by Meg Buchanan
The doors whisper as I make my way through the vault. My boots echo on the tiles. I’m about half way through the vault when I see Joe coming towards me three doors down. He’s running.
Then I see him stop and fumble with the keypad. He barely waits for the door to open before he slides through the gap. Then runs to the next door.
We meet in the cuttings room. It’s cold.
“I’m glad you’re here.” He wraps his arms around himself and stamps his feet like Nick does when we’re out hunting. “I was getting desperate. Was going to get some help.”
“What’s wrong?”
Joe turns back the way he’s come and starts moving at a half jog. “Cin’s crook.” He gets to the door, stabs at the keypad like he can’t put the numbers in fast enough, messes up the code. I take over, do it for him. “She’s too hot. And when she talks, it’s like she doesn’t know where she is.” Joe talks fast as he’s jogging to the next door.
“What happened?”
“Don’t know.” Joe steps back from the door, lets me put the code in this time. “She’s in a lot of pain, and when I give her a drink she vomits. I don’t know what to do for her. She needs a doctor.”
We go through the door. Now I’m moving as fast as Joe. We get to the kitchen area.
He goes to the small sleeping area at the back and sits on the edge of the bed. He leans over the bundle there. Murmurs something and strokes the tangle of hair.
Lucinda rolls over slowly and looks at him as if she isn’t too sure who he is. Her cheeks are red, and her hair is damp and sticking to her face. “Joe?” she asks, like she’s surprised.
“I’m back.” Joe picks up a cloth from a chair beside the bed and wipes her forehead.
She looks over at where I’m standing. “Who’s that?” she asks, sounding scared.
“It’s just Jack.” Joe wipes with the cloth again then brushes the hair off her face with his other hand.
She closes her eyes. Curls up on her side again, close to him.
I take off the backpack, drop it by the door. I go into the room, stop by the bed, study the red cheeks and damp tangle of hair, hear the fast, shallow breaths.
She doesn’t look like she’ll be able to walk across the farm or ride the bike herself.
How the hell are we going to do this?
“How long has she been sick?”
“She was like this when I woke up.” Joe is sitting there on the bed looking at me like I’m the answer to all his prayers.
“I’ll get her to a doctor,” I say, because it seems like the right thing to say. How am I going to manage that? We aren’t going to get the three of us on the bike. I can’t see her coping with riding pillion anyway.
“How?” asks Joe.
It’s a bloody good question. “I’ll bring the doctor here.” But who? From where?
“How long will it take?”
“A couple of hours.”
“That long?” Joe says it like a couple of hours sounds like a lifetime to him. He looks down at Lucinda, touches her cheek.
“I’ll be as quick as I can.”
Joe nods then pulls the sheet up around Lucinda, tucking her in.
*
By the time I get to the pub, I still haven’t decided what to do. I have to get a doctor for Lucinda, but don’t want to take someone to the vault who isn’t part of this already. I’ve read those war stories full of collaborators and informers. And it’s always the fat doctor.
I wonder about Curley or Nick or Scott, and whether they’d know someone.
I stand there in the lounge trying to figure it out.
Maybe Mum.
No. Don’t want to get her involved.
Maybe Fitzgerald.
No. Too much potential fallout.
Who? In the end I give in. It’s too big for me to handle. I decide to do what I’m supposed to do if I run into trouble – call Fitzgerald.
There’s going to be huge trouble from this for everyone then I realise I’ve left my Com in the pannier.
Fuck. What if Ela has tried to reach me again? Because, in the back of my mind, I know she’s not in the pub. If she was here, she’d be with me.
Maybe she’s gone to visit Jacob. I push the worry aside. I’ll deal with the Lucinda problem first.
I use the house Com to ring Fitzgerald. “Police Station. Fitzgerald.”
“It’s Jack. I’ve got that book you wanted. CatchingFire.”
There’s a long pause. “Where are you?” he says in the end.
“At the pub.”
“Are you able to meet me at the back door?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m coming.”
I’m barely down the steps and by the door when I see Fitzgerald’s car slide into the car park. He gets out. “Got the book?” he asks when he sees me.
“Inside.”
He follows me without saying anything.
He’s calm. I’m not calm. Still no Ela.
We go upstairs. I feel like I should be walking real slow delaying this. Don’t want to tell him until I’m behind a shut door with him. Figure we are going to need a bit of privacy for this. I’m pretty sure he’s not going to take it well. But as long as we’re moving, Fitzgerald seems willing to wait to find out what’s going on.
I shut the door. He stands there in the kitchen with his arms folded.
“Start talking.” He looks around the benches. “I can’t see anything catching fire.”
I mention the raid to get Lucinda.
He doesn’t take it well. “Whose idea was that?”
I shrug. Then I mention hiding Joe and Lucinda at the seed vault. Follow up with the news Lucinda’s sick.
Fitzgerald breathes out slowly between his teeth. “How bad is she?”
“Real crook. Needs a doctor.”
“What’s wrong with her?”
“Joe thinks it’s something to do with them taking the baby. She’s flushed and vomiting.”
“Vector took the baby?” he asks. I nod, and he shakes his head then rubs the back of his neck.
“She was bleeding when we found her,” I say, like she was just sitting there in the woods somewhere, and we happened to come across her.
“When was that?”
“Night before last.”
He doesn’t take that well either. “Great,” he says. “She should have had medical treatment at least twenty-four hours ago. Anyone else know about this?”
“No. I called you first.”
“Good.” He unfolds his arms, taps the Com on his wrist. There’s a flash.
“Johnson. Fitz here. We’ve got a situation.” There’s a mutter from the Com. “The pub. We’ll meet you round the back.”
Then he turns on me again. “Where’s Jacob’s grandkid?”
“She’s on her way here.” She should have been here at least an hour ago. She might have gone to see Jacob before coming here, but it isn’t likely. She wanted a romantic evening. So logically she should be waiting for me.
Dread hits my stomach.
“Check,” he orders.
I use the house Com again. Try to call her but she doesn’t answer.
Fitzgerald’s watching me. I switch on the Locate and see Ela’s Com is in Jacob’s house. Exactly where it shouldn’t be.
I can feel his eyes on me. I try to act real calm, but I’m pretty sure he can see I’m getting twitchier and twitchier. I switch off the Com and put it back in the holder.
“Where is she?” says Fitzgerald.
My heart is pounding like it wants to get out and fly. “At Jacob’s.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. She should be here.”
“Go and get her.”
“Don’t you need me?”
“No. Johnson and I will deal with this. Go and get Jacob’s kid now. You’ve got some explaining to do when we’ve sorted out this mess.”
*
I fly back to the farm to find Ela.
Every time I see
a vehicle coming towards me, I pray she’s in it.
But she isn’t. She must still be in Jacob’s house, and she shouldn’t be at the farm on her own. And then I realise there was no sign of her, or the Eco, when I dropped off the bike and picked up the Land Rover.
So, how did she get there? She has to be there. I might forget my Com sometimes, but Ela doesn’t step out of a room without taking hers with her.
Maybe she’s in the house and she’s hurt. Tripped over something. I can’t believe how many things I can think of that could have gone wrong.
*
The sun’s going down as I go along the driveway towards Jacob’s house.
If Ela’s inside there should be lights on, but there aren’t. I stop by the front of the house. Monsanto runs up the steps onto the veranda and pushes the door open. It isn’t shut properly.
Ela wouldn’t leave the door unlocked if she was inside. She’s still jumpy after Scott’s party. I pause and listen. The whole house is in darkness and silence.
Something’s wrong. The Eco is parked in the garage. The door of the garage is half shut – that’s why I didn’t notice it when I swapped the bike for the Land Rover.
But there’s still no sign of Ela.
Chapter 28
I GO INSIDE AND TURN the passage light on. Light floods the hall, but no Ela. Nothing out of place.
“Hey,” I call out.
There’s no answer. No movement. Only silence echoing back.
I could go to the Land Rover and get the rifle, but the house feels completely deserted. Only a few of the sun’s rays filter through the leadlight panels in the door. The floor creaks. I walk down the passage. Move slowly and quietly. Push each bedroom door open as I go past. Look inside.
No one. Nothing.
I walk further down the passage. Come to the door that leads to the dining room. Push the door back wide and go in. In the dining room dust motes dance in the light from the windows. The walls glow softly. The black teeth at the front of the coal range grimace. I turn the light on as I enter. The light hits the room. Makes it seem normal.
I start to breathe again. That only lasts until I see groceries lying all over the floor like the bag has been dropped and has split.
Something’s wrong.
And still no Ela.
I bend down and pick up the cheese. Pass it from hand to hand. Then I notice the map has gone from where I left it.
Why would Ela have taken the map? I run my fingers through my hair, look around the room and see her Com sitting on the sideboard.
Now I really know something has happened to her. Like I said, I might forget about my Com sometimes, but Ela wouldn’t leave hers behind ever.
I pick up the Com. It’s transmitting. I turn the Transmit off and check the call register.
The last two calls are with my Com. One from me, one to me. Within five minutes of each other. The second one didn’t complete. She tried to call back almost straight away, but I had my Com turned off. I spin round and run out of the dining room.
*
When I get to the veranda, Monsanto stands up. He looks at me as I run past, follows me to the shed.
It takes only a few seconds to get the Com out of the pannier.
I flick through the menu.
One missed call and a message.
I listen to the message. I can only hear faintly what’s being said, but I can hear enough to recognise Henry and Charlie Willis’s voices.
They’ve got her.
Ela must have made the call to my Com without them noticing.
“Ela Hennessey,” says Henry’s voice in the recording. “We keep bumping into each other.” There’s silence for a while then, “You won’t need this,” he says. There’s a pause and I hear a clunk. I guess he’s taken Ela’s Com and put it on the table or somewhere, because the voices sound further away. But the recording is still clear.
“Where’s Fraser?” Henry’s voice.
“I haven’t seen him since this morning.” Ela’s voice.
“At the pub?”
“When’s he coming?”
“I don’t know.”
“Are you expecting him?”
“No. The food’s for when Jacob gets home.”
So, Ela is still thinking, and she doesn’t sound too scared.
I bet she wishes she had my rifle with her.
But why the hell would she go inside the house?
To put the groceries away, I guess.
“What do you think?” Henry asks.
Then I hear the sound of something being hit. A gasp from Ela, and something falling back. A chair hitting the floor like someone’s stumbled into it.
They’ve hit her!
“Is he coming?” Henry asks and there’s silence.
Maybe Ela nods, because I hear Henry say, “That’s better. Where’s this waterfall, do you know?”
Ela must have nodded again.
“Good girl,” says Henry. “You learn fast. You can take us there.”
“It’s almost dark,” says Ela’s voice.
“We got torches,” says Charlie. “What do you think we are?”
“You don’t need me. I’ll tell you how to get there,” says Ela clearly.
“You’re coming, and you’re going to show us where this is. With any luck, Fraser will try to find you, and we can deal to him too,” says Henry. “Can you see the site from the walkway?”
“No. You have to follow the creek until you come to a clearing. Then you follow a track off the walkway to find it.”
Good girl, still thinking. She’s directing them to the fake site, and by the longest way.
“We need you to take us there. We don’t want to be stumbling around in the dark all night.”
“You could go in the morning.”
“Nah. Come on,” Henry says. “Let’s get going before Fraser gets here.”
I hear footsteps leaving the room, and then there’s silence.
They’re taking her with them.
And they hit her. I can’t tell how badly hurt she is. But she’s still talking and walking.
And going the way she told them to go. It will take at least two hours for them to get there.
I look at the time of the call.
She made it at five. Now it is almost six thirty.
The one thing in my favour is she still seems to be thinking and trying to slow them down. It will take me maybe twenty minutes to drive around to Dickey’s Flat and then walk up the creek.
I look at my Com again. It’s going to be close.
I go to the Land Rover and open the back door.
I check the rifle. Then make sure everything I need is in the back of the vehicle. Knife, some shells, a spotlight and a Swanndri. I stand there running my fingers through my hair, mentally checking if there’s anything else.
I need to get this right. I keep my imagination under control and move methodically. Monsanto tags at my heels quietly following every movement.
Five minutes later I’m in the Land Rover, driving coolly as if I’m just going hunting at night, like any other time.
I can’t afford the sort of mistakes panic causes.
I don’t use CatchingFire. I don’t need Fitzgerald or Jacob to tell me how completely I’ve fucked up. I don’t think they’d get here in time to be any use anyway.
*
I drive through the gorge, turn right, and cross the bridge onto the road to Waitawheta. Then right again to Dickey’s Flat, and it’s taking forever.
I swing the Land Rover through the bends in the road. Monsanto is thrown against the side of the vehicle. The tar seal finishes and we come to gravel. The Land Rover starts to slide each time I take a bend.
I must slow down. I don’t want to finish up at the bottom of a bank or wrapped around a tree.
Finally, I get to the camping ground, turn off the motor and let the momentum carry the Land Rover as far into the grounds as the line of boulders. I get out and leave the driver’s door aj
ar. I don’t want to risk making any extra noise by shutting it.
I open the back. I’ve no idea what I’ll be running into so decide to take everything that might come in handy. I put the Swanndri on. Put shells in the pocket. Buckle the knife belt around my waist. Sling the rifle over my shoulder. Hold the spotlight in the other hand. Leave the back door open too. I start walking across the grass of the camping ground. Mon follows at my heels.
When I get to the bush line, I can’t decide whether to take him with me or not. He could just be another thing to worry about. But he can move quietly through the bush and would chase and attack if I needed him to. He does it with game. I signal him to follow.
Me and Mon go through the bush making almost no sound. I deliberately keep off all the marked tracks. Instead of going across the swing bridge, I walk along the river bank and then wade across the river.
I don’t want to take the risk that the Willises are lying in wait for me. Occasionally I turn on the spotlight to get my bearings. There’s just enough light filtering through the trees to help me follow the track to the waterfall.
As we get closer to the fake site, I hear the creek whispering in the gloom. I work my way through the bush, so the undergrowth deadens the noise of my movements.
When I’m ten metres from the clearing, I hear the murmuring of voices over the sound of the waterfall. I signal the dog to stay, and creep forward under cover of the trees. As I get closer, the beams from two torches make tracks across the darkness. I move up close and crouch behind a tree near the edge.
I look around at the scene in front of me. I’m directly behind Henry. He’s got a torch shining on Ela. She’s still in the white dress and little shoes. She’s got a belt tied around her wrist, and Henry’s holding the other end. Charlie’s holding a torch too. They both have their rifles held ready. And I don’t like the way Charlie is staring at her.
“Is this it?” Henry pulls on the belt around her wrist, so she stumbles towards him. Ela jerks at the belt.
“Stand still,” says Henry to her.
“Make me.” She yanks on the belt again. So, she’s still fighting them. Henry just raises his eyebrows at her.
I need to figure out a way to get her away from them. I don’t want to shoot her accidentally. And I don’t think I could shoot both of the Willises without one of them getting a shot off. Henry plays the light of his torch around the clearing. The trees stand guard.