Chapter 75—Isaiah
What if Becs went to the city? What if she saw her friends and wouldn’t come back? My stomach churned from the moment she said it. Mr Burgess said no, but I knew how convincing Becs could be. If she could talk Oscar round to things, she could talk anyone round.
She had spent hours telling me all about the city and her friends and all the things she loved to do. If she went, she wouldn’t come back. I was almost sure of it. I would do what I’d always done before Becs came. I’d ask Oscar.
I found him in his skins shed. I hadn’t noticed the smell before. ‘Hello, Oscar.’ He gave a nod. ‘Thank you for the pocket knife. You have never given me a gift before.’
‘Your father never allowed it,’ he said without looking up. ‘Anyway, can’t have the townies giving you everything.’
‘Did you ever live in the city?’ I asked. I’d never thought about it before.
He nodded. ‘A very long time ago.’
‘What was it like?’ When he said nothing, I added, ‘They have received a letter to say I can stay with them, but I am not sure if that means I must go to the city.’
Becs wants to go already, I thought. Could I stay with her family if she wasn’t there?
‘What do you think?’ I said. Still he said nothing, concentrating on the possum skin he was working on. ‘Could I come back here when they leave?’
His head jerked up. ‘No. Besides the fact that every man and his dog knows you’re here, the girl said the authorities said you can’t stay in the bush without a relative. I don’t need any more trouble, boy. Don’t look at me like that. You started this mess. Go to the city and what will be, will be.’ He went back to his skinning.
Chapter 76—Becs
The next morning, Isaiah was quiet and I was still ignoring Mark. The more I thought about it, the more I stewed. He wasn’t my father. He couldn’t say whether I could go or not. It was all right for him to go home, but not me. It wasn’t fair.
‘For Pete’s sake, Becs,’ he said when I was silent at breakfast. ‘You and I are going back into town. You can ring as many friends as it takes to sort out whatever is bugging you, and then I’ll make the phone calls I need to make. Is that OK?’
I stared into my cereal bowl. ‘It’s not the same.’
‘Pardon, Becs?’ said Mum.
‘I suppose,’ I grumbled. ‘It’ll do for now.’ I couldn’t miss Isaiah’s grin.
I planned to spend ages and ages on the phone to try to make up for not going home. I had to admit, it was to get back at Mark too. ‘Hey, Lexi. It’s me, Becs.’ The phone calls went downhill from there. They were all home this time, but for the first time since I’d known them, we ran out of things to say.
‘That didn’t take long,’ said Mark as he took the phone. I shrugged and went outside to sit in the ute. He didn’t have to rub it in.
On the drive back to the shack, Mark passed me his hanky. I wiped away my tears and looked out the window. ‘I’m sorry I can’t take you, Becs. It really is important business.’
I sniffed. ‘It’s not that.’ He glanced over at me. ‘It’s…’ Should I tell him? When he looked back at the road, I blurted it all out. ‘Everything’s changed. They don’t even sound the same. Suz isn’t going to Ascot. Caro’s moving to live with her dad miles away and Lexi’s not sure any more. She said the entry exams are really hard this year because everyone wants to go there. Everything’s different now.’
‘It’s been a few months, Becs. You’re all getting older, doing different stuff.’
Another Understatement of the Century, I thought with a sigh.
‘Have a chat to Mum about it,’ he said. ‘I wish I could help.’ He turned into our road. ‘I know. How about writing a list of stuff you’d like from home. You know, food, music, books. I’ll see what I can do while I’m away.’
I shrugged. ‘OK.’ The thought of a box of Mars bars and some new books was nice, but it didn’t help the feeling that my mates were becoming strangers.
‘Can you do something for me while I’m away?’ asked Mark. ‘I need you to look after Isaiah. He’s been a bit quiet and I’m not sure why. I don’t want him running off.’ When I shrugged again, he slowed the ute and looked at me. ‘It’s very, very important, Becs. Not just for Isaiah. For our whole family.’
Chapter 77—Becs
It wasn’t hard to figure Mark’s trip was something to do with Isaiah staying with us. The social worker had been real serious about Mum and Mark being responsible for him. Maybe he had to sign forms or something? That had to be it.
Nick really bawled when Mark left. I felt sorry for her and let her play with some of my stuff that day. The bush was making me soft. Whatever. It was sort of weird without Mark there.
The electricians Mark had booked months ago finally turned up at the house while he was away. Typical. Mum got them sorted and we had the mornings off—if you call doing school work time off. While Isaiah went to Oscar’s, we had to catch up on correspondence. Isaiah hadn’t said anything but I knew he was pleased I hadn’t gone with Mark. And the more I thought about it, so was I. What if I’d gone home and my mates didn’t even want to hang out any more? How embarrassing.
Mum still wanted to get stuff done at the house while Mark was away. ‘We can’t have him thinking us girls are slack, can we?’ So on strict instructions to stay out of the electricians’ way, we were given jobs in the afternoons.
Isaiah preferred to be outside clearing scrub, as he’d always done with Mark. They’d finally reached the shed he’d hidden in before Oscar had his accident. It felt as if it were years ago, not just months.
I worked with Mum in the house kitchen for a while. Nick wasn’t really much help and she sat on a bench, swinging her legs and jabbering away about nothing as usual. After a couple of hours, I took a break and wandered around the house looking at all the work we’d done.
Most of it was livable now. There were still three bedrooms closed off, but we weren’t going to need them to begin with. My bedroom and Nick’s were sanded, painted and ready for the special wallpaper Mum had ordered to suit the house. We’d been given strict orders that we weren’t to pin posters all over the walls. I didn’t care. I’d picked the most gorgeous mint pinstriped pattern.
The main staircase was repaired and sanded, ready for a hundred coats of varnish. (Well, nearly that many.) The front lounge looked even more amazing with fresh paint and wallpaper. Mark said we couldn’t afford proper crystal chandeliers, but he’d shown me a brochure with heaps of cheaper versions to choose from. The ceilings were so high, the chandeliers would hang down on chains.
My stroll took me back to the foyer where the Herrick welcoming committee was ready on the wall. Mark had decided he would leave them there when he sold the house. It was Herrick House, after all. I gazed up at the family portrait. They all looked so happy. What happened to them? Joshua must have loved his wife a lot to give her the gorgeous emerald necklace. Again I wondered why she had run off with another man.
Chapter 78—Isaiah
I sat in Mother’s butterfly glade looking at my new pocket knife. I’d seen them in the shop when I’d visited town with Papa. It had been so long ago. He must have told Oscar about it. My eyes stung and I rubbed my sleeve across them.
When Oscar told me I couldn’t stay with him, I felt like he’d struck me. He was so sure. It was final. With no family in the bush, I would have to go with Becs’ family when they went back to the city.
As Mr Burgess left on his trip, my mind whirled even more. Since he’d received the letter on my birthday, I’d caught him looking at me strangely. I’d felt him watching me. His trip to the city had something to do with me. Had I done something wrong?
While he was away, I planned to work hard at the big house, so he would be pleased when he returned.
True to his word, Mr Burgess returned by the end of the week. He brought us all gifts of books, new summer hats and chocolate! It was like having my birthday all over again
. He also brought school brochures for Becs and me to look at. She acted like she wasn’t interested in them but I saw her tuck a couple inside one of her new books. Mr Burgess seemed much happier, but by the end of the day I caught him watching me again.
Chapter 79—Becs
I was stoked with the stuff Mark brought back. Not only Mars bars, and all the latest books out, but magazines, Turkish delight, the funky hats (the local shop ones were so boring) and new sunglasses too. I’d sneaked a look at some of the school brochures he’d brought. There were a couple that looked all right. Not half as good as Ascot High, of course. But it was sort of cool that Mark had thought of it.
When I asked again what the trip was about, Mum said, ‘Oh, it’s just legal stuff, Becs. Paperwork.’
‘About Isaiah?’ I asked.
She hesitated for a moment, then nodded. ‘Mark might have to go back yet. Would you like to go next time?’
‘Really?’ For a second my heart stopped. Until I remembered my phone calls home. ‘Can I have a think about it?’ After the fuss I made last time, I expected Mum to ask why, but she said nothing. Weird.
Chapter 80—Isaiah
The next morning after chores at Oscar’s, I met Mr Burgess back at the big house.
‘Isaiah. You’re back,’ he said, as if I’d been away for days. When he saw the rucksack over my shoulder, his smile vanished. ‘Where are you going?’
‘Nowhere. I took my new books and things to show Oscar.’
‘Oh, OK,’ he said, his smile returning. The truth was Oscar wasn’t even interested. He wouldn’t look at the books and then told me since his leg was mending, he wouldn’t need my help with chores any more. I’d tried to tell him I wanted to help, but he wouldn’t listen. ‘I’m going on a hunting trip soon anyway,’ he’d said. ‘Soon as my leg is good enough. I’ll be away for a few weeks.’
I offered to keep an eye on his place while he was gone, then I left. Had I caused him so much trouble he wanted rid of me as soon as he could?
I followed Mr Burgess around the back of the house. ‘You’ve done a great job with the scrub around the sheds,’ he said. ‘Thanks for all your help.’ I just nodded, my head full of thoughts about Oscar. Mark passed me a grubber and we got back to work.
At first I thought things were back to normal. We talked while we worked and he wasn’t acting strangely like before. But it didn’t last long. Usually he would give me a job then leave me to complete it, but this time he kept coming back to check on me. ‘How you going, Isaiah?’ or ‘Are those clippers sharp enough?’ or ‘Would you like some water?’ He eventually sent me inside to work with Becs.
I found her in the main bedroom, staring at the stained-glass window. Yellow ‘Danger!’ tape still surrounded the rotten floorboards in the centre of the room. The hole was bigger.
‘Hi, Isaiah.’ She gazed back at the window. ‘Isn’t it beautiful? Mark said it’s one of a kind. He’s been doing research on the house and read that Joshua Herrick had it made for a birthday present for his wife.’
‘Is he cross with me about something?’
She pulled a face. ‘Joshua Herrick?’
‘No. Mark.’
‘No, why?’
‘He is acting strangely,’ I whispered. ‘It is since the letter came from the city. He is watching me, checking on me.’
She rolled her eyes. ‘You’re being paranoid,’ she said. ‘He just bought you all that stuff, didn’t he? Anyway,’ she said, ‘I asked Mum and she reckons everything’s fine. She said it was just legal stuff. Don’t worry about it.’ She edged around the hole to a pile of rotten boards. ‘Come on. Help me clean up this mess. I want it to be a surprise for Mark.’
I left my rucksack in the corner of the room and began picking up the wood. Becs knew Mr Burgess better than me. She hadn’t noticed anything strange about him. Maybe she was right.
Chapter 81—Isaiah
Mark’s gone to meet some contractors in town,’ said Becs’ mum as she set the dinner table that night. ‘He might be a bit late.’
‘We cleaned up the main bedroom for him today, Mum,’ said Becs. ‘It looks way better.’ She grinned. ‘Except for the hole in the floor.’
While we ate dinner, they talked about their day. ‘What about you, Isaiah?’ said Becs’ mum. ‘How is Oscar?’
‘He is fine. I showed him my new books today and—’ I gasped as I remembered.
‘What?’ said Becs.
‘I left my rucksack at the house. It has my new books and the pocket knife Oscar gave me in it.’
Becs smacked her forehead. ‘Sorry. My fault. I thought we were going to be late for tea, so I rushed you. Don’t worry, it’ll be there tomorrow.’
‘Did Oscar like your books?’ said Nick. I nodded, not wanting to tell the truth. ‘He said his leg is mending and he is going on a hunting trip soon. He will be away for a while and I am going—’
‘No, you’re not!’
We all looked up as Mr Burgess came in the back door. ‘You’re not going anywhere.’ For a moment he sounded like my father. But he didn’t look angry like Papa. He looked tired and pale.
‘No,’ I said. ‘I was going to look after his place while he was gone.’
‘Oh.’ He glanced at the others. ‘Sorry, I…’ He turned away. ‘What’s for dinner? I’m starving!’
‘Thank you for my meal,’ I said, avoiding everyone’s faces. ‘I am tired. I think I will go to bed now.’ As I left the kitchen, I heard Becs hiss, ‘Mark! That was really mean. He was just saying—’
‘Leave it, Becs,’ said her mum.
Chapter 82—Isaiah
Long after everyone had gone to sleep, I stared up at the stars from my bed in the lean-to. Becs had come in before she went to bed. ‘I’m sorry about Mark. You’re right. He was being a jerk. Mum said he’s probably just stressed out with the house.’
When I gave her the same advice she gave me, ‘Don’t worry about it’, she grinned and said good night.
The longer I lay there and thought about it, I realized her mum was right. The big house was changing Mr Burgess. Just like it had with Papa. Just like it had his grandfather. Papa never spoke of his own father, but he must have left the house before it affected him too.
When I left my family many months before, I vowed never to go through that again. I had seen the changes in Mr Burgess, just like I’d watched Papa change. I couldn’t watch it any more.
I lay looking at the bright full moon. Would the sky look the same in the city? Would I be at the same school as Becs or would she go to Ascot on her own? She told me it was ‘ages away’, but eventually the big house would be sold, and I would have to face it then. Even with Oscar telling me he didn’t need me any more, I didn’t know whether I could really leave the bush. Maybe I would be better on my own in the bush than with Becs’ family in the city. With a sinking heart, I knew what I had to do.
Chapter 83—Becs
Flippin’ possums,’ I grumbled into my pillow. I rolled over to peer at my clock. I groaned: 4.20 a.m. My eyes slowly adjusted to the soft light in our bedroom from the full moon. Something moved at the edge of my window! I sat up. There was nothing there. I sank down again and dozed off for a bit. The old feeling of being watched seeped into my mind. I sat up again, looking outside. A shadow flicked across the back yard. Who was out there? Isaiah? What was he doing up so early?
Being careful not to wake Nick, I slipped out of bed, pulled on a hoodie and track pants and tip-toed out of the room.
Moonlight streamed into the kitchen, casting shadows everywhere. I pinched a couple of grapes from the fruit bowl on my way out to the lean-to. No Isaiah. So it was him at my window.
In the same moment I realized his bed hadn’t been slept in, I saw the note on his pillow.
Chapter 84—Becs
I snatched up the note and ran outside. I didn’t get far before I stood on a stick, gouging into my bare foot. ‘Isaiah!’ I shouted. Limping back inside, I found a torch and spread his note
on the table. Beautiful sloped writing lay across the page.
Dear Becs,
I think Papa was right about the big house. You should go back to the city now before Mr Burgess becomes more unwell. I cannot stay with him any more and do not want your family to end up like mine. I have enjoyed being part of your family, but know now that I am not ready to leave the bush. Oscar does not need me so I will find somewhere else to live. Please tell him I may return some day when everyone has forgotten me. That way I will not cause more trouble. Thank you for your friendship, Becs. You have taught me so much. Maybe one day when I am older I will go to the city and find you. I will bring you a swan plant of your own. Goodbye
Your friend Isaiah
‘What’s going on?’ muttered Mark behind me. ‘Why were you shouting? It’s not even 5 a.m.’
Tears streamed down my face, and I thrust the note at him. ‘It’s your fault he’s gone. He told me you’ve been acting weird, and I didn’t believe him. I stuck up for you and then you—’
‘Gone?’ he gasped. ‘What do you mean gone?’ I passed him the torch, and grabbed my shoes from the back step.
‘We’ve got to find him. He can’t have got far. I’m sure I heard him leave. I’m sure I can catch him,’ I blabbered while Mark read the note.
‘Damn!’ He unhooked a lantern from the wall and lit it. ‘Do you know where he might’ve gone? He could’ve gone in any direction.’
‘I know that! I’ll just keep—’
‘Becs! We have to find him.’ I looked up to see the same worried look he’d had when he received the letter. ‘My trip home,’ he began. ‘I told you it was about Isaiah. That was partly true. It was to see our lawyers and the bank. Someone’s made a huge mistake. Herrick House doesn’t belong to us.’
Too Many Secrets Page 13
