Silver Clouds

by Fleur McDonald

  He tugged on the wire again. ‘Grab me the wire strainers from the toolbox, will you? I’ve got to fix this now.’

  Tessa did as Ryan asked then looked on as her brother fixed the strainers onto the fence and started to jack the handle. The slack wire seemed to take on a life of its own, rising from the ground into a tight line.

  ‘Far out,’ she said, looking around her. ‘That’s terrible. We’re in the country. Everyone is supposed to be honest.’

  Ryan lined up the wire on the post then grabbed his hammer and stapled it firmly into the wood. He then cut a piece of wire as a tie and poked it through the hole in the steel post. Deftly he tightened it until it held firm. He did the same for the next three strands then stood to view his handiwork.

  ‘‘Ha! Don’t let where we live fool you. Farms and stations are often targeted for theft. People drive in off the road and fill up their fuel tanks from ours. We’ve found slaughtered cattle with the prime cuts taken. The list goes on, let me tell you. It really used to get up Spider’s nose. She’d come with me sometimes when I’d go out at night.’ He looked up from his work with a grin. ‘She wanted to be there when the perpetrator was caught so she could roast them. You can imagine it, can’t you?’

  Tessa knew it wasn’t a laughing matter but she couldn’t help but giggle at the thought of Spider, hands on hips, dressing down the thief. She sat down on a rocky outcrop. ‘How did you find out?’

  ‘We figured it out when all the owners and managers caught up for our annual meeting about wild dogs at the last Nullarbor Muster,’ he said. ‘It turned out we’d all had the same sort of experiences.’ He walked down to the next post and tested the ties. They were firm.

  ‘Anyway, the sheep just walk under the fence and into next door. I suspect what’s happening is, whoever is doing it keeps an eye on the fence line, and when he sees the stock, he drops the fence and maybe even encourages them through. Not sure how he does that, ’cos no one has ever noticed car tracks on our side of the fence and, believe me, we’ve looked. Spider thought she’d tracked someone one day, but it turned out to be Joe riding a horse he’d been breaking.’

  Tessa took the hammer he handed her. ‘Someone is stealing them? Tell me how?’

  ‘That’s what we think,’ he answered grimly, turning to face her. ‘Like this. There is someone dropping the fence and once the stock – cattle or sheep – cross that boundary, someone collects them. See, if you turn off the water this side of the fence and have water on the other side, the stock will just walk through to the next watering point. They don’t care whose land they’re on.’ He pushed his hat back and scratched his head. ‘They must keep them in some sort of yard and take them away from here. Personally? I’m guessing they’re ripping our tags out and replacing them so they can be sold. It’s not hard to change an earmark with a pocket knife. All hearsay, mind you.’

  ‘Are you certain?’ Tessa was stunned. ‘I mean, come on, this is the Nullarbor. You all know each other, you’re neighbours, friends. You socialise together. It doesn’t seem realistic.’

  ‘Like I said, locality doesn’t make people honest. And it’s happened enough times for me to know that someone is stealing them,’ Ryan confirmed.

  ‘Who do you think it is?’

  Ryan looked straight at her. ‘I won’t accuse anyone until I have proof. The gossip mill has gone into overdrive, suspecting this one or that. So-and-so had a dodgy station hand or Joe Bloggs from over the back had three horses taken when his jillaroo shot through.’ He shook his head. ‘Innuendo and rumours are all we have. All these so-called suspects have left and it still keeps happening.’

  ‘Bloody hell!’ Tessa was bewildered. ‘So do you think any stock have gone under here?’

  ‘Nope. Look at this.’ He pointed to the ground.

  It just looked like dirt to her.

  ‘There hasn’t been any activity here since it rained. You can still see where the water has lain, whereas here—’ he walked several metres away from the fence into the bush and pointed ‘—here you can see tracks. Do you know how to tell which are sheep or cattle?’

  ‘The smaller ones will be the sheep, obviously.’

  ‘Yeah, but depending on the time of the year, they could be calves too. See here? These are sheep – see the squareness of the hoof? If it was a cow, it would be sort of like a horse’s hoof. But these are split in two. The inside of the hoof has straight sides. They’re called claws.’ He spread his fingers for emphasis. ‘Get it?’

  ‘Funny, I sort of remember all this, but there is no way I would have known the proper terminology for it. I think I’ll trust whatever you say,’ Tessa said, straightening. ‘And, I might just look for big tracks compared to small ones.’

  ‘Or you can do that,’ agreed Ryan with a grin. ‘Come on, we’ve saved our sheep today, so let’s get going over to Harrison’s. I’ve still got to get back home tonight.’

  Chapter 17

  The dogs barked. Harrison looked through the window of the Mundranda homestead. Ah, here they were. He hoped he’d done the right thing when he’d asked Tessa to look after Cally. He felt his little girl needed some female company other than Peggy and although Tessa wasn’t exactly ideal, there wasn’t a lot of choice around.

  Briefly he wondered what the five-bedroom transportable house would look like to her, before deciding he didn’t care. He knew it was probably obvious there wasn’t a woman in residence – the garden was uncared for – but he did his best. There were pockets of green lawn as you walked towards the front door and the line of bushes by the edge of the deck that Ange had planted just two weeks before her diagnosis, Harrison would have kept alive at any cost.

  Ryan was just shutting off the ute by the time Harrison walked out onto the deck and started down the steps.

  ‘G’day, mate.’

  ‘Ryan, good to see you. Tessa.’ He nodded in her direction.

  ‘Hello,’ she answered.

  He thought she sounded unsure of herself.

  Footsteps clattered along the wooden passageway and Cally came hurtling out of the door, letting it slam behind her.

  ‘Hi,’ she called. ‘Hello!’

  ‘Hi, Cally,’ Ryan and Tessa answered together.

  ‘Offer you a cup of tea?’ Harrison asked.

  Tessa nodded.

  ‘Mate, I’d love one,’ Ryan said, ‘then I’d better make a mile. Long way back.’

  Cally served the tea with bought biscuits. When everyone was sitting around the big old table Tessa quickly engaged her charge in conversation, asking her about the photos covering the wall.

  Harrison talked with Ryan while keeping one ear on the talk between Cally and Tessa.

  ‘And this one,’ Cally said, pointing to one of her sitting astride a horse, ‘was taken at the end of last year’s Nullarbor Muster. So it’s nearly a year old.’

  ‘I can see how much you’ve grown up,’ Tessa said. ‘Did you win anything?’

  ‘Nah, Gracie Pike from two stations across won. But I’m going to beat her this year.’ Harrison felt his heart constrict as Cally thumped her fist into her palm with a quiet air of determination.

  He watched Tessa interact with Cally and thought there was probably some good inside her somewhere. Despite her earlier rudeness, maybe the young Tessa was still in there. He was heartened by the thought. And he had to admit she looked better too. The thick makeup that had caked her face was gone. Her skin and eyes were clearer and the dreadful haircut she’d had seemed to be growing out, with the harsh blonde colour gradually being taken over by her natural dark brown.

  Ryan interrupted Harrison’s thoughts. ‘Well, suppose I should get going.’ He pushed back his chair and got to his feet.

  They all stood to see him out. As Tessa hugged her brother goodbye, Harrison caught a look of loneliness cross her face. Guess it must all be a bit daunting for her, he figured. Then he thought about the shearing shed and felt an angry protectiveness of the Mathisons. Tessa could cause some trouble b
y hanging out with Brendan McKenzie, he thought as he stalked back into the house.

  When Ryan had gone Tessa washed up the cups while Cally and Harrison wiped. Knowing he had to make an effort, he cleared his throat. ‘Thanks for coming,’ he said when the table had been wiped down and everything put away. ‘Come on. I’ll take you to your room and show you where everything is. Then Cally can tell you about School of the Air. It’s probably changed a bit since your day!’

  ‘I appreciate this, Tessa,’ Harrison said, as they stood outside the hangar the next morning. During the previous evening and after observing Tessa’s warmth towards Cally, he’d decided to make an effort with her. Cally hung onto her every word and it was the first time he’d seen her enjoy another woman’s company other than Peggy and Violet’s. As much as he hated to admit it, Tessa might be good for Cally.

  ‘It’s fine. I’m happy to do it. We’ll get along great, won’t we?’ Tessa called to Cally.

  ‘Yeah, Dad, don’t worry.’ Cally was under the wing of the plane, once again checking the fuel.

  Harrison turned back to Tessa. ‘Have you got any more questions? Anything you need to know?’

  ‘No, I think you went through everything last night. Anyway, Cally knows the run of the place. Honestly, we’ll be okay.’

  ‘Okay, then.’ Harrison reached out to pat her shoulder, but she leaned to one direction and his arm went around her shoulders.

  ‘Ah, sorry,’ she mumbled and her face flushed. Harrison grinned, dipping his glittery hat before turning to Cally.

  ‘So I’ll see you in a few days, Squirt.’ He hugged her, not wanting to let go of this little body who made his life worth living. ‘I’ve left all my numbers on the notepad by the fridge.’ With that he climbed into the plane and started the engine.

  Cally and Tessa stood at the airstrip and watched until Harrison’s 182 Cessna was nothing but a shining silver glint in the sky. Out of the corner of her eye, Tessa could see Cally was holding back tears. She wondered if she should put her arm around the girl, but didn’t feel she knew her well enough to show such an obvious sign of affection.

  What would Aunty Spider have done? What would her mum have done? If she were Cally, what would Tessa have wanted? The answer was simple: hug Cally. She awkwardly put her hand on Cally’s shoulder. ‘Come on, let’s go and do something. Why don’t you show me your horses?’

  Cally nodded. She swallowed and threw her shoulders back. ‘They’re in the house paddock. Come and meet Megs.’ As they strolled over, Cally waved to a couple of men who were slowly driving out of the shed in a battered ute. ‘That’s Robby and Pete – they work for Dad, or at least, they work for the company and Dad is their boss. There’s another couple of old guys around, too.’ She turned to Tessa. ‘Do you remember old Joe, the horse breaker?’

  ‘Yeah I do. I talked to him briefly at Aunty Spider’s funeral. Old Joe is almost like a fixture of the Nullarbor! I can remember loving it when he came over to Danjar Plains. He always had a pocketful of lollies and he’d spend ages with us, telling horse stories. But we got rid of the last of the horses just before I went away to school. Except for Bonnie – she belonged to us kids – but she’s dead now. Anyway, once we did that, Joe stopped coming.’

  ‘He’s still got lollies. Dad tells him not to give them to me, but he sneaks me some now and then.’ Cally smiled. ‘Joe’s working for Dad. Just doing odd jobs, I think, ’cos he’s getting too old to break horses.’

  Tessa waved to the men as they drove past. She was slightly relieved there would be other adults around. Otherwise it would be just Cally and a million miles of no one.

  ‘It would be nice to see Joe again. Now, tell me about Megs. That’s a lovely name for a horse.’

  ‘She was my mum’s. Mum named her after her mum, my nana.’

  ‘Well, she must be pretty special, then. Is she a chestnut?’

  ‘Palomino. Dad looked for ages to find the perfect horse for Mum after I was born. She always told the story of a palomino she had when she was a kid – they were best friends, always out in the paddocks, getting up to mischief. Well, that was what Dad told me. I don’t actually remember the story.’

  ‘Oh! I think I remember Megs! Is she the one your mum used to ride when she was competing at the Muster? She used to ride in the barrel races, didn’t she, your mum?’

  ‘You remember Mum?’ Cally stopped and faced Tessa with an odd expression.

  ‘Yeah, I do. I used to ride, too. Been a few too many years for me to want to get back in the saddle, though. Haven’t got the right boots, either.’ She grinned wryly, sticking out her foot to display her muddy sneaker.

  ‘We’ve probably got some boots here you could borrow. I’ll have a look when we get back to the house. Can you tell me about Mum?’

  Hunger, Tessa thought. That’s what it is – a hunger to hear about her mother.

  ‘Well, I can tell you vague recollections. It’s been a long time. Yeah, I can, but let’s see Megs first. See if I remember her as well as I think I do.’

  Cally grinned. She began to skip a little. ‘Ay-up, Ay-up,’ she called.

  Tessa looked across the paddock. She couldn’t see anything. ‘Lord, that’s another thing I’d forgotten about. I feel like I’m learning everything all over again. I used to do that too; call them in. Dad taught us a different call. Something like, “Way-yoy, Way-yoy.”’

  ‘Doesn’t matter what you use,’ Cally said. She looked into the rubbish bin near the fence. ‘Just so long as the sound carries a long way and the animal knows it’s going to get a treat when it gets here. It’s a training thing,’ she added knowledgeably before calling again, a saucepan full of oats now in her hand. ‘Look, here they come.’

  Tessa heard the horses before she saw them. The snorts and whinnies gave them away, but the first animal she saw was a young Hereford heifer. The calf pushed her way out of the bush and came running towards Cally, tossing her head.

  Cally laughed. ‘This is Rusty. She was rusty-red when she was born. Her mum didn’t want her, so I fed her from when she was a baby.’

  Rusty thrust her head towards Cally and bellowed again.

  The noise was so loud Tessa felt the ground vibrate under her feet. ‘Oh Rusty, I think you’ve just about deafened me!’ She reached out to rub Rusty’s head and then spied the horses coming behind. It was easy to pick out Megs.

  The three mounts nodded their heads, trying to get their share of oats. All the time, Cally talked softly to them, showering two of the animals with kisses and pats.

  ‘So this is Megs. Dad gave her to me when Mum died. She’s my best friend. And this one is Whiskey.’ She kissed Megs and Whiskey again on the nose as she introduced them and then held out her hand to the piebald. ‘This one is a bad-tempered little so-and-so, and only Dad can handle him. Got to watch him ’cos he bites, even when you’re feeding him. Dad called him Snickers ’cos he’s a little bit nutty.’

  Tessa burst out laughing. ‘Well, Snickers, I’m pleased to meet you. But you should never bite the hand that feeds you!’ She reached out and patted the other two. Rusty bellowed again.

  ‘Oh, settle, petal,’ Cally said, rubbing her cheek. ‘You just want all the attention.’

  ‘Do you ride often?’

  ‘Every day, if there’s time. But there are heaps of other jobs to do – and school work.’ She screwed up her nose. ‘I like to get tea for Dad. He works so hard and it’s not fair if he has to do all the work outside as well as the housework. I try and help as much as I can.’

  ‘I’m sure you do. But now you’ve mentioned that school work, we should probably think about starting it. Your dad told me you’d try to get out of it, if I let you.’ She looked at her watch. ‘Come on, it’s almost nine. You’d better go and fire up that computer or whatever it is you do to learn.’

  ‘Only if I have to,’ Cally groaned.

  ‘You have to,’ Tessa confirmed. ‘We’ll do the fun stuff and talk about your mum later.’

 
; Here it was the end of three days. Harrison was due back first thing in the morning – he’d rung to say he was in Kalgoorlie and was leaving at first light. Cally was excited and Tessa had to admit she was looking forward to seeing him, too. She wasn’t sure why. Especially when she had Brendan to daydream about.

  Tessa set the table as Cally put some sausages on a plate and mashed the potatoes. Tessa thought they had got along well; she’d told the girl everything she could remember about her mum and Cally had hung on every word. When she’d gone to bed, Tessa had made sure she’d kept herself busy, to try to keep the longing for a drink at bay, so she had jumped onto the computer and researched IVF treatment. She had a heap of information for when she saw Ryan next.

  She’d also spent hours trawling through the photo albums and newspapers she’d brought with her, but to no avail. There was nothing to help her identify the jewellery.

  Now she felt she had Ryan and Marni sorted, the two rings had taken over her thoughts. She’d looked at them every night, holding them and turning them over and over, willing them to talk, to tell her who they belonged to, what their story was. Had Aunty Spider had another love? Or did they relate back to ‘the secret’?

  Apart from the family shots, the photo albums had contained only pictures showing the opening up of the station land on the Nullarbor. And as interesting as it was to read about the Afghan camel trains carting supplies and equipment to help develop the land, the newspapers hadn’t contained any more information, other than a history. Spider’s name hadn’t been mentioned in any of the papers she’d looked through, nor the family name or that of the station. Zilch.

  Tessa now knew that the cameleers had carted wool from the stations – all the stations, so that would have included her family’s – down to the coast, near Esperance. The wool was floated out on barges to the ships and went to market by sea.