by Karen Wyld
‘One more day, I promise. I’ll get you away from here.’
Victoria had watched them arrive. Constable Peters and Mr Stevens from school were in the first car. And then a car she’d not seen before pulled in. Victoria recognised Mr Bolt, Gabriel’s boss, as he got out of the car and walked into the studio with a handful of beers. She’d normally be dismayed that Father Paddy was not joining them, but tonight would be her last here, so it didn’t matter how drunk and unruly they got. Victoria glanced at their bags tucked under the table. She knew von Wolff never came to the cottage; still, she didn’t want to take any risks. She’d acted normal all day, despite a high level of anxiety. And insisted that Maggie went to school. Now, they were both dressed, ready to go. They were just waiting for Gabriel to arrive. Maggie had extinguished the lantern and candles. She wanted von Wolff to think they were sleeping.
‘Did you hear that?’ she whispered.
Victoria shook her head.
‘There’s people out there. I heard footsteps.’
Thinking it was Gabriel that Maggie had heard, Victoria went to the door. She opened it, just a little bit. Maggie stood beside her. Frightened by what she’d seen, Maggie ran over to the bed. Victoria shut the door quickly and put the latch on.
Maggie whispered, ‘Birdmen.’
Don’t be silly,’ said Victoria.
‘You saw it too. They had feathers instead of hair. And feathered feet.’
Victoria went to look out the window above the sink. It was dark, except for the lights coming from von Wolff ’s studio. Maggie got out of bed and stood next to her. They kept watching, hoping to see Gabriel approaching.
‘Look,’ whispered Maggie, pointing.
Victoria saw three figures moving from behind the studio. They were little more than shadows, until one walked into a sliver of light.
‘See, Birdmen,’ said Maggie.
Victoria watched the three stealthily enter the studio. Maggie clung to her sister when the shouting started. They both jumped as gunshot was heard, followed by more shouting, and then frenzied yelling. When flames and smoke started pouring out of the studio, everything went quiet. Victoria counted shadowy figures leaving the studio: one, two, three. And then she counted three men running from the flames: Peters, Stevens, Bolt.
‘Where’s von Wolff?’ Maggie asked.
Victoria shrugged. Indifferently, she watched the studio go up in flames. The photographic chemicals turned the flames blue. Then they heard someone turning the door handle behind them, and two short knocks. Victoria went to the door and lifted the latch. Gabriel entered the cottage, breathless. Maggie handed him a glass of water, which he drank quickly. As he put the empty glass on the table, Maggie reached over and pulled a long, thin grey feather out of his hair. She’d seen ones like this before.
Maggie held it up in front of Gabriel. ‘Emu?’
He nodded.
‘Are we free now?’ asked Victoria.
‘Yes,’ replied Gabriel.
‘Then let’s go,’ declared Victoria, as she pulled the bags out from under the table.
Gabriel reached out to take one.
‘Not that one,’ said Maggie.
He picked up another one, while Maggie clung tightly to the battered old suitcase their mother had been reluctant to give up. Victoria went to their mother’s bed and, pulling back the covers, revealed her great-grandfather Albert’s gun. She picked it up and walked over to Gabriel, handing it to him carefully.
‘Here,’ she said. ‘You can carry this. For now.’
‘I can’t see anything.’
‘Listen instead.’
‘All I hear is the waves. They’re so loud.’
‘How about now?’
‘What did you do? The waves are not so loud.’
‘Can you see now?’
Victoria shifted a foot. ‘I see you, Aunty Isabelle. At the edge of the inland sea. Are you really there?’
‘Yes, I’m here.’
‘I hear something. It’s a story, flying by. I remember that voice. She told us stories, that old lady. She was much older than you, Aunty.’
‘And now? What do you see?’
‘Another old lady. She’s standing under an apple tree. She has kind eyes. I bet she knows some good stories.’
‘And now?’
The girl froze.
‘You can say, come on.’
‘It’s our mother. She’s with that old lady. She looks happy.’
‘It’s okay to cry.’
‘No. The bad man might hear.’
‘He’s gone. The bad man can’t hurt you any more.’
‘Are you sure?’
TWELVE
The rules were simple: stay away from roads, duck down when told to, and never wander off alone. Most days they travelled together. Sometimes Gabriel would tell them to keep walking in a straight path, while he disappeared into the bush. As the sun set, he’d always find the campsite that Maggie and Victoria had set up. He’d usually throw a freshly butchered emu or kangaroo next to the campfire. While they slept, Gabriel would stare into the flames, remembering that night of the fire. If von Wolff hadn’t panicked, it could have turned out differently. There had been no intent to kill him. Justice had been on Gabriel’s mind. Instead, von Wolff died in agony. Gabriel could still picture him, arms outstretched like a fiery starfish. The fire was von Wolff ’s fault. He’d knocked over a candle when he tried to punch Gabriel. The candle, which von Wolff used to light cigars on card nights, had fallen onto a bench where he’d earlier spilt a bottle of raw alcohol. He’d been experimenting with it as a final rinse when processing some film, and hadn’t bothered to clean up the spillage. The studio had gone up rapidly. Von Wolff would have died quickly, even if in extreme pain.
As the days went on, Gabriel no longer reflected on that horrifying image. Instead, he thought of Brigid as he stared up at the stars, unable to sleep. Maggie and Victoria also thought of her and, slowly emerging from their recent trauma, would share childhood memories around the campfire. Gabriel would warm his hands by the fire, feeling his heart thaw as he listened to them speak fondly of Brigid.
The girls huddled under a scrawny tree, not much more than a bush. Water poured through the leafless branches, making both of them shiver.
‘I hate this,’ murmured Maggie.
Victoria nodded, not even bothering to ask what exactly Maggie hated. Instead, she wondered if Gabriel would be able to find them. All this rain would surely have washed away their footprints. She heard a rustling to the left of them, and put a finger to her mouth to hush her sister. Victoria stood up and peered at the low bushes that surrounded them. A figure of a man appeared.
Maggie jumped up. ‘It’s Gabriel!’
She ran to him, giving him a hug.
He grinned. ‘You two look like drowned rabbits.’
‘And you’re not even slightly wet,’ remarked Maggie, letting him go.
Victoria frowned. ‘How come?’
Gabriel replied, ‘I walked between the rain.’
‘What?’ said Victoria, at the same time as Maggie said ‘How?’
He smiled. ‘It’s easy, once you know how.’
Victoria responded, ‘This just a silly story. No one can walk between rain. It’s just not possible.’
‘It is possible, if you believe it is.’
‘Show me then,’ insisted Victoria.
The old man handed Maggie a chipped enamel plate, and then one to Victoria.
‘Eat, it’s good tucker,’ he said.
They spooned up the stew, tasting it gingerly. It was good.
Soon they were asking for seconds, and he laughed good-heartedly as he refilled their plates. Gabriel finished eating, and took out his tobacco pouch. He was down to just crumbs and had no papers left. He started rolling a smoke using a scrap of paper. A younger man handed him a pouch and, nodding thanks, Gabriel rolled a proper cigarette. Gabriel went to hand back the tobacco pouch, but was told to keep it. The man pic
ked up a guitar and started strumming. The older man cleared his throat and began to sing. Maggie and Victoria, feeling warm and bellies full, climbed under their blankets and were soon asleep.
‘They’re looking for you, brother,’ commented the old man. ‘I seen your picture in the papers; they said you killed a man.’
Gabriel nodded. ‘I expected them to. I was stupid. I dropped my wallet, so it wouldn’t have been difficult for them to work out I’d been there that night. I didn’t kill him, though.’
The old man picked up a stick, and stirred the fire. ‘Since when do they care if we didn’t do what they said we did.’
‘True.’
‘Them young ones will slow you down.’
‘They keep up. Not once have they complained in the past four months. Still, I know this is no life for them.’
‘What’re you going to do?’
Gabriel shook his head. ‘I don’t know. I can’t go home. No doubt the police have been keeping an eye on my family. All I know is I need to keep these young ones safe.’
The younger man pointed his chin towards the sleeping girls. ‘They’re not yours, are they? Where’s their mob?’
‘I’m looking out for them,’ said Gabriel. ‘Their mother never told me where they’re from. She told me lots of things, but she kept some to herself. I don’t even know what her family name was.’
‘Devlin,’ declared Victoria, from behind them. ‘Our mother’s last name was Devlin. Same as ours. I think her mother’s name is different. Brown with an “e”, maybe. I once saw that on a piece of paper, in our mother’s suitcase. No address or anything, just that name.’
Victoria got up and went to sit by the fire, near Gabriel. She’d been slowly getting closer to him in the last few months. She still didn’t like to be touched. Unlike Maggie, who would hold Gabriel’s hand when they sat by campfires, and gave him goodnight hugs.
‘Do you remember anything else, girl?’ asked the old man.
Victoria frowned. ‘Our dad’s name is Daniel. Don’t know his last name, or where he is. We never met him.’
‘Don’t forget about Aunty Isabelle,’ chimed in Maggie, joining her sister by the fire. ‘She’s our father’s aunt too. I don’t remember the name of the place where she lived. It once was the shore of an inland sea.’
The younger man remarked, ‘I know that place. Went there once, to visit a cuz who was working nearby, in the opal fields.’
Maggie said, ‘Our friend Omer had a opal mine. We worked there sometimes.’
The older man nodded at Gabriel. ‘Shouldn’t be too hard to send a message up that way, to find out more about this aunt.’
‘Bit hard to get a reply when I’m on the move,’ remarked Gabriel.
‘True,’ replied the old man.
Victoria asked Gabriel, ‘Why are the police looking for us? Is it because of the fire?’
Gabriel replied, ‘Yes. There’s no need for you to worry. I’ll keep you safe.’
‘And von Wolff? Is he really dead?’
‘Yes.’
‘I hope it hurt real bad.’
Gabriel had found the way Brigid was killed too painful to consider until Victoria had said those words: I hope it hurt. Although the sight and sounds of von Wolff ’s final moments were vividly burnt into Gabriel’s memory, he was not sorry for what had happened. He knew it had hurt immensely but had no pity to spare for von Wolff. Gabriel was not a cruel man – he knew von Wolff had been.
Gabriel had planned on keeping the promise he’d made to his sister, and the promises he’d made to Brigid. In that last letter from Brigid, she’d agreed to leave with him as soon as the debt was cleared. That news had made him happy. He was finally able to believe that them all living together would not just be wishful thinking. His niece was nearly the same age as the twins, and the nephews not much older. Gabriel thought they’d have easily formed a blended family. All those dreams had been shattered when he’d returned to find Brigid gone. Gabriel instinctively knew that something bad had happened to her. Now he was on the run with her daughters, and not with her or his sister’s children. Gabriel knew others would be taking good care of his niece and nephews. For now, Victoria and Maggie needed him more. And he needed them; they were his last connection to the only woman he’d ever loved. He vowed to protect them for as long as they wanted him around.
Gabriel crept up to the window, and peeked in. Same as the other windows: he didn’t see anyone. There were no cars around, aside from a couple of rusted chassis and a truck with no tyres. He could safely assume no one was home. He didn’t like to steal, but the girls had not eaten for two days. There were no more bullets for the rifle, and rabbit snares had not been successful. He went around the back, and put his hand on the door knob.
‘Well, aren’t you a big one.’
He turned, and saw a woman. She was about his age Sunburnt face framed by red hair. Patchworked dress worn over men’s jeans and rubber boots. Raised rifle. Gabriel put his hands in the air.
‘Not going to shoot you, unless you do something foolish. How could I shoot a gift like yourself? You can put those arms down.’
Gabriel stood still, watching her every move. Two dogs came running towards her, before racing off to a bush. They jumped around, yapping wildly.
‘What you got in there? You have friends with you?’
He shook his head.
‘My dogs say different, and they never lie. Flush ’em out, boys.’
The dogs raced around the bush, frantically barking. Maggie and Victoria appeared from behind the bush, obviously nervous around the dogs.
Gabriel said loudly, above the barking, ‘Call them off. You can see they’re just girls.’
The woman lowered her gun. ‘Those dogs won’t bite ’em. Hey, kids, you hungry?’
The twins looked at Gabriel, who nodded. The woman walked to the door, and held it open as everyone entered.
She introduced herself as Janice as she made a big plate of sandwiches. When the plate was empty, she made more. And then milky tea. Soon the girls were sleepy, so she made up a bed. She insisted they stay when Gabriel told them to pick up their bags. Then, when the twins were asleep, she interrogated him. An hour later, the room fell silent.
‘Six months, you say? That’s a long time to be on the road with young’uns.’
‘They travelled a lot with their mother, this was nothing.’
‘So what’s the plan? You want to call someone?
Gabriel looked at the phone on the kitchen wall. ‘Is that okay?’
‘Sure. I’ll even give you some privacy. I’ve got chooks to lock up. The foxes around here are so sly, they even outwit my dogs.’
After Janice left, Gabriel dialled the only number he knew. The person who picked up called out for a child to go down the road and fetch old Mrs Crow. And soon he heard his nana’s voice on the other end. By the time Janice had returned, Gabriel was sitting at the table again. He felt reassured that his nana was doing well, as were his brother, niece and nephews. He promised her he’d be home soon. When it was safe.
‘All good?’
He nodded. ‘Yes, thanks. How can I repay you?’
‘No need. I just like the company. You can stay here for a few days, if you like. Rest up, get some meat on those bones. And let me give those kids a bath tomorrow. Oh lordy, do they need one. You too, handsome. Think I can even rustle up some clean clothes for you all.’
The next morning, while the girls were bathing, Gabriel took an axe to the woodpile. He split logs, and had soon chopped up enough to fill the woodshed. That night, he slept soundly. Each day he’d find new chores to do, to repay Janice for her kindness. The girls loved helping her with the chickens, and were experts at finding the hens’ secret nests. Gabriel was on edge at first, always reminding the girls to stay out of sight. Soon, six months had gone by. Those months were easier than the previous six spent hiding in mallee scrub.
One morning, Gabriel asked if he could use the phone again. Th
is time, his nana told him the police had stopped watching her place months ago. She felt it was safe for him to come home. And, just in case, his brother Charlie had built a hidden trapdoor covering a staircase down into the newly constructed cellar. Big enough for three to hide in for days, if need be. When he told Maggie and Victoria that it was time to leave, they were at first upset. Until they heard they would be going to live with Gabriel’s family.
The next day, Gabriel had almost finished packing their bags, when Janice walked in. She looked concerned. He then heard the car doors.
‘You all need to go hide in my bedroom wardrobe,’ she told him, before leaving again.
He called the girls and the three of them picked up all their bags and belongings, then squeezed into the large wardrobe. With the door slightly open, they heard footsteps enter the house. They listened as Janice talked to at least two men. Gabriel’s heart was racing. Ready to flee, if need be. Then he heard the front door shut, and the car leave.
‘You can come out now,’ called Janice.
Gabriel told the girls to stay in the bedroom, while he went to speak with Janice. She was picking up a girl’s shoe that must have been dropped when Gabriel and the twins rushed into hiding.
‘Lucky they didn’t see this. It was the cops. Not the local one. Two detectives from the city. Useless bastards, all of them,’ she said.
‘What did they want?’
‘You.’
‘They know I’m here?’
Janice shook her head. ‘They’re doing door-to-door checks, asking about someone else. Some bloke who robbed the local bank at gunpoint. Then they asked if I’d seen anyone matching your description.’
‘Why would they connect me to the robbery?’
‘They didn’t. I guess they’re just killing two birds with one stone. You know, bringing up an older case while looking for the other guy. They’re heading back to the city now, but I don’t reckon its safe for you to be sticking around. One of my neighbours might see you or the twins, and connect the dots. Cops are telling people you not only killed that man, but kidnapped the girls after killing their mother. That bit of news will have people picking up the phone quick smart if they happen to see you.’
