'Not until you tell me who you are—and where Dr Harland is,' he added as an afterthought. 'He knew we were coming here and was asked to give us every assistance in our work.'
'Ordered to, you mean!' Tansy exclaimed, losing her temper. 'Well, amazing as it may seem to you, Major Blake Aston, not everyone is willing to act like a tame sheep and sit idly by while you decide whether or not to tear this island apart so that you can play your war games. My father has gone to Australia to get you and your men removed from here. We don't want you on Aparoa, Major. Nobody wants you!'
The officer looked at her calmly, her angry words seeming to have had no effect on him at all, and Tansy bit her lip as she realised that she had blurted out more than she intended during her outburst.
'So he's your father, is he? Well, as he isn't here I shall have to make do with you instead. I need someone to act as an interpreter while we're surveying the island.'
Tansy stared at him. 'If you think I'll help you in what you're doing, you must be crazy!'
'Suit yourself, Miss Harland, but the people here might start getting worried when we begin our work.'
'What do you mean?' Tansy asked suspiciously. 'Why should they?'
With a slight sigh, as if he were lecturing a raw recruit, the Major said patiently, 'I shall be driving over and measuring up various stretches of land. The natives will be wondering what's happening and will start getting worried and anxious. If I had an interpreter to explain that this is simply an initial survey and that adequate compensation will be paid to anyone losing their land if we do decide to go ahead with an airstrip on Aparoa, then a great deal of unnecessary worry and distress would be avoided. Also, I would be able to answer any questions the people might want to ask me on the project. But of course, if you don't care about the natives, Miss Harland, then that's entirely up to you.'
'How dare you try to play on my feelings, use moral blackmail, to try to get me to help you?' Tansy said vehemently, appalled that this man could so calmly expect her to do just what he wanted at the lift of a finger. 'For your information, the natives already know why you're here, and you'll get as little co-operation from them as you will from me. Do your own dirty work. Major Aston!' Wrenching her arm away from him, Tansy stepped back into the house and went to slam the door in his face, but again he moved too quickly for her and put his foot in the doorway before she could shut it.
'Just a minute, I'm not finished with you yet,' he said grimly.
'Well, I have! I've said everything I ever intend to say to you. And don't ask me to help you again, because I won't, under any circumstances.'
'Very well, Miss Harland, if that's the way you want it. You're just going to make life tougher for everyone concerned,' he said harshly, for the first time showing anger at her defiant attitude. 'I shall ride as roughshod over this island and its people as I have fo, and don't blame me if some get hurt in the process. A lot of hardship could be avoided and I could make this operation as painless as possible, but your stubborn attitude and the way you have obviously stirred up the natives to feel the same is going to make trouble unavoidable. And now that's all I have to say. Sleep on it, will you, Miss Harland? I'll call again in the morning.'
'Don't bother. My answer will still be the same.' And this time she did manage to slam the door, but there was little satisfaction in the action; she knew he could have prevented her if he had chosen to.
Tansy picked up the towel from where it had fallen and automatically continued to dry her hair. Drat the man! Why did he have to come here? And to ask her to help him of all things. That was the last thing she would ever do! Abstractedly she started to walk up and down the room. But he had sounded absolutely ruthless and he had proved that he could act ruthlessly too, in the way that he had handled the situation at the prison. By now the news of it would have spread throughout the entire island. Had he deliberately used his pistol to frighten the islanders into letting him do what he wanted, not only then but in the future?
Putting on a sweater and jeans and pushing her feet into a pair of sandals, Tansy let herself out of the back door into the warm night. After walking through the garden, she began to climb the hill behind the house, the way picked out easily in the silvered moonlight. At the top of the hill the ground levelled out into the huge, fiat plateau that stretched from the cliff edge away into the dim interior of the island. It was here that the serried ranks of coconut palms that provided the main source of income for the natives had been planted under her father's guidance. Before he came to Aparoa the natives had each had their own small grove of trees, but now they had formed a co-operative and all shared the work and the profit made from the sale of copra.
The ground under the trees had been cleared so that the fallen nuts could be easily seen, and cattle allowed to graze on the grass to keep it short. Tansy saw several cows lying beneath the palms as she made her way to her favourite spot; a knoll of slightly higher ground on the edge of the cliffs where the flaming blossoms of flamboyant trees and the heady scents of bougainvillaeas made a perfect place to sit against a tree trunk and think in uninterrupted peace and to take in the beauty of the island and ocean. And tonight she needed to calm her nerves; that Aston man had set the seeds of doubt in her mind no matter how hard she tried to dismiss them. Would it be better for the islanders if she went along as an interpreter? The people were terribly possessive over their pieces of land, many of which had been handed down through countless generations. If they saw the soldiers taking measurements they would immediately jump to the conclusion that it was their land that was going to be put under layers of concrete. They would go running to Ruari, Tupuhoe, or herself and rumours would spread like wildfire. They would probably imagine the whole island under concrete before a day was out, Tansy thought ruefully, having no illusions about her fellow Aparoans.
Then there was the subject of compensation that the Major had mentioned. It was hard enough to get the natives to do any real work as it was, they were by nature extremely indolent, and if they thought that they would be paid for their land by the government they would immediately stop working altogether. They would insist that even the meanest patch of scrubland was worth a fortune and would spend all their time haggling over the price. And when they did get the money they would only fritter it away, Tansy reflected gloomily, remembering how they had once enthusiastically spent all their year's copra earnings on sets of golf clubs for the men and high- heeled shoes for the women that one enterprising trader had brought by schooner to the island in the hope of making a sale. Dr Harland had been furious, especially when women started breaking their ankles in the unsuitable shoes and the men began hitting each other with the golf clubs, finding them very efficient weapons.
Tansy sighed, wishing that her father were with her to ask his advice. She thought she heard the sound of a movement further down the hill and looked sharply in that direction. At first she could see nothing, but then, about twenty yards away, a cow climbed slowly to its feet and ambled off among the trees. Relaxing, Tansy settled back against the trunk of the tree again and looked out across the bay. The view of the ocean was framed in palm trees, their fronds whispering gently in the warm winds of the gulf stream, under a moon so brilliant that the night seemed day.
Slowly Tansy straightened up. It was against all her inclinations, but she knew that when Major Aston came the next day she would have to act as his interpreter, however much she would hate doing it. Then a reassuring thought came to her; perhaps by going with him she might be able to discourage the soldiers, point out how unsuitable the place was for their purposes. And she would certainly be able to calm the natives' fears and urge them to be as unhelpful as possible, she thought more cheerfully. Yes, Major Aston certainly wasn't going to have things all his own way after all!
She turned and began to make her way down the familiar path towards home, but as she went she had the eerie feeling that she was being watched and turned several times to look behind her. But there was nothing there, onl
y the swaying palms and the sleeping cattle. She gave herself a little shake and mentally berated herself for being silly. The arrival of the soldiers had already begun to play on her nerves.
CHAPTER TWO
The next morning Tansy woke very early as usual, but already Inara was ahead of her. Tansy could hear the native woman in the kitchen as she sang while she prepared breakfast. As a rule the women were more energetic than the men, but they still did as little housework as possible, preferring to spend their time gossiping or making innumerable dresses and sarongs on the sewing machines that were proud possessions in every household, but Inara had been devoted to David Harland ever since he had saved her mother's life several years ago, and now she came happily every day to cook and look after his house for him.
Pushing open the window, Tansy looked across to the twenty-foot-high walls of the prison. Already there were signs of activity there, smoke from cooking fires drifted up to where a few white clouds hung motionless in a sky whose indigo was lighting to azure as the sun rose higher. So Major Aston knew that in a tropical climate the best hours in which to work were those early in the morning. Hurrying downstairs, Tansy told Inara that she would be going with the soldiers and to spread the word that she would hold a clinic later in the day. She knew that l he islanders would have no trouble in reaching her in an emergency—they would be so curious about the soldiers' activities that there would probably be a crowd of them trailing the jeep wherever it Went.
As she did every morning, Tansy walked down through the garden that her father had so lovingly planted and which bloomed abundantly in this ideal climate. Single and double hibiscus grew alongside roses of every hue, giant-headed blue and pink hydrangeas blossomed beside a myriad gorgeous azaleas, and surrounding them all were frangipani trees, brilliant flamboyants and the inevitable spreading purple bougainvillaeas. Rounding a bend in the path, she came to a break in the side of the hill where a small waterfall, about fifteen feet high, fell into a shallow rock pool with flowers growing all around the banks and in the crevices of the rocks. The fall made a natural shower and, after pinning up her hair, Tansy took off her sarong and stepped under it, enjoying the invigorating feeling of the cold water that flowed down from the mountain.
As she washed she whistled to herself as she did each morning; having been brought up by her father after the death of the mother she tried in vain to remember, Tansy had developed quite a few boyish traits that her years of medical training in London had entirely failed to eradicate. Stepping from the pool, she reached up to where she had hung the sarong on a convenient branch, and then hastily held it in front of her, a look of startled horror on her face as she heard a noise and saw Blake Aston coming round a bend in the path. He came to a stop, an amused lift to his mouth as he noted her discomfiture. Tansy expected him to apologise for intruding on her privacy and to go quickly away again, but the insufferable man merely leaned his long length up against a tree trunk, folded his arms, and stood there, casually watching her.
For a minute Tansy stared at him speechlessly, then she said through clenched teeth, 'Will you please go away?'
'Oh, I don't mind waiting,' he said affably, but with a mocking gleam in his dark eyes.
'Can't you see that I want to get dressed?' If the man was trying to goad her into losing her temper he was certainly succeeding.
'Oh, don't mind me, Miss Harland. When you've seen one, you've seen them all!' he said outrageously.
'Oh!' Tansy gasped. 'Why, you—you…' She was unable to find words to express her feelings.
The Major grinned. 'Do I take it that you're trying to tell me that I'm not behaving like an officer and a gentleman?'
'That's exactly what I mean,' she said vehemently.
'But, Miss Harland, I thought you liked to play games. Why else did you pretend that you were a native girl last night?'
'Because I didn't want to talk to you,' Tansy retorted. 'Because I…' she broke off, then went on slowly, 'Oh, I see. You intend to go on standing there until I apologise for last night, is that it?'
'That's the general idea,' he agreed.
'How did you know I came here to bathe?'
'I heard a woman whistling. It was so very unladylike that I was sure it must be you, so I followed my ears. It was pure chance.' He paused. 'But if it hadn't been this way it would have been some other.'
He had spoken softly, but there had been a distinct menace in his voice, and Tansy realised that he would be a far more dangerous person to cross than she had so confidently supposed at first. She shivered slightly despite the heat and said coldly, 'Really, Major, this has gone far enough. You're becoming ridiculous.'
Implacably he answered, 'I've got plenty of time, Miss Harland, and I'm not going to turn my back until I have your apology for your rudeness last night.' And he settled his broad shoulders more comfortably against the tree.
Tansy glared at him defiantly. How dared he treat her as if she were in the wrong! 'Then you can just go to hell!' she said furiously, and presenting as little of herself to him as she decently could, she hastily draped the sarong round her and tucked it in, at the same time shaking her head so that her hair fell free of the restraining pins. Then she turned to face him, confident that she had kept herself hidden from his sight. 'I rather think you lost that round, Major,' she said triumphantly.
'Did I?' There was an appreciative gleam in his eyes and a humorous lift to his mouth that Tansy didn't like. He couldn't have seen, could he? she wondered as she looked at him. The Major saw the sudden doubt in her eyes and his grin became even broader, but he didn't pursue the point. He indicated the sarong. 'Don't you have any European clothes to wear, or have you gone completely native?'
'What I wear is nothing to do with you!'
'It is when you're going to be among my men for any length of time. They've been away from home a long time, Miss Harland, and I don't want them getting any ideas when they see you running around with only that scrap of material covering you.'
'Lots of island women wear sarongs,' Tansy protested.
'But the rest of the island women haven't got your face, your hair and your figure,' he replied bluntly.
Tansy glared up at him, but he looked back at her steadily until she felt her colour heightening. Turning away, she began to walk back through the garden towards the house and he fell into step behind her. When she thought about it, Tansy supposed that in a way he was right; she had been used to wearing a sarong since she was a little child, and it came completely naturally to her, but, as she was an English girl, the soldiers would expect her to behave differently from the other island woman. She sniffed exasperatedly; not only was Blake Aston telling her what to do, he was also telling her what to wear, and the worst part of it was that the horrible man was right!
Arriving at the veranda, she turned to face him. 'Anyway, what makes you think that I'm going to come with you to speak to the islanders?'
He rested his hand on the rail. 'You may be incredibly naive, but you're not insensitive. You'll come. I'll wait outside for you in the jeep. And be as quick as you can, will you? I've already wasted enough time and I want to get as much done as possible before the heat becomes oppressive.' And he swung away to walk out to the road, leaving Tansy to stare after him furiously.
So he had wasted enough time, had he? although back at the pool he had seemed in no particular hurry. Tansy wondered just what he would have done if she had continued to hold out against him, then decided that perhaps it would be better not to think about that. With a man as unpredictable as Major Aston anything might have happened. Going to her room, she changed into a short-sleeved shirt and a pair of slacks; banging drawers and noisily shutting cupboard doors as she thought of the Major. He was the most overbearing, conceited, self- assured, arrogant man she had ever met! Never in all her life had she felt such instant antagonism towards anyone. Anger surged up in her until she had to sit down and clench her fists in an effort to control herself. This wouldn't do; she mustn't l
et her emotions take over. Deliberately she took up her hairbrush and brushed her hair until it shone like quicksilver, the soothing motion settling her nerves. She must keep all her wits about her if she wanted to outsmart Major Aston and get him and his men off Aparoa as quickly as possible. And right now she could think of nothing she wanted more!
There were three men waiting in the jeep outside the house. The driver was a private, but sitting next to him in the front was a lieutenant, whom Blake Aston introduced as John Andrews, a young man a year or two younger than Tansy's own age of twenty-five, with brown hair and an eager expression on his open face. He gallantly helped her to get into the back seat next to the Major, but Tansy took care to sit as far away from him as possible. There was an amused quirk on his lips as he ran his eyes over her clothes and noticed her rebellious attitude, but he said nothing. The men had been studying a large- scale map of the island and now Blake ordered the driver to go along the coastal road that almost circled the island with one or two dips inland to ford the rivers.
They set off along the red, dusty road and almost immediately were followed by a throng of children which grew bigger as they approached the village. This was the largest village on the island, built near the easy passage to the open sea so that the men could go fishing. The buildings were grouped round a large, open, grassy space, and comprised a hundred or so huts thatched with grass, reeds or leaves on solid wooden frameworks, but occasionally there were bungalows or houses made of stone, wood, and galvanised iron. The few stone houses had mainly been built by convict labour to house the prison warders and were grouped nearer to the prison, while Ruari and Tupuhoe lived in a wooden, European style house in the centre of the village. On slightly higher ground on the eastern side there was a stone-built church where the islanders gathered on Sundays to sing hymns and exchange the latest gossip. The minister came only once every six months or so to perform baptisms and to marry any of the islanders who had lived together long enough and had had enough children to decide that there was now little risk of them getting tired of one another. Near Tupuhoe's house there was also a village assembly house where everyone met to discuss any momentous decisions, and which also doubled as a trading post and as a school, which Ruari was slowly persuading the children to attend.
Sally Wentworth - Conflict In Paradise Page 2
