Maid for the Rock Star

by Demelza Carlton

  Audra took a long, slow pull from her beer and lay back on the jetty. Now that she was finishing up her second beer, the timbers didn't feel so hard. "It attracts those with a sense of adventure who will never be satisfied with a normal job. Having to rely on your own skills and experience, often without access or even open communication channels to your superior, and defend your decisions later. Working in places most people would kill to visit, let alone live in. Knowing that if you make a mistake, the risks are higher because it's harder for help to reach you, and hence weighing your decisions carefully. You know you're doing a job that someone has to, but you miss those you love back home. Email and phones and video calling can only go so far to alleviate how much you miss being able to touch them.

  "Here at Romance Island Resort, I've seen all of that. I took the job because the location was somewhere I'd never been and the isolation allowed me to save money because there was nowhere for me to spend it, except on alcohol. It's hard to find the enthusiasm for more than one or two quiet drinks in the evening because you're still at work, being judged by your colleagues, and if you get drunk you could put everyone in danger. An ambulance took four hours to reach a car accident and take the injured driver to hospital. He could have died in that time and he was lucky to live. I found myself practicing first aid skills I only knew from theory and courses, then later having to assume a level of responsibility I hadn't expected.

  "I have no partner and no children, but I still have family and my absence affects them, too, because where they might have relied on me in the past, now they have to rely on themselves and each other. But in my experience, meeting the challenges of working in an isolated location like a remote island resort makes you more resilient and better able to meet even greater challenges in the future. Even if you don't have a sense of adventure to start with, you soon develop one. It's hard not to. At the end of the work day, just standing out in the dark and looking up at the millions of stars in the sky...it's like no city job anywhere."

  "Hmm." Serge frowned at the paper in his hand, holding his phone over it to illuminate the words. "What would you do if one of your colleagues took the last mango beer and refused to share it with you?"

  Audra sat up. "I don't believe that's on the list."

  "Answer the question!" Serge barked.

  "If he was both a colleague and a friend who'd paid for the beers, and I'd already drunk half of them, I'd probably wish he'd share it with me. But I wouldn't say so because I've probably drunk more than I should have, anyway." Audra drained her beer. "Do I get the job?"

  "I'd hire you, and I'd send you to one of those adventurous places before looking for a transfer for myself. You make working in the arse-end of nowhere sound exciting."

  Audra laughed. "This isn't the backside of anything. This is paradise."

  "That's the beer talking for sure. Cleaning toilets is paradise? Weren't you ready to kill some VIP the other day?" he teased.

  "Cleaning toilets in paradise. There's a difference. You know I got the permanent position? Annette told me today. All I have to do is fill out the paperwork and I'll have a job until the graduate one starts next year."

  Serge cracked open the beer and raised it. "Congratulations." He passed it to her and waited until she had her mouth full before he added, "Adam's had to let me go. The day of your job interview's my last day."

  "Oh no!" Romance Island wouldn't be the same without Serge and his easy humour.

  "It's only a week early. No big deal, really. The resort's pretty low on bookings next week, so that's it." He retrieved his beer and drank deeply.

  "Will you have enough hours to get your certification?"

  He shook his head. "My brother's got me a job at one of the wineries near home, so I'll work there through the summer and see if I can do those hours at one of the local gyms. I'll get there. We're all working toward our dreams, but you'll get there first. I know it. And now you have a camera, you can send me pictures of paradise, here or wherever you get sent, via email."

  "I still have to do the interview. They might hate me," she admitted.

  "Nah. Just repeat what you said to me, especially the bit about adventure. They'll give you anything you ask for after that."

  "Even the last beer?"

  Serge handed it over. "Even the last beer."

  FIFTY-SEVEN

  "...Like no city job anywhere," Audra finished, then swallowed nervously. "I wish I could show you what I mean, but it won't be dark here for hours yet."

  On the laptop screen in front of her, Scott grinned. "I have a fair idea. One of my first postings was to the Cocos Keeling Islands. Talk about paradise. If you ever get the chance to work out there, take it and go."

  Audra gave the manager of the graduate programme her best nervous smile. "If the Bureau gives me a job, I'll take whatever posting I'm offered."

  He leaned forward. "Would you really?"

  "Of course. The adventure bug bit me out here, I think, though I thought it was a midge at the time. At low tide in the mangroves, there are millions of them..."

  "What about Antarctica?" Scott interrupted.

  Audra paused to consider her answer. "I would say Antarctica is probably the most adventurous and isolated workplace I could think of," she ventured.

  "Good. Antarctica's usually somewhere we don't send staff until they have a few years' experience at one of the remote stations, not to mention a year's training here in Melbourne, but you come highly recommended and one of your references, a Professor – "

  "You've called Peter already? I thought you didn't contact references until after the interview." Audra's blood ran cold. Her research supervisor hadn't smiled once at her during her entire honours year, while constantly telling her that her work needed to be better. Never good enough...

  "We've been trying to contact you all week, but your mobile phone goes straight through to your voicemail."

  "I...I thought I mentioned that there was no mobile access up here."

  "We didn't know that until we got your email three days ago."

  "Ah." She realised she'd interrupted him. "Sorry, please continue."

  Paper crackled and the edge of a white page appeared in Scott's hands. "It says your honours thesis was on analysis of storm intensity in relation to climate change. Did you do all the analysis yourself?"

  Audra felt stung. "Of course."

  "We're short a junior meteorologist for this summer's Antarctic field expedition to Dome Argus. We need a meteorologist who's better with numbers than most and your research supervisor said you were one of the most mathematically gifted students he'd ever taught. He was quite angry that you didn't continue to do your PhD. The staff member who was allocated to go didn't pass her medical. Would you consider yourself physically fit, Audra? Capable of meeting all the requirements?"

  Now she smiled. "I've been working with the personal trainer in the gym here at the resort and that's when I'm not fighting linen trolleys twice my size and weight. I...probably, yes."

  "You're our first preference for the spot, but the ship leaves Tasmania in eight weeks and you won't be able to go until you've done at least four weeks of training at the Australian Antarctic Division facility here in Australia. You can start the graduate training programme next year with your colleagues in March, when the Aurora Australis brings the summer staff home. How soon can you start?"

  Not work here for the wet season? Trade tropical seas for the icy Southern Ocean? "The dry season ends at the end of this week. I could start next week, but I don't have the right winter clothes or anything."

  Scott waved her concerns away. "The AAD provide all your gear, and your space allocation for personal belongings will be pretty limited, or so I've heard. I've never been to the Antarctic stations." He nodded, as if a decision had been reached. "I'll send through the paperwork. It should be in your inbox...now. We only need you to sign the contract. Once we get that, I'll get my PA to book your flights. I'm looking forward to meeting you."

/>   The call terminated before Audra could protest or say goodbye.

  What had just happened? She'd expected to feel relieved after the interview, not more stressed than ever. How could she go to Antarctica? Or tell Annette that, after working her arse off to get the permanent position, she no longer wanted it because she was taking a job at the South Pole? Not to mention her family. If they couldn't contact her, who would sort out their problems for them?

  There was still the problem of Jay, too. She'd searched every inch of her room twice and still not found the money. More and more, she'd started thinking that she'd need to take the cash out of her savings and give it to him. If she took this crazy, cold job, she'd earn it back soon enough. In the first month, maybe. Cold comfort, but she didn't deserve any better.

  A soft tap started at her door. "Audra? How did it go?"

  She slammed the laptop shut and rose to let Serge in. "Good, I guess."

  He held up a six-pack of beer. "I guess you won't know for a while yet, but let's celebrate anyway. My last day on the island and to your future job in paradise."

  "Antarctica," she blurted out. "They want to send me to Antarctica. This summer. In eight weeks. He sent through the contract, too." It sounded even crazier coming out her mouth than Scott's.

  Serge laughed softly. "Seriously? That is awesome. So in eight weeks, you'll be sending me pictures of penguins. I want to see one of you standing next to an emperor penguin. And you have to tell me what they smell like when you email the photo. I hear they stink." He grabbed her hand. "Come on. The tide's out so we can drink on the beach. I'll fight off crabs, sharks and any VIPs who think they can steal you from me. I should've let you buy the beer. You'll be earning triple what you get here, at least."

  "Graduates don't get paid that much," she protested.

  "One of my mates is a plumber and he took a job at one of the Antarctic research stations because...well, because. He said the pay from six months out there is enough for you to holiday for the next year. Danger money, extra pay for the isolation, all your accommodation, food and clothing included, plus overtime because you have to do shift work and it pays extra." He edged toward her laptop. "Here, let me show you." He opened it, waited for the computer to come out of hibernation, then typed until he brought up the AAD website. "See?"

  Audra saw. It was more than anyone in her family had ever earned, even when her father had worked on a minesite. When she got home, she'd be able to pay for a brand new car in cash. Her stomach twisted. It was too much, too far, too...

  "You're thinking of turning it down, aren't you?" Serge asked.

  She lifted her shocked gaze to meet his. "No, I just..."

  "I'll tie you up and fill out the forms for you if you're even thinking about refusing. This is it. Adventure. You living your own life. Your own freedom. This is a dream job, the sort that people fantasise about but never get. Do you know how few people get to visit Antarctica? You're going to get paid to go to the South Pole."

  "It's too much for me." Her voice sounded terribly small and forlorn.

  "Fuck that kind of thinking. It's what you deserve, Audra. Nothing's too much for you. You've taken shit from the dregs of the Earth in people like Penny and you've put up with arseholes at the top like the VIPs in the Pearls, when you have every right to be right up there with them. Swear to me you'll take that job."

  "It's not that simple, Serge."

  He reclined on her bed with his arms folded behind his head. "It is. I'm not leaving until you sign that contract and email it off."

  She swallowed. Could she do this? "What if I refuse?"

  He grinned. "Then I'm going to the Pearls and I'm going to tell Jay Felix that you've had a crush on his fine arse since high school. Then I'm going to drag him to your room here and..."

  "NO!" Audra shouted, then forced her voice back down to normal. "You can't. Please."

  "Sign. And you have to build me a snowman as tall as you are and take a photo of you beside it."

  "You're crazy." So was she, Audra thought, as she opened the email containing her contract. All she had to do was fill out a few lines, add her digital signature and it was done. "It's sent. Serge, what have I done? I've just agreed to go to the ends of the Earth."

  He leaped off the bed and peered over her shoulder at the email. When he seemed satisfied, he cupped her cheeks and turned her head so he stared into her eyes. "Not an end, sweetheart. A beginning. You've just started the life you deserve."

  Realisation settled heavily on her shoulders. "I need to tell Annette. My family, too. I'll need to pack."

  "Tomorrow," Serge said gently. "My boat leaves this afternoon and you're about to be whisked away to your dream destination. We are going to celebrate with beer." He tapped the six-pack. "And I liberated a picnic lunch from the kitchen, complete with fresh mangoes and ice cream, so we're going for a picnic on the beach. I'm your fairy godfather and I insist." He flexed his muscles.

  With her mind whirling and her stomach churning, Audra lost the ability to resist. "Okay. A beach picnic with beer it is."

  FIFTY-EIGHT

  "I can't believe you're going and I'm staying," Pamela said, sinking onto Audra's bare mattress.

  Audra shrugged, then zipped her bag shut. Every moment on the island since she'd accepted the Antarctic job offer had seemed like a dream. "It's all a bit fast for me, too. Don't tell anyone, but I'm going to miss this place." She surveyed the tiny room that had been the most luxurious accommodation she'd ever stayed in. A space of her own, if only for a short time. "And you deserve to stay. When I was doing light duty at the villas, dealing with all the VIP requests, you were pulling double shifts cleaning the rooms here while Penny sneaked off for sex with her chef." She waved at the desk. "Are you sure you don't want me to tidy up in here before I go? I don't want to make extra work for you."

  It was Pamela's turn to shrug. "I'll clean all the empty staff rooms at the end of the week. Annette has a cyclone-ready checklist for the wet season, she said. I can't believe you'll miss the storms. You'll have to come back up some time in another wet season. You're welcome at my place, any time."

  Audra thanked her and gave her a hug. "Don't let the VIPs give you trouble, or the resort's new owner, either. Have you applied to that nursing school yet?"

  Pamela smiled shyly. "I applied this morning. I didn't know you could do most of the study here and just go up to the university for the practical placements. With this new job, I'll be able to afford the flights to Darwin and I can study at night when there's nothing else to do."

  Audra forced her smile to stay in place, though she felt tears brewing. She hated goodbyes. "Take care, Pamela." She hefted her backpack onto her shoulder and grabbed the handle of her duffle bag. Without looking back, she wheeled the duffle down the veranda and toward the dock. A few more steps carried her to the door to Reception; she almost made it before the downpour started.

  Heloise stood at the Reception desk, frowning at the rain. "I always look forward to the first storm, but when it comes, I want the dry season back."

  "Not even meteorologists can control the weather. We have trouble enough predicting it," Audra replied, dropping her bag on the floor. She held out her ID. "I won't be needing this any more." She peered out the door toward the dock. "It's raining so heavily I can't even see the boat."

  "The boat's not coming." Dennis strode into the foyer. "Baz just radioed to say the storm's blown in earlier than expected. The swell's too dangerous. The forecast's for clear conditions on Sunday, but it won't be calm before Monday at least."

  Audra's jaw dropped. "But...my accommodation's in town. I don't work here any more."

  Dennis jerked his head at Heloise. "Give her one of the rooms in the main hotel. Ocean view, so she can see the boat coming. And book her a full meal package in the guests' restaurant." He held up a hand to stem Audra's protest. "Free of charge. It's not your fault you're stranded. Baz should've brought the boat over earlier. Your flight home doesn't leave until Monda
y evening, right?"

  "Right. But I had a few days planned in Broome for...sightseeing..." She'd intended to go to the bank and arrange to have a cheque written for Jay. It would be open on Monday, too. Cutting it close, though.

  "Better sightseeing here. You can make use of this." Dennis tapped the camera bag that now contained Jay's gift. The bag wasn't new – it'd been in the lost property box, snared in a nest of phone charger cables – but it was the perfect size for her camera and the extra lens.

  "Maybe I will. I guess if I have a whole weekend to kill..." First, she'd go back to her old room and clean it properly. Pamela shouldn't have to clean up her mess.

  Heloise passed her a guest wristband. The waterproof kind that didn't beep, display urgent messages or record her conversations. "Room 123. I can send the porter up with your bags, if you like."

  Audra shrugged her backpack off her shoulder. "Yeah. That'd be nice. Thank you."

  A flash of lightning illuminated the skylight, drawing Audra's eye. She'd never photographed a thunderstorm before. "Actually, I might go and see if I can get some pictures now." Leaving everything but her camera bag with the porter, she headed outside and dashed through the rain for the first bit of cover – the veranda of the staff accommodation. She waited, her eyes on the sky, but it looked like the storm had discharged its electrical fury already. Sighing, she headed to the communal bathroom for some cleaning supplies. The light in the cupboard had died, so she grabbed a bucket and a bottle of detergent and took them to the sink to fill them. She needed a cleaning cloth, too, so she reached into the cupboard and found a damp cloth.

  The door to her old room gaped open, already looking deserted. She set the bucket on the desk and dropped the cloth into the hot water. A green streak leaped out of the bucket and smacked into the wall, making her jump. A frog! The little bugger slipped behind the desk.

  Audra swore. She wouldn't miss the frogs, that was for sure. Had it been hiding in the bucket or the cloth she'd been holding? Shit, what did it matter? She had to get the bloody thing out of there. Dumping her camera bag on the bare mattress, she dropped to her knees to crawl underneath the desk just in time to see a tiny, green foot disappear between the skirting board and the narrow strip of laminate at the base of the desk.