by Karen Wood
‘Is it about Opal?’
Jess nodded and looked down.
‘The next one’s from your mum. It says Happy birthday darlin, I love you,’ said Shara. She kept thumbing. ‘Ooh, there’s a really mushy one from Luke.’
Jess snatched the mobile.
Luke: jess, i had the best time. C u and O at
the station.
A tear dropped onto the screen. Jess smudged it away with her thumb and wiped her eyes with her sleeve, then scrolled back up to the station’s last message and replied.
is she still alive?
She tucked the phone into her top pocket and followed the others into the four-wheel drive. Mrs Arnold took off and Jess looked miserably out the window at the country whipping by. She felt numb, waiting for an answer.
Buzz, rumble.
BDowns: only just.
Jess thumbed back.
we’re 1 hour away, pls, pls, pls, wait for me.
28
AT THE HOMESTEAD, Opal lay on the ground, not moving. Her hair was coarse and matted except for some bald bits on her legs and back. She was painfully thin.
Jess let herself in through the yard gate while Shara, Rosie and Grace looked over the rails.
‘Vet’s been twice and given her IV fluids,’ said the stockman, as Jess knelt beside him. ‘But it doesn’t seem to cure her. She hasn’t moved for hours.’
Jess felt sick. She could see death taking over the filly.
Opal rubbed her head along the muddy ground and a tiny groan escaped her throat. Jess cast her eye over her shoulder and there they were – the three white diamonds, cascading like falling stars.
She ran a hand over the filly’s neck. It was hot and damp with sweat. Jess put her hand in her pocket, pulled out the carving and remembered Bob’s words as she fingered the three diamonds on its shoulder.
Find her spirit, catch it and take it back to her.
‘This was meant to be for you,’ she whispered, running it over her filly’s neck and up around her ears. ‘It’s your totem, Opal.’ Jess couldn’t stop the tears that flowed from her. ‘You’re just a little mulga filly.’
Opal lay still, very still. Jess’s whole body began to sink. It was too late. She dropped the carving and sank to the ground, putting her face against the cool earth.
I can’t let her go. She’s meant to be mine.
Around her the world stood still. She closed her eyes and listened for the spirits that were alive in the land.
Please give my filly life. Don’t take her back yet.
She wasn’t sure how long she lay there, whispering and praying. Time seemed to stop. A tiny sound made its way to her ears. It wasn’t a whinny and it wasn’t a cry. Just a little noise: air, vibrating out of black rubbery nostrils. Jess looked up and through her blurred vision, she saw Opal move. The filly’s head slid ever so slightly across the ground. Jess got to her hands and knees and crawled quietly to her.
Thick yellow-green pus ran from behind Opal’s ear.
Jess’s skin prickled. Poison.
She felt a warm breeze, like the breath of a horse, blow down her neck. And then the strangest thing happened.
Opal stood up.
‘Kworr, that’s gross!’ said Grace, from the yard rail. ‘It stinks, I can smell it from here!’
‘It is like a curse,’ said Jess, looking at the disgusting goo oozing from Opal’s head. She screwed up her face. ‘It looks evil.’
‘You got that bit right,’ said Lawson. ‘That’s the old-fashioned name for it – Poll Evil.’ He reached for an old rag and Jess kept her arm under Opal’s neck as he began wiping the pus away. Opal flinched.
‘Easy, girl,’ said Lawson. ‘Bet that’s feeling a whole lot better now.’
He turned to Jess. ‘In the old days, before vets had antibiotics, it was nearly impossible to treat. The horses got so cranky with pain they became vicious. Most of them had to be destroyed.’
‘But we won’t have to destroy Opal, will we?’ Jess said quickly. ‘It can be treated these days, can’t it?’
‘She’ll need an operation to clean it out, but I don’t know who’s gonna do that around here.’ He looked to Stanley. ‘You any good on this sort of thing?’
Stan shook his head.
‘I knew there’d be a scientific explanation.’ Shara jumped off the fence and stepped forward. ‘One student vet, at your service!’
Luke peered over Lawson’s shoulder. ‘You need a TMU.’
Lawson and Stan both stared at him blankly.
‘That’s what they used on me up north.’
‘Did it hurt?’ asked Stan.
Luke snorted at him. ‘A tele-medicine unit! They did it all over the internet. The medicos just told the nurses what to do. We could get John on the phone, text him some photos, then put him on speakerphone while Shara does what he says.’ He looked from Stan to Shara.
She nodded in agreement.
‘You’re a genius, Luke!’ said Jess.
Stan looked at Lawson. Lawson shrugged. ‘Well, I’ve got a fridge full of drugs that John sent out here with her.’
‘Where’s our resident communications expert?’ asked Stan.
Elliot stood out in the middle of a nearby yard waving some sort of small hand-held device around and squinting up at the sky.
‘He’s trying to find a satellite for his GPS,’ said Grace. Then she shouted, ‘Elliot! ’
‘Yeah?’ he yelled back, without looking down.
‘We need tech support!’
Jess helped gather all the veterinary first aid they could find, and under Elliot’s command, they managed to somehow link the satellite phone, a laptop computer and a GPS satellite tracking device, as well as a car battery and a few other bits and bobs. They set it up on the foldout camp table out in the middle of the yard and Jess watched in wonder as John’s face popped up on the computer screen.
‘Hi, Dad,’ said Elliot, holding the webcam up to his face.
‘What’s going on out there?’ asked John, his voice digitally fragmented.
Behind her, Jess heard Grace’s awed whisper to Shara: ‘El’s sooo brainy!’
Elliot held the webcam at Opal’s head while John watched the images come through at his end. He told Shara where to squeeze and prod, how to take Opal’s temperature and listen to her heart rate. Shara spoke back to him through a set of headphones and a microphone that Elliot had attached to her head.
They took still photos and messaged them, and then John talked Shara through the procedure of flushing the wound with peroxide to clean it out. Stanley hunted through the leftover veterinary drugs the station had on hand and managed to locate some painkillers. John prescribed a dose and instructed Shara through the intravenous injecting.
Jess knelt by Opal’s head, talking quietly and supporting her through the ordeal.
As Shara finished up and washed her hands by the trough, John spoke to Jess on the phone. ‘I’m so sorry, Jess. It must have been in there brewing for weeks. No wonder she was so wild with pain.’
‘I knew it wasn’t just her temperament,’ said Jess.
‘Those antibiotics we gave her would have calmed it down, but it obviously didn’t get rid of it completely. We didn’t know what we were treating then, I suppose.’ He paused. ‘I can’t believe I missed it. There was no outward sign. Usually they have a huge lump on their head.’
‘It wasn’t your fault,’ Jess assured him. ‘Will she have to go to a vet hospital again?’
‘Yes, she should. Shara’s only given her basic first aid. She’ll need to be knocked out and operated on properly. The DPI might want to quarantine her for a while too. It’s a notifiable disease.’
‘Will she travel okay, do you think?’
‘Leave her in the yard overnight to stabilise. I’ve told Shara to keep up with the painkillers, then truck her to the Longwood vet surgery tomorrow morning. I’ll ring ahead for you and book her in.’
While the others headed for the house, Jess kn
elt by Opal’s head and stroked her neck. Within minutes the filly began to shuffle to her feet and raise her head. With a snort and a grunt, she lifted herself to a more upright position and blinked at Jess. The two of them stared as though seeing each other for the very first time.
‘Hey, little girl. How you feeling?’
Opal closed her eyes briefly, still groggy.
Jess reached into her pocket for a small crust of bread and held it out on the palm of her hand. ‘Want some bread? I saved it for you.’
The filly sniffed. She lifted her nose just a little and blinked.
A smile washed over Jess’s whole being. ‘It’s very tasty.’
Opal waggled her lips.
‘Come on . . .’
Opal worked her lips like a pair of hands, taking the bread into her mouth. She munched it slowly, an uncertain look in her eye. Her fuzzy chin brushed over Jess’s hand. It was exquisitely soft.
‘There we go, little one,’ Jess smiled. ‘You’re going to be fine now.’
29
EARLY THE NEXT MORNING, Luke led Rusty onto the float first. ‘To keep Opal company,’ he explained. ‘He’s a sensible little fella, he’ll help keep her calm.’
Jess led Opal, with a rope looped loosely around her neck, into the trailer beside the little brumby. Lawson lifted the tailgate behind them and Jess tethered the little filly. She looked back at her as she stepped out of the narrow front door. ‘Be good,’ she said and closed the door.
Lawson leaned out of the driver’s side window. ‘Do you trust me to get her there in one piece?’
‘Not really,’ Jess answered. ‘I don’t know why Mrs Arnold won’t let me travel with you.’
Luke jumped in the passenger side door. ‘It’s because I’m in here! You’ll get boy germs.’
‘I’m taking him into town to get some parts for that ute,’ said Lawson. ‘You’ll be driving right behind us.’
‘Drive carefully.’
‘Aren’t you forgetting something?’ asked Lawson.
‘What?’
He smiled. ‘You owe me two hundred and forty-six bucks.’
Jess smiled back. ‘Not yet.’
‘But I want you to pay me for her. She’ll be yours.’
‘But I have no money now,’ said Jess, trying to keep a straight face. ‘I spent it all on a Yowah nut,’ she lied.
Lawson looked at her, puzzled.
‘Won’t take me long to save the money again,’ she said in a reassuring tone. ‘Meanwhile, I guess you’re stuck with her . . . and all her vet bills.’ She turned on her heel and, smirking, walked back towards Mrs Arnold’s four-wheel drive.
She heard Lawson roar with laughter. ‘You can have her for free!’ he called after her, ‘if you take her now! She’s all yours!’
‘See you at the surgery!’ said Jess, walking away.
‘Girls and bloody horses!’ he yelled.
Opal was operated on almost immediately after arriving at the surgery. Shara got talking to the vet nurse and was thrilled to find that she too had gone to Canningdale. Shara and Jess were allowed to sit in on the operation. Jess watched while the vet scooped gunk out of Opal’s head, packed the wound full of iodine-soaked gauze and stitched it up.
They walked outside and sat in the gardens while Opal rested and came to. Luke and Lawson returned from the auto wrecker, triumphant with an HQ Holden door, new tyres and various other miscellaneous car-fixing-type stuff.
Luke sat on the bench seat next to Jess going through bags of bog and putty, talking a million miles an hour about how sleek his ute was going to be. ‘How’d Opal go?’ he finally asked. ‘What are you going to do, stay in Longwood till she gets better?’ He sounded hopeful. ‘We’re staying for another week, until the ute’s going and registered. Bob’s helping me.’
‘I have to go home,’ said Jess. ‘Mum and Dad won’t let me stay any longer.’
‘When I get my ute going, I can drive you back out on the weekends to visit her,’ promised Luke. He grinned. ‘I’ll get you all to myself! No Mrs Arnold!’
Jess beamed. No Mrs Arnold; just Luke, Opal and her. ‘That would be so good!’
‘She’s gonna be a great horse, Jess.’
‘I reckon she is, too.’
‘Gonna have to get going soon, you two,’ said Mrs Arnold, appearing from the large red-brick building. ‘I told your mum I’d have you home in time to go to school tomorrow.’
‘Okay,’ said Jess, pulling herself up off the seat. ‘Can I run in and say goodbye to Opal first?’
‘Yeah, but be quick,’ said Mrs Arnold. ‘I’ll be waiting in the car.’
‘Coming?’ Jess asked Luke.
He shook his head. ‘You go, I gotta get something out of the car, I nearly forgot.’
Jess ran back into the building, through reception and into the recovery area. She found Opal, standing and drinking from the small automatic waterer at the corner of the stable.
‘That’s a good sign,’ said Shara, joining her at the door. She put an arm over Jess’s shoulder.
Jess put her arm over Shara’s and they stood there watching Opal. ‘She’s gonna be fine now,’ Jess said.
‘Yeah, she’s on the mend.’
Jess tilted her head and let it rest on Shara’s shoulder. ‘Thanks, bestie.’
‘That’s best bestie to you.’
‘Best bestie,’ Jess corrected herself.
‘Dr Best Bestie.’
‘Dr Best Bestie.’
‘Dr Best Vet in the World Best Bestie.’
Jess laughed. ‘Don’t push it.’
‘See you back at the car. I’ll let you guys say goodbye.’
As Shara walked out of the building, Jess took a last look at Opal and tried to imagine how she would look in two weeks’ time, when she’d put some weight on, and in four weeks when her coat would have a shine, and in two years’ time as a strong, healthy two-year-old, ready to come home and live with her forever. ‘You’ll be worth the wait, Opal,’ she whispered. Then she turned about. ‘See you in a couple of weeks.’
As Jess climbed into Mrs Arnold’s LandCruiser, she saw Luke fumbling around in the front of the ute. He got out with a small plastic bag in his hand and ran back over to her. ‘Asparagus,’ he said, passing it through the car window. ‘Got it in town this morning. So you don’t get scurvy on the way home.’
I’m gonna marry you one day, Luke Matheson.
‘You’re so funny,’ she laughed.
‘Oh my Gawd,’ Shara groaned beside her. ‘You two are a match made in heaven.’
Luke grinned at Jess, then looked suddenly awkward. ‘Can I ask you a favour?’
‘Sure.’
‘I bought a new horse. She’s at Harry’s place.’
Jess’s face lit up. ‘A new horse? When did you buy her?’
‘Well, I didn’t exactly buy her. I adopted her.’
‘Adopted her?’ Jess heard a cacophony of bells as she realised who Luke was talking about. ‘You what?’
‘From the RSPCA,’ he said. ‘I’ve always liked her.’
Jess looked at him, aghast. ‘You didn’t? ’
‘I did.’
‘What for?’
‘Chelpie’s so well bred. She’s got good feet. Lawson and I were thinking she’d be perfect for our breeding program; she’d inject a bit of class into it.’
‘Class?’
He shrugged.
‘You own Chelpie?’
‘Uhuh.’
‘And you want me to look after her?’
‘Just until I come back, then we’ll bring her back out here when we come to visit Opal and let her go with the brumbies.’ He gave her a meek smile, his head tilted. ‘Please?’
‘She’s totally nutty, dysfunctional, poorly raised. She’s—’
He looked at her with the softest, most totally impossible-to-resist eyes. ‘I came good with the right mob, didn’t I?’
Jess steeled herself against the melting, giddy, hopelessly weak feeling in
her gut. She reined in her smile behind a tight-set mouth. ‘One bag of asparagus is not gonna make up for this.’
‘I’ll buy you a whole farm of asparagus.’
‘I already have a whole farm of asparagus.’
‘Capsicums, then?’
Jess undid her seatbelt, leaned as far as she could out of the window and threw her arms around Luke’s neck. His cheek was spiky against her ear. ‘Only for you.’ She squeezed him and he squeezed her back. The car began to move and he walked with her for a while, holding her tight and threatening to pull her out of the car window.
‘I’ll look after Opal for you,’ he whispered.
‘And I’ll look after Chelpie,’ she laughed, and let him go. She hung out of the window and waved. He stood there, hands in his dirty denim pockets, two big wolf dogs panting either side of him, his ute behind him, and beyond that the endless flat mulga country with its soft curling Mitchell grass and stumpy trees.
Acknowledgements
Many, many thanks to the team at Allen and Unwin: Erica Wagner for ‘discovering’ my stories and believing in them, Sarah Brenan for shaping them and putting them on track for publication, Hilary Reynolds for being so in tune with my characters and having such perfect suggestions, and Ruth Grüner for the amazing covers and posters – I’ve loved working with you all.
To Tyson Kaawoppa Yunkaporta, again thanks for contributing to my books with such an open and generous spirit.
To Jody Allen, thanks for the heads-up on droving!
To Dr Keith Phillips, thanks for your advice!
To my perfect husband for his continuing love and support – thanks, Big Daddy-o!
And to the first people of this beautiful country – with all of my heart, I’m sorry.
About the Author
KAREN WOOD has been involved with horses for more than twenty years. After owning many horses, she has finally found her once-in-a-lifetime horse in a little chestnut stockhorse called Reo. Karen has an Arts degree majoring in communications and a diploma in horticulture. She has syndicated a gardening column in several newspapers throughout Australia, has published feature articles in various magazines and has published photographs in bushwalking guides. She is married with two children and lives on the Central Coast, New South Wales.
