by Janet Gover
CHAPTER
13
Kids of all ages are leaping off the dusty school bus and pouring through the gates into the schoolyard. Most of them are in groups of three or four, but a few of the older kids are in couples, with linked hands. The noise is quite deafening, as it always is at the start of the school day. Just inside the gates, two girls are standing to one side. The little one is staring about with tear-filled eyes.
‘Come on, Kayla. It’s fine. And you have to go to school.’
The little girl shakes her head and stares with desperate longing at the road down which her mother’s car has vanished after dropping them off a moment ago.
‘It’s been weeks since school started. You should be used to it by now.’
Kayla bites her lip and shakes her head. ‘Never gonna get used to it.’
Lizzie sighs. It isn’t a big school. About three hundred kids from the town and neighbouring properties. There’s nothing scary about it. At least, not when you’ve been going there for a few years and have friends, like she does. Right now, she’d rather be with her friends than babysitting her tearful little sister.
‘Come on, Kayla. I promised Mum I’d keep an eye on you. Do you want me to walk with you to your classroom?’
‘I don’t wanna go to my classroom.’
‘You have to. Come on.’
Lizzie picks up the school bag lying at her sister’s feet and takes her hand. She leads the reluctant girl across the playground to the first-grade classroom. Two other figures are heading for the same door. The boy is quite tall, with wavy brown hair and dark eyes. He moves with a kind of easy assurance, despite the fact that his uniform pants are just a little bit too short for him. His shirt isn’t properly tucked in either. He has the air of someone who has thrown on his uniform and made a last-minute dash to the bus. He’s holding the hand of a girl who is almost a reflection of Kayla, from the uniform to the tears in her eyes.
The boy and Lizzie draw near to each other and stop. She hasn’t seen him before. He must be new.
‘Hi.’
‘Hi.’
The two of them stare at each other for what seems like a very long time.
‘I’m Mitch.’
‘I’m Lizzie.’
Kayla tugs on her sister’s hand.
‘Oh, yeah. This is Kayla, my little sister.’
‘And this is my little sister, Jen. We’re new here, and she’s a bit scared of starting school.’
‘My sister’s scared too.’
Mitch hunkers down in front of Kayla. ‘You’re not scared, are you? You don’t look scared. You look like the sort of brave girl who could help Jen settle in to class.’
Kayla’s eyes grow even wider but there are no tears now.
‘This is Jen. I think the two of you could become really good friends.’
Kayla looks at the girl standing in front of her. Jen has blue eyes and sandy brown hair. She’s carrying a plastic lunchbox with a pretty pink pony on it.
‘I have a real pony, you know. His name is Ginger.’
‘A real pony? Wow. I want a pony so much. Can I come and see your pony?’
‘I guess so.’
Mitch and Lizzie exchange relieved looks and a smile. They’re both thinking the same thing: a disastrous scene has been avoided thanks to the universal appeal of ponies.
The first-grade teacher emerges from her classroom.
‘Hello, girls.’ Her voice is cheerful and friendly. ‘The bell is about to go and it’s time you were in class. Why don’t you come with me? And you two—’ she waggles a finger at Lizzie and Mitch, ‘—should be on your way to class. Go on now.’
Lizzie and Mitch walk obediently away.
‘What class are you in?’ he asks.
‘Miss Simmons.’
‘Me too.’
He smiles at Lizzie. She smiles back, suddenly aware that this boy is different from the others in her class. They’re just … boys. They’re stupid. But Mitch isn’t. He’s kind. And good looking too. Especially when he smiles at her like that. She wishes she’d taken a bit longer brushing her hair that morning before coming to school.
CHAPTER
14
‘You grew up here? Seriously?’ Ken had been staring out the window since they left the city behind, growing ever more wide-eyed as the landscape grew browner and less civilised. He’d almost fainted when he saw the huge trucks powering past the collection of buildings that she had assured him really was all the shopping available in the tiny town of Aberdeen.
‘I did.’ Kayla took her eyes off the road long enough to look around. A coal train was passing on the railway line that ran parallel to the road. It had been passing for what seemed like a long time. Coal trains had become longer over the years she’d been away. But the mountains were the same blue they had always been. The paddocks were grazed by the same horses and cattle. Crops grew as they always had. She would probably remember what they were if she tried hard enough.
‘So you were a country kid, I never knew that. Can you do all those country things?’
‘What do you mean, “country things”?’
‘You know. Ride horses and drive tractors. Rope steers. Did you wear an Akubra and RM Williams boots?’
Kayla smiled and flexed her toes inside her Salvatore Ferragamo ankle boots. ‘I can. Horses and tractors. Not the steers though. My sister does that. And yes to the hat and boots. Although not so much these days.’
Ken shook his handsome and carefully groomed head. ‘I don’t suppose you’ve got any brothers out here, the sort with cowboy boots and tight jeans?’
She laughed. ‘No, just my sister.’
‘Is she anything like you?’
‘No. Not really.’
She felt, rather than saw, Ken’s sideward glance. He was good at picking up undercurrents and moods; it was one of the things that made him such a great photographer. She would really prefer he didn’t do it to her.
‘Kayla, you did tell her what this shoot would involve, didn’t you? She’s okay with what we are going to do? Assuming the location is as good as it looks.’
Damn his empathy. ‘Not exactly.’
‘Do go on.’
‘She doesn’t know anything about the shoot. She doesn’t actually know you’re coming. I told her I was coming up to talk about … family things.’
‘Why am I starting to get a bad feeling about this? Do you and your sister have issues?’
That was putting it mildly, but she wasn’t about to explain. Ken was a nice guy and she enjoyed working with him. They were friends—more or less. But not close enough for that sort of discussion.
They drove in silence for a couple of minutes, then Kayla let the car slow. She turned off the highway onto a smaller road.
‘It’s only a couple of kilometres now. When we get there, don’t come on too strong. Let me talk to Liz before you start shooting. Okay?’
‘If that’s what it takes.’
Kayla could only hope that was all it was going to take.
When they pulled up in front of the homestead, Ken gave a whistle. ‘Oh, yes! This could be just what I’m looking for.’
Kayla glanced at the house. It was the middle of the day, Liz wouldn’t be there.
‘Wait here,’ Kayla told the photographer. ‘Liz will be in the stables. Let me talk to her for a couple of minutes and break the idea gently.’
‘All right.’
‘And don’t go poking your nose around just yet. My sister can be a bit … prickly.’
‘Got it.’
As soon as she approached the stables, Kayla heard the hoof beats. She turned in the direction of the flat yard where generations of Lawsons had trained a succession of champions and paused in the shade of a tree to watch. Liz was working a dark chestnut colt. The horse was the spitting image of the one that had graced the Willowbrook website until a few days ago. He must be Apollo’s son. Although Kayla had moved to the city, she was still a Lawson and the Lawsons knew
good horseflesh when they saw it. She watched carefully, taking note of the colt’s well-muscled frame. His legs were clean and his stride straight. His head was well shaped and intelligent. He had the potential to be something special.
And Liz was the right person to develop that potential.
Watching her sister ride was like watching their father again. Liz had a connection with her horses that Kayla had never mastered—and always envied. It was as if one mind controlled two bodies. She did it with just the subtlest movement of hand and heel. When the colt made a mistake as Liz turned him into a figure of eight, she didn’t punish him. She simply and smoothly put him back into the turn and asked him to do it again. This time he did, although his tail flicked in protest. Liz made him do it again and this time he perfectly answered her. Liz knew what she was doing. She knew when to relax and give, and when to hold firm.
At least, she did when she was riding a horse. Kayla hoped she would be the same in the conversation they were about to have.
As Liz brought the horse to a walk and let him relax, Kayla stepped out of the shadows. Liz saw her at once, but she didn’t come over. She walked the horse once around the enclosure, allowing him to stretch his neck and cool a little before turning him towards the gate. The horses always came first with Liz.
‘I wasn’t expecting you.’
‘Hi. Have you got a minute to listen?’
Liz didn’t bother to dismount. She looked at her sister with barely disguised impatience. ‘I guess so. But I don’t want to leave this guy standing around for too long.’
Kayla took a deep breath and all her carefully rehearsed arguments went out the window. ‘I know you didn’t like the idea of using this place for weddings. Wait—’ She held up a hand as Liz opened her mouth to speak. ‘I still think you’re wrong on that, but I have someone here with me, a photographer who’s looking for a location for a high-fashion shoot. Stills and video.’
‘If I don’t want weddings here, what the hell makes you think I’d want film people?’
‘It’s not film as such, it’s a fashion shoot. And you want them because they pay, Liz. They pay well. You asked me to try to help you. You wanted me to come up with ideas. Well, here’s one.’
‘There is no way—’ Whatever Liz had been going to say was interrupted by the appearance of Ken, climbing onto the yard railings.
‘Kayla, my sweet. It’s perfect.’ He grasped the top rail and vaulted into the exercise ring with the ease of someone who spent long hours at the gym.
The colt shied violently away, leaping sideways as if to flee. Liz gathered up the reins and held him tightly, speaking to him in gentle tones, although her face was like thunder.
Kayla wished the ground would open up and swallow Ken.
Liz forced the colt to turn and face the approaching photographer, who seemed to have realised his mistake and was now moving slowly and quietly.
‘Sorry, my darlings,’ he whispered.
Liz looked at Ken then raised an eyebrow. ‘Is he your boyfriend?’
‘No, Liz. He has a boyfriend of his own. And so do I, if you actually want to know.’ If Kayla had hoped to get any sort of reaction from Liz, she was disappointed. Her sister wasn’t to be distracted that easily.
‘I think you should probably get him out of the yards before he hurts himself.’
‘It’s perfect for my shoot,’ Ken said in an exaggerated whisper that was equally as startling as his shouting. ‘I can see it all. Faded glory to frame high-end fashion. The sleek and the shabby. The juxtaposition of the beautiful and the ugly.’
The expression on Liz’s face darkened. She rounded on her sister. ‘So that’s what you think of this place, is it? That’s how you want to help. By showing my failure to the world?’
‘No, Liz. That’s—’
‘No. I won’t have it. Get him the hell off my land.’
She jerked the colt’s head around in a short, savage motion and urged him forward. The colt leaped away and bounded across the yard to stop at the far gate. Liz leaned over and swung it open, kicked the colt into a canter, and left the gate swinging open behind her.
Kayla had never seen Liz leave a gate open before. Not once. Even as kids.
Stunned by her sister’s reaction, Kayla walked across the yard to shut and latch the gate.
‘Is everything okay?’ Ken caught up with her.
‘Idiot,’ she told him. ‘I told you to stay put.’
‘I couldn’t help myself. I was intrigued. This place is perfect. Do you really own it?’
‘The bank owns most of it.’
‘Well, I have to tell you, if the rest of this place is as good as the bits I’ve seen, my client will want to do both stills and video here. It’s their big campaign. They’ll pay for the right place. A lot. And I haven’t given up hope of a cowboy with fancy boots, although I might have to hire one and bring him up for the shoot.’
Watching the rapidly vanishing colt and his rider, Kayla shook her head. She wasn’t sure who she was more annoyed with: Ken for making a difficult situation even worse or Liz for overreacting. Liz had asked for help but then, when it was offered, she not only refused but she was rude about it as well. But that was Liz all over. She never listened to anyone, especially not her sister. She’d ridden rough-shod over Kayla’s wishes ever since their parents died.
Well, not any more. Strengthened by her growing anger, Kayla came to a decision. Technically she owned half of Willowbrook and had the right to make decisions about it. And she had the right to bring Ken or anyone else she wanted onto the property. To hell with Liz and her possessiveness and her need to control everything. She’d had things all her own way for too long.
‘Come on, Ken.’ She slapped her hand on the rail hard enough to sting. ‘I’ll show you around. Tell me the sort of things you’re looking for.’
CHAPTER
15
The colt stumbled and almost fell to his knees. Liz cursed herself and as he recovered, she brought him to a trot and finally to a walk. He was blowing heavily, his neck streaked with sweat and foam. Liz loosened the reins and let him lower his head as he walked.
She knew better than this. She never rode a young horse when she was angry. That was how horses got ruined, and her future was dependent on this colt.
He halted gratefully at her command and she dismounted.
‘Sorry, Deimos.’ She rubbed behind his ear, that sweet spot that horses love. He turned his head and pushed her gently. She smiled at that, but it was a sad smile. ‘Come on, let’s cool down. Both of us.’
She loosened the saddle girth a little and started to walk, the horse at her side. Gradually his breathing started to slow, along with Liz’s.
‘Faded glory. Shabby. How dare he!’ The horse flicked his ears as she muttered softly. ‘Ugly. This place isn’t ugly.’ To her eyes Willowbrook was beautiful. In all honesty, though, she wasn’t sure she could argue against the photographer’s description.
She glanced over her shoulder to the lone tree growing on the top of the hill overlooking the homestead. She was too far away to see the two crosses in its shadow. Normally, when she was troubled, that’s where she went. It made her feel close to her parents. To her father, especially. But right now if she climbed that hill she would be doing it to admit defeat and beg forgiveness. She wasn’t ready to do that yet.
She kept walking, slowly heading towards the tree line and the creek beyond. By the time she reached it, Deimos would be cool enough to take a drink. Then she’d go back to the stables. Hopefully Kayla and that nosy photographer would be gone.
But as she approached the creek the glint of sun off metal caught her eye. The old work ute she used around the property was parked near the crossing. She could see two people moving about: Kayla and that photographer. As she drew closer, Liz realised that the man was taking photographs of the creek. Why would he be doing that? Hadn’t she already made her feelings clear? If not, she would make sure he was left in no doubt this time.
She was not going to allow a bunch of city strangers to take over Willowbrook … not even for a day.
Kayla must have heard her approaching. She said a few words to the photographer and left him at the edge of the creek as she hurried to intercept Liz.
‘I thought you would have figured out that I don’t want to get involved in this photo business,’ Liz said.
‘I’ve decided to save you from your own stupidity.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘Liz, if they do decide to do the shoot here, it’ll take about three days.’
‘That’s three days of disruption I could do without.’
‘But it’s three days of location fees you can’t do without.’
‘What’s that? A couple of hundred dollars. That’s not going to solve my problems.’
‘They’ll pay a lot more than that. Maybe three thousand or a bit more. You could argue for a wrangler’s fee too if they want to use the horses.’
Liz blinked. That was a lot more than she had expected.
‘If I went to your office now, how many unpaid bills would I find? Bills that could be paid with that money?’
Her sister was right. It wasn’t the answer to her problems, but it would keep a few of the wolves from the door.
‘Come on, Liz. It’s only three days. You’ll be here all the time to keep an eye on everything. I’ll come up too if you want me to.’
‘All right. I still think it’s a bad idea, but I do need the money.’
‘Great. Come and talk to Ken. He can tell you what he’s planning.’
The photographer had his camera glued to his eye as they approached, and he was aiming his zoom lens across the creek. A horse and rider were silhouetted against the sky on top of the creek bank.
‘Who’s that over there on the horse?’ Ken asked without lowering the camera.
Liz didn’t have to look. There was only one person it could be.
‘It that Mitch?’ Kayla asked. ‘Hey! Mitch!’ Kayla waved wildly and the horseman turned his mount towards the creek. Without a moment’s hesitation, the horse stepped into the water and calmly crossed.
