Secrets and Lies

by Janet Woods

  Minnie said, ‘Ben’s opening up the nursing post. I’ve brought a blanket. The mission sisters haven’t picked up the equipment yet, so we can use whatever is left. How is she?’

  ‘I’m just examining her, but she’s going into shock.’ He took Minnie aside and his voice rumbled as he said something to her that Esmé couldn’t quite hear. He turned back to her, checked the skin inside her eye socket, pressed her fingernails and took her pulse. ‘Tell me if it hurts.’ He gently probed her arm and her chest, and she reacted with indrawn breaths and winces. ‘Sorry.’

  Waiting until he’d finished his examination she asked, ‘How much damage is there?’

  His eyes engaged hers. ‘You escaped lightly, considering that a house fell on you. Apart from multiple bruises and lacerations, at least three ribs are cracked. Your arm is fractured in two places. The good news is that the collarbone seems to be intact, and I think the pain there is associated.’

  ‘Internal bleeding?’

  ‘The signs are mostly good. There is some tenderness around the spleen, but I don’t think it’s ruptured. You’ll be under observation for a while.’ He tucked the blanket round her as though she was a child, snuggling it cosily around her neck and ears.

  Esmé touched his hand, grateful for the warmth and thankful for his presence. He caressed her arm, then the sharp prick of a needle made her cry out.

  ‘Ouch . . . that was sneaky. What is it?’

  ‘Something to take the edge off your pain.’

  The thought worried her. ‘Has pain got edges . . . what happens when you remove them? You’re not putting me to sleep are you?’

  His broad smile said, trust me. ‘Would I do that to you?’

  She wasn’t going to be taken in by that smile of his. ‘Would you?’

  ‘No . . . it was a painkiller. It will relax you, so you won’t be quite so uncomfortable when we move you.’ He sidetracked her adroitly. ‘You should have known the roof would have been full of termites.’

  She had to think about that for a long time. Termites? They lived in Africa and built mounds out of mud. ‘Are you going to tell me off?’

  ‘I think you’re old enough to know how stupid you’ve been by endangering your life in that manner?’

  He was right, but she hadn’t expected him to be so straightforward. A tear inched down her face. ‘Don’t be cross, Leo.’

  ‘I’m cross because I happen to love you, and you’ve scared the living daylights out of me.’ He sighed. ‘I think you’ve had enough trouble for one day. Minnie you get in the cab with my brother. Drive like you’re on eggshells, Alex.’

  Behind them, the stone slipped. Then it plunged to the ground, the rope whipping after it like a long, lashing tail.

  ‘Nice timing,’ Leo muttered.

  Esmé’s ears began to buzz and her muscles relax. Leo was sweet, even when he was being mean . . . she’d be a fool to let him get away. The sky slipped sideways and leaned to one side.

  ‘Try not to move your neck.’

  ‘Tired . . . head is heavy . . . what did you give me?’

  Sitting beside her, he grinned. ‘Love potion number one.’ He placed his hand against her cheek. ‘Here, use this as a pillow.’

  When his palm took the weight of her head, he stooped and kissed her mouth with such tenderness she had to sniff back her tears.

  ‘Eyes closing,’ she whispered, ‘Love potion number one . . . you know something, Leo, I think it’s working.’

  Fourteen

  An hour later, Esmé’s arm was wrapped in a wad of cotton wool and immobilized by splints, bandages and a sling. ‘There, that will have to do.’

  Leo stated his intention to bandage Esmé’s ribs. ‘You know how this should be done, Es. We’ll have to remove your garments first, and you must exhale as much air as you can.’

  Minnie said, ‘It would be best if I did this for her, since we bandaged each other often during training. Take a ten-minute break. I can call you if you’re needed.’

  Leo nodded, and joined Alex on the veranda outside.

  Esmé choked back an assortment of squeaks and groans as the strapping took place. She looked tired now, and her face was ashen from the strain of bearing the pain. Although it was an obvious effort, Esmé was being as brave as she could, and Minnie’s heart went out to her. Quickly, she cut the stitches from the sleeve of Esmé’s blouse, opened the shoulder seam and took out the sleeve. After arranging the garment around Esmé’s body for the sake of modesty, she secured it at the shoulder with safety pins. ‘There, that will cover you decently for the time being. I‘ll keep the sleeve and we can repair it later.’

  ‘Thanks, Min.’

  ‘You can come in now, Leo.’

  Leo said, ‘I’ve been talking to Alex. I’ll be taking Esmé to Melbourne, where she can be looked after properly. The air ambulance has already been ordered.’

  ‘I feel responsible for her condition, and I’d like to look after her myself.’

  ‘I know, Minnie. But you can’t look after her here, and besides, that was quite a fall, and she’ll have to spend a few days in hospital so we can make certain that there’s no internal bleeding. Have you got somewhere to go?’

  ‘Yes, I’ll go and live with Ma. Esmé and I had planned to, after we’d had a bit of a holiday here.’ She shrugged. ‘It was my fault. I thought she might like to find out what living in the bush was like.’

  ‘Taking the blame is a waste of time. Anyone with half a brain cell would have known not to have moved into a termite palace.’

  ‘Termite Palace.’ Esmé giggled through her tears. ‘I feel a bit fuzzy.’

  Leo placed a warm hand over hers. ‘You look fuzzy too, as though someone has used you as a scrubbing brush.’

  ‘You always say such lovely things, Leo. Do I really look that bad, Minnie?’

  ‘Worse.’ Minnie laughed. ‘Try not to walk under a magnet else you’ll take off like that iron roof did in the wind. Look after her, Doc. As soon as you’ve gone I must go back and find our bags. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before.’

  ‘You had rather a lot to deal with.’

  Alex said, ‘I’m feeling a bit useless too, Minnie. I’ll come with you. Leo, I take it you’re going in the air ambulance with Esmé?’

  Leo nodded. ‘I’ll leave Minnie in your hands then. She can’t stay here by herself. You can fly her down in the Moth and get her settled.’

  ‘I’ll send a message to the folks, too. Tell them what’s happened.’

  They took Leo and Esmé to the airstrip first, and went back to what remained of the house. Alex cast an assessing eye over it. ‘What will your husband say?’

  Throwing a sharp look at him, Minnie retorted, ‘I no longer live with my husband and I intend to divorce him, when I can find him.’

  ‘Oh . . . I’m sorry.’

  ‘So am I. It was a case of marry in haste and repent at leisure.’ She smiled at him, though it felt forced. ‘Never mind about my troubles. It was my own fault, and I was stupid.’

  ‘I know a lawyer, if that will help.’

  ‘I can’t afford a lawyer. I owe money to Esmé . . . money Wally stole from her when we worked together. Es and I had such plans. Well, I guess it was me who had the plans, and Esmé fell in with them. We were going to come to Australia and have a working holiday. Then, when her brother finished his medical training, she was going home to work as his nurse. Her family had her future all mapped out for her. I just wanted her to experience something different before she settled down. But it all went horribly wrong for both of us. Poor Esmé. She came back to Australia to make sure I was all right . . . and look what happened to her.’

  ‘It wasn’t your fault. It’s not as though you made Esmé climb on to the roof.’

  ‘If only I hadn’t married Wally.’ She drew in a deep, despairing breath. ‘It will be a long time before I can afford a divorce. But despite everything that’s happened, I like it here. I like the little bit of Australia I�
�ve seen; the patterns on the trunk of the eucalypts, the sky at night and the bright colours of day. I like it that the sky goes on forever, and I really, really love having all this space around me. I intend to settle in the country if I can find work, then sort out the legal side of it.’

  Alex laughed. ‘There isn’t much work about, especially in the country . . . though we can usually manage a meal for those who knock at the door. I like your enthusiasm. The government should hire you as an ambassador for Australia. You’re a girl after my own heart.’

  Her smile faded when she remembered Wally, and it seemed that Alex remembered his existence to, for he said, ‘Being married to an Australian might help you with permanent residence.’

  ‘Nothing will induce me to stay married to Wally any longer than necessary . . . not even permanent residence. I’d rather go home, then apply to migrate.’ She laughed. ‘You and Leo are alike.’

  A slightly self-deprecating smile came her way. ‘He got most of the brains and I got the brawn. I’m a farmer.’

  ‘You’re talking to someone who doesn’t know which way up a daffodil bulb is planted.’ She waved her arms around. ‘This is supposed to be a sheep farm . . . or so I was told. I can’t see any sheep. Is your farm about the same size.’

  His eyes flew open and laughter came into them. ‘Yeah, I guess it’s pretty small as farms go . . . about a couple of thousand acres. Dad and his brother had an adjoining farm each, though they worked it together. Leo and I inherited our uncle’s between us. Leo leaves it to me to manage his half. His heart isn’t in farming, though he helps out now and again. Like I said, he got most of the brains.’

  ‘I imagine it takes quite a few brains to run a farm properly. After all, it is a business.’ She gazed around her and laughed. ‘Looking at this place you wouldn’t think so. Did you want to be a doctor, then?’

  ‘Good Lord, did I give you that impression? I love what I do. Let’s talk about something else. Have you noticed that my brother is nuts about Esmé.’

  ‘One can hardly miss it. Esmé is perfect for Leo. She grew up with doctors surrounding her. She knows how to handle them.’

  ‘Doctors need handling?’

  ‘In a hospital environment, they’re God . . . especially the specialist surgeons. The man who brought Esmé up is a senior surgeon. They suck humbugs together to see who can make the loudest noise . . . whereas, I hardly dare breath when I’m in his presence. Neither do the doctors under him.’

  Alex’s laughter rang out. ‘He sounds to be quite an imposing man.’

  ‘Esmé took up nursing because medicine is a bit of a family tradition. It was expected of her, you see, and it came easily. I took up nursing so I could move out of home, even though it was only into nurse’s quarters. I was all right with the practical stuff, but Esmé spent hours coaching me before a written exam. I wouldn’t have passed anything if she hadn’t helped me out.’

  ‘Why did you want to move out of home?’

  ‘When Dad died I inherited a wicked stepmother and two ugly stepsons. She made it clear that I wouldn’t get anything. My father hadn’t made a will, you see. You know when you’re no longer wanted, and they made that plain about five minutes after my father died.’

  His eyes searched her face. They were a paler shade of blue than Leo’s. His smile inched across. ‘I wish I’d met you before Wally did.’

  Minnie wished the same, but she wasn’t about to tell him that, since she wasn’t free and she didn’t want to encourage him.

  He nodded, accepting what he read in her face. ‘Too personal was it? Sorry. I’ve just remembered there’s a picnic basket in the truck. It would be a shame to go hungry. How about we have lunch while we’re here? It’s not a bad spot. You get the picnic basket from the truck and I’ll see if I can find us a table and some chairs amongst the rubble.’

  He dragged them out and dusted them down, even though they were covered in dust themselves. They lunched under the trees in the soft green light that only sunshine filtered through gum trees could provide. There was chicken and potato salad . . . and a pie his mother had made from bottled apples. And there was home brewed cider and ginger beer.

  ‘Don’t drink too much of that cider too quickly. It has quite a kick. Leo and I pinched a couple of bottles and got drunk on it in the shearing shed when I was fourteen. We could hardly think straight for a week.’

  She laughed. ‘It serves you right.’

  ‘That’s what my dad said when he paddled our backsides.’ He gazed around him. ‘It must have been a pretty spot when the creek ran through the property.’

  Alex had turned out to be good company, and he was more intelligent than he’d led her to believe. ‘There’s supposed to be a secret stash of gold hidden here.’

  ‘It wouldn’t surprise me. This is gold bearing country. Do you want to look for it?’

  ‘I don’t want anything belonging to Wally, only what he owes Esmé. He can keep his gold.’

  ‘Nobody could call you a gold digger, then.’

  Minnie was good at shrugging things off, but the events of the day were beginning to catch up with her. Her nerves were practically in shreds, and tears were not far from the surface. ‘Did you think I might be one?’

  Silently they gazed at each other. After a while he placed his work-worn hand over hers, saying awkwardly, ‘Sorry, that was lame. It was a joke, and not meant to be taken literally.’

  Turning over his palm, Minnie ran a finger gently over his calluses. It was an honest hand. ‘Farming is hard work.’

  ‘Yes, it is sometimes, but I get a sense of achievement from it. I’d like to see you again sometime if I may, Minnie. No pressure, but after things are sorted out and you can see your way clear, perhaps.’

  She nodded, and smiled at him. ‘I think I’d like that too, Alex. Thank you for trying to take my mind off Esmé’s plight.’

  ‘Despite that, I enjoyed your company. We’d better start work and see what we can rescue.’

  After Alex unearthed their suitcases, he found a forked branch to support a beam that looked as though it might drop. Carefully, they sifted through the area where the bedroom had been, collecting clothes from a shattered wardrobe. Some of Minnie’s worry left her when she found their handbags. At least they’d have some money for basics. Bits and pieces of jewellery, hairbrushes and the like, were scattered about.

  Alex found the pedal radio, the keys full of debris. ‘It should clean up all right.’ He placed it on the back of the truck, along with the other bits and pieces.

  Minnie thought they’d picked the place clean of their belongings, when a shiny reflection caught her gaze. She bent to pull it from under a piece of rubbish. It was Esmé’s powder compact and lipstick. Made from sterling silver, the top was enamelled in vivid blue, with a silver bow in the middle.

  ‘That’s pretty.’

  ‘Yes, it belongs to Esmé and was a birthday gift from her brother. She comes from a closely knit family and would have been upset by its loss.’ Minnie wasn’t leaving it for Wally to pocket, and slid it into her friend’s bag.

  As they drove away she gazed back at the place, hoping she’d never have to set eyes on it again. She grinned as she wondered what Wally would say when he saw what had happened to it.

  Despite being nervous, because she didn’t like heights, Minnie enjoyed the flight. When they reached Essendon airfield, Alex and another man pushed the plane into a hanger. He got them a taxi, and dropped her off at Ma’s hotel. Alex escorted her to the door. He was an imposing figure in his Akubra hat and his best blue visiting shirt, though he was as dirty as she. A suitcase was grasped in each of his tanned hands, as if they weighed nothing.

  ‘Thanks for your help, Alex. I don’t know what I’d have done without you. I enjoyed the picnic, too.’

  There was an awkward moment when she thought he was about to kiss her goodbye. He didn’t, but gave a faint grin as though he was assessing the wisdom of it in his mind. There was a quiet reserve about Al
ex, one that the more outgoing Leo didn’t seem to possess. It was endearing. She doubted if he’d do anything without deliberation.

  He brushed a finger down her face and flicked a strand of her hair out of her eyes. ‘I like you, Minnie girl. I like you a lot. In case he doesn’t get home, tell Leo I’m staying at his flat, and if he wakes me coming in I’ll flatten him.’

  ‘I wouldn’t put a wager on who would do the flattening, if it came to it.’

  When she laughed he chucked her under the chin. ‘No, neither would I. Tell him I’ve got a lift to the turn-off in the mail truck in the morning. I’ve left the Moth in its usual place in the hanger.’ He took the luggage to the door.

  Suddenly, she didn’t want him to see the inside of the hotel. It was too dreary with its smoke-stained ceiling and the yellow flypaper circling down from the ceiling like a scabby tongue. Besides, Ma would be nosy and ask him personal questions. Minnie realized she was scared he might judge her by it, when she said. ‘You needn’t come in.’

  ‘Aren’t you going to shout a man a beer, then?’

  ‘Well . . . I suppose . . . if you really want one.’

  ‘Not really. Besides, it’s not opening time yet.’ He nodded, then turned and got back in the taxi, giving her a wave as they drove off.

  When she struggled inside with the luggage, Ma welcomed her with a beaming smile, delighted to see her. ‘Well, I’ll be blowed. Hullo love . . . you’re staying, I hope. Where’s that nice little friend of yours?’

  ‘Esmé’s in hospital, Ma. Wally’s homestead fell on her; the beams were full of termites.’

  Ma’s expression changed to one of worry. ‘Is Esmé all right?’

  ‘I think so. Leo was on hand.’

  ‘Thank God for that! I told Wally to get the place looked at, but, oh no, he wouldn’t listen. He thought he knew better. Bloody termites! They’d eat the wooden leg off a cripple before he had time to swallow his beer. Is Esmé all right?’