The Girl From Eureka

by Cheryl Adnams

  ‘Your father, I understand.’

  ‘An accident of birth,’ she tossed back, her chin going up in her usual defiant way whenever anyone challenged her on the matter.

  ‘What was the fight about?’

  ‘What do you think?’ George asked with a huff. ‘You, of course.’

  ‘Me?’

  ‘Donnelly was giving you a less than stellar review. Will took offence to his manner and decided to slap the smug grin right off the man’s face.’

  Indy grinned, not bothering to hide her admiration for Will. ‘Good.’

  ‘You’re trouble in a pretty package, Miss Wallace,’ George said, shaking his head. ‘The police came to Donnelly’s defence, and of course I had to help Will, so it ended in an all-in kafuffle. It had been coming for some time I might say, and for my part it felt good to get a few licks in against our brethren in blue. However, as Donnelly is considered a superior officer under the new regime that the Commissioner is now in control of, Will was reprimanded and confined to quarters in lieu of jail time. The jail is currently overcrowded with miners, you see.’

  ‘And Donnelly? What of him?’

  ‘Reprimanded as well. His wages garnished.’

  ‘That’s it!?’ Indy was fuming. ‘Will gets confined to his tent and Donnelly walks away?’

  ‘Be thankful that’s all he got, little girl,’ George said with a wry grin. ‘My friend is a man who would gladly lay down his life for you.’

  This bit of news surprised and delighted Indy. ‘Was he injured in the fight?’

  George gave a light shrug. ‘A blackened cheek and jaw. Knuckles with split skin. Hardly anything to a soldier who’s seen more vicious battles and had life-threatening injuries.’

  ‘I need to see him.’

  ‘Miss Wallace—’

  ‘I need to see him,’ she repeated. ‘With or without your help, I will see him.’

  George sighed. ‘Very well. I’ll find a way. Come to rear of the camp nearest the bushland after curfew tonight. Our tent is nearby. I will find a way for you to see your man.’

  Indy nodded and turning away she headed out of the maze of tents. As she reached the entrance, a tall shadow stepped in front of her. With only the dull light from campfires and lanterns, she couldn’t make him out. But as he lit a cigarillo, she was unable to stop the gasp that escaped upon seeing his face illuminated. Donnelly.

  ‘Well, well,’ he said, his teeth holding onto the cigarillo as he blew smoke directly into her face. ‘Hello, daughter. Finally come to realise your station in life.’

  ‘Get out of my way,’ Indy said, schooling her features to boredom, which belied the nervous hammering of her heart. No matter how much she hated the man, he also frightened her. Though she would never give him the satisfaction of letting him see that.

  ‘I suppose you’ve heard by now that your beloved soldier is under house arrest.’

  ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about,’ Indy feigned. She wasn’t about to admit her relationship with Will to anyone. Let alone the devil himself.

  ‘I’ve seen you together,’ Donnelly said, menace dripping from his voice. ‘Don’t play the innocent child with me. Your handsome beau met his match with me. I had to teach him a lesson. I’m not to be trifled with.’

  ‘I don’t give a disease-ridden rat’s arse for anything you have to say. Now get out of my way,’ Indy demanded.

  Any attempt by Donnelly to be genial, however false, was gone in an instant. ‘I ought to sell you to the highest bidder right now. There would be plenty of men here who would pay to see your pretty face in the throes of passion.’

  A trickle of fearful sweat ran down her back. ‘That will never happen.’

  He just shrugged a shoulder. ‘You don’t have to enjoy it. As long as they get their money’s worth they’ll be satisfied. Nor do you have to consent, given the right circumstances.’ He leaned in, his breath reeking of liquor and stale tobacco. ‘You always did think you were better than everyone. But I know the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. I know your mother, and you are just like her. Once a whore, always a whore.’

  Indy shut him up with a slap, impressive even by her standard. Donnelly staggered back two full steps. Her hand stung from the force of it, but, oh, she felt good.

  She took her opportunity to move by him and out of the calico compound. But before she could get out the doorway, he grabbed her arm, wrenching it so hard she feared her shoulder would pop out of its socket.

  ‘Sergeant Donnelly!’

  The shout was fierce, and Indy turned to see Miss Margaret walking towards them. All pleasantness vacated from her expression, she now carried the air of a frighteningly capable business owner.

  ‘If you strike, injure or even grab a woman like that in my place again, I shall ban you for life.’

  ‘She is not one of your women,’ Donnelly insisted.

  ‘That makes no never mind,’ Miss Margaret returned. ‘Strike any woman, Sergeant Donnelly, and you will be thrown out of my house. Now, let her go.’

  He did as ordered and Indy was surprised to say the least. Then it dawned on her: Donnelly was bedding Miss Margaret herself.

  ‘One day,’ Donnelly said through gritted teeth before Indy could move. ‘One day, you and I will have our meeting and there’ll be no one around to stop me from giving you the hiding you deserve.’

  Refusing to show him any fear, she gave Miss Margaret a nod of thanks, left the tent and made her way back into town.

  ***

  A few hours later, in the deepest dark of the night, George led Will out to the rear of camp.

  ‘I can relieve myself without a guard, George,’ he told his friend, who seemed to be directing him a long way further than was required.

  ‘You are confined to quarters, are you not?’ George answered, causing Will to look quizzically at his friend.

  ‘I am. But it’s not as though I will run away. So why am I coming all the way out here just to take a piss?’

  ‘Because a lady waits, my Lord,’ George said, gesturing to where Indy was now scampering over the lowest part of the picket fence.

  ‘Indy?’ Will squinted into the half-light. ‘What the hell are you doing here?’

  He glared at George.

  ‘Don’t look at me, old boy,’ George said, holding his hands up in defence. ‘I am but an unwilling accomplice.’ And with that he stepped away, making himself scarce.

  ‘Indy, what are you thinking?’ Will’s voice was a gruff whisper. His eyes darted about the compound. ‘If they catch you scrambling over the fence like that, they’ll shoot you on sight.’

  ‘They won’t see me,’ she assured. Taking a step closer she put her hand to his cheek. Even in the low light he knew she would see where the bruises bloomed.

  ‘Oh, your pretty face.’

  He smiled at the warmth of her touch and the concerned expression on her own lovely face.

  Then he watched that expression darken as her legendary temper took hold. ‘I heard what happened. Donnelly. I’ll kill the bastard myself.’

  ‘You’ll do no such thing. Stay away from him. The man is not worth hanging for.’

  ‘I wish I could stay away,’ Indy sighed. ‘It seems we are destined to run into one another. Even tonight—’

  ‘You saw Donnelly tonight?’ Will interrupted, fear gripping him. ‘Indy—’

  ‘I didn’t go looking for him. I was looking for you. I went to Miss Margaret’s and he happened to be there.’

  ‘You went to Miss Margaret’s?’ Will asked. Shock was replaced by bewildered amusement. ‘Why did you think I’d be there?’

  She shrugged embarrassed.

  ‘But you found Donnelly instead?’

  She nodded. ‘And George. We need to find your friend a decent woman, Will.’

  He just smiled, pulled her into him and kissed her forehead, her nose and then her soft lips.

  ‘I was worried,’ she said, leaning in to his body as his arms enveloped her
. ‘I thought perhaps … perhaps you’d become tired of me and went looking for more excitement.’

  ‘More excitement than Indigo Wallace? I’m not sure I could cope with that.’

  Will gave her a grin and tapped her nose before kissing her again. His body, tense for three days from sitting idle in his captivity, suddenly felt very alive. Especially when she pressed herself harder against him.

  ‘I’m sorry I didn’t get word to you,’ he said between kisses. ‘But, Indy, you must go before someone sees you here.’

  ‘I know.’ Resignedly, she rested her head against his chest. ‘I know.’

  Her arms tightened around his waist and something shifted in him at her rare display of emotion. His heart lurched and fell and he closed his eyes and returned her embrace, taking a deep inhale of her wonderful scent.

  ‘I’ll see you as soon as my punishment is over,’ he promised, with one last kiss to her forehead.

  ‘Goodnight.’ Moving out of his arms, Indy climbed, agile as a cat, back over the fence.

  ‘Stay safe,’ he whispered out into the night air.

  George joined him again and they watched her disappear into the scrub. ‘I hope you know what you’re doing.’

  Will exhaled heavily. ‘Not a clue, old friend. Not a damn clue.’

  Chapter 20

  Finally released from his canvas incarceration, Will knew exactly where he would find Indy on a beautiful day such as this. When he arrived at the waterhole, Indy was dangling her feet in the bubbling creek. The temperature was beginning to soar as the sun hit the top of its daily climb and the water looked so refreshing to him. But not as refreshing as Indy as she turned her head and smiled up at him.

  ‘Well now, here comes my convict hero.’

  Without a thought, he knelt down, took her face in his hands and pressed his mouth to hers. She tasted like sunshine and raspberry.

  ‘Mmm.’ He licked his lips. ‘You’ve been eating raspberry drops from Spencer’s again.’

  She held up the little bag. He took a sweet and popped it into his mouth as he sat beside her.

  Amused, he watched as she leaned over, took hold of one of his boots and pulled it off, tossing it over her shoulder. Then she took the other boot and tugged at it until it gave, and it met the same fate as the first. His socks followed and she rolled up his pant legs so he was able to dip his feet into the cool water.

  He sighed and closed his eyes. ‘This feels wonderful.’

  A strange warbling sound alerted Will and he turned to look for the source.

  ‘What is that?’ he asked. ‘I keep hearing that strange noise all over the place. Is it some sort of monkey?’ He reached for the sweets.

  Indy chuckled. ‘There are no monkeys in Australia.’ But she hesitated a moment and seemed to think about it. ‘Not that I am aware of anyway. It’s a bird. Whitey calls it a kookaburra, or something like that.’

  ‘Monkeys were everywhere in India,’ he told her. ‘Wretched little beasts. Skilled thieves they were too. Always running off with food and property. Often trained by human masters to do so.’

  Indy picked a raspberry drop from the bag in Will’s hand.

  The warble turned into a cackle.

  ‘That’s never a bird,’ he argued.

  She pointed up into the treetops where the unusual-looking bird sat with his mate and squawked.

  ‘He laughs at me.’

  ‘He laughs at everyone,’ Indy said, laughing herself as she pushed him onto his back and lay beside him in the soft grass beside the creek.

  Leaning up on one elbow, she looked down at him through eyes that sparkled. He smiled serenely. God, he’d missed those eyes. Concerned with where his thoughts were taking him, he closed his eyes against the blinding sun and the brightness of Indy. He felt her finger trace his cheeks and jaw before she ran it lightly across his lips, sending delicious electric shocks to every nerve in his body.

  ‘Indy.’

  ‘Yes,’ she answered, sounding more like an innocent child than a seductress.

  ‘You’re playing with fire.’

  His eyes flew open again as she suddenly straddled him on the grass.

  ‘Indy, someone could see!’

  ‘Nobody here but us kookaburras.’ She bit his lip lightly and his thin grasp on control snapped. As she took his mouth, he felt all the blood in his head rush immediately to the lower half of his body.

  When she sat up, looking satisfied with herself, he threw an arm across his eyes.

  ‘What’s wrong? Do I not kiss well?’

  He groaned. ‘Indy, you drive a man to insanity. Your mouth is an addiction. I want to kiss you and make love to you so badly I can barely sleep at night.’

  ‘And who says you cannot kiss me and make love to me?’

  He lifted his arm again and looked at her warily. ‘I’m a man, Indy. A man who has been locked away in a tent for the last four days with nothing else to do but dream of a certain pretty Irish lass. You shouldn’t say such things.’

  ‘Aw, poor soldier boy.’ She gave him a fake pout before leaning down to whisper in his ear. ‘Did you miss me, Lieutenant?’

  ‘It was like losing the sun for four days.’

  She sat up and her face held the softest expression before she placed her mouth against his again.

  As she nibbled lightly at his lips, he slowly lifted her skirts and ran his hand up underneath, thrilled to discover no long pantaloons, no stockings—just skin. Soft, smooth and all Indy. Unable to stop himself, his hands floated higher from behind her knees, up the back of her thighs until he finally met cotton.

  ‘For the first time, I am sorry to discover you are wearing your undergarments, Miss Wallace.’

  She chuckled. ‘Sorry to disappoint you, sir.’

  He frowned as he felt the unusually short pair of pantaloons.

  ‘Um, exactly what are you wearing?’

  ‘Oh, I fashioned them myself,’ she said. ‘I took a pair of bloomers and cut them up until they were very short. Still decent you see, but not so bloody hot.’

  ‘Oh, Indy,’ he said chuckling and pulling his hands out from beneath her skirts.

  ‘They can be removed quite easily.’

  He sat up and lifted her from his lap to the grass beside him with ease.

  ‘You don’t want to?’

  ‘I want to,’ he said. Oh Lord, did he want to. ‘I just want to have you in a real bed, with real sheets. A place where we can take our time and not be concerned about who might see, or what deadly snakes and spiders might be crawling up my arse while I’m too lost in you.’

  She gave a frustrated sigh. ‘And just how do we find a place with a real bed with real sheets in Ballarat?’

  ‘We’ll find a way, Indy. I promise.’

  She nodded.

  The steam whistle announcing the arrival of the Geelong coach rang out from town and Indy jumped to attention.

  ‘Is that the time?’

  Will watched surprised at her sudden action. ‘Late for something?’

  ‘Yes,’ Indy said pulling on her boots. ‘A meeting with the ladies of the Ballarat Reform League.’

  ‘The ladies of the Reform League?’

  ‘Yes, we went to the meeting last Saturday expecting to be included in the establishment of the Ballarat Reform League, only to be told that as ladies our services and membership were not required. Manhood suffrage. What the bloody hell does that even mean? Men wouldn’t know real suffering.’

  Will chose to sidestep that open mineshaft. ‘Indy, you shouldn’t get involved in the politicking of these men.’

  ‘Why? Because I’m a woman and women don’t have a part to play in decision making? You’re as bad as they are.’

  ‘They’re asking for trouble.’

  ‘They’re asking for equal rights,’ Indy shot back. ‘That politicking as you call it is a simple request for justice. We pay our taxes, yet we get nothing in return. There’s no infrastructure, we cannot vote, we cannot own land …’r />
  ‘You have land,’ he pointed out. ‘Anyway a moment ago you were annoyed that they weren’t treating women with equal rights. You’ve changed the tune of your song.’

  ‘That’s beside the point. I have a house on land that the Crown can take away from me and my mother without a second thought and there is no recourse for us,’ Indy told him. ‘I pay taxes, Will, but I have no right to buy the land that my mother’s house is built on. Land on which I could plant crops or run sheep. Is that fair?’

  ‘What would you know about running sheep?’ Will asked with a snorting laugh. ‘And fair doesn’t come into it. It’s the law.’

  She stared at him stunned for a moment. ‘You can’t really be that obtuse.’

  ‘It’s not obtuse to uphold the law of the land.’

  ‘Even when that law is wrong and one sided?’

  ‘Indy—’

  ‘These are hardworking people, Lieutenant.’

  God, he hated it when she reverted to calling him Lieutenant that way. It showed her irritation with him more than yelling ever could.

  ‘They deserve respect.’

  ‘Respect has to be earned, Indy.’

  ‘Really? Do you expect the Commissioner to be shown respect? And Hotham?’

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘And just how is raiding and arresting hardworking people deserving of respect?’

  ‘Those who are licensed have nothing to worry about. And there are better ways to get a point across than reverting to hooliganism.’

  ‘We tried democracy, tried to talk to Hotham,’ Indy argued. ‘We’ve been rebuked.’

  ‘We?’ Will asked. Now it was ‘we’.

  ‘Just whose side are you on here?’ she asked and stood to straighten her dress.

  What the hell had he been thinking starting a quarrel with her? She was so obstinate about these things. He pushed himself up off the ground, dusting the dirt and grass from his trousers.

  ‘That’s just it. I can’t take sides, Indy. I can only do as I’m ordered.’

  ‘Don’t you have a brain in that ridiculously handsome head of yours?’ she asked. ‘Don’t you have a conscience?’

  ‘You know I do,’ he reasoned, trying to be calm in the face of Indy in a swelling rage. ‘But I’m a soldier first and foremost, and I must do my duty. Without it I’m nothing.’