The Long Paddock, page 17
‘That’s what I call perfect timing,’ she said, killing the ag bike engine. ‘I’ve got a bridge to cross and an extra set of hands would come in handy if you have time? Every car seems to be in a rush today.’
‘No problem.’ His gaze lingered on the faint lines of strain around her eyes. ‘I’ve plenty of time, plus I brought coffee and Meredith’s brownies.’
‘Even better.’ She glanced towards the horse float. ‘How did Jazz load?’
‘All things considered, good.’ He left his ute. ‘Next trip I’ll make a little longer so she gradually gets comfortable with travelling again.’
Cressy slid off the ag bike and walked with him to the back of the horse float. He lowered the ramp and led Jazz out first. She trembled, her nostrils flaring and coat dark with sweat.
‘Hey, beautiful girl,’ Cressy said, taking hold of the green lead rope. ‘You’re okay.’
Denham unloaded Flame. Soon the two mares were tied to the side of the horse float while he and Cressy enjoyed a coffee and brownies in the shade of an ancient red river gum. Tippy lay next to him, her head on his lap. Across from them, Cressy sat on a log. Even though she appeared relaxed, with her feet crossed at her ankles, she remained vigilant. Her attention never strayed far from her cattle or the road.
‘I think you have a stock horse there,’ he said as a now relaxed Jazz too tracked where the cattle moved. In contrast Flame had her head down and eyes closed as she dozed.
Cressy watched as the grey mare moved sideways to better watch a cow who’d wandered away from the main herd. ‘I think you’re right.’
Denham used the moment to examine Cressy’s face. The colour had faded from her cheeks, and despite the day’s warmth, she looked pale. Dark smudges underlined her eyes. She was tired and still had ten days left of droving. Now wasn’t the time to bring up their kiss or to set new boundaries.
‘How about we saddle up and take a look at this bridge?’ he said.
‘Great idea. I’ve been looking forward to riding Jazz.’
Cressy quickly finished her coffee and stood.
Together they saddled the horses. As Cressy swung into Jazz’s saddle, her smile shone with its usual light.
Content to ride as a pair, the two mares fell into step beside each other. If Denham moved his leg a little his stirrup iron would clink against Cressy’s.
‘This is a bit different than when you’re riding Bandit,’ she said with a teasing grin.
‘It sure is.’
‘Before I forget, I had a quick chat to Fliss. She didn’t know anything about the river flats sale and was just as shocked about the figure. I also contacted the bank and they’ll email me the old statements. When I get home I’ll see if there’s anything to explain why Dad charged your father so much.’
‘As I said before, it’s no problem. Dad had the money. It’s more that everything was so secretive and the sale price so high.’
‘I know.’ Concern threaded Cressy’s voice.
They neared the bridge that covered the steep drop of a winding creek. With the volume of water and the slippery sides, Cressy’s cattle had no choice but to use the narrow road to cross over.
In the distance the white roof of Cressy’s caravan gleamed. Once she made it over the creek, she didn’t have too far to travel until she stopped for the night.
He scanned the road that was empty on both sides of the bridge. ‘When were you planning on crossing?’
‘Now, if you still have time?’
‘Sure do.’
Cressy whistled to Tippy who was sniffing the trunk of a willow down at the water’s edge. The kelpie bounded up the creek bank to Cressy’s side.
Together they bunched the cattle. As Denham suspected, Jazz was in her element working stock. Quick to move, and instinctive, she anticipated what a cow would do next. Ears forward, the grey mare and Cressy led the mob towards the bridge. Denham trailed behind with Tippy and scouted for traffic. Cressy’s cattle signs were in clear view but their presence wouldn’t guarantee motorists would slow or be prepared to stop should a cow dash in front of them.
Jazz’s hooves clip-clopped as she stepped onto the bridge. Cressy looked over her shoulder to make sure the cattle were close behind. Without any hesitation, head cow Bessie followed. The younger cows huddled together, uncertain, then continued to walk. Almost all of the herd were on the bridge when three heifers lost their nerve. At the last minute they baulked and made a break past the guard rail to bolt for the woodland they’d left.
Tippy sprinted after them. Denham wheeled Flame around but didn’t follow as the experienced kelpie had everything under control. Tippy turned the cattle and headed them again towards the bridge. Denham backed Flame up to allow the nervous cattle space to walk onto the bridge. Cressy and Jazz had already crossed and now led the start of the herd onto the roadside verge.
The guttural sound of a truck rumbled through the silence. A truck whose engine volume didn’t change to indicate the driver had slowed as he’d passed the roadside signs.
‘Easy, Tippy,’ he said to the kelpie as he moved off the tar and positioned himself between the three runaways and the road. ‘Let’s let this idiot pass before we cross.’
The heifers looked at him and then Tippy, who remained behind them, and knowing they couldn’t go forward or back, the cows stopped.
He texted Cressy a quick warning. She was out of earshot and had her back to him.
The truck bore down on them. The three heifers pushed against each other but remained still. Then their flight response overrode their common sense. They broke away from Tippy and again headed for the trees. This time Denham followed. He gave Flame her head. Young and panicked, the cows headed straight for a fence. It wouldn’t take much for them to run through the barbed wire. At the final moment they swerved, flanks heaving, before they slowed to a trot and then a stop.
Denham pulled up Flame and swivelled in the saddle to see the truck crowding the last of the cattle from off the bridge. For a heart-stopping second an older cow turned as if considering running across the road to the safety of the other side. Tippy was a dark and wet streak as she steered the cow out of the truck’s path. The kelpie had crossed the creek to protect the herd.
As the truck engine faded, Denham brought the now tired trio of cattle over the bridge to rejoin the mob. His jaw ached and his adrenaline pulsed. The truck driver’s impatience had put both the stock and Cressy at risk. If the cattle had stampeded, Jazz and Cressy would have been right in their path.
Cressy rode over. Anger turned her hazel eyes a deep green and quickened the rise and fall of her chest.
‘Who does that driver think he is? He had to have seen my signs and is supposed to give way to any animals in the stock zone.’
‘Don’t worry, I got his plate. You okay?’
‘I will be when I get these cattle away from this bridge.’
He nodded and urged Flame forward to help.
Cold fury settled deep into his gut. He wasn’t a man of many words but when he returned to his ute the UHF radio, which the truckies also used, would get a workout.
CHAPTER
12
‘Let’s hope today isn’t like yesterday,’ Cressy said to Tippy as she dismantled the electric tape from around the portable night yards. ‘At least there’ll be no more bridges to cross.’
With the white tape removed, the cattle came to their feet and ambled out to eat in the pale light of the sunrise. Their stress from the previous day’s bridge crossing had dissipated.
If only she was half as resilient. She loaded the tape onto the ute and stretched to ease the stiffness of her lower back and shoulders. She could have sworn her heart had stopped when normally sensible Clarabelle had looked like she’d bolt in front of the fast-moving truck. Sleep had been a long time coming and she’d even resorted to sleeping in the caravan instead of her swag.
She bent to rub Tippy’s head. ‘Clarabelle’s only still here because of you. When we get home you deserve an egg.’ She ran her hands down Tippy’s trimmer sides. The kelpie had lost weight since travelling on the stock routes. Even Ella would agree it was okay for Tippy to have a treat as a reward for her bravery.
A magpie warbled from a nearby tree as Cressy piled the steel posts onto the back of the ute. Her caravan was already parked five kilometres away and her water tanks full. She’d let the cattle drift a little more and then follow. She reached for her insulated travel mug from inside the ute, sat on a tree stump and took a sip of black tea. It was still a novelty looking across swaying green grass and not lifeless red dust. Clusters of small white butterflies floated through the air and the subtle scent of honey sweetened the breeze. Somewhere bees had made a home in a hollowed-out old gum tree. But the serenity failed to soothe her tension.
She stared into the distance. Her grandfather had raised her to be self-reliant and she prided herself on her problem-solving skills. If she was in the back paddock and broke down, she’d fix the ute. If she became bogged after heavy rain, she found a way out. But yesterday there’d have been no way to fix the problem of the speeding truck without Denham’s help. He’d made sure the three rogue heifers remained safe.
If she was honest it was a relief to have had him there and to not solely rely upon her own wits. Calm and measured in a crisis, she could trust him implicitly. And this was a problem. A far bigger problem than the chemistry that combusted between them in the car park. Their kiss might have shown the depth of her attraction but yesterday revealed just how strong her emotional connection was to Denham. It also exposed the deep and dark void he’d again leave if she didn’t safeguard her heart. She couldn’t fight for him, or even contemplate a future together, unless she knew the full story of why he’d left.
She sighed and tipped out her unfinished tea. She’d have her work cut out to uncover why he thought she was better off without him. The Rigby men locked up their emotions tighter than the lid on the water tank. She’d never been sure what Denham’s father had thought, let alone if he’d liked her or approved of her being with his son. Charlie Rigby would stare at her from under his bushy grey brows, his blue eyes emotionless and his mouth set. The only thing she’d known for sure was that her father and Charlie went out of their way to avoid each other. If they were forced to meet, the coldness between them rivalled the chill of a thick frost.
She rinsed out her mug and opened the ute door. Tippy jumped in and settled herself on the passenger seat. Cressy started the engine and drove closer to the cattle before parking in the shade. The nights might possess winter’s iciness but summer staked its claim once the sun rose.
A familiar old model white Hilux left the road and made its way across the grass towards her. She’d encountered many impatient drivers during the week but a day hadn’t passed when she hadn’t had someone stop and offer food, cold water or a bed to sleep in. This morning it was Judith coming to visit on her way to town. Judith and Will’s property was just down the road and tonight Cressy’s cattle would camp close to their front gate.
Judith parked and left her car. Despite appearing small and frail, her steps were firm and quick. After the loss of their only child, it was Judith who kept the farm running. Once a nurse, she now did what she could to look after Will, trade cattle and to pay the bills.
The silver-haired woman gave Cressy a long hug.
‘Great to see you, Cressy. I missed seeing you at the market day. Thanks for pointing out that parking spot. I would have missed it.’
‘You’re very welcome.’
Tippy finished sniffing the front tyre of Judith’s ute and came over for a pat.
‘You’re looking more like your half-sister every day,’ Judith said as she rubbed the kelpie’s ears. ‘Will would love to see you.’
Cressy nodded. Tippy’s half-sister had been Will’s favourite working dog until a farm worker had accidently run over her. ‘When I’ve penned the cows tonight I could pop up for a chat?’
‘I was hoping you’d say that. I was also hoping you’d stay for dinner. Will hasn’t been off the farm in weeks. Your cattle are welcome in our yards if you’re worried about leaving them. Our own cattle are out the back.’
‘If that’s okay, that would be great.’
Will and Judith’s cattle yards were not far from their front gate to allow trucks easy access and also contained water troughs. Her herd would be safe and secure without her there.
‘How about you and Tippy also stay the night?’
Cressy hesitated. She didn’t want to impose but the quiet desperation in Judith’s stare said it wasn’t just Will who’d welcome a distraction.
‘Thanks. We’d love to.’
Her eyes smiled. ‘Wonderful. I’ll be back from town after lunch so come up to the house anytime.’
***
After the previous day’s dramas, Cressy enjoyed a quiet and uneventful day while her cattle meandered towards Will and Judith’s front gate. When the sun started its slow descent, Cressy pushed the cows onto their farm and into their yards. The cattle took a deep drink from the troughs and then settled on the ground, chewing their cuds.
She smiled at their contentment and the growing roundness of their full bellies. The plentiful grass of the long paddock was adding to their much-needed fat reserves. ‘Sleep tight. I’ll see you at sun-up tomorrow.’
She grabbed her duffle bag from out of the caravan and drove the winding and gouged road to reach the farmhouse. The drive in really needed to be graded again. She’d have a talk to Denham and see if she could borrow his dozer. She topped a rise and the tin-roofed farmhouse came into view.
It’d been over a month since she’d visited but nothing had changed. The lawn continued to need a mow and still empty white pots lined the veranda. Inside the machinery shed nothing had moved. The yellow and green tractor remained parked next to the blue grain auger which still sat beside a sun-faded blue combine. Sadness slipped through her. It was as though the farm watched and waited for the tide of Will’s grief to ebb and for him to re-engage with life.
Judith greeted Cressy and Tippy at the door. She still wore her best floral sundress she’d earlier worn to town. Her long silver hair was pinned in its usual bun and her smile was welcoming.
‘Thanks so much for having Tippy and me over,’ Cressy said as she handed the older woman a tin of butter biscuits she’d had stashed in the caravan. Her mother had instilled the life lesson that when visiting, a guest should always bring a gift.
‘Anytime. Come inside.’ Judith peered behind Cressy. ‘Will went to the shed a little while ago. I’m sure you’ll have time for a shower before he returns. Let me show you to your room.’
Half an hour later, her hair washed and wearing a pink-and-white striped shirt and jeans, Cressy revisited the kitchen. Judith stood at the bench chopping cooked chicken that she placed into a bowl of cos lettuce leaves. Every so often she’d toss a small piece to Tippy who sat by her feet. Tippy would catch the chicken and wag her tail.
Cressy laughed. ‘I don’t think Tippy will want to come back on the road with me.’
Judith smiled. ‘She will. Droving is in her blood. Just like it’s in yours. Your grandfather used to be out on the road for months.’
Cressy nodded and slid a tea towel from off the oven handle. Around the campfire her grandfather would tell stories about cattle stampedes and night horses who’d lead the runaway cattle in a circle until they calmed. She’d always loved hearing about her grandfather’s early life.
She collected a plate from the drying rack beside the sink. Judith glanced at her as she dried the plate but didn’t say anything. Over the years they’d had numerous conversations about how she was a guest and didn’t need to help out. In the end, Cressy always dried the dishes.
‘So Will hasn’t been to Dubbo to see the psychologist for a while?’ she asked, tone casual.
‘No, he says it’s a waste of time. If he misses the next appointment, Kelly says she’ll come out here.’
‘That sounds like a good plan.’
Cressy snuck a look at Judith’s profile as she added croutons to the salad. A note of strain had crept into her normally composed voice. Cressy reached for another plate to give Judith time to speak.
‘He tells me,’ the older woman said, voice low, ‘he’s taking his pills again but I found a full bottle behind the bookshelf last night.’
‘He’s a clever and stubborn old rascal. Would you like me to have a word?’
In the past Cressy had succeeded in getting Will to take his medication.
‘Thanks but Denham called earlier and they had a chat. I think that’s why he’s gone to the shed. He’s mad at me for mentioning finding the bottle to Denham.’
Cressy’s hand stilled on the plate. Andy had been Denham’s younger brother’s best mate and had always looked up to Denham. She hadn’t realised Denham had stayed in touch with Andy’s family.
‘Does Denham call often?’
‘He does when he can’t get out here. He’s visited us almost every week since he’s been back.’
‘He’s a good man.’ Cressy hoped Judith would miss the emotion underpinning her words.
‘He is. I’ll never forget him flying from Montana to Switzerland to help us bring … Andy home.’
Cressy nodded and turned away to hide her sadness. She couldn’t imagine what Judith and Will had gone through bringing their son’s body home to bury. Denham was always there when people needed him and never expected anything in return.
Cressy straightened and continued to empty the items in the draining rack. ‘Is Will still making his whips?’
‘Yes but he’s now obsessed with the wild dogs stealing our calves. He’ll be gone all night hunting them.’
Cressy stopped drying the plate she held. ‘He goes out with a gun?’
Judith glanced at her. ‘He probably shouldn’t but the rifle was his father’s and he associates lots of childhood memories with it. If I took it away it would just be something else he’s lost. I’ve been watching him … for warning signs. And while he’s not himself, he’s never shown he doesn’t want … to be here.’
