunting. The panic rose up inside her and she gasped in some air.
“Are you feeling okay?” Flynn’s concerned voice startled her.
“I’m fine,” she mumbled.
“I’ll drop in our food orders for the weekend then come back to collect you,” he said.
Keely’s excitement over the coming weekend was gone, replaced with dread at the sight of the school buildings in front of her. She fumbled with the door handle. She couldn’t open it.
Flynn reached across. “That’s always getting stuck.” He pressed into her as he wrestled with the handle. She breathed in his masculine scent and wished he was wrapping his arms around her. She knew she would feel safe in those arms.
“There you are.”
The door flew open and she stumbled out onto the path.
Flynn continued to lean across the seat looking up at her. “You sure you’re okay?” he asked.
Keely nodded and turned her back on him to search for some inner strength. Flynn couldn’t save her, no one could do that but herself and she wasn’t sure she was up to the challenge.
She took the path to the door marked School Office. She faltered in the doorway as the sound of young voices met her. A group of girls in uniform were talking excitedly to someone behind the desk. Keely stayed near the door. Once Flynn was out of sight she could leave, tell him the principal was busy.
“Okay girls, you’d better go or you’ll be late.” The woman spoke in a firm but amicable manner and sounded vaguely familiar. “You can come back and tell me all about it, after school.” She looked past them and smiled at Keely. “Can I help you?”
Keely waited while the girls left, still talking ten to the dozen. They hardly even glanced in her direction; they were so involved in their discussion.
“The principal is expecting me.” She hadn’t moved from her place by the door. If he was busy, she was going to dash straight back outside. “I’m Keely Mitchell.”
“Oh, for goodness sake.” The woman got to her feet. “My eyes really are failing me. Of course it is. Hello, Keely.”
She came around the counter and Keely relaxed, just a little, as she recalled the jewellery night at Mary’s. “Claire?”
“Yes, that’s right. Welcome to our school. How’s your jewellery making coming along? I haven’t had a chance to touch mine since we were at Mary’s last.”
“I’ve made a few more bracelets,” Keely said. Words whirled around in her head and disappeared. She couldn’t even remember what she’d done. “I’ve been making…wine bottle decorations. They’re for…Flynn wants to sell them at the cellar door this weekend.” Her words tumbled over each other.
“You have been busy.” Claire smiled. “I didn’t realised you were a teacher. I can usually pick them a mile off and Megan tells us your artistic talent extends to sketches and painting. Ken has been keen to speak with you. I’m sure he’s in his office, I’ll just buzz through.” She picked up the phone. “Would you like a coffee?”
“No, thanks.” Keely’s stomach was doing gymnastics and she felt a lump in her throat. She knew she wouldn’t be able to swallow a thing. She clutched her hands together and turned to look through the glass doors. Behind her, Claire spoke on the phone.
Keely looked out into a well-manicured garden courtyard and, beyond that, to an expanse of paving and covered walkways leading to other buildings. There was not a child in sight. If only schools were childless, they wouldn’t bother her at all. Anyway, it didn’t matter. She’d made up her mind to put off any work offers from Ken and then she’d be gone.
“Hello, Keely.”
She spun round and almost lost her balance. She looked down at the portly man with a broad smile who was stepping towards her with his arm extended.
“I’m Ken Retallick.” He shook her hand vigorously. “It’s great to meet you at last. Are you feeling better?”
“Oh…yes…thanks,” she mumbled.
“Come into the office. Would you like a drink? I’m sure Claire would make you something?”
“No, thanks. She did offer.” Keely gave Claire a feeble smile, before she followed Ken.
“Catch you later, Keely,” Claire said.
With feet of lead, Keely followed Ken into his office. He seemed friendly enough but so had the principal at her previous school, at first. Outwardly pleasant and open with staff, but if you didn’t see eye to eye things were very different. Ken exuded that same relaxed and self-assured air. She played with the words in her head, ready to tell him she was leaving soon so she wouldn’t be able to work at the school.
“Have a seat, Keely. I’m so glad you’ve come. I was hoping you might be able to help us out next week.”
“I’m not sure that…”
He leaned forward across the desk, his hands clasped in front of him. “I know you’re on holidays and it’s a bit presumptuous of me. You see, we’re running an electives program and we want it to be relevant for the kids. But we’ve got a few gaps and one of them is in the art area. Megan told me what a good job you did with her two young fellas.”
“I didn’t do much.” Keely rubbed at her fingers.
“They’re much younger than our students, of course,” Ken said. “But you are a secondary teacher aren’t you?”
“Yes, but…”
“You’d only have kids who wanted to be there, so it would be a dream class.”
“I’m not sure…” Keely faltered, yet again, frustrated at her inability to simply say no and annoyed by her fear that made the words spin in her head and not come out of her mouth.
“We’ve got some artistic students here. I want someone to work with them who can foster that spark. I was hoping that someone might be you.”
“I’m planning to leave n
ext week.” Finally, she managed to get a whole sentence out.
“The pay’s not bad.” He went on as if she hadn’t spoken at all. “I don’t know if money is a consideration for you but most people on holidays could do with a bit more.” He sat back and smiled at her again with a look that was almost pleading. “It’s only for four days.”
Keely hesitated. All the words she’d tossed around in her head about leaving deserted her.
“You could do whatever you like,” Ken said. “There’s only about twelve or fifteen in each group. You can stay in the classroom or head off and explore the local scenery. Get them drawing and sketching. You can paint a mural if you want. We’ve got a few walls that need brightening up.”
“I might not be the right person.” She frantically tried to think of ways to say no politely.
“I’ll be honest with you, Keely.” Ken clasped his hands on the desk in front of him again and the smile left his face for the first time since she’d met him. “I’m short-staffed, I’ve exhausted all other avenues and I’m desperate. You’re a teacher and you enjoy art. My hope is that you can foster some of that enjoyment in this group of kids.”
He looked at her expectantly and she glanced down at her fingers. They were red from being twisted and rubbed. She had come in planning to say no, but his frankness had overwhelmed her. One more week in Margaret River wouldn’t be terrible and it would help her bank balance. If these students had elected to do art they shouldn’t give her too much trouble. Eventually, there would come a time when she had to face a class again. At least none of these students knew her.
“I guess I don’t have a set schedule…”
“You’d be doing us a big favour.”
Keely sighed. “Perhaps I could stay one more week…”
“Thanks, Keely.” Ken beamed at her from across the desk. “I’ll get Claire on to the paperwork straight away so we don’t have any hiccups and you get paid promptly. Now, how about you come and check our facilities and see what you’d like to do.”
* * *
“Flynn has taken Keely to help put the labels on his bottles.” Maggie stood behind Euan in the office doorway. “She’s settled in well.”
Euan was rummaging through the papers on the desk. Flynn must have been tidying up again. He couldn’t find the order that he was looking for. They’d just had a pile of extra cartons delivered from their usual supplier and there were way too many.
“Yes.” He didn’t look up.
“There’s something about her, though, isn’t there?”
“What do you mean?” Euan rifled through the ‘pending’ file.
“She’s a lovely girl, a bit on the shy side, and she appears to be happy but…”
Damn! He still couldn’t find the order he was looking for. Then he realised Maggie had stopped talking. He looked up. She had that enquiring expression that past experience told him could mean trouble.
“But what?”
“Something’s not quite right.”
“Now, Maggie, Keely’s a great girl. You said so yourself. Don’t go stirring things up.”
“You’ve noticed it too, haven’t you?”
Euan pulled open the filing cabinet. The packaging order had to be there somewhere. Where would Flynn have filed it? He would have done it online. Perhaps he’d forgotten to print a copy.
“Euan?”
“What?” He gave up looking, pushed the drawer shut and glanced at the computer. Flynn was all about saving files there, said they didn’t need paper copies, but Euan still liked to be able to hold a piece of paper in his hand.
“Keely has been living here for nearly two weeks. Surely you’ve had a chance to discover what it is that’s troubling her.”
He looked at his sister. “Probably people interfering in her life.” She cocked her head to one side and raised her eyebrows.
“Oh, alright. I’m not really sure but I think it might have something to do with her teaching.”
“What exactly? Has she said something about it?”
“Not in so many words. It’s the way she tries to avoid the topic when anyone asks her about her work and she plays down her ability. She’s had offers of work since she’s been here but she’s said no.” He shrugged his shoulders. “There could be more to it or it could simply be that she’s on holidays and she wants to relax. It is her life.” He emphasised the ‘her’.
“I thought she looked absolutely terrified when Flynn offered to drive her in to the school today.”
“Damn Flynn. Why would he take her there?”
“Something about the principal wanting to talk to her about a job. Why?”
“Flynn doesn’t notice what’s right in front of him.”
“He must have learned that from somewhere.”
Euan glared at his sister but her face was the picture of innocence. He gave a cursory glance at the computer. No point in even attempting that. He gave up the search and walked past Maggie on his way back to the family room. “We should just respect her wishes,” he said, over his shoulder. “I told Ken she wasn’t available.”
“The poor girl. Something’s troubling her, I can tell.”
“You mean, besides the fact that she’s smitten with Flynn, and that’s another thing he can’t see.”
“So you’ve noticed it, too.” Maggie followed along behind him. “I thought you were too caught up in your own love life to be aware of anyone else. What are we going to do about it?”
“Nothing.”
“Flynn needs a good woman in his life.”
“He’s been too busy chasing after the smooth-talking Katerina.”
“She’s a lovely young woman but she’s not for Flynn.”
“Maggie…” Euan’s warning growl was interrupted by a tap on the glass and Hugh slid open the door.
“Hello, Hugh,” Euan said. “What good timing.”
“Hello, Hugh.” Maggie went forward and greeted him with a hug.
“Nice to see you here again, Maggie. It’s time you came back to the River for some quiet, away from the city highlife.”
“Oh, it’s far more entertaining here than in the city.” Maggie chuckled. “I think I’ll go for a walk and see if Flynn and Keely are back.”
“Now, Maggie…” Euan growled.
She smiled and waved.
Euan frowned at his sister’s departing back. He knew he was wasting his breath. Maggie would do what Maggie would do. Perhaps she’d have some luck in getting Flynn to see what was right before his eyes.
“It’s nice to see Maggie here again,” Hugh said. “Did you find out about the extra cartons?”
Euan dragged his thoughts back to the job in hand. “I can’t find the paperwork. I’m sure I didn’t order any extras but Flynn may have. I’ll ask him later.”
“We’ve stacked the boxes in the packing shed for now.” Hugh continued to stand by the door, a concerned look on his face.
“Is there something else?” Euan asked.
“I’ve just heard there’s been a bit of trouble over at River Dynasty.”
“Oh?” Euan studied his long-time head man. It wasn’t like Hugh to listen to gossip.
“Someone has poisoned four rows of their semillon vines.”
“Poisoned! Are you sure?”
“I went and had a look for myself. It’s right on our boundary.”
Euan scraped his fingers through his hair. “Theo has upset a few people in his time but who would do something like that?”
“Evidently they think they may have had downy mildew there as well.”
“Downy mildew! The news just gets better. You mean there’s an outbreak right on my boundary?”
“Not any more. The vines are definitely dead.”
Euan snatched up his hat. “I think we’d better go and check this out.” His precious sauvignon blanc vines edged that boundary. If Theo had done anything to jeopardise them, he would damn well pay.
* * *
“You’ve got the idea.” F
lynn stood next to Keely as she turned the handle and rolled another label onto a bottle.
“It’s not that difficult.”
“Just repetitious.” He put down the box of bottles he’d been carrying at her feet.
She glanced at the boxes he had stacked behind her. They had brought a ute load from the Haystack Block. She’d thrown herself into helping him pack the boxes, anything to avoid discussing school. When they got back to Levallier Dell, Flynn had shown her how to put on the labels and then he’d left her to it while he brought in the rest of the boxes.
“Do you think we’ll need more?” he asked.
“There’s no time to label more than what you’ve brought over. There’s a lot of food prep to be done and the final touches to the cellar door.”
“You’re right.” Flynn picked up some of the bottles she’d already labelled and slid them back in their box. “It’s hard to know how many of these we’ll sell over the weekend. It’s a new wine for us. People won’t be expecting it.”
“If you bring some more from the Haystack Block, we can always dash out and label them as we sell them.” Keely smiled at the lunacy of it. They were going to be flat out keeping the food and wine up to the customers.
“You’re right.” He counted the boxes again. “If you’re happy to continue on for a while, I’ll go and get another ute load.”
Perhaps it was her surprise that he would even contemplate bringing more or perhaps it was disappointment that he was leaving her, either way, when he looked at her face, he stopped and broke into a grin.
“I’m sorry, Keely. I’m getting carried away again, aren’t I?”
When he gave her his undivided attention, it took her breath away. “You could say that.” She turned the handle so quickly the bottle thumped through the roller.
“I’ll keep going with that if you want to take a break, and Maggie’s a good stick. She’d do some for us.”
A good stick, thought Keely. Was that how he saw her as well?
* * *
Euan inspected the vines closest to the River Dynasty boundary.
Something in the Wine Page 24
