Indigo Storm

by Fleur McDonald

  Chris didn’t seem to be interested in making conversation and Eliza was glad. Even with all the practising, she was worried she would muck up telling him her story.

  The green signs that indicated the number of kilometres to the next town were counting down.

  B 30. B 25. B 20.

  Suddenly the sign for Blinman appeared and she caught her first glimpse of the place that was pulling her so strongly.

  Chapter 6

  One morning, a month after Eliza arrived in Blinman, the sun was just rising over the hills as she pulled on her sturdy walking boots, and grabbed her hat and camera, before heading out the door of the room she rented at the back of the general store.

  She loved this time of day. It was still and cool, the quiet shattered only by the screams of galahs, crows and other birds. Even though there was a chill in the air now, Eliza knew that by lunchtime she would be in a T-shirt and shorts, swatting the flies away.

  She was heading out on her morning walk to the old copper mine. It was up a steep, stony hill, and was her favourite place to watch the sunrise.

  The rising sun made her feel reborn every morning. She wallowed in the pinks and reds that it threw onto the ranges, and found peace in the whisper of soft breezes and the gentle light of dawn.

  Often, she’d stand where the fences protected the deep openings in the hills and stare down into the mine. She marvelled at the depth of the water, and the trees that somehow managed to grow below the earth’s surface. Their tall branches, stretching up towards the surface, to the sunlight, held her attention.

  To her, they represented something beautiful and strong that could grow in the darkness.

  Today, she stood staring, lost in the beauty of the land and its colours. Then she heard someone behind her and she half turned, knowing who it was before she heard his voice.

  ‘Mornin’, Eliza.’

  She paused before answering, ‘Morning, Chris.’

  ‘It’s a lovely one.’

  ‘It’s one of the best sunrises I’ve seen since I arrived,’ she said, raising her camera, trying to capture a permanent memory of what she was seeing today.

  Click.

  ‘Kangaroos to the left,’ Chris murmured at her shoulder.

  She turned gently and there, silhouetted against the rising sun, were five kangaroos munching on native grasses.

  She reached into her camera bag to grab the zoom lens, then knelt to get a better angle.

  Click.

  Click.

  Click.

  She checked the display screen and adjusted the setting before trying again.

  ‘That’s better,’ she said softly. The latest photo showed the darkened shape of one kangaroo, his paws to his mouth. Around him, the sky was a vivid red, and above that, it faded into blue.

  Photography was a newfound hobby for Eliza since she’d arrived in Blinman. It was something she had always been interested in, but she’d never acted on it. The new Eliza could do what she wanted and the area was too beautiful not to capture with a camera. On a trip to Port Augusta, she’d spent some of her savings on a good-quality one and started to learn the art, reading magazines and following blogs on photography. Her plan was to take pictures and sell them to passing tourists. To her delight, some of her photos had already been shared by the popular Outback Paparazzi Facebook page. Reen had offered her wall space in the general store, and the tour operator across the road had done the same. She would be another in the long line of photographers in the area, but she hoped somehow she could get an edge and that people would buy her prints.

  ‘I brought you a coffee,’ Chris said, putting down his backpack and pulling out a thermos and two mugs.

  Eliza turned around to look at him, feeling nervous. ‘Did you? That’s nice. Thanks.’

  Ever since Chris had first dropped her at the general store, he’d called in to check on her every time he was passing. Eliza found it very unsettling.

  Maureen had elbowed her in the ribs the third time he’d come in.

  ‘Reckon he’s got the hots for you, love,’ she grinned.

  Eliza had shaken her head. ‘Not interested, Reen. I’ve told you. I’ve sworn off men. For good!’

  ‘Ah, come on now. Man’s not a camel.’

  ‘Huh?’

  ‘Well, I don’t know the female version of that saying,’ Maureen had grinned. ‘Surely you know it means that a man can’t go without a drink?’

  Eliza laughed and again shook her head at her friend.

  ‘You shouldn’t let that one get away,’ Maureen said. ‘He’s a lovely bloke, got a steady job. Hell, being a park ranger, he’ll never be out of work, since he’s paid by the government! And there’s those two kids of his. Nothing but cuties, if you ask me. Don’t know why that wife of his did what she did.’

  ‘Not interested, Reen,’ Eliza said again.

  A man was the last thing on her mind. Even if he was good-looking, and kind, and intelligent . . . and had the cutest smile!

  Eliza reminded herself again. She was living a lie.

  ‘Take a seat,’ said Chris as he squatted to pour the coffees.

  ‘Few and far between out here,’ Eliza answered and stayed standing.

  ‘Geez, anyone would think you were frightened of me,’ he said, handing her the cup.

  Eliza said nothing, but blew on the steaming liquid and looked out over the roofs of the Blinman township.

  Chris came and stood next to her.

  ‘So, you’ve decided to hang around?’ he asked.

  ‘Yeah. I seem to be the odd-job girl at the moment. Reen says I can work in the shop for a few hours every day, and Stu and Stacey are going away for a week or so and have asked me to feed their dogs and horses. Keep an eye on the place, so I’ll do that.’ Stu and Stacey were a young couple who lived just outside Blinman, and were about to go on their honeymoon. Their animals needed tending and Eliza loved animals. She continued, ‘So, yeah, I’ll hang around for a bit. Might even learn to pull a beer or two at the pub!’

  ‘You’d be better off on the other side of the bar,’ Chris said, but Eliza shook her head.

  All the websites she’d consulted about how to change your identity had said to avoid alcohol. It loosened tongues, and she couldn’t afford to let anything slip.

  One issue with being in the northern Flinders Ranges was that there was limited mobile coverage and the internet was spasmodic at best. She had no idea where Dominic was searching for her and had no intention of finding out. She avoided the news and TV when she could.

  ‘Why not?’ Chris asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

  A crow flew over and squawked as it hunted for something to eat.

  ‘I don’t drink,’ she said.

  Chris was silent for a moment, digesting that fact.

  ‘Hmm, you might have a hard time fitting in here, then.’

  ‘I haven’t so far. Everyone’s been really kind and accepting. I’ve become pretty settled, even in the short time I’ve been here.’

  ‘That’s good, because I’ve got a proposition for you.’

  Eliza’s stomach curled and she held her coffee cup a little tighter as she answered, ‘Really?’

  ‘Yeah, really.’

  She waited, but Chris didn’t say anything more. The silence reverberated around them.

  ‘Well, are you going to tell me or not?’ she finally asked.

  He grinned. ‘Oh, so you want to know. I wasn’t getting the feeling you did!’

  Eliza couldn’t help smiling back.

  ‘All right, I’ll put you out of your misery. You know I’ve got two girls, Heidi and Tilly?’

  Eliza nodded.

  ‘They need a bit more of a woman’s touch than I can give them. So, I was wondering if you’d consider coming to the park and being their governess. Supervising the School of the Air work, taking them on a few excursions, reading to them, all that sort of thing. It’s the tourist season and that makes me extra busy. I’m battling to find time to do
everything and it’s always the girls who miss out. I don’t want that for them.’ He paused to take another sip of coffee. ‘Now, I know you’re not experienced in teaching, but you don’t really need to be—just a bit switched on. All the work is supplied by the School of the Air and you can talk to them any time you need to. At least, if the bloody internet is working or hasn’t slowed down to a snail’s pace.’ Chris turned to look at her. ‘What do you think?’

  Eliza didn’t need to think.

  ‘When do you want me to start?’

  Eliza opened up the general store and started putting the homemade Cornish pasties into the warmer. Hopefully, Gillian, who made the iconic pasties and pies, would swing by today with some more homemade quandong pies. They were running low.

  Traditional Cornish pasties, with apple in one end and meat in the other, and the quandong pies were the two most ordered things on the menu. There were some talented cooks in the town, and the general store gave the pub, with its great burgers and other meals, a bit of a run for its money.

  She thought back on her conversation with Chris that morning. If she hadn’t needed the money, she would have said no. But her finances were looking decidedly lean, and the few dollars she made working at the general store and being the odd-job girl around town weren’t going to keep her in food, clothes and lodgings for long. She was slowly paying off the bill for the repairs to her car too. It was a matter of pride that she was able to look after herself.

  ‘Morning, Eliza,’ Maureen said as she shuffled in.

  ‘How are you today, Reen?’ Eliza asked, stopping to look concernedly at Maureen’s doubled-up frame.

  ‘Top of the world, love, top of the world,’ Maureen answered with a wink. Her back injury from a car accident ten years before had left her in constant pain and there were days she couldn’t stand upright.

  Eliza knew better than to comment or make any offers of help. Instead, she asked, ‘Is Gillian bringing more pies today?’

  ‘She should be over fairly soon. Did you get out for your morning walk?’

  ‘Yep, and guess who turned up?’

  ‘Wouldn’t be some hunky park ranger, would it?’

  Eliza laughed. ‘So hard to trick you,’ she said, her tone laced with sarcasm.

  ‘I keep telling you and you keep not listening. He has more on his mind than just being friends.’

  ‘You know what, Reen?’ Eliza stopped stacking the drinks fridge and turned to face her.

  ‘What?’

  ‘I don’t think he has. He asked me this morning if I’d be a governess for his girls. I think he’s just been sizing me up to see if I’d be suitable for that.’

  Maureen paused for a second before responding, ‘You are either naïve, silly or blind, and you won’t convince me otherwise.’

  ‘Okay, let me put this to you. How long has it been since his wife left?’

  ‘Claire left three years ago. How she could leave those little girls behind, I just don’t know.’

  Eliza butted in before she heard a full rant from Maureen about her anger towards Claire. She’d heard it all before. ‘Such a nice girl, no one would have had any idea she was going to do what she did,’ Maureen always said. ‘Not so nice now, you mark my words!’

  ‘And, in all those years, he’s never chased another woman, has he?’ Eliza asked.

  ‘Lovey, if you take a look around, you’ll see there’s not a lot of choice out here.’

  ‘Puts me in a good category, doesn’t it?’ Eliza teased.

  ‘That’s not what I meant and you know it. Good Lord, girl, sometimes you can be infuriating!’

  ‘Seriously, what I’m trying to say, Reen, is that I might be the first girl he’s shown any interest in, but only because he needs help with his daughters. I get the feeling he’s struggling a bit. The conversation was all business, I can promise you! Besides, people who’ve been hurt are usually scared of getting involved with anyone again, aren’t they? I’m pretty sure he’s wary of getting close to any woman.’

  Maureen eyed Eliza closely. ‘You know what?’ She crossed her arms. ‘I think, without knowing much about you, I could put you in the same category.’

  Butterflies coursed through Eliza’s stomach at her friend’s words and she tried hard not to show her shock. She grabbed a soft drink in each hand and stacked them neatly in the fridge.

  ‘Don’t know what you’re talking about,’ she said lightly.

  Chapter 7

  ‘This is the schoolroom.’ Chris pushed open a screen door so Eliza could peer in.

  The room was basic, with two desks pushed together, and a computer in the middle. On one wall was a blackboard, and on the other a window, which looked out over a small patio. There were papers spread across the desks, and a few drawings by the girls Blu-Tacked to the wall.

  Chris gestured for her to walk in. ‘There’s only an hour or so a day actually spent on the computer with their teacher. The rest of the lessons are done out of these workbooks.’ He handed her a thick paperback and she started flicking through it.

  Hmm, the handwriting could do with a bit of work, she thought.

  ‘Their lessons from this,’ he tapped what she was holding, ‘are what I was wanting help with. I’m their dad, not their teacher. I know plenty of parents do teach their kids, but I’m not one of them. I’m an outside, hands-on sort of bloke, not a classroom one.’

  Eliza looked up from the workbook, and saw guilt and sorrow in his face. She understood it wasn’t that he didn’t want to teach his daughters. It was that he couldn’t. Her heart went out to him.

  ‘That’s no problem. Kids tend to learn better from someone other than their parents, anyway,’ Eliza said. ‘In another life, I worked with kids, and dealing with only two in a classroom situation will be much easier than managing twenty.’ She realised Chris was about to ask her a question, so she rushed on with the first thing that popped into her head: ‘And the girls, where are they now?’

  ‘They’ll be over at the camp sites, talking to the tourists,’ he answered.

  She looked at him in horror. ‘You let them go and talk to strangers by themselves?’ Who knew what sort of people were camped at the park? The next David and Catherine Birnie could be over there, with two unsupervised young girls wandering around. It sent a shudder of disbelief through her.

  Chris looked surprised. ‘Yeah. It’s mostly the grey nomads around here. During the school holidays, there’s plenty of families. It’s good for them to meet people and talk to them. And there’s lots of people around. It’s not like they’re completely by themselves.’

  ‘Right.’ Eliza still couldn’t comprehend it.

  ‘I’ll take you to meet them, but first let me show you how to use the computer and hook up with Port Augusta.’ He hit a few buttons and explained as he went. Eliza whipped a notepad out of her backpack and started writing.

  ‘Their teacher is Mr Goldsworth. He’s really approachable, so if you’ve got any problems, he’s the one to go to.’ He paused before saying, ‘It’s a bugger but I’m sure they’re both behind where they should be.’

  Eliza thought, then said: ‘Unfortunately, we’re all victims of our own circumstances, Chris. We can’t change that. Just have to do the best we can with what we’re given.’ She changed the subject quickly. ‘So, Heidi is in year four and Tilly’s in year one?’

  ‘Yep. Nine and five. They’re polar opposites! Heidi is a little go-getter. She could pick out native animals and track kangaroos before she went to school. Tilly’s a bit different. Quiet and measured. Always thinks before talking. She loves animals and can raise as many joeys as I bring home.’ He smiled and Eliza could see how much he adored his children.

  ‘Well, they had to learn those skills from someone and I’m guessing that someone was you. So, see? You do make a good teacher!’ She threw a quick smile at him. ‘I’ll look forward to meeting them.’

  ‘Do you want a cup of coffee? I can make one and call the girls back.’

&nbs
p; ‘That would be great. I’ll just have a quick look through these books, so I know what I’m doing, and be right out.’

  After Chris left the room, she stood for a moment taking everything in. It was clear that for some time there had only been a man’s touch in there.

  She walked over and sat at one of the desks, before picking up Heidi’s workbook and turning to halfway through it. There was the normal ‘look, say, cover, write, check’ and short stories that kids of that age did, along with addition, subtraction and multiplication.

  At a glance, Eliza could see that Heidi was struggling with her maths as well as her handwriting. Two things to work on straightaway, she thought as she read a story Heidi had written.

  ‘There was an echidna that lived in a hole. He was very prickly, so it was hard to make friends . . .’

  Even though her handwriting was awful, the punctuation and sentence structure were fine. ‘Okay, that’ll be easy enough to deal with,’ she said to herself.

  Eliza put down Heidi’s book and picked up Tilly’s. Numbers and sentences being matched to pictures were featured heavily. She flicked through a few pages and something caught her eye.

  ‘Project: Interview an older person on what it was like to live a long time ago.’

  That’s interesting, she thought.

  A siren sounded, and Eliza jumped and looked up. She automatically thought it was a fire siren, calling in all the volunteers, as happened in country towns, but quickly realised it couldn’t be. This wasn’t a town, it was a park. Maybe it was some kind of alarm system.

  She went in search of Chris, who was standing in the kitchen, pouring cups of cordial.

  ‘Everything okay?’ she asked.

  ‘Don’t worry,’ he said. ‘That’s just the way I call the girls in. I rigged this up when I thought they were old enough to head out by themselves. They could be a couple of kilometres away, but they know to come straight back when they hear it.’