Right As Rain

by Tricia Stringer

  CHAPTER

  41

  ”Keep your eyes closed.” Hugh glanced back at his mother, expecting to see her peeping.

  “I am,” Mary said. “What are you up to?”

  Molly sat at her feet. Her bell tinkled as she licked her paw.

  Hugh jumped back to the verandah beside his mother.

  “Now you can open them.”

  She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the light.

  “What have you . . . oh, Hugh.”

  She hurried forward to the table and chairs that Rory had restored. Molly beat her to it, already making circles on one of the seats.

  “This is my old setting,” Mary cried. “It looks brand new.”

  “Rory Heinrich did it.”

  “I thought he made things from corrugated iron.”

  “He does much more than that.” Hugh took his mother’s hand. “Come and see.”

  “What else have you done?”

  “You’ll see.”

  He led her off the verandah and under the branches of the secret garden they’d been working on. He watched her face as she glanced around. Her eyes opened wide in surprise and she put her hands to her mouth.

  “A birdbath,” she murmured through her fingers. She flung her arms around Hugh’s neck. “Thank you,” she said.

  “Do you like it?”

  Mary let him go. She ran her hand over the small bronze bird perched on the edge of the old plough disk that Rory had turned into a bowl.

  “I love it,” she said.

  “That stump it’s sitting on is from that old tree that fell down. You’ve got one of its branches for your seat.” Hugh nodded at the big log he’d helped her position when he’d first come home.

  “It’s perfect.”

  She turned to him and he could see tears brimming in her eyes.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  “You’re welcome.”

  Mary dug in her pocket and pulled out a hanky.

  “You’re not meant to cry,” Hugh said.

  She blew her nose and dabbed at her eyes. “It’s the most special gift.”

  Hugh felt a pang of remorse. He’d helped her with the garden because he enjoyed it, but a part of him knew it was also his way of trying to make up for not being home much. He knew that was the gift she wanted most and he couldn’t give it to her.

  “You go and sit on the verandah,” he said brightly, “and I’ll make us a cup of tea.”

  He’d thought she might argue but she didn’t. Instead, she called out there were fresh biscuits in the tin and let him go.

  When he came back his mother was just coming out of the secret garden with Molly firmly clasped in her arms.

  “I’ll have to put more bells on her collar.” Mary chuckled. “She’s already been checking out the birdbath and helping herself to a drink. She probably thinks it’s a giant water bowl just for her.”

  Hugh set the tray on the table and they both sat down. The day had been warm but the wind had dropped out. Grey clouds were spreading across the sky.

  “Do you think it will rain?” Mary asked.

  “Forecast is saying rain but only one to five millimetres. Even if that does fall it’s not enough.”

  “We’ll take any we can get.”

  They lapsed into silence. Hugh took a deep breath. He needed to tell his mother about his plans and now was the best chance he had.

  “Mum – ”

  Mary cut him off. “You’ve done so much around here since you’ve been home. Fixing up that back verandah was such a surprise. It’s been propped up for so long we didn’t notice it anymore.” She paused. “Your father appreciated it as well.”

  Hugh twisted his lips into a smile. His father would never say it but Hugh got the feeling he was finally seeing his youngest son as doing something useful. A pity that was all going to change.

  “Mum . . .”

  “You’re not going to stay, are you?” she said.

  There were no tears in her eyes now. He shook his head.

  Her teeth clenched as she looked away.

  “I’m sorry, Mum.”

  “Don’t apologise.” She stroked the cat on her lap.

  “I’ve really enjoyed being home. I didn’t . . .” He faltered and Molly’s crackly purr punctuated the air between them.

  “You didn’t want to be home, did you?”

  “Not at first.” Hugh decided to be honest. “I’ve conquered a few demons over these last weeks.”

  Mary looked up at him with a puzzled expression. “Your father really only wants what’s best for you. We both do.”

  “I know. That’s not what I meant.”

  “Carol?”

  Hugh nodded and took a mouthful of tea to hide his surprise. His mother had got it in one.

  “You’ve carried that guilt for too long, love. You weren’t to blame.”

  “I understand that now.”

  “Good. Maybe you’ll come home more often in the future.”

  Once again they lapsed into silence.

  “What about Mackenna?” Mary asked.

  “We’re good mates again.”

  “I’m glad, although I have a feeling Louise Birch was lining you up as her future son-in-law.”

  “Really?” Hugh felt a small pang of sadness for lost possibilities.

  “Is there something else?”

  He glanced at his mother and looked away.

  “This isn’t a criticism but you’ve hardly been home in ten years, love, and when you did come home you were like a shadow. I worried about you. Lately you’ve been much more like the old Hugh. Was there more to it than grieving for Carol?”

  Hugh clasped his hands tightly then let them go. If he didn’t tell his mother now, he never would.

  Mary reached across and gripped his hand. “What is it, love?”

  Hugh lifted his gaze to meet his mother’s. “I’m okay now,” he said and knew he meant it, “but when I took that job in Victoria I suffered panic attacks.”

  Mary gripped his hand tighter but didn’t say a word.

  “It was exactly two years after Carol’s death. I’d just shifted to the Gippsland and didn’t know a soul except for the bloke who employed me. Thankfully there was an agricultural counsellor working for the business.” Hugh would never forget her calm reassurance. “Jenny took me to a GP and a psychologist. Together they got me through it.”

  When he thought back he could remember little of the first terrible month he was there. All he could recall was the pain and the sensation that his body was constantly on high alert. He’d craved sleep but his mind refused to rest. He’d tried to eat but the lump in his throat wouldn’t let him.

  Mary let go his hand. Her face was creased in a frown. “Did they tell you why it happened? You’d think if it was Carol’s death it would have happened sooner.”

  He recalled that first anxiety attack like it was yesterday. He’d arrived in town late one afternoon, checked out the office and then the accommodation. The bloke in charge had rounded up a few others and they’d come over with pizza and beer. It had been a big night.

  “The psychologist told me when emotions are repressed they can resurface with the simplest connection. There was an old couch in the flat I was renting. It was the same as the one in the flat I shared with Carol. The night she left I’d fallen asleep on the couch in front of the television. I didn’t even know she’d gone until the police woke me.”

  “Oh, love.”

  “Two years later there I am in a new town having a big night with the blokes from work, and I fell asleep on the couch.” Hugh paused. “In the early hours of the morning I jumped awake. My heart was hammering and I felt terrible – like I was going to die. Who’d have thought a tatty old couch would have such power?”

  Mary got up from her chair and wrapped her arms around him.

  “Oh, Hugh.”

  He stood up so she didn’t have to bend and extricated himself from her hug. “I’m fine now. I’ve been
to hell and back but I really am okay now.”

  “I can’t bear the thought that you went through it alone.”

  “I wasn’t alone. I had the right people to help me.”

  She put a hand gently on his cheek. “But I wasn’t there.”

  “I had to conquer it myself. There was nothing you could do.”

  “You’re wrong, Hugh. You didn’t give us a chance. We would have supported you through a terrible time.”

  Hugh looked into his mother’s gentle eyes and thought of his father.

  “All of us,” she said and kissed him on the cheek. “Let’s sit down again. Tell me about this job you’re taking.”

  “It’s in Canada.”

  She paused momentarily then settled herself on her chair.

  “It’s the research project I was telling you about,” Hugh said. “It’s a great opportunity.”

  “When do you go?”

  “A few weeks.”

  Hugh watched his mother’s profile as she stared straight ahead.

  “I’m so glad we worked on the garden together,” she said. “I won’t miss you so much when I’m out here.” Finally she turned to look at him. “Dad will miss you too.”

  “What about the Sutton property he was going to buy?”

  “We want you to be happy, love. We knew something was wrong, we just didn’t know what. Your dad thought offering you a place of your own might be the answer.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be sorry,” she said with a tiny smile. “You’re a good, clever man. Your dad and I only want what’s best for you. If that’s researching in Canada, then you do it.” Her smile grew wider. “Maybe we could come and visit you.”

  “Of course.” Hugh wasn’t sure that would ever happen but he knew he’d be more than happy if they did.

  CHAPTER

  42

  “I’m good at trussing things up,” Adam said.

  “I could get Dad’s gun,” Hugh added.

  “Big help you two are.” Mackenna laughed. It was a relief after her tense day working with Cam. She wasn’t any closer to sorting out what was going on with him. On the surface he seemed to do his job but she no longer trusted him.

  At the end of the day he’d taken off to town and she’d come home to find Adam had cooked dinner. They invited Hugh to join them. She told them about Cam and her concerns for all the things he was possibly up to. With a few beers under their belts, they’d started making outrageous suggestions to get rid of him.

  “Seriously, your dad will be home soon,” Adam said.

  “What’s that got to do with it?”

  “Maybe he should sort it out.”

  “What’s he going to do that I can’t?” Mackenna bristled.

  “Don’t go there, mate,” Hugh said and made a silly face.

  “I need a plan.” Mackenna drummed her fingers on the table.

  “What sort of a plan?” Adam asked.

  “Some way of catching him in the act. He’s too good at covering his tracks.”

  “So what’s he actually done, apart from being a big-noting smart-arse?”

  “Tell it like it is, Adam.” Hugh chuckled and got them all another beer.

  “You hardly know him,” Mackenna said. She was surprised at Adam’s strong reaction.

  “I shared a room with him.”

  “That would do it,” Hugh said and clinked his bottle against Adam’s.

  “I’d forgotten.” Mackenna fell silent. It was her fault Adam had been bunked in with Cam.

  “So while you were sharing a room,” Hugh went on, “did you find out anything that might be useful?”

  “He snores.”

  “Anything that might be useful in finding out what he’s been up to?”

  “Not really. I just don’t like the guy.”

  “Ditto,” Hugh said.

  “I had no idea you both felt that way,” Mackenna said. “I must admit my first impression of Cam was he was a bit over-confident but he appeared to be doing the job.” She stopped as she recalled her first weeks at home from holiday.

  “He made eyes at you, didn’t he?” Adam banged his beer on the table and Mackenna jumped.

  “I wouldn’t say that,” she said. “Don’t go getting all macho protective over me. I can deal with Cam if I have to. I’m not sucked in by his attempt at charm.”

  “Your mum is,” Adam replied. “He has her wrapped around his little finger.”

  “He’s been misleading people about his relationship with Mackenna too,” Hugh said.

  “What does that mean?”Adam looked from Hugh to Mackenna.

  “It’s only gossip,” she said.

  “It becomes gospel quickly with some people,” Hugh said.

  “So back to my plan.” Mackenna tapped the table again. “Cam’s slack with his work but always seems to shift the blame elsewhere. That’s annoying but it’s not illegal.”

  “He gossips by the sound of it,” Adam said.

  Mackenna glanced at him. “Once again not illegal.”

  “Do you want to get rid of him?” Hugh asked.

  “There’s no point in having a working man I can’t trust.”

  “Cam has been selling things at the pub but we’ve no proof they’re stolen.” Hugh held up a finger. “I saw him dropping things off at his mate’s place but we don’t know they weren’t his.” Hugh held up another finger. “He takes your truck on long trips that don’t seem to be related to your farm.” He raised a third finger. “That’s three strikes but none of them can call him out.”

  Mackenna bolted upright. “Yes,” she said. “Garry Finn said he thought he’d seen Cam before. He reckons Cam was carting for the farm where Garry and his team were crutching, out the other side of Naracoorte.”

  “What does that mean?”Adam asked.

  “He’s driving our truck to do jobs for other people.”

  “And I’d be guessing he’s charging them cash to do it and filling up at your diesel tank,” Hugh said.

  “How am I going to catch him out?” Mackenna pushed back her chair and started pacing the floor. “I need a plan.” It was all very well to say it but she was no closer to working out what. She thought about the truck. It was the best bet. Everything else was too tricky, but if he was doing jobs for other people in the Woolly Swamp truck . . . She patted her chest with her hand.

  “What’s the matter?”Adam asked.

  “Nothing.” She pulled her notebook out of her shirt pocket, flipped through the pages and stared at the numbers she’d scribbled there.

  “What is it?” Hugh asked.

  “The odometer reading for the truck.” She waved the little book at them. “I’ll keep jotting it down. Next time he drives it I’ll be able to tell if he’s done the job we asked him to. If he’s doing another job for someone else there will be a whole lot of extra kilometres.”

  “He’ll have an excuse for it,”Adam said. “He’s got a smooth tongue.”

  “Not if I’ve followed him and watched what he’s up to,” Mackenna said. “Then I can talk to whoever he does the delivery for.”

  “Hang on a minute.” Adam’s face was serious. “Cam thinks he’s getting away with stuff now. You don’t know how he might react if he’s cornered.”

  “Adam’s right.” Hugh pitched in. “He’ll get cagey if he notices you. We need a person he won’t recognise if he sees them.”

  “Who’s that going to be?” Mackenna put her hands on her hips.

  “And you’ll need a vehicle,” Hugh said.

  “Or a bike.”

  They both looked at Adam.

  “He knows you, though,” Hugh said.

  “But a guy on a bike under a helmet could be anyone.” Mackenna grinned. “And I don’t think he even knows you’re here.”

  “Not unless you’ve mentioned it,” Adam said. “I’ve only been out of the house for our trip to town yesterday.”

  “He doesn’t know you’re here.” Mackenna said it with such
conviction both men studied her.

  “It’s just a feeling I get.” She shrugged her shoulders. “The things he says. He thinks we’re alone on the property.”

  “I don’t like the sound of that,” Hugh said.

  Adam’s chair scraped across the floor. “Neither do I.”

  “Perhaps we should be visible.” Hugh stood up, too. “So he knows you’re not alone.”

  Mackenna glanced from one to the other. She covered her unease with a laugh. “For goodness sake, you two, you look like you’re about to arrange a shoot-out at high noon.”

  Adam slipped an arm around her. “I don’t like the idea of that creep making eyes at you.”

  “I can handle Cam.” She gave Adam a quick kiss. “Besides, he might not know you’re here but I do.”

  “My cue to leave, I think,” Hugh said. He shook Adam’s hand. “Thanks for the meal.”

  Mackenna gave Hugh a hug. “Thanks for coming.”

  “You take care,” he said with a pointed look.

  They waved him off and began to clear up the dishes.

  “Maybe I should put in an appearance tomorrow,” Adam said. “Let Cam know I’m here.”

  “No,” Mackenna said quickly.

  Adam’s eyebrows shot up.

  “I don’t want him to know yet. I like coming home to you with no-one else around.” She threw her arms around his neck, kissed him then leant back to look into his eyes. “And you can cook.”

  “That’s why you’ve got me locked up here, as your slave.”

  She pulled his head closer so their lips were nearly touching.

  “There are other benefits,” she said.

  “Is that so?”

  His deep brown eyes smouldered. She felt his arms tighten around her and then she was lost in his kiss.

  CHAPTER

  43

  “You want me to do the abattoir run with those sheep for the restaurants?”

  Mackenna was on her knees checking the seeder. She pulled herself upright and turned to face Cam.

  “Have you finished all the troughs?” she asked. She glanced at her watch. He hadn’t been gone that long.

  “I don’t waste time,” he said. “They’re all done.”

  She held his gaze a moment. His look dared her to call him a liar. She shrugged her shoulders. “I was going to go to the abattoir myself. . .” She hesitated. If Cam was off doing that job, Adam could come with her to shift some sheep without the risk that Cam might see him. “Okay, thanks. They’re in the yard behind the shearing shed.”