The Homestead on the River

by Rosie MacKenzie

  ‘Not that we’ve seen. They may well be waiting to leap onto the skin of a tasty English girl,’ Ronan laughed. ‘Probably far juicier than us Irish.’

  ‘Get on with you,’ Kathleen said. ‘Don’t you take any notice of him, Clara. There are no leeches.’

  ‘What about crocodiles?’

  ‘They’re up in the Northern Territory or far north Queensland,’ Lillie said. ‘The most you have to look out for are snakes.’

  ‘Ronan killed one last week,’ Freddie piped up with great excitement. ‘Right there where you’re standing.’

  Clara looked down at the ground and playfully expressed fear and trembling. ‘My goodness … surely you’re joking?’

  ‘No, I’m not. It was a whopper.’ Freddie held up his arms to show the length. ‘Ronan shot it with a gun. He shoots lots of snakes. They’re everywhere. One even came up to the back door and Ma shot it right through the head. It was a red-bellied black one. They kill you in a second.’

  ‘Enough of that,’ James said. ‘Poor Clara will be on the next plane home.’

  ‘Well, it’s true,’ Freddie protested. ‘You better not leave your bedroom door open … or the bathroom. They like water.’

  ‘Freddie,’ Kathleen exclaimed, wagging a finger at him. ‘You’re teasing poor Clara.’

  Clara laughed. ‘Don’t worry. I can take it. But, young man,’ she said, ruffling Freddie’s hair, ‘you watch out … I’ll soon find a way to get back at you. Make no mistake about that.’

  Dingo was first in for a swim, paddling across to a small sandbank in the middle of the river where he scrambled ashore, rolled in the sand, and shook himself thoroughly. Then everyone placed their towels down on the pebbly beach and started to get undressed. Clara removed her jeans and top and stood there, looking magnificent in a white bikini. Even though she had come straight from an English winter, Lillie noticed how her skin was a soft caramel against the white of her bikini and looked to see Ronan’s reaction, but he was already wading in. He dived below the surface and came up downstream, where he shook his hair out of his eyes, before swimming to the other side and back. Soon everyone was in the river, shouting and splashing water over Clara, who gave as good as she got.

  Later, as they clambered up the bank, Lillie thought that, despite how frumpy Clara made her feel, it was fun to have her here.

  * * *

  Lillie was fascinated to see how Clara fitted in with the family just as she did at Rathgarven. Marcus and Freddie adored having her around. So did Dad and most of all Ma, who now had another woman to keep her company when Lillie and her brothers weren’t there. She was also a great help with the horses and got on really well with Arthur, who taught her all sorts of things about the bush.

  ‘He said he’d try and find me a witchetty grub,’ she laughed. ‘Not sure it’d be to my taste.’

  On Saturday afternoon Lillie and Clara were down in the bottom paddock watching Ma put Shannon Boy through his paces. He was due to go down to Tommy Brown’s stables, Burra Lodge, in a couple of weeks. Lillie knew Ma would miss him dreadfully when he went. Over the last few months Lillie had watched his progress as Ma and Arthur gently broke him in. Now he was quite used to the saddle, after objecting furiously to begin with and throwing Arthur off a number of times when he first mounted him.

  ‘I’m dreading the day he leaves,’ Ma now said, doing up the girth. ‘I know it’s in the best interests of the stud, and if Tommy manages to make him a Group One winner, Eureka Park will become famous.’ She gave Shannon Boy a kiss on his star. ‘And my initial premonition that he was destined for greatness will be proved right.’

  Later, as Clara and Lillie leant on the fence watching Arthur gallop Shannon Boy around the track with Ma eyeing him closely from the middle, Clara said, ‘I thought Ronan would have come home for the weekend. Does he stay up in Armidale often?’

  ‘Depends. If he has a rugby match on,’ Lillie said, ‘or a party or something. Not sure what’s on up there this weekend. Maybe he’s taking his girlfriend out.’

  ‘Have you met her?’

  ‘No, not yet.’

  ‘You think it’s serious?’

  ‘Sounds like it.’

  ‘Oh, really?’

  Even though she was engaged to Lord Charles Fitzpatrick, was she jealous that Ronan had a girlfriend? It made Lillie think.

  ‘Your friend Deb sounds fun,’ Clara said, changing the subject. ‘I’d love to meet her.’

  ‘I’m sure you will. They’ve been flat out shearing sheep. Deb helps in the sheds at weekends so I haven’t seen much of her except at school. But she’s having a birthday party in a few weeks at her place. Ronan and I are going. I’ll ask her if you can come too.’

  ‘That would be fun. I’d love to see an Australian sheep farm. Is she your best friend?’

  ‘Yes. Though there are some other girls at school I like as well. One’s a day boarder and I sometimes stay the weekend with her if I’ve got a hockey or softball match on.’

  ‘Do you like school?’

  ‘I hated it at first. Now I quite like it.’

  Lillie kicked the grass. She did like school now and was doing okay in her studies. She loved English literature and thought she might try to get into a course at uni when she left school. She wouldn’t mind teaching, but would prefer to go to a university, like Maddie Medlow had until she ran off with Jack, rather than a teacher’s college. Would Clara miss not having a career? Mind you, being married to a lord with a huge estate was probably a career in itself.

  ‘Will you finish your degree?’ she asked.

  ‘I want to. Maybe I can do it by correspondence or something.’

  ‘What sort of wedding dress are you going to have?’

  ‘I saw a divine one in Vogue. Lace with a nipped-in waist and a high collar. I’m getting it copied.’

  Lillie smiled. ‘You seem very happy.’

  ‘I’m a bit nervous. It’s a huge step. But Charles is a dear. And it’ll be fun to get married. And, as I said, Mummy’s over the moon. The patter of little feet and all that. Not to mention when Lady Fitzpatrick passes on, she’ll be sort of matriarch of that huge estate when she comes to live with us. It’ll add to her prestige enormously. She’ll probably find an Irish lord herself before too long.’

  Lillie wanted to ask whether she wasn’t marrying Charles Fitzpatrick because her mother wanted her to. Instead she said, ‘Won’t you find Drominderry House daunting? I mean …It’s a bit like a castle.’

  Clara laughed. ‘I know. It terrifies the life out of me sometimes. But don’t forget Mummy will be there, and of course the wonderful Maisie.’

  Lillie didn’t mind the thought of Maisie looking after Clara. But the thought of her being at Jessica’s beck and call annoyed her.

  Even so, she gave Clara a bright smile. ‘I’m sure you’ll cope fine. And if Charles is as nice as you say he is, it’ll be great fun.’

  ‘I hope I manage okay. If I don’t Mummy will kill me.’

  ‘Why would she do that?’

  Clara laughed. ‘Only joking. She just wants the best for me.’

  And, Lillie thought, that’s exactly what she’s got: a rich and titled husband for her daughter, and a wonderful estate on the glorious Kenmare River to go with it. A place where Jessica can also stay.

  CHAPTER

  30

  It was a hot weekend in February with a strong northerly blowing and the sun beating down on the parched countryside. It had been ages since they’d had any decent rain and although Eureka was very dry, out Deb’s way it was even drier. Deb said they were having to hand feed the sheep with the hay stored for the winter. Marcus and Freddie were on a school camp and Ronan, Clara and Lillie had driven up to Tamworth to drop Ma off at the station — she and Lorna Medlow were catching the train to Brisbane. Lorna’s sister lived at Hamilton and Lorna had asked Ma to accompany her on a visit there. Now that Clara was here to help, Ma was looking forward to getting away from Eureka for a few days. Ronan
had put off coming home the last few weeks. He had been frightened by the strong feelings he still had for Clara when he saw her again. Knowing she was about to marry Charles Fitzpatrick, he was sure those feelings could only cause him trouble. If he stayed away he thought he might forget that she was at Eureka Park. But hard as he tried, he couldn’t shift her image from his mind. A few times he thought of going down to see her, then changed his mind and instead took Trish out to a couple of parties and to the movies. He really liked Trish and he suspected she was falling in love with him. But he knew he wasn’t in love with her. If he was in love with her he would have been able to cope with seeing Clara again. In the end he decided it was best that he stayed up in Armidale.

  But then Ma had rung and said he was being rude not coming home to see their family friend. ‘Even if it’s just for a few days,’ she said. ‘I’d hate for Clara to go back to Ireland for her wedding and think we all hadn’t been glad to see her.’ And so he had come home.

  Now, as they neared Gullumbindy on the way home, he could see grass fires burning along the side of the road. The volunteer fire brigade was out in force, dousing the flames with hoses from their trucks. A fireman waved their car to a halt.

  ‘Where you headed to, mate?’ he asked.

  ‘Eureka Park,’ Ronan told him. ‘Out past Gullumbindy.’

  ‘Don’t know if you’ll be allowed through, mate. There’s one hell of a bloody monster burning out along that road.’

  ‘We’ve got to get through,’ he said anxiously, knowing it was just Arthur and his father out there with the horses.

  ‘Yes,’ Lillie piped up from the back. ‘We must.’

  Beside him Clara sighed: ‘But if it’s that bad it might be too dangerous.’

  The fire fighter peered off into the distance towards Gullumbindy. ‘All you can do is try, mate. If there’s a chance of any danger, though, they won’t let you through.’

  Ronan nodded. ‘I understand.’

  The smoke was so thick it was difficult to see where they were going. When they got to Gullumbindy it seemed to clear a bit, so he pulled over and rushed into the Hogans’ house and tried to ring Eureka Park. There was no answer, which was not surprising as his father was probably down at the stables.

  He came out and shook his head at the girls. ‘No answer. Mrs Hogan said Bill’s out fighting the fires our way. The flames have jumped the road at the Farrells’ place up the road from Eureka. The Farrells rang the Hogans looking for extra help.’ He held his hand against the wind. ‘If this easterly keeps up, the fires will be heading straight for Eureka Park. But we might have a chance of getting through before they get there.’

  From the colour of the sky as they sped along Wattle Creek Road towards Eureka Park it appeared that the fire was still some distance away. Nonetheless, all it would take was a slight change in the wind direction to turn it around. As the smoke got thicker and thicker, he drove on in trepidation.

  At the entrance to Eureka Park, they saw flames only a little way off.

  Clara gasped, ‘Oh my God!’

  Lillie leapt out and opened the gates.

  ‘Where do you think the horses are?’ Clara asked, looking around at the empty paddocks.

  ‘I reckon Dad and Arthur have taken them down to the river,’ Ronan said. ‘We’ve practised that before.’

  ‘They might be in the stables,’ Lillie said.

  ‘No, I reckon the river,’ Ronan said. ‘The stables could go up if this fire gets any closer.’

  They screeched to a halt by the homestead. Ronan told Lillie to check the river while he went to the stables, where he could hear horses whinnying in distress. The smoke was so thick he couldn’t see far in front of him. He looked at Clara and saw how terrified she was. Grabbing her by the hand, he told her to come with him. At least with her by his side he could be sure she was safe. Despite the fear running through his veins he couldn’t help notice how soft and warm her hand felt in his and his heart beat hard against his chest.

  ‘Ronan, look,’ she shouted, pointing back towards the front gate.

  Not only could he hear the crackling, now he could see the flames rising high into the air.

  Lillie rushed back up to them. ‘Dad and Arthur have got most of the horses down there with Dingo. Dad said they took them down there when he heard on the radio that the fire was near. But Shannon Boy and Melody are still in the stables.’

  ‘You go back and help Dad,’ Ronan shouted. ‘We’ll try and get those two out.’

  Ronan told Clara to wait outside the stables as he went in. As he moved forward he spoke to Shannon Boy, who was pounding the floor with his hoof. ‘Come on, young man,’ he coaxed, looking anxiously at the thickening smoke visible outside the far door. Rearing up on his hind legs the young horse lashed out, missing Ronan’s face by an inch.

  ‘Ronan, be careful,’ Clara shouted from the doorway when Shannon Boy lashed out again. ‘He’s really freaked out and could do anything.’ She looked to the next stable where Melody was also pawing the ground.

  ‘I’ll try getting Melody to come out first. Then he might follow,’ she shouted to Ronan. ‘If we don’t get them out soon we’ll have to leave them or we’ll be burnt alive.’

  Just as Clara got to Melody and tried to take hold of her halter, the mare reared up, snorting and thrashing wildly. She caught her hoof in the halter rope, which snapped in two, letting her break free. With horror Ronan watched her bolt out the door, turn left and gallop down the driveway towards the flames near Wattle Creek Road.

  ‘Oh my God. She’ll get burnt,’ Clara cried out in anguish. ‘I’ll go after her.’

  ‘No!’ Ronan yelled.

  As he struggled with Shannon Boy’s halter, the colt reared up and careered forward, dragging Ronan with him. Eventually, after much coaxing, he calmed down enough for Ronan to get him out and away from the stables. Together he and Clara cajoled him down to the river, where the other horses were stamping and snorting wildly.

  ‘Lillie, you stay with Arthur and the horses down here,’ James shouted. ‘Clara and Ronan, come with me. We’ll need to get some water onto the stables and the homestead.’

  As he climbed up the bank, Ronan could see flames leaping higher and higher and the smell of burning was thick in the air. It wouldn’t be long before the fire was upon them.

  ‘We need to get the pump going,’ his father hollered. ‘I’ll spray the stables. Ronan, Clara, grab the garden hose and start on the homestead. We’ve got to make sure everything’s soaked.’

  As they raced through the garden gate to the homestead, they could hear the sound of gum trees exploding and the sky simmered and glowed menacingly. Please, please, God, make the wind change direction, Ronan prayed.

  ‘Pump’s going,’ his father called out. ‘Should have water through your hoses now.’

  Ronan rushed to the tap and turned it on, handing Clara the hose.

  ‘See if you can reach the gutters. We cleaned them out not long ago. But there’s been some strong winds. I’ll get the hose out the back going.’

  ‘Is it coming closer?’ Clara bellowed, her eyes wide with fear.

  Before he had a chance to answer, he heard a truck roaring up the driveway. Four firemen jumped out, dragging hoses with them, which they sprayed around the perimeter of the garden and nearby grass before one brought a hose inside the garden and dragged it out the back.

  ‘Good work, love,’ he said to Clara as he pushed past. ‘We’ve got it pretty much under control. It’s stray embers that’s the worry now.’

  Ronan took hold of Clara’s hose and continued spraying the roof. She stood back and ran a hand through her sodden, smoky hair.

  ‘Oh, Ronan, thank God for those firemen. I couldn’t bear it if you lost everything. First to lose Rathgarven because of the Irish economy … and now this fire here at Eureka. It would be too awful.’

  He was astounded that her thoughts had been for the O’Sullivans and not herself.

  ‘Are the stabl
es okay?’ he called out to his father who was now walking through the garden gate, running a handkerchief over his sodden forehead.

  ‘I managed to put out the stray cinders before they took hold. The firemen said the main damage is in the bottom paddock down by Wattle Creek Road, where the sheep are.’

  ‘That’s where Melody was heading,’ Clara said. ‘We should go and look for her in case she’s in danger.’

  ‘Yes, you do that,’ James said. ‘I’ll go help Lillie and Arthur with the horses down by the river.’

  It took Ronan and Clara half an hour of driving around in the ute to find Melody. It seemed that in her terror she had tried to jump the barbed-wire fence dividing Eureka Park from Wattle Creek Road. In doing so, the broken rope of her halter had caught on the wire. In her frenzy to get free, the barbed wire had tangled around her leg. That was where the fire had found her, half burning her alive. The only part of her body that remained unscathed was her head. Seeing the pain and terror in the mare’s eyes, Ronan wished with all his heart that her head had been burnt to cinders too, and then she might have died, putting her out of her agony.

  ‘Oh my God,’ Clara cried, pacing around in a circle, one minute looking at the horror of the mare, the next minute unable to look.

  Ronan’s heart was beating like an eggbeater and the nauseous reek of charred flesh mixed with the smell of burnt grass made him feel like throwing up.

  ‘The poor, poor thing,’ Clara sobbed. ‘She must be in agony.’

  Ronan nodded. ‘How horrible.’

  He watched Clara step ever so slowly over to Melody, who had now gone into a sort of trance, her eyes staring straight ahead, almost as if she had lost consciousness. A mercy really, Ronan thought. Clara gently patted her on the head, her tears dropping onto her face.

  Watching Clara, Ronan felt such tenderness as he had never felt before. ‘I’ll need to put her out of her agony,’ he said. ‘You stay with her and I’ll get my rifle.’