Kimberley Sun

by Di Morrissey

  Eugene studied the banks until he saw a narrow opening and cut the motor. They glided into the muddy shallows then leapt out and pulled and pushed the boat onto the mudflat. He and Bobby distributed the essential gear – long metal sticks with a hook at one end, thick gloves and a hessian bag each.

  Ross found the first crab, the size of a large dinner plate and almost the same colour as the slate mud. He chased after it, slipping on the mud as the crab sought shelter in the tangle of mangrove roots. Eventually it was caught with the hooked rod and bagged. From that moment the competitive element entered the chase and shouts and laughter announced every success or failure.

  It was exhilarating. Sami got into the spirit of it all and took off after an escaping crab, tripped and fell. When she struggled to her feet, up to her knees in mud, she found she couldn’t lift her legs out, she was stuck. She couldn’t see any of the others and she began to panic. She knew it was irrational, but perhaps the smell of the mud was getting to her. ‘Bobby, Ross, Eugene!’

  Bobby got to her first, using his crabbing stick as a pole to support himself. ‘It’s okay, Sami, don’t struggle, you’ll make it worse.’ He pulled her under the armpits, and she lifted one leg free with a sucking squelch, then the other. As they staggered to firmer ground where mangrove roots were sprouting, she wrinkled her nose. ‘God this stuff stinks.’ She gave a wry grin. ‘Thanks, Bobby. I see why you told me to wear old clothes!’

  ‘No probs. You’ll dry out,’ he said, looking at the slimy mud that covered her T-shirt and jeans. But inside he was cursing himself. Why was it that every time he arranged something there was a problem? At least Sami was being a good sport about it.

  Eugene was masterful, plucking the crabs with ease while the others thrashed about, losing more than they caught. Sami felt triumphant once she had found her first prey, tracked it and caught it. Eventually Eugene announced they should move to another area, so they headed further around the bay to a little sandy cove surrounded by wind-sculptured red and bronze rocks.

  They poked about under the rocks at the edge of the sea, finding some small crabs hiding in the crevices. To catch them they had to lie on the sand and poke and prod the crabs out of their hiding places with the metal rods. Eugene had a small torch which helped, but most of the time it was guesswork with the rods as the crabs clung to the rock as best they could.

  ‘When they fight so hard, some deserve to win,’ Bobby said after they’d caught a few.

  ‘Nothing like a bit of a fight,’ said Ross. ‘Like catching barra.’

  ‘I know some good barramundi spots. I’ll take you next time I go, if you like,’ said Bobby.

  ‘Fantastic. Count me in.’

  ‘How much longer are you on holidays, Ross?’ Sami asked. She couldn’t imagine him in uniform in a Melbourne police station. He looked so . . . Broome.

  ‘Ah, don’t spoil my morning. I can’t stand thinking about going back to the big smoke.’

  Sami smiled at him as they helped Eugene start a small fire to boil some water for morning tea.

  ‘Well, to tell you the truth I have been thinking about it. A lot,’ said Ross slowly.

  ‘About going back?’

  ‘No, staying.’

  ‘Oh. Is that possible?’ she asked. ‘What about your job? Your family?’

  He shrugged. ‘Those things aren’t the obstacles I’d imagined as it turns out. The big one is me . . . being prepared to leap into a new life.’

  ‘Yes, I know, getting out of the comfort zone. I think my mother is going through the same dilemma. It’s finding or making an opportunity for yourself, I guess.’

  ‘Yeah, but if I wait till I have a good job opportunity I might lose the courage to just quit and move here.’

  Sami tried to think what it would be like to walk out of a secure job with a family to support and move to a place like Broome. ‘I can see the attraction. I mean, look at where we are!’ She swept her arm out towards the view and they sat in appreciative silence looking at the expanse of water, the distant fringe of mangroves, the exposed mudflats where dozens of shorebirds danced and pecked for food. And around them rose the craggy sculpture of the ancient cliff face. ‘I could almost believe we are the first people to come here,’ Sami said quietly.

  ‘This is an old place, all right,’ Eugene said, as he handed around a packet of biscuits. ‘Dinosaurs walked round here. Before the sea came.’

  ‘How do you know that?’ asked Sami.

  Eugene sipped his tea and pointed to the far end of the cove. ‘Footprints, lots of them. Big ones, little ones. All different.’

  ‘Really? Can we see them?’ she said.

  They followed Eugene, clambering over the rocks where they had been crabbing, until they came to a flatter area by the shoreline, with rock pools and small crevices. Eugene placed his bare feet within the circumference of two massive indentations. ‘See, this is where they walked. I reckon it was a mother and a baby. See how the little footprints follow the big ones, left foot, right foot.’

  ‘These are well preserved,’ said Ross. Bending down, he pointed to the centre of one of the footprints. ‘Look, it stood on a leaf and some little insects. They’ve been crushed and fossilised.’

  ‘Has anyone studied these, Eugene?’ asked Sami.

  ‘I don’t think so. No one comes here much apart from a few crabbers, and I bring birdwatchers sometimes.’

  ‘Are you interested in birds?’ Ross studied the teenager with interest.

  Eugene’s face lit up with as much enthusiasm as when he caught his first crab. ‘You bet. I’ve always been interested, my grandfather taught me how to find them, watch them and learn about them. I work at the Bird Observatory.’ He pointed across the mudflats and talked knowledgeably as if to a tour group. ‘See out there, in the lead up to the breeding season all this area gets covered in about half a million shore birds. They fly non-stop from Siberia to come here. Roebuck Bay is a special bird place. They come here to feed before the breeding starts. This is their first stopping point in Australia.’

  ‘Good place to bring tourists,’ mused Bobby.

  ‘Those fossil prints interest me,’ said Sami. ‘Eugene, would it be all right to bring a friend here? He’s an archaeologist, and I think he’d love to study them. Just privately, not to bring people here,’ she added. The thought of tourists swarming over this place made her uncomfortable, but she suspected Palmer would have more than a passing interest in the fossils.

  ‘Sure, bring your friend. This is crown land so anyone can come here. You should come in bird season.’

  ‘It’s amazing to think those little birds flap their wings all this way,’ said Ross as he looked across the mudflats. ‘It makes moving from Melbourne not seem such a big deal.’

  Eugene nodded in agreement and Sami was suddenly envious that Ross was getting a sense of direction, of the way ahead. The weight of her PhD thesis fell on her shoulders again. However, the beautiful morning, the peaceful setting and the company soon cheered her up. ‘So, who’s got a good mud crab recipe?’

  ‘We’ll throw ’em in boiling sea water on the beach as soon as we get back,’ said Bobby.

  Back in Broome, with the boat hooked up to Bobby’s four-wheel drive, they cooked a few of the crabs on a park barbecue and washed them down with bottles of cold beer. During this relaxing lunch, Bobby went to the glovebox of his car and took out a small parcel and gave it to Sami. ‘I’ve been thinking that you and Pauline would be interested in something I picked up recently. You both know about art and stuff. You said you’re seeing her this arvo, didn’t you?’

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘Well, maybe between you both you might come up with a clue as to what this thing is.’

  ‘Where did you get it?’ Sami asked as she took the small parcel and untied the string.

  ‘It’s some sort of sun thing that was in a backpack a passenger left with me a while ago when I was driving the taxi. I don’t know where to find him now to give it back to hi
m. He seems to have left town pretty quick. It’s probably not important, some souvenir, I reckon.’

  Sami looked at the little metal ornament. ‘Wow, it’s an intricate design, really eye catching.’ She turned it over, then held it up against the blue sky. ‘This sort of thing is out of my area of knowledge, but it might mean something to Pauline.’ She wrapped it up again and put it in her bag.

  ‘Let me know, okay?’ said Bobby casually. ‘Now let’s divide up the rest of the crabs.’

  A more serious lunch was about to start on the verandah of an elegant little restaurant in downtown Broome. Lily arrived to join Tim, who had returned from his Red Rock Bay expedition late the night before. ‘Sorry I’m late, I got sidetracked in the Kimberley Bookshop next door,’ Lily said.

  Tim pulled out her chair, charming Lily with his manners. ‘I’m having a beer, would you prefer champagne?’

  ‘Is that suited to the occasion?’

  ‘Why not?’ He signalled to the waitress.

  ‘I can’t wait to hear what you think now that you’ve walked over the place,’ she said.

  ‘You filled me in pretty well. There’s good news and bad news,’ Tim began, leaning back in his chair. Lily felt like blurting out, ‘Is it a yes or no?’ but held her tongue.

  ‘The bad news – well, it’s obvious, isn’t it? The poor facilities at the farm, what’s there as far as infrastructure goes is rundown and antiquated. There are very few staff, not much in the way of sophisticated equipment, the boats need a bit of work, as does the marketing side of the business.’

  ‘So what’s the good news?’

  ‘The location has potential to expand, the lease is a good one and there’s a second lease attached to the title that hasn’t been activated. That would give us an opportunity to find new grounds. There is a lot of seeded shell that will soon be ready for harvest – though the quality will be a lottery. The staff who are there, especially Dave, are utterly passionate about the place and the business. And also down the track there is the marketing and PR link with your old rellie Captain Tyndall and Star of the Sea.’

  ‘And the bottom line?’ Lily looked worried.

  ‘To get to the point – what’s needed is money and guts.’

  ‘Guts I think I can provide. And I like that idea, of following in the family tradition. Maybe we can play that up a bit, to the investors, I mean. Despite the fact that I know zilch about pearling.’

  ‘Spin and confidence is everything when it comes to raising finance. Mind you, we have to be sure we really can deliver the goods once they hand over the money.’

  ‘And can we, Tim?’

  He didn’t answer, turning his attention instead to the waitress as she poured the champagne into Lily’s glass. After she’d taken a sip he continued. ‘Lily, sometimes in life you have to follow a hunch, listen to your instincts and play the cards as they fall. We barely know each other and yet here we are contemplating throwing our lot in together in a hugely risky, challenging, exciting venture. I am confident in you, in the whole concept, and the potential of the enterprise. So, with your agreement, I’d like to go back to Indonesia where the money men are based for the moment and put the proposal of Star Two in front of them as they are looking to invest in a decent sized venture out here.’

  ‘Bravo, Tim.’ Lily clinked her glass against his. ‘I’m with you. I agree that we need to follow our instincts.’

  He leaned forward, his face serious. ‘Now, Lily, you do understand this is a bit of a gamble. You could lose out. I want you to get other advice – from friends, a solicitor, a business manager – ’

  She held up her hand. ‘Tim, I plan to do just that. After our previous discussions I’ve run the idea past a business friend,’ she didn’t mention Dale’s negative response, ‘and obviously I need lots of details on paper as well as going up there, sitting down with Dave and looking over the place at my leisure. But no matter what, I’m going into this with my eyes open, of my own volition, and I do not hold you in any way responsible.’

  ‘Thank you, Lily. That’s what a real partnership is about.’ He took a sip of champagne. ‘Which brings us to the other element in the equation – David George.’

  ‘Has he mentioned a price? I have a friend digging out the records, what he paid, what the land is worth and so forth. Dave seemed worn out, a bit fed up. He’ll be glad to get out of it, I expect. I bet he never thought someone would want to buy it as a going concern and rejuvenate it.’

  ‘No. He didn’t,’ said Tim quietly. ‘Because he wasn’t looking for it. He never had any intention of selling out.’

  ‘Oh, does that mean he’s asking a lot?’

  Tim shook his head and put his glass down. ‘He doesn’t want out of it. He wants in. To be a third partner.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘The contribution that he brings to the table is the farm as it is. You are at the face of the deal, with me playing Tonto to your Lone Ranger. And in the background, the investors, who will anticipate a reasonable return in a reasonable time, but also appreciate the excitement of being in a pearling business Down Under.’ He paused as Lily digested this. ‘Did I mention the investors are Japanese? A big sentimental and knowledgeable input there.’

  ‘So for Dave’s third he brings the farm to the table – that’s more than fair. I’m okay about a three-way split. Damien Lake told me some of the best seeding technicians have always been Japanese, but they’ve been training a lot of young Australians, in fact some of their best are young women. Why couldn’t we do the same?’

  ‘Provided they’re well trained and talented, I think that’s a great idea. But it’s nice to keep the Japanese and Broome pearling relationship going,’ said Tim.

  ‘Star of the Sea had Taki and Yoshi . . . among the best divers in Broom back then,’ mused Lily.

  ‘Who knows? But looking at the present, Lily . . . This whole deal would mean a lot of time, effort, money, patience, maybe heartbreak and a big learning curve. Are you ready for that?’

  ‘Are you?’ she countered.

  Tim thought for a moment. ‘Yes, I am. I’ve been in pearling. I know the hassles, the exhaustion, the stress. But I also know the exhilaration, the huge hit when a good pearl turns up. And I know the frustrations. It sounds simple but there’s really a lot involved in the process of pearl farming.’

  ‘What are the main things that can go wrong?’ asked Lily.

  Tim threw back his head. ‘You name it. Poor handling, disease, bad water, storms, any number of things can make it a rotten season. What pearls you do end up with can be lousy quality.’

  ‘Then we’ll have to address each of those issues one by one. Does Dave know what he’s doing?’

  ‘He’s been doing it the old way, he just hasn’t had the money or the energy, or perhaps inclination, to rev up to the latest methods.’

  ‘Is he willing to get behind new ways of doing things?’

  ‘I think he’ll lean on us. Our involvement would give him a real boost. You can’t dismiss all that experience, Lily. He’s weathered many storms – in every sense.’

  ‘I agree. Okay, I’ll look forward to spending some time with him at the farm. As you say, I’m on a steep learning curve.’

  They gave their orders to the waitress and then Lily asked him, ‘By the way, do I get to meet the investors?’

  ‘At this stage they’re interested in paperwork not the physical side of things, but I’ve got a video I shot up there to show them. It’s a bit amateurish but it’ll do the trick. I reckon they’ll show up when we start to harvest. But I take your point about due diligence and I will bring back the necessary documentation, a formal offer and a guarantee of funding to show you and Dave. And your legal people.’

  ‘Won’t we need additional staff? That’s important,’ said Lily.

  ‘Let’s get the paperwork done first so we’re in a position to offer people a job.’ He smiled at her. ‘We have a lot to talk about. How we work together, division of duties, as well
as the nitty-gritty stuff. We could be here through dinner!’

  ‘Tim, we’re a team. Without knowing a lot about your personal life, I’m going on, let’s call it womanly intuition here, which makes my businessmen friends nervous. But it hasn’t let me down. I’m looking forward to working with you. I think we’ll complement each other well.’

  ‘I’ll drink to that.’ They clinked glasses.

  ‘Speaking of dinner,’ said Lily, ‘there might be a chance of mud crab. Why don’t you come over to the old house for dinner with Rosie and Harlan? If Sami didn’t get any crabs we can always scramble eggs.’

  Tim paused at the front gate and gazed at the grand old pearling master’s bungalow in the moonlight. The idea of pearling with all its romantic connotations now became a magnificent obsession, a splendid and adventuresome enterprise, unlike the haphazard pearl farm that seemed uncomfortably ill at ease in the life of an Indonesian fishing village. He straightened his shoulders, imagining his pearling master’s cap tucked under his arm and his spotless white shoes on as he stepped onto the old polished boards of the verandah.

  ‘Hello, you must be Tim, come in, come in.’ Rosie led him through the house. ‘We’re in the garden.’ Then seeing his eyes darting around the rooms, she added, ‘Come and get a drink and you can browse through the house. If you’re interested in the old days, that is.’

  ‘I am, thanks. In fact, I was just imagining what the parties must have been like here when the house was first built,’ he admitted.

  ‘Talk to old Biddy, she ran the house and kitchen in the old days.’