The Tillerman's Gift

by C J Brown

CHAPTER 11

  A noise in the tree above her head caught Mia’s attention. It sounded like a little, squeaky voice calling her name. She looked up and squinted against the glare of the dappled sunlight.

  Meeow!

  “Hello, little kitty.” The kitten was lying on the second lowest branch, about two metres off the ground. A larger cat would have easily made the jump but this little fellow was trembling.

  “Need some help?” Mia held her hand out hoping to coax the scared animal to crawl back towards the trunk. From there it might be able to claw its way back down. But it refused to move. Mia hauled herself up on to the lower branch and reached out to the kitten.

  “Don’t you scratch me, or I’ll leave you up here,” she warned. Her threat was unnecessary. The kitten gladly accepted her outstretched hand and Mia carried it down.

  The kitten was white except for a brown, small round patch on its left flank.

  “What’s this say?” Mia reached for the plastic tag that hung on a thin, black collar around the kitten’s neck. On one side there was a phone number. “Okay. So I can call your owner and they can come and collect you.” Mia turned the tag over. “OSCaR 711,” she read. “Well, Oscar with a small a, now that we know each other’s name, let’s get you home.”

  Mia took her phone out of her pocket and dialled the number.

  “Cat refuge, Trudy speaking.”

  “Oh, hi. I have Oscar.”

  “Yes you do. Can I help you?”

  “Yes, I said I have Oscar.”

  “Yes, this is OSCaR. What can I do for you?”

  “But you said you were Trudy”

  “Yes, this is Trudy.”

  “Well, are you Oscar or Trudy?”

  “I’m sorry. Is this a joke? Am I on the radio? Are you serious? I’m on the radio!”

  “What?”

  Now Mia could only hear squealing coming from the other end of the phone.

  “Did my boyfriend put you up to this? OMG, Darren, if you’re listening, you are so totally dead!”

  Mia ended the call and looked sympathetically at the kitten. “You’re not lost, are you? You ran away!”

  “Who’s your little friend?”

  “Oh hi, Nan. This is Oscar. I think he escaped from his crazy owner.”

  Tess tucked her book under her arm took the kitten from Mia.

  “What do we have here?” Tess inspected the tag. “Oh, you’re from the cat refuge. We’d better get you back then.”

  Tess saw her granddaughter’s confused expression. “His name isn’t Oscar. This stands for Ocean Street Cat Refuge and the 711 must be his ID number.” Tess smiled. “Some things just aren’t as they seem.”

  The weird telephone exchange with Trudy now made a bit more sense to Mia. “Okay. But the girl I spoke to is still crazy.” Mia stroked the kitten’s soft fur. “We probably should take it back.”

  “We were going to meet your mother for some morning tea…”

  “How about I take it back, then? I’ll catch up with you a bit later.”

  “Alright. I’ll walk with you as far as Ocean Street. The refuge is only a kilometre or so past the school, on the left.”

  Twenty minutes later Mia reached the refuge. There was a cat flap near the front door. The sign above it read: Please place cats carefully in chute. Mia lifted the flap, placed the kitten inside. “Good luck, 711,” she said and the kitten disappeared down the smooth stainless steel slide. Mia hoped there was a soft landing at the other end.

  For a moment she was tempted to go inside and tell them to take better care of the cats. However, she really had no desire to meet Trudy face to face.

  Jogging back along Ocean Street, Mia heard a voice call her name. Jimmy was walking out of the school gate dressed in what looked, at least from a distance, like pyjamas. Mia waved and Jimmy crossed the road and waited for her to reach him. By that time Mia had realised that he was dressed in martial arts pants and a loose t-shirt.

  “Judo lessons?”

  “Taekwondo.” They started walking towards town.

  “Tie what?”

  “It’s a bit like karate except you try to use the opponent’s momentum against them. That’s putting it pretty simply.”

  “So, who are you planning to fight?” Mia laughed.

  “No, mum reckons it might give me more self-confidence. And it’s a good sport … you’ve seen how uncoordinated I can be. It’s good for that too. Especially since I can use my feet a lot. I’m much better with my feet than with my hands.”

  “Yeah,” Mia nodded, “I’d be better with my feet in a fight, too. I’d run as fast as I could!”

  As they turned on to Beach Road a familiar voice made them both shudder.

  Savannah and Mitch were across on the beach side of the road.

  “Where are you two lovebirds off to then?” Savannah called.

  “Yeah, where are you lovebirds off to?” Mitch echoed.

  “Just going home.” Jimmy continuing to walk, in the hope of discouraging further interaction.

  “Yeah, sure. Gonna show the new girl some of your moves, Jimmy?” Savannah sniggered.

  “Shut up, Savannah. You don’t know anything.”

  Savannah and Mitch ran across the road and followed close behind Mia and Jimmy.

  “What do you reckon, Jimmy,” taunted Savannah, “you and Mitch – chopsticks at ten paces. You should be pretty good at that, hey?”

  “Yeah, Jimmy. You and me.”

  “Ignore him, Jimmy,” Mia urged under her breath. “Let’s keep walking,”

  But Mitch wouldn’t be ignored. Savannah had not let up on him for falling for Mia’s charms the previous day. She’s here on vacation, Savannah had reminded him. I’m here to stay. I’m the one you have to deal with. Mitch was left in no doubt that Jimmy had to be put back in his place. And that was at the bottom of the pack.

  Mia and Jimmy stopped in their tracks when Mitch picked up speed and suddenly blocked their path. “Hey, Mia.”

  “Hey, Mitch.” Mia went to walk around him. Mitch moved his position to block her again.

  “I wouldn’t waste my time on this loser,” Mitch sneered towards Jimmy.

  “Yeah, why is that?”

  “Because he’s a loser, that’s why.”

  “I’m sorry, Mitch, but that doesn’t really make much sense. You’re saying Jimmy’s a loser because he’s a loser. Mmm… might want to put a bit more thought into that. We’d like to go now.”

  Mitch’s glanced at Savannah then back at Mia. His expression was now more threatening. Mitch would be the first to admit that he wasn’t the brightest bulb in the chandelier but he knew when he was being called stupid. And he was encouraged by Savannah’s approving nod in the background.

  “Jimmy’s a loser because he’s hanging out with you, for a start.”

  Mia hoped her face didn’t look as red as it felt.

  “We’re just walking, Mitch.” said Jimmy. “No big deal - leave us alone.” Mia saw that Jimmy’s fists were clenching.

  It was Savannah’s turn. “You shouldn’t push your friends away, Jimmy. You’re going to need friends… when you get kicked out of your place.”

  Jimmy turned and looked at Savannah. “What are you talking about? Who’s getting kicked out?”

  “You, Jimmy. You and your family. My mother says you can’t afford the rent on that smelly shop of yours. She says you’ll be out by the end of the month.”

  “That’s a lie.” Jimmy could feel his throat tightening. But in his mind he saw his parents whispering in the kitchen. Words like rent, expensive, broke, relocate floated upwards with the steam and aromas from the stove and filled the small room.

  “It’s a lie!” he repeated, more angrily this time, but also less convinced of the truth of his own assertion.

  “Are you calling me a liar, Jimmy? I don’t like that. Mitch, Jimmy called me a liar. Do you think we should give him a chance to apologise?”

  Mia had seen plenty of fights before
, but had never been so close or, to be more precise, in the middle of one. It was the sort of thing that happened to other kids. But now it was unfolding in front of her. That’s why she liked the library – she could block off all that playground stuff. She could get lost in a book and not worry about who’s running through whose game, who’s refusing to let other kids play, who’s going out, who’s making out, who’s breaking up, who’s saying foul things about whose mother, what’s happened to Peter…

  What’s happened to Peter! This last thought took Mia by surprise. Of course she would be thinking of Peter. He was a soldier who put himself in harm’s way, not to be a hero, not for money, not to show off, but because it was the right thing to do; to stand up to people who think that their beliefs, their points of view are superior to those of other people, people who deny others the right to their own opinions, the right to just get on with life in a way that respects others and doesn’t harm anyone. Peter wouldn’t stand back, relegating himself to the ranks of spectators in a situation like this.

  Suddenly, as though an unseen force were moving her, Mia stepped in between Mitch and Jimmy. With as much assertion as she could muster, given her trembling legs and pounding heart, she looked up at Mitch and spoke loudly and assertively.

  “Back off, Mitch! Jimmy’s done nothing to hurt you. If you really wanted to show how tough you are you’d tell Savannah to get lost.” Mia didn’t know where these words came from.

  Mitch was clearly taken aback.

  “Don’t you listen to her, Mitch,” warned Savannah. “Make Jimmy apologise. Teach him a lesson!”

  With that Mitch put his hands up and shoved Mia’s shoulders. “Get out of the way. This is between me and Jimmy.”

  Mia stumbled backwards and knocked into Savannah. Both girls lost their footing and fell to the concrete footpath. Mia jumped back up quickly while Savannah swore and rubbed at her elbow. Mia was about to say something more, she didn’t know what, but something to diffuse the situation. But before she could she saw Jimmy step forward and stand within half a metre of Mitch who towered over the smaller boy by at least twenty centimetres.

  “You shouldn’t have done that, Mitch.” Jimmy’s voice was low and threatening. If it weren’t for the difference in size between the two boys Mia would have thought Jimmy posed a real threat to Mitch’s health.

  “What’s wrong, Jimmy. Did I hurt your girlfriend’s feelings?”

  “You know, you were alright in primary school. You were fun to be around. You had lots of friends, including me. Then you …” Jimmy searched for the words, “… went weird.”

  Savannah knew where this was going. “Shut up, Jackie Chan.”

  “Yeah, Jimmy, shut your mouth or I’ll shut it for you.” Mitch raised his right fist and drew his arm back ready to strike.

  “Jimmy, run,” screamed Mia, cursing herself for her own uselessness. But Jimmy stood his ground as both Mia and Savannah watched the battle, each hoping for a different outcome, but each expecting the same.

  Suddenly Jimmy started to raise his closed hand until it was level with Mitch’s face. Then he extended his forefinger in the fashion of a gun aimed into the air. “Now,” he said slowly and deliberately, “is not the time for running.”

  “Careful, Mitch,” warned Savannah sarcastically, still nursing her sore arm, “Karate Kid has a finger and he’s not afraid to use it!”

  “Taekwondo,” continued Jimmy as though he were giving an introductory lesson to a group of ten-year-olds, “involves the use of the hand...”

  Mitch was confused and seemed frozen in his threatening pose, fist at the ready.

  Jimmy slowly moved his hand towards Mitch’s face. Mitch was cross-eyed as Jimmy’s finger lightly touched the tip of Mitch’s nose. “…and the foot.”

  And with that Jimmy brought his right foot down hard on Mitch’s toes.

  He looked at Mia. “Now is the time for running!”

  A hundred metres down the road Jimmy and Mia paused and turned to see Mitch sitting forlornly on the footpath, rocking back and forth, cradling his foot in his arms. Savannah stood over him waving her hands wildly. They could only imagine the tirade she was directing at him.

  “He used be okay,” panted Jimmy as they continued towards the town centre. “We were really good mates. Then he started to notice that some of the girls looked…,” Jimmy smiled awkwardly.

  “Looked like girls?” Mia suggested helpfully.

  “Yeah. And he just became fascinated with Savannah.”

  “Well, she is pretty.”

  “Yeah, pretty nasty.”

  “What was that about your family getting kicked out?”

  “Oh, I dunno. Savannah’s mother owns the building and she’s a pretty tough landlady. Mum and dad don’t tell me much about it except to remind me to be friendly with Savannah. And you can see how that’s working out.”

  “Don’t you hate that? Just because we’re not adults they treat us like kids. I know they want to protect us and all but sometimes you’re left imagining a problem that’s worse than the real thing. For example, Nan has some heart condition. Mum doesn’t know what’s happened to her fiancé. They talk to each other about it, but because they don’t want to upset me I’m left to pick up little bits of whispered conversations and I have to fill in the gaps with my imagination. Milkshake?”

  “Sure, but I don’t have any money on me.”

  “My shout.”

  “No way. You buy me a milkshake and that makes it a date.”

  “Can’t a friend just buy a friend a drink in this town?”

  “How about we go past my place? I’ll drop my stuff off and pick up my wallet.”

  “Good idea.” Mia couldn’t understand why she felt so comfortable in Jimmy’s company. I’ve known him for what, three minutes! Jimmy wasn’t a particularly big boy, a little taller than Mia, with a wiry physique. But he’d certainly shown that he was no chicken. Brave and funny.

  Mia’s phone sounded in her pocket. “That’ll be mum.” Mia took her phone out of her pocket and read Alison’s usual but brief question: r u ok? Mia tapped back :-)

  “My parents reckon I don’t need a phone,” lamented Jimmy.

  “Yeah, well things are different in the big city.”

  As they made their way to Jimmy’s place Mia didn’t notice the big, black motorcycle go past headed towards town.