by Di Morrissey
The main course was followed by Mrs Flowers’s Christmas pudding eaten piping hot with custard. This was a tradition Cindy still hadn’t come to terms with, but she did quite like to have a slice of cold pudding with a cup of tea the next day.
After the meal, they all went into the front room where Lawrence liked to exchange presents with the children. He always gave them each a cheque in an envelope to add to their bank accounts, seemingly oblivious to the fact that a bank account they couldn’t access meant little to them. They would murmur their thanks, and in turn would give Lawrence something Cindy had bought on Murray’s advice.
This year, however, Lawrence announced that the children’s presents were outside. They followed their grandfather out onto the verandah and Sally immediately saw a large doll’s house, painted pink and filled with miniature furniture. Next to it sat a very large, red toy truck. Cindy was amazed. This generosity was so out of character for Lawrence, perhaps he was starting to realise that his grandchildren would be more excited by gifts than by cheques.
‘This is very kind of you,’ she murmured.
Russell’s eyes lit up when he saw the truck. ‘Mine?’ he asked. His grandfather nodded and Russell raced over to it and hugged it in delight. Momentarily, Gordon looked crestfallen.
‘Go down to the house paddock, Gordon,’ said his grandfather. ‘You’ll find your gift there.’
The three children took off for the house paddock, Russell staggering as he tried to pull his truck along with him, and there standing in the yard was a small Shetland pony.
Murray and Cindy exchanged an amazed expression. As soon as he saw it, Gordon was beside himself with excitement.
‘Grandfather, this is the best present ever!’ he cried, racing over to the little pony.
But as soon as Sally saw the pony, she was overcome with envy, demanding to know where her pony was, the doll’s house quickly forgotten.
‘Be quiet, Sally! You have your present,’ Lawrence said brusquely. Sally’s face reddened, but Cindy hushed her.
‘Son, get the riding tack out of the barn if you want to saddle the pony up,’ Lawrence told Murray.
In no time, Murray had the pony ready to ride and helped Gordon into the saddle. Then he led the pony around the yard until Gordon was ready to take the reins and walk it alone.
Murray and Cindy stood by the paddock’s rails and watched Gordon, who was loving every moment of his wonderful present, while Sally also looked on, seething at what she thought was the unfairness of it.
‘You’ve got a very expensive doll’s house to play with,’ said Lawrence, when Sally began to complain again. ‘Just be grateful for that, or I won’t buy you a present next Christmas.’
‘How about you give your sister a go?’ Murray suggested, trying to pacify his daughter.
Gordon shook his head. ‘Like Grandfather said, this is my present. Sally can play with her doll’s house.’ He continued to ride around the yard looking pleased with himself.
That was the last straw for Sally, who stormed off in a temper, only to return from the kitchen with a carrot. She climbed through the rails and tried to feed it to the pony, but the little beast, startled by her efforts, suddenly tried to bite her. Sally promptly slapped it on the nose.
Before the drama could get too out of hand, Cindy grabbed Sally and Murray pulled Gordon from the pony.
‘I think you might all need a swim to cool off,’ Murray said calmly and loaded the children onto the tractor and took them for a ride down to the creek. Cindy waved them off, relieved that the confrontation had been defused, but then, turning back to the paddock, she saw Lawrence, his face contorted with fury and a whip in his hand, striding towards the little animal. Cindy was horrified to realise that he intended to take out his anger on the pony. Without thinking, she quickly climbed through the rails and ran towards Lawrence, shouting, ‘Please, stop it. It’s not the pony’s fault. Don’t hurt the animal …’ Seeing that Lawrence was paying her no notice whatsoever, Cindy shrieked, ‘Stop, Lawrence, stop!’
Cindy stopped running as she neared the furious man. He finally came to a halt, glared at her, then slammed the whip against the fencepost and dropped it to the ground, and strode from the yard without a word.
Cindy watched him go and, once he was out of sight, dropped to her knees shaking. What had she just witnessed? Lawrence had been out of control. She had never seen him like that before. Standing again, Cindy brushed the dirt from her clothes and slowly made her way back to the house. Murray and the children would be back soon and would need some refreshments. Cindy decided she wouldn’t let this incident ruin Christmas and set about putting together some tea. But somewhere in the back of her mind, she was worried.
*
Shortly after Christmas, Cindy came into the sunroom where Murray was sipping his morning tea, thumbing through letters.
‘You have some mail,’ he said, handing her an envelope.
‘Oh, good.’ Cindy tore open the letter from Alice and skimmed it quickly. ‘Oh, wow! Alice and Spencer are coming to visit us! Oh, I can’t believe it!’
Murray looked up. ‘Is Babs coming too?’
‘No, just Alice and Spencer. I can’t believe that Alice would come all this way. She hates travelling. She thinks there’s no point leaving Palm Springs, but she says here that she won a cruise in a big charity auction at the country club and she’s not going to waste it, so they’re on a cruise to Australia.’ Cindy sighed. ‘Of course, Alice wouldn’t dream of bringing Babs or giving her the trip. Anyway, she and Spencer are going to get off in Melbourne so they can come up to Kingsley Downs. How wonderful! We’ll have to meet them and drive them up here.’
‘Do you think visiting Kingsley Downs is their sort of thing?’ asked Murray dubiously. ‘Why don’t we meet them and stay in Melbourne, do the sights and that sort of thing?’
‘Murray! They want to see where I’m living and spend time with the children. See the real Australia!’
Murray raised an eyebrow. ‘Alice? Hmm, I’m not so sure that she’ll like the real Australia. I assume it will be a short visit.’
‘Yes, I think so. She says here they’ll go back to Melbourne after visiting us and then fly back to the US. The trip sounds amazing. They stop in Vancouver, Hawaii and Fiji, Auckland, Sydney and Melbourne. Babs is keeping an eye on everything and Alice has pretty good staff to look after the shop.’ Cindy clutched the letter to her chest and laughed delightedly. ‘I can’t believe they’ll be here by the end of next month. It is so long since I’ve seen anyone from my family, I can hardly wait.’
Murray chuckled. ‘Well, you’ll have plenty of time to think of what to do with them.’
‘Yes. What shall we do to entertain them?’ asked Cindy worriedly.
‘Guess they won’t be interested in watching sheep crutching,’ said Murray with a wicked smile.
‘No. Alice wouldn’t want to see sheep having their bottoms shaved,’ said Cindy primly. ‘I must tell the children that she’s coming. It’s so exciting!’
Cindy wondered how Lawrence would react to her aunt’s visit and hoped he’d be away. He had become very involved with the establishment of a new wool corporation and was often away on business or at meetings these days. She always felt that everything was so strained when he was around and she didn’t want Alice or Babs to know about the difficult relationship she had with her father-in-law, a part of her life that, if she was honest with herself, she had rather sugar-coated in recent years.
After Cindy had shared the news with the children, who bounced up and down with excitement at the prospect of meeting this exotic-sounding great-aunt and uncle, Cindy rang Jo to tell her the news and to ask for some ideas on how to entertain Alice and Spencer. The old party line had been replaced by a modern exchange, so Cindy and her neighbours could say whatever they liked without having to worry about being overheard. Cindy was gr
ateful when she remembered some of the very frank conversations she’d shared with Jo over the years.
‘Oh, that’s easy, we’ll think of something!’ said Joanna. ‘How long are they staying?’
‘Only a few days.’
‘I think the Picnic Races will be on at Lockhart while they’re here, and that’s always huge fun. You can take a picnic, bottles of bubbly and have a great day out. It won’t be like anything they’ve done in the States.’
‘That’s a very good idea. Alice would probably prefer mixing with the members at the Melbourne Cup, and seeing all those lovely roses at Flemington – and she’d be more than a match for the fashion stakes! But it’s the wrong time of year for the Cup. Anyway, you’re right, the Picnic Races will be something quite different for them.’ Then Cindy hesitated. ‘Actually, I’m a bit concerned about Lawrence during their visit. I hope he’ll make an effort in front of Alice.’
‘I wouldn’t worry. Lawrence is a snob – he’ll be nice to rich people.’
‘I don’t know how rich they are, but I’m sure Spencer is quite well off and Babs told me that Alice was doing a little investing, though I’m not sure in what.’
‘They’ll impress Lawrence. And you can fill in a day just driving around Kingsley Downs. Lawrence would approve of that!’
‘I’m not sure that would be very exciting.’
‘Then pop into town, though I have no idea what your aunt would think of Deni. I’ve seen your photos of Palm Springs and it’s more than a different world. It’s a different planet!’ Joanna laughed.
‘It is, in a way. You should see Alice’s house there – it’s the very definition of modern.’
‘Even so, I’m sure she’ll be impressed by the Kingsley Downs homestead.’
‘Yes, it is gracious, if a bit dim and dark.’
‘One day when Lawrence isn’t around you can revamp the whole place,’ Jo suggested with a laugh.
‘Lawrence is as tough as old boots and in rude good health,’ replied Cindy.
‘Forget about him, Cin. Look forward to your visitors. I can’t wait to meet your Aunt Alice. She sounds like a hoot.’
*
Cindy felt giddy with excitement as they arrived at the Melbourne docks to meet Alice and Spencer. The dazzling white ocean liner towered above them as they stood on the wharf, looking up, trying to catch a glimpse of their American relatives. The children were awestruck by the bustling crowd and the large vessel.
Cindy peered through the gap where Gordon was watching the arrivals.
‘There she is! Oh, Lordy! No mistaking her.’ Cindy squealed, laughing and bouncing on her high heels.
Murray looked over her shoulder. ‘Yep. No mistaking Aunt Alice.’
Alice slowly sashayed down the gangplank, staring out at the crowd below on the dock as if she were not so much looking for someone but was rather someone who was expecting everyone else to be looking at her. Though ten years had passed since Cindy had seen her aunt, Alice didn’t seem to have aged a day. With one hand she held on to an enormous straw sunhat decorated with flying red ribbons. She wore a red and white striped nautical top and bright red, flared slacks. Gold jewellery glinted in the sun. Enormous square sunglasses with red frames obscured half her face. Spencer, in a blue golf shirt and jaunty cap, followed in her wake as they disappeared into the customs hall.
Cindy was absurdly pleased to see her aunt and hugged her tearfully when they emerged.
‘I’ve missed you so much!’ Cindy said, drawing back from her aunt. ‘Hello, Spencer. How has the sea voyage been?’
He rolled his eyes, but before he could speak, Alice demanded, ‘Show me these children of yours! Oh, hello, Murray.’
She proffered a cheek to be pecked as Cindy moved the children forward, all three gawking at the brilliantly dressed person before them.
Russell stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Alice’s knees.
She patted his head. ‘Charming little boy. Russell,
I take it. Now, you must be Gordon, and you’re Sally,’ she said to the twins.
There were awkward hugs as everyone tried to avoid knocking Alice’s hat off. The excited crowd swirled around them, calling out to each other, looking for bags, friends, taxis. Alice beamed at Cindy and the children, uncurled Russell’s arms, smoothed her top and slacks and adjusted her sunglasses.
‘Lead on, Murray,’ called Spencer. ‘Let’s get the heck out of this melee.’
Murray navigated the old Daimler away from the dock with the twins squeezed in the back with Alice and Spencer, while Russell sat on Cindy’s lap in the front. Alice insisted on keeping her carryall traveller’s case with her, plus her handbag, so there was little room to move in the back seat. Their suitcases were in the trunk, as Spencer called the boot, although Spencer told Murray that they had several more back on board. Arrangements had been made for this luggage to be sent to the airport to be collected by the two of them when they flew back to the States.
‘Thankfully we had a suite and extra closet space, but we could have done with a whole extra stateroom just for Alice’s outfits,’ said Spencer.
‘Did you want me to appear at the captain’s table in the same outfit twice?’ demanded Alice.
‘Oh, my Lordy, no!’ exclaimed Spencer, holding up his hands in mock horror.
‘He doesn’t understand. I’m a walking advertisement for my store,’ sniffed Alice.
‘But your shop is in Palm Springs,’ said Murray.
‘People who travel in style will end up in Palm Springs at some stage,’ said Alice calmly.
‘Quite right, too,’ agreed Murray with a grin. ‘Now, we thought we’d take in some sights, let the children have a bit of a run in the Botanic Gardens, then head out for a smart lunch before driving home to Kingsley Downs. It’s about four hours away.’ He glanced at Alice in the rear-vision mirror. ‘You sure you’re up for the country, Alice? Not a lot to see, just a heap of sheep.’
‘I am under instructions from Babs to drink it all in, my dear,’ Alice assured him. ‘I’m sure Cindy’s photographs don’t do it justice. Though we love getting your photos, Cindy,’ she added.
It was a glorious day and Alice had to admit the immaculate gardens sprawling along the Yarra River were very beautiful.
By the time they got to the restaurant, the children were ravenous, but sat quietly, awed by the silver service setting and having been drilled by their mother to watch their table manners and be on their best behaviour around Aunt Alice. Not that Cindy had to remind them. To the little ones, Aunt Alice had stepped from the pages of a fairytale where witches and queens did battle. They were not sure yet whose side Aunt Alice was on.
After lunch they piled once again into the groaning car and Murray drove them out of the city, paddocks replacing streets as they ventured further into the bushland.
‘Good grief, Cindy, how much further?’ sighed Alice from the back seat. ‘Spencer is asleep.’
‘Not far now, Alice. We’ll be home in time for a sundowner.’
‘What on earth is that?’
‘Cocktails at sunset.’
‘Did someone say cocktails?’ Spencer yawned. ‘This is quite a drive. I don’t imagine you would want to do this too often. You should get yourself a little plane, Murray.’
Having been up since the crack of dawn, the children were all asleep when Murray turned into the entrance to Kingsley Downs, but bumping over the cattle grid woke them up.
After a few minutes’ drive along the track, Cindy waited for Alice or Spencer to comment on the lovely slanting late afternoon sunlight that fell between the gums lining the driveway, but instead Alice asked in a querulous tone, ‘Did you say that was the entrance to the property back there? Where in heaven’s name is the house?’
‘Coming up,’ Murray replied cheerfully. ‘As one of your compatriots said, “
Go west, young man.” We’re nearly there. Mind you, Kingsley Downs is quite a modest property by some standards. You should see the stations outback. Now, they really have long driveways.’
‘Sounds like a lot to look after,’ said Spencer.
‘What’s to look after?’ commented Alice, waving a hand. ‘It’s empty.’
‘We have thousands of sheep out there,’ said Gordon proudly.
‘Goodness. That’s a lot of wool,’ said Alice. ‘Of course, it’s a little out of vogue at home. I love the synthetics. So easy to care for. People all ask for polyester these days.’
‘Oh, gosh, don’t say that in front of Murray’s father,’ said Cindy quickly.
‘And don’t stand in front of an open fire if you’re wearing synthetics,’ said Murray darkly.
‘There’s the house!’ said Spencer as the gracious old home came into view. ‘Wow, it’s quite a joint.’
‘I hope you don’t have to clean the house by yourself,’ said Alice.
The children were excited to be home and anxious to get out of the car. A beaming Tom and Mrs Flowers came out to meet them.
‘Tom will get your bags, Spencer,’ said Murray as he climbed out. ‘Come on in and meet my father.’
‘Mrs Flowers, Mrs Flowers, we got you something …’ The children ran towards her, waving a small gift Cindy had helped them choose in Melbourne.
‘Alice, do you want to freshen up after the drive? Murray’s father will be waiting for us on the verandah with cold drinks, but I’ll take you to your room first. Now, kids, off you go. Mrs Flowers will give you your dinner in the kitchen,’ called Cindy after them as the children hurtled into the house.
‘I’m up for a belt if it’s the cocktail hour,’ said Spencer. ‘Damned big place, Murray. You have a few horses, eh?’