The White Girl

by Birch, Tony;

  Odette looked up at the heavy limbs of the elm tree. She felt an urgent need to leave and apologised to Robert. She collected the photographs of the girls without thinking of the consequences and quickly headed back to the hospital.

  In the waiting room Odette couldn’t stop thinking about Delores’s children. She took the photograph of the older girl, Colleen, out of her bag and looked into the girl’s eyes. The beauty of the child’s face was upsetting. When her name was called, Odette was once again ushered into Doctor Singer’s office. He guided her to a chair and pointed to a set of X-rays, clipped to a light-box. Looking at her own skeleton, Odette eerily felt she was witness to her impending death. The doctor held a tongue depressor in his hand and used it to point to a mass above Odette’s pelvis.

  ‘This dark shape here, this is where your pain is most acute, between your left hip and your ribs. And this,’ he tapped the X-ray with the end of the depressor, ‘is the cause of that pain.’

  ‘And what is it?’ Odette asked.

  ‘It’s a tumour.’ He raised an open hand. ‘Although I cannot be certain, I am confident it is likely to be benign. Due to the size.’

  The word meant little to Odette. ‘What does that mean?’

  ‘Essentially, and again, I’m not certain, but it means the tumour is non-cancerous.’ He tapped at the X-ray a second time. ‘When I examined you in Deane, and again this morning, the swelling was soft to the touch. A good sign in a difficult situation,’ he said, raising his eyebrows.

  ‘Difficult?’

  ‘I can’t be sure how long the tumour has been growing, but it would be some time. And it will keep on growing if we do nothing. What we do not want to happen is for the tumour to attach itself to your spine. Whether it is benign or not, it would make an operation difficult to perform.’

  Odette looked up at the X-ray and pressed the fingers of her right hand to her left side, imagining the tumour growing inside her body. ‘You’re saying I need to have an operation?’

  ‘Yes. And sooner rather than later. You may be able to cope for now, but any further growth of the tumour could debilitate you completely, as it is also pushing against your left lung, hence the breathing difficulties you are experiencing.’

  ‘Would you be doing the operation?’ Odette asked, seeking assurance from a man she felt she could trust.

  ‘No, no. I’m not a surgeon. The operation would be performed here at the hospital by another doctor. We would also need to provide you with after-care. For some weeks in fact, much of it spent in bed, unfortunately.’

  The thought overwhelmed Odette. ‘But I can’t do that. This can’t happen.’

  The doctor frowned. ‘Mrs Brown, are you anxious about the thought of surgery? Please don’t be.’

  Odette’s fears were not for herself. ‘I have a granddaughter to look after. She can’t be left alone.’

  ‘Left? Why would she be left alone?’

  ‘Well, because I’m her only relative. I want to thank you, doctor, but I don’t need this operation. My granddaughter, she’s only young and she’s—’

  Doctor Singer took Odette by the hand and spoke quietly. ‘Please, don’t be alarmed. As I stated, I am confident that this tumour is benign, Mrs Brown. We can wait a little longer if you like, giving you the time to make arrangements for your granddaughter’s care. We will schedule an operation once that’s done.’

  ‘I don’t know that I can make any arrangements. We don’t like to be apart, my granddaughter and me. There’s only the two of us. Most of our family are gone and we’re alone. Do you understand?’

  The doctor understood only too well what it felt like to be alone. ‘I promise we won’t do anything until your granddaughter’s care is assured.’

  On the bus back to Deane Odette rested her head against the window and closed her eyes. She had left the hospital agreeing to contact Doctor Singer as soon as she’d made the appropriate arrangements for Sissy’s care. When she got off the bus outside the Deane Town Hall it was late. Sergeant Lowe was standing across the road outside the police station. Odette could feel him watching her as she walked along the street towards home. By the time she’d reached the river track, Odette was clear about her decision. There would be no operation.

  Chapter Eight

  Odette found Sissy sitting alone on the dark veranda. The damaged bicycle rested up against the veranda post. When she saw her grandmother Sissy burst into tears. Odette put her arms around her and tried to make sense of what had happened. ‘Why aren’t you inside? It’s bitter out here. I’ll put the fire on and then we can talk.’

  Sissy began by apologising to Odette for disobeying her and taking off on her bicycle. She explained that she had ridden further than she’d meant to, became lost and then punctured the front wheel.

  Odette initially tried to make light of Sissy’s act of disobedience. ‘It doesn’t matter, Sweet. We’ve all done something a little too bold. This is your first time. When I was your age I used to sneak off with the other tearaway kids. When my father found out, he would threaten me with a broom handle on the bum. Not that he ever used it. He was too soft on me. It doesn’t matter that you got up to mischief, as long as you’re okay. What did you do to that front wheel, hit a rock?’

  Sissy went quiet. ‘No, I never hit a tree. The bike was jumped on.’

  ‘How could it have been jumped on?’

  ‘It was a boy. His name is Aaron. He found me on the road. The policeman, Mr Shea, came along afterwards.’

  Odette listened closely as Sissy told her about being confronted by Aaron Kane and the fight between the brothers.

  ‘Mr Shea whacked Aaron around the head and brought me home.’

  Odette was surprised. ‘Bill beat him?’

  ‘He did. The boy, Aaron, he was bleeding.’ Sissy wiped her runny nose on the sleeve of her jumper. ‘I did what you always told me to, Nan, I wouldn’t go in the truck with him, even when he yelled and pushed me. I shouldn’t have been there, I know that. That’s what the policeman told me. He said I shouldn’t be out at night, and I wasn’t to do it again. Or I’d be in trouble.’

  Odette slammed her open hand on her knee, startling Sissy. ‘You’ll be in trouble? And what about that lunatic of a boy? He’ll be in trouble when I get hold of him. What else did Bill Shea say to you?’

  ‘He said that I wasn’t to tell anyone but you about what happened. I’m afraid, Nan.’

  ‘Of who?’

  ‘Aaron Kane.’

  ‘Well, don’t be afraid of him,’ Odette said, looking down at her dark, wrinkled hands. ‘Your grandmother will take care of this.’

  Odette wouldn’t admit to Sissy that the girl was right. That Aaron Kane, while only a teenage boy, was his father’s son and could be very dangerous. Something had to be done, but she had no idea what or who to turn to. Even though Bill Shea had come to Sissy’s aid, he was useless when it came to doing his job, and the new policeman in town, Lowe, could not be trusted at all.

  The following Sunday Odette organised their regular bath. She washed Sissy’s hair, but hardly spoke a word.

  ‘Is everything alright, Nan?’ Sissy asked, as Odette rinsed her hair.

  Odette answered, fine, but said nothing more. She wasn’t fine at all, and didn’t want Sissy questioning her. She could see Sissy was tired of being stuck at home all weekend, and would have enjoyed nothing better than taking her bike out but it was still broken. It would have remained so had Henry Lamb not called by the house later that day asking Odette if she’d seen Rowdy playing along Deane’s Line or down at the river.

  Odette had been surprised to see Henry standing on her veranda after hearing a tap at the door. She invited him inside for a cup of tea but he declined the offer.

  ‘I don’t think I will do that. I’m worried about my boy, Rowdy, that’s all I’m here for today,’ he said. ‘He goes out through the back fen
ce for a wander some days but is always home for his tea. I don’t know where he is.’

  Odette tried reassuring Henry. ‘It’s best not to fret,’ she said. ‘He loves you, Henry. He’ll be home soon for his tucker.’

  ‘Maybe he will, Odette. But I reckon he’d be plenty hungry by now. I don’t feel good about what’s happened to him.’ He was about to leave when he saw Sissy’s bike resting against the side fence. He walked across the yard, picked it up and tried to wheel it. ‘What’s happened here? The bike has gone bung.’

  Odette knew Henry was having enough trouble with Aaron Kane himself without hearing about how he’d jumped all over Sissy’s birthday gift. ‘Oh, we had an accident there. I was going to let you know the next time I was by your place.’

  Henry lifted the front wheel and turned it. The wheel wobbled and caught in the front forks. ‘This is no good, Odette. We need a new wheel on this bike. I’ll get home and come back with another wheel.’

  ‘No, Henry. That’s generous of you, but it can wait. Truly.’

  Henry wouldn’t hear of it. ‘No, I’m sorry, Odette, but this job has to be done quick smart. Or Sissy won’t be riding to school. This was for her birthday.’ He rushed from the yard and was back at the house within half an hour, a toolbox in one hand and a spare wheel in the other.

  ‘That was quick of you,’ Odette said. ‘You must have run the whole way.’

  ‘I’ve run no place, Odette. I could have a heart attack doing that. Across the bridge there you’ll see I have my own motor car. A utility, it’s called,’ he said, proudly.

  ‘You bought yourself a car, Henry?’

  ‘I didn’t need to buy anything at all. I fixed it up myself. And I put petrol in it.’

  ‘Well, cars do need petrol,’ Odette said. ‘I didn’t know you had a driving licence.’

  ‘Oh, I don’t need one. My Pa taught me to drive as soon as I left school. I used to drive the truck back home for him when he had too many bottles of beer. He told me the licence wasn’t needed if I didn’t drive into town. And I never do that, drive into town.’

  ‘Well, that’s an interesting way to think about the law, Henry. I don’t know how you’d fare in court with that defence.’

  Henry changed the bike wheel and refitted the tyre and tube. He knocked at the door again when he’d finished. ‘It’s done, Odette.’

  ‘Give me your hand,’ Odette ordered. ‘Don’t think you’re not taking the money this time, Henry,’ she said, placing a ten-shilling note in it. ‘You’ve done more than enough for us.’

  Henry studied the note, folded it and stuck it in the side pocket of his overalls. ‘I could offer this as a reward for the return of Rowdy,’ he said.

  ‘I’m sure he’ll come home soon, and you’ll get to keep your ten shillings,’ Odette said.

  ‘Do you really believe that, Odette?’

  ‘I do, Henry, I do.’

  Henry picked up his toolbox and the buckled bicycle wheel. ‘I miss that boy,’ he said. ‘When he gets home, Odette, I’ll put him in front of the fire. A big feed and some bones and he’ll know he’s home.’

  About a week after Henry Lamb repaired the bicycle, Odette sat at the kitchen table waiting for Sissy to finish her breakfast so they could go shopping. She was taking far too long. ‘What’s up with you, Sis? You’re not yourself lately. We need to get into town before the shops shut.’

  Sissy licked her spoon clean of porridge. ‘I think I have a flu, Nanna. There’s something up with you, too. I can tell.’

  Odette knocked on the wooden table with the knuckles of her hand. ‘Don’t you be funny with me, and don’t be dodging the question. You tell me what’s up. Now.’

  ‘It’s that boy,’ Sissy said.

  ‘The Kane boy? Don’t you worry yourself over him, I won’t let that boy near you.’

  Sissy looked unconvinced. Odette sensed there was more to it. ‘You’ve seen him again, haven’t you?’

  ‘Twice,’ Sissy said, her voice breaking slightly. ‘After school.’

  Odette reached across the table and tugged at Sissy’s arm. ‘You should have said something before now.’

  ‘I didn’t want to make trouble. I know that you’ve been sick.’

  ‘Don’t be worrying over your grandmother. I’m as strong as a bull. What did he say to you?’

  ‘He didn’t say anything. He just drove the truck alongside me until I got to the footbridge and then he drove away.’

  ‘That boy!’ Odette screamed. ‘From now on I’ll be walking you to school, and waiting at the gate when last bell goes. I won’t have him troubling you.’ She kissed Sissy on the cheek. ‘Come on, now. We have a busy morning.’

  They were crossing the footbridge when Odette realised she’d left her shopping money at home. ‘Hey, Sis,’ Odette called. ‘I’ve forgotten my purse. Wait for me here.’

  When Odette returned with her purse a few minutes later there was no sign of Sissy. She searched the road. Aaron Kane’s red pick-up was weaving erratically from side to side and Sissy was running ahead of the truck. Odette watched as the truck swerved in Sissy’s direction. She saw her granddaughter stumble and fall to the ground. The truck sped off.

  Odette hobbled to where the girl lay. Sissy had a cut on the side of her face and grazes on her knees and hands.

  ‘That bastard,’ she said. ‘He’s hurt you this time.’ She held Sissy to her chest and looked into the distance, at the trail of dust left in his wake. ‘I’ve had enough. That boy needs to be dealt with.’

  Sissy didn’t want her grandmother causing trouble for either of them. ‘I’ll be okay, Nan.’

  ‘No, you won’t. Not until that boy is stopped.’ Odette helped Sissy to her feet. ‘I want you to get yourself down to Auntie Millie’s. You’re to stay there until I come back for you.’

  Standing at the Kane’s farm gate an hour later, after struggling all the way from Deane, Odette looked along the driveway. There was no sign of the red pick-up. It had been many years since she’d been at the property. The last she’d heard of old Joe Kane, he’d been in a car accident that had left him with a crippled leg. She walked around the side of the house to the squat stone building opposite the back porch, and peered through the open door. A frenzy of blowflies hovered above a concrete trough. She could see the bloodied carcass of a kangaroo. On the bench beside it was a slab of meat and a shallow bucket of broken glass. She knew that some farmers laced kangaroo meat with glass and left it out for foxes. She turned away, gagging on the terrible smell.

  The kitchen door was ajar. Odette could see the room was empty. She barely hesitated before walking inside. A large table was littered with food scraps and dirty dishes. She walked through the kitchen into the hallway and stopped at the doorway of the room she remembered as Mr and Mrs Kane’s bedroom. The room was empty except for a couple of pieces of furniture and a double-bed mattress sitting on a wire-sprung base. The mattress was stained and a single blanket lay on the floor beside it. Odette was about to turn away when something caught her eye. A set of Rosary beads hung from a brass hook on a rounded mirror above a bedside table. There was a necklace hanging from the same hook. It was a deep red colour. Odette walked into the room, lifted the necklace from the hook and held it in her hand. It was unmistakable. Millie Khan had made the necklace for Lila out of eucalypt seed pods for her sixteenth birthday. Lila had told Odette that she lost it, and now here it was.

  Odette clenched her fist, crushing several of the pods in her hand. Her mind flashed back to the day she’d seen Joe Kane’s truck parked at the footbridge all those years ago when she’d been heading into town. She’d arrived home to an empty house. Lila had returned some time later, clearly distressed. She told Odette she’d gotten lost.

  ‘Lost? You can’t get lost around here, Lil. You know this country as good as I do.’

  ‘It was a track I’ve never wa
lked before,’ Lila explained.

  ‘Well, you’d only need to follow it back,’ Odette scoffed. ‘You’re no bush girl, that’s for sure.’

  It was then Odette had pointed to Lila’s neck. ‘Where’s your necklace from Millie got to?’

  Lila had clutched at her throat, unaware that the necklace was missing.

  Odette opened her hand. A seed pod was embedded in her skin. The cut was bleeding. She heard someone coughing furiously and walked further along the hallway. Joe Kane was sitting in an old armchair wearing nothing but a frayed dressing gown. His bare feet were covered in scabs. On the wooden tray next to him was an apple that had been cut into pieces and turned brown, along with a skinning knife.

  Joe Kane squinted up at Odette. She wondered if the old man remembered her. She dangled the necklace in front of him. Kane seemed to recognise it. Odette could no longer contain a rage that had been building for years.

  ‘Hey, Joe,’ she said. ‘This belongs to my girl, my Lila. You took it from her.’

  Kane snarled. One side of his face had dropped and his top lip curled upwards. He couldn’t speak.

  ‘It was you, you bastard,’ Odette said. ‘You hurt my daughter.’ She snatched the knife from the tray. The old man responded with a wheeze of yellowish phlegm that dribbled down his chin. ‘You’re an evil man, Joe Kane. And so is your boy.’

  ‘Don’t do that! Please stop.’ George Kane was standing in the doorway, an open hand raised towards Odette. ‘Please, leave him be.’

  ‘The man is a monster,’ Odette screamed. ‘He hurt my daughter,’ she said. ‘And your brother, he’s out to do the same to my grandchild.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ George said. ‘He’s hurt a lot of people, I know that. But you have to leave. Aaron will be back here soon. He’s angry over the policeman hitting him. He says it’s the girl’s fault. Please, you have to leave,’ George begged.

  Odette was struck by the look of fear on George’s face. What she’d puzzled over on the morning she’d seen him outside Henry’s yard, was now suddenly clear to her. His dark eyes, long lashes and wide face were as much Sissy’s features as his own. The sudden knowledge that Sissy was connected to the boy’s father by blood was too much for her to comprehend. She dropped the knife on the floor.