Purple Roads

by Fleur McDonald

  ‘Hi, Uncle Jimmy!’ Sandy had called.

  Jimmy had forced a smile. ‘Hey there, young fella. You want to go up to the shop and get an ice-cream?’

  ‘Oh, yeah!’

  ‘Where’s your mum?’

  ‘Inside cleaning up the kitchen. Harry’s coming over tonight.’

  ‘Harry? I thought his name was Charlie.’

  ‘Nah, he and Mum had a fight. She likes Harry now.’

  Jimmy didn’t say anything, just put his arm around the thin shoulders and propelled Sandy towards the house. ‘Well, let’s tell her where we’re off to.’

  At the shop they had chocolate ice-cream cones followed by strawberry milkshakes.The lad had kept his promise and had been going to school every day, so he had lots of schoolyard tales to tell. Jimmy laughed at his description of one of the teachers.

  ‘She’s a new teacher.The older kids say she’s real pretty, but she just looks like a teacher to me.’

  ‘What does she look like?’

  Sandy shrugged.

  ‘Is she tall or short? Skinny or fat? What colour is her hair?’ he prompted.

  ‘Well,’ Sandy said slowly, ‘she’s tall and got brown hair. She’s not fat and not skinny.’ He pursed his mouth, trying to find the right words. ‘She’s . . . healthy.’

  On the way home, they stopped at the park and sat on the grass. It was here that Jimmy broke the news.

  ‘So, me boy, you remember how I went over to the war a year or so back? To Vietnam?’

  Sandy stopped picking at the grass and looked up, his eyes deep voids, without emotion. ‘Yeah.’

  ‘Well I’ve been called up for my second tour.’

  ‘But you said you wouldn’t go back!’ The despair in his nephew’s voice nearly broke Jimmy’s heart.

  ‘I know, lad, but if the army and the government say I have to go, I have to. It’s called conscription. But, Sandy, I’ll write every week and your mum will do her best to look out for you. You just need to promise me you’ll keep going to school.’

  ‘Why should I?’ the boy said in a sullen voice. ‘You won’t be here to check.’

  ‘But I’ll be checking when I come home.’

  Silence.

  Jimmy said rashly, ‘You need to get a good education so we can go into business together when I get back. I’ll need you to help me drive trucks and stuff.’

  ‘Really?’ the boy asked hesitantly.

  Jimmy was warming to the idea now. ‘Yeah! We’ll get a couple of trucks and cart freight to businesses, like cement to hardware stores and cans of food to grocery shops. Whaddya reckon?’

  ‘Sounds great, Uncle Jimmy.’ His voice was still quiet, but Jimmy detected a note of hopefulness.

  When he delivered his nephew back to his mother, he told Margo he’d be leaving for his second tour of duty on Monday week. Margo just nodded as if the news didn’t really affect her.

  Jimmy had felt so despondent as he drove away from the shabby weatherboard house.

  Now Jimmy signed the letter - ‘Love, Uncle J’ – and scrounged around in his pack for some Australian money. Putting five dollars into the envelope, he addressed it and shoved it in his pocket. He’d drop it off at the Red Cross tent before he left the next morning.

  ‘Hey, Jimmy! You free, mate?’

  Jimmy recognised the friendly voice of company quartermaster, Alan Bridle.

  ‘Yeah, skip.’

  ‘I’ll need to go to the laundry in Ba Ria shortly. Can you be my protection? I’ve spoken to your sergeant.’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  Jimmy smiled to himself. What a stroke of luck. To accompany the company quartermaster meant he could see Min-Thu, talk to her once more before he left tomorrow.

  If it wasn’t the lad occupying his thoughts, it was Min-Thu, with her long-dark-brown hair and almond-shaped brown eyes. He’d noticed her the first time he’d gone to the laundry with the CQ.

  The second time he went, he’d asked if anyone spoke English, hoping she could. He’d smiled broadly when she had shyly put her hand up without looking at him.

  ‘Can you read English?’

  ‘I try,’ she said. ‘I learn.’

  ‘Can I help you? I could write you notes.’

  ‘No, no. I learn. At lessons,’ she had said, turning away to hide her embarrassment at being singled out.

  Despite her demurral, the next time he returned he slipped her a note, as he did the time after and the time after that. On the fifth visit, she’d handed one back to him.

  And so it started - the friendship between a soldier and a young laundry girl. A friendship which had brought him joy in a time of anxiety, sadness and fear. He just hoped the friendship might become something more.

  Chapter 16

  Anna took a deep breath, picked up the phone and dialled. It only rang twice before it was answered.

  ‘Hello?’

  ‘Mr Harper, it’s Anna Butler. I’m ringing to make you an offer on your dog.’

  ‘I’m sorry.’

  ‘I’ll give you two hundred and thirty dollars - that’s more than you paid for him at the clearing sale.’ Her hands were sweaty and her heart was pounding in her chest, but her voice was calm and steady.

  The idea had come to her in the middle of the night: she could use the money from the races to buy Jasper back for Matt.

  But Alec had other ideas.‘I don’t think so.’

  ‘Why not?’ asked Anna, surprised.

  ‘Because he’s mine - I paid for him. And because I don’t like women interfering in my life - which is what you did when you stole him from me.’

  There was a click as he hung up. Anna’s eyes filled with tears. It had taken so much courage to pick up the phone; she’d never considered that Alec Harper might turn down her offer.

  Before she could think any further she picked up the phone and pressed redial.

  ‘Why do you want a dog you mistreat?’ she asked before he’d even said hello. ‘You could actually be doing someone some good by letting Jasper go. You could help heal my husband.’

  ‘Mrs Butler,’ Alec broke in, ‘you seem to have mistaken me for some kind of do-gooder. Now listen: I bought the dog. He’s mine. I can do what I like with him. I certainly won’t be selling him back to you. And as for healing your husband, I don’t believe that is my job. He was obviously an inept farmer, which is why you went bankrupt. Maybe he should just learn to deal with it.’

  Anna gasped. ‘You bastard! How dare you?’

  ‘How dare you, Mrs Butler?’Alec’s voice was cold. ‘How dare you steal my dog then have the audacity to ring me and ask to buy him back? Please, don’t call again.’

  Anna burst into angry tears as she slammed the phone into the cradle and slid to the floor.

  There was a corresponding cry from Ella’s bedroom. Anna had to pull herself together for her daughter’s sake. She went to the bathroom and hastily splashed her face, then went into Ella’s room.

  ‘Don’t we have a birthday party to plan for you?’ she asked brightly.

  ‘My birfday, birfday!’

  Anna hugged Ella to her, tears pricking her eyes once more.‘Sorry, Matt,’ she whispered. ‘I tried.’

  Chapter 17

  Anna threw open the door and grinned at her brother.‘Nick!’

  She hugged him then looked over his shoulder to see his wife, Jodie, walking up the path carrying a huge birthday cake in the shape of a Barbie doll.

  ‘Jodie, that cake looks amazing!’ Anna said in awe. ‘How long did it take you to make?’

  ‘Oh, not long. Icing it was the hardest thing. I’m just hoping my favourite niece will like it!’ She grinned.

  ‘She’s your only niece,’ Anna said, rolling her eyes. ‘Oh! It’s so good to see you guys - it’s been too long. Come on, Rob and Claire have brought Dad. They’re all in the backyard with Laura and Ian. Matt’s got the barbie going. Kate and Sam should be here soon.’

  Excited squeals reached them as they stepped into the back
yard and Anna could see her dad, Peter, was giving Ella a ride on his lap. He slapped the side of the wheelchair with one hand, pretending it was a horse while Bindy ran alongside barking. Laura was sitting on the lawn, her legs stretched out in front of her, chatting to Claire, and Matt and Ian were standing at the barbecue, Matt turning sausages and Ian trying to engage him in conversation, though Anna could tell Matt was lost in his own thoughts.

  She looked at Rob, her heart full of love. She and Nick had been so grateful that he and Claire had offered to nurse their father back to health. And Claire, a physio, had achieved wonders with him.

  Her father now lived independently in Adelaide and was back working at the bank, something they hadn’t dreamed would be possible immediately after the accident.

  Anna often thought about the terrible time they had been through then, comparing it to the difficulties she and Matt were going through now. She still thought losing her mum was so much worse than losing the farm. But they were thoughts she would never vocalise.

  ‘Uncle Nick! Aunty Jodie!’ called Ella. She slipped off Peter’s lap and raced towards her uncle and aunt, then stopped dead, looking wide-eyed at the birthday cake. Jodie squatted down so her niece could get a better look. ‘Do you like it?’ she asked.

  Ella breathed, ‘Pretty, pretty!’

  Jodie put the cake on the table and held out her arms for a hug, and then Uncle Nick had his turn.

  Anna was glad Ella’s third birthday was proving such a happy occasion. Her second birthday had been clouded in misery as they had not long moved to town and were still dealing with the aftermath of losing the farm. But now, with Matt’s wage from driving and her babysitting business, they were finally getting back on top of things. Not having to worry about where the money was going to come from to buy the groceries and pay the power bills was a huge relief, and to have enough left over for a few little extras, well it was just pure bliss. There had been enough money to buy Ella a toy pram for her birthday and have a family party.

  ‘Helloooo! Anyone home?’ called Kate as she and Sam opened the back gate. ‘I’ve got a delivery for a Miss Ella Butler!’

  ‘Kate!’ Ella ran over to her and Kate handed her a present, laughing as Ella sat on the ground and pulled at the paper.

  Bindy nosed her way under Ella’s arm, trying to see what was going on, but Kate shooed her away.

  ‘Mummy! Look!’ Ella held up a fairy costume complete with wings, shoes and a sparkly necklace. ‘Put on, put on,’ she cried as she jumped up and down excitedly.

  Anna laughed. ‘Sure, Ella, you can put it on.’ With Kate’s help, Ella struggled into the costume. She ran around the lawn waving her wand and pretending to fly.

  ‘Grub’s up!’ called Matt a little time later. Ella was the first one served. She carefully wrapped her bread around the sausage and grinned at Uncle Nick as he squirted some tomato sauce on top. Ella sat next to her cake and ate solemnly, while the adults served themselves sausages and salad, the men opened beers and the women replenished their glasses of white wine. The table pulsated with laughter and conversation; Anna felt very content.

  After everyone had eaten, the whole family sang ‘Happy Birthday’ with gusto. This was how it was supposed to be, Anna thought - good times shared with your family around you. Who could wish for more?

  She smiled broadly as Matt helped guide Ella’s hand over the knife and into the cake and kissed her on the nose before serving a piece of cake to her.

  A short time later, Ella was blowing kisses to everyone as Anna led her into the house for her afternoon nap.

  ‘Had fun, darling?’

  Ella nodded, almost too tired to talk.

  Anna convinced her to take off the fairy costume and tucked her in, leaning down to give her a hug. As the little arms wrapped themselves around her neck, Anna breathed deeply, enjoying the smell and feel of her little girl.

  ‘Sleep tight, sweetheart,’ she whispered.

  Anna went into the kitchen to turn the kettle on and stood near the open window, just watching everyone. Snatches of conversation floated in on the breeze.

  ‘I can understand that, mate,’ Nick was saying.

  ‘Don’t know how . . . any ideas?’ said Matt.

  Anna went outside to take orders for tea and coffee.

  Nick and Matt were so deep in conversation they didn’t hear her approach.

  ‘Well I wouldn’t expect her to understand.Women just don’t think the way we do. But I reckon you’re on the right track - we just need to work out how to do it properly, not aimlessly like you are now.’

  ‘I know just driving around at night isn’t going to find them, but . . .’

  ‘What the hell are you two talking about?’ Anna demanded, her voice low and angry.

  Both men started.

  ‘You’d better not be going on about who took the fertiliser again. It’s done, finished - there’s nothing we can do to change it.’Anna saw Matt raise his eyebrows at Nick as if to say ‘I told you’, but she continued on. ‘And what if you do find something? What are you going to do then? Do you really think they’re going to hold their hands out and say,“Here, Matt, come and handcuff me?” Of course they’re not - they’re probably dangerous blokes and you shouldn’t go anywhere near them. There’s only one thing to do. Look forward, look to what good things are going to happen in the next year. Know we’re together as a family and we’re supporting each other until it’s just a distant memory.’

  ‘I don’t agree, Anna,’ Nick began.

  Anna held up her hand. ‘Nick, I don’t want to hear it. Now come join the others.’

  It was not the time or place to argue, so the three of them rejoined the group, though Anna couldn’t recapture her earlier sense of contentment. She was cross that her brother would encourage Matt and it disturbed her to know that Matt was still as obsessed as ever with the stolen fertiliser.

  When the plates and cups were empty Ian and Laura got up to leave. Anna went out the front to see them off. As she re-entered the house she came face to face with Nick, who had come in to use the toilet.

  ‘Nick,’ she said, ‘please don’t do this.’

  ‘Do what?’ he asked. ‘Help Matt find out who did it? Why not? He needs to know, Anna.’

  Anna shook her head. ‘No he doesn’t. He needs to move on, Nick. I know him better than you. He’s completely obsessed - he acts as if nothing else matters, not even Ella and me. For the sake of our family he needs to forget what happened. He has to look forward now.’

  ‘Anna, think about it like this: what if someone took Ella and you found her dead?’ Anna reared back. ‘Listen to me,’ Nick insisted. ‘Imagine the police not doing anything, not answering your phone calls, not bothering to come and take fingerprints or try to track down the bastard who did it. Would you let it go? Would you say,“Oh, she’ll be right, let’s just look forward”? Of course you wouldn’t.You’d be leading the pack of people trying to find who did it, why it happened, who was to blame.’

  ‘It’s a bit bloody different, Nick!’

  ‘Not really. See, Matt feels like he’s lost a member of his family. He’s grieving the same way that you or any of us would if we lost Ella. The same way we did when Mum died. He worked and built the farm up with nothing but his own two hands and you. This fertiliser theft made his whole life crumble before his eyes. Why can’t you see he needs to do this for closure?’

  ‘Nick, I hate to burst your bubble, but we were struggling even before the fertiliser was stolen. We’d had five bad seasons, remember?And our only regular source of income taken away with the truck fire!’ Anna was angry. ‘You’re interfering. Just leave him alone. He doesn’t need to find out who did it.’

  ‘But he does, Anna,’ Nick said urgently. ‘I understand things weren’t going well before it all happened. You’re probably right - this was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. But if this is how he needs to deal with it, you should support him through thick and thin - it might be the only way
to recover the bloke you married. I’m sorry if you think I’m interfering. I’m trying to help you understand from a bloke’s perspective. And, don’t forget how great he was when Mum died.’ With that, he stepped into the bathroom and shut the door.

  Anna stared after him, her thoughts whirling. Surely he couldn’t be right? But she remembered what he’d said about Ella, about how she’d feel. He was definitely right about that.

  Chapter 18

  Matt walked out of the smoko room only to be accosted by a small barking bundle, its hackles raised. He laughed as Turna ran around his ankles, growling ferociously. An ear-piercing whistle echoed around the sheds and the bundle shot off.

  The brown and white Jack Russell terrier appeared again a short time later as Matt was checking the tyres on the truck.

  ‘You know, Turna, you’ve got a serious attitude problem,’ Matt said as the dog lifted his leg on every wheel he could.

  ‘Sorry, Matt, is he giving you the shits?’ Janey was walking towards him. Like him she wore a green King Gee shirt, shorts and Rossi boots. Her hair was pulled back in a plait.

  ‘You should muzzle that dog, Janey - I’m sure he thinks my ankles are his next feed!’

  ‘Hell on wheels, aren’t you, Turna? Come here, mate.’ She squatted down and picked up the little dog, who seemed to become jelly in her arms.

  Matt risked a snapping of teeth and reached over to fondle the soft ears, trying not to think about Jasper.

  ‘You’ve got a dog, haven’t you, Matt?’ Janey asked, craning her face away from the dog as he tried to lick her chin.

  ‘Not anymore.’ Matt turned back to the tyres.

  ‘You should get another one. They’re such great company. I love having him with me when Joel and I aren’t driving together. He almost talks back when I’m chatting away to him. You woulda had a good farm dog, hey?’

  ‘Yep. I did. Anna has an old kelpie, but she’s been retired for years. Just stays around the house now. How are the wedding plans going?’ asked Matt, wanting to turn the conversation from dogs. He couldn’t get another dog: it was Jasper he needed.