‘I ran away from Hope Farm, Aunt Laura,’ Bruce said hesitantly.’ I wasn’t going to come here, but when I went to Mr Braithewaite’s office, his clerk told me he was sick in hospital in Charleville, and he doesn’t know when he’ll be back.’
‘You did right to come here, Bruce.’ Laura looked up at the driver. ‘Do we owe you anything?’
The driver grinned and slipped the truck into gear. ‘Nothing at all, missus. I’m just glad the lad’s got somewhere to come to.’
Laura walked into the house, her arm around Bruce. Coltrane eyed him suspiciously.
‘Hello, Uncle Patrick.’
Coltrane said nothing.
‘We were just eating, Bruce, Laura said. ‘Are you hungry?’
‘No, not really,’ Bruce replied softly. ‘We ate things along the way.’
‘Come on, you should have something.’ Laura led the way into the dining room.
Bruce sat down at the table. Laura put some food on a plate and laid it in front of him. Coltrane returned to the table and topped up his glass with claret.
‘Perhaps you’d better tell us what has happened, Bruce,’ Laura said gently.
Bruce began to tell his story, but tears welled in his eyes and he ran from the room. Laura followed him out to the kitchen and put her arms around him.
‘Let’s go upstairs, Bruce. Just you and I. If you don’t want to talk about it just now, that’s all right. You can get a good night’s sleep and we can talk in the morning. But you may feel better if you get it off your chest now.’
It was over an hour before Laura came back downstairs. Coltrane was still sitting at the table drinking. She went to him and stood beside his chair.
‘Things are bad for Bruce and Jack at Hope Farm, Patrick. With Braithewaite away in hospital, we’ll have to do something. I’ll have to contact Emma as soon as I can.’
‘You’ll do nothing of the sort,’ Coltrane snarled angrily. He banged his fist down hard on the table. His eyes were bleary now, his face flushed from alcohol. ‘We’re not getting involved with the McKennas again. Their problems are not our problems. That boy is going back to Hope Farm first thing tomorrow morning. Is that clear?’
*
No one at Hope Farm had noticed Bruce’s disappearance right away. It was only later on in the afternoon, when Brother Josef had come to inspect the milking shed in readiness for the evening milking, that the alarm was raised and a search for him was mounted.
Every boy on the farm, directed by Brother Lucas and Brother Josef had combed every inch of the property, every farm building, even the residence itself. It was dark before the search had been finally called off. Later, at evening prayers, an angry Brother Lucas announced that the deceitful and ungrateful Bruce McKenna had once again shown his true colors and shamed every boy on the farm by shirking his responsibilities and running away.
Jack had listened to Brother Lucas in stunned silence. Later on, when the dining room hummed with urgent, low-toned conversations about the runaway, Jack mulled Bruce’s disappearance over and over in his mind, wondering how his brother could just run away without even saying a word.
He was sure it meant only one thing. His humiliating and loathsome relationship with Brother Lucas had opened a chasm so wide between him and his brother that it could never be bridged. Jack’s despondency worsened when he thought of how the burden of guilt and self-disgust he felt had always prevented him from talking to Bruce about Brother Lucas. And his feelings of remorse and despair only deepened when he thought of what Bruce might say to their mother and Emma if he were lucky enough to make it to Armidale.
As usual, Brother Lucas rose from his chair to hand out mail at the end of the evening meal. Before he dismissed the boys, he told Jack to come with him to his office.
‘Now, I intend to get to the bottom of all this,’ Brother Lucas said when he and Jack were alone. ‘You will be well advised to tell me whatever you know about Bruce. I will not accept that he said nothing to you about what he was planning.’
Jack stood saying nothing, staring down at the office floor.
‘I’m very disappointed with you, Jack,’ Brother Lucas glowered. ‘I see you need some encouragement.’ He went to the cupboard and took out his bamboo cane. He swished it through the air. ‘Perhaps this will jog your memory.’
‘But I don’t know anything,’ Jack protested. ‘Bruce said nothing to me about running away.’
‘Lower your shorts and underpants, Jack. I will not accept that for an answer.’
‘But it’s the truth.’
Brother Lucas was unswayed. ‘I said, lower your shorts and underpants.’
Jack slowly complied.
‘Now, bend over. This is your last chance.’
As Jack bent over, he realized to his surprise that he wasn’t afraid. He didn’t care if he got a caning. It wasn’t going to hurt. Bruce was gone forever. That’s what hurt. Nothing else mattered.
Brother Lucas swung the cane. Jack’s buttocks tightened when he heard it hiss through the air.
‘Well?’ Brother Lucas shouted after the blow landed.
‘Bruce said nothing to me about running away, Brother Lucas,’ Jack said calmly. ‘So there’s nothing you can beat out of me.’ Quite unafraid, Jack waited for the sting of the cane again. But it didn’t come. Instead, Jack felt Brother Lucas’s clammy hands grasp his buttocks.
‘There’s no reason for me to beat you, Jack,’ Brother Lucas said softly. ‘You and I have always been special friends.’
Real fear gripped Jack when he realized once again what Brother Lucas wanted. He tried desperately to straighten up. But the grip on his buttocks tightened and Brother Lucas leaned on him heavily, pushing him up hard against the wall. When Brother Lucas began to gasp in short rapid pants, hastily hoisting his cassock up around his waist, Jack suddenly rammed his elbow backwards as hard as he could into the brother's groin.
Brother Lucas shrieked in pain. As he released his grip and doubled up, Jack quickly pulled up his clothing and ran to the door. He quickly unlocked it and fled down the corridor, across the hall and out the main entrance into the night. Outside, he ran stumbling and falling in the moonlight towards the wall surrounding the residence. When he reached it, he stopped and looked back. Three or four lanterns swaying in the darkness told him the brothers were already in pursuit.
Jack scrambled over the wall and ran down to the swimming hole beyond it. When he reached the water, he decided he would run no further. There was nothing left for him to run for. The waterhole glittered and sparkled in the moonlight. It was as tranquil as a millpond. Soon Jack saw the lanterns again. They were outside the wall now and coming towards him.
When the lanterns were so close that he could hear the voices of the brothers carrying them, Jack slipped into the still water. He made barely a ripple as he kept walking, deeper and deeper into the swimming hole. Gradually the water swallowed him up like a warm velvet blanket, and he was gently and peacefully freed from all his guilt and anguish.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Elliot Coltrane stirred from a sound sleep as a shaft of sunlight streaming through a narrow gap in his bedroom curtains fell directly onto his face. He sleepily walked over to the window and threw the curtains open wide, then stood naked, looking out over the rolling meadows.
Elliot took pride in what he had accomplished at Yallambee. In less than a year, the breaking of the drought and an open checkbook had allowed him to turn the old, run-down McKenna place into a first-class pastoral property. He had brought with him some of the best cattle and sheep breeding stock Essex Downs had produced over the years, as well as a few of his father’s best station hands and three domestic blacks.
When Elliot had told Joe and Jessie, an old Aboriginal couple who had lived on Essex Downs all their lives, that they were to move up to Yallambee with Beth, they had been reluctant to go. But with their only other option being banishment to an Aboriginal reserve, they agreed soon enough. Elliot had singled them out b
ecause Jessie was a fine cook, an essential requirement on a remote property dependent on its station hands, and Joe, although almost useless as a stockman, had a natural knack for fixing things and was a jack of all trades.
As soon as he arrived at Yallambee, Elliot brought in tradesmen to work on the homestead and all the outbuildings. Gradually they were restored to the pristine condition they had not seen since Jack McKenna and his brothers went off to the Great War. In one short year Elliot had impressed the stamp of the prosperous Coltrane family upon it.
Elliot turned his gaze to the outbuildings beyond the homestead compound. Old Joe was already loading a wagon with fence posts and wire. And from the cookhouse, the sweet aroma of Jessie’s steak and eggs wafted in through his open bedroom window on a rare early morning breeze. As he watched, the cookhouse door opened and Elliot saw Beth come outside and hurry towards the house with his breakfast tray.
As Beth drew closer, the breeze pressed her thin cotton dress tightly against her, clearly defining the fullness of her breasts and the contours of her body. Elliot’s own body responded with an arousal so urgent it surprised him. He stepped back from the window and reached for his clothes.
He looked at Beth again as he buckled his belt. She was almost at the door now, the breeze still pressed her dress to her as tight as a second skin. She seemed more rounded than ever, especially her belly. An unwanted thought ran through Elliot’s mind. Surely she couldn’t be, he thought. After all, he hadn’t touched her in months, and only two or three times since she’d been living with Joe and Jessie at Yallambee.
Elliot walked through the house to the kitchen. When he sat down at the table, Beth put a plate of steak and eggs in front of him and poured him tea.
‘You haven’t forgotten you said I could go with you to visit my mob next time you went to Essex Downs, have you Mr Elliot?’ Beth asked apprehensively.
‘You seem to forget; it’s Mr Coltrane now, Beth,’ Elliot said sharply.
‘I’m sorry, Mr Coltrane. But you promised I could go this time, remember. It’s been a year since I’ve seen Mary and everyone.’
Elliot sipped his tea, saying nothing.
‘You did promise, Mr Coltrane,’ Beth persisted
‘Be ready in half an hour,’ Elliot said irritably. I’m taking some rams back to Essex Downs in the truck. You can ride in the back with them.’
*
It was late morning when Elliot arrived at Essex Downs. He parked the truck in the yard and made straight for the house, leaving a couple of station hands to see to the unloading of the sheep. As soon as he was gone, Beth wandered off in search of Mary.
Beth found the old woman in her shed behind the big house. Mary’s old eyes lit up with joy when the young girl came in. The two women rushed to each other and embraced tightly. After a few moments Mary gently pushed Beth back and held her at arm’s length. She smiled happily.
‘Let me look at you, girl. Tell me, how’s old Jessie and Joe been treating you.’
‘Good, Mary, good.’
‘They must be, you’re putting on weight.’ Mary’s happy smile faded when her eyes rested on Beth’s stomach. ‘And Mr Elliot, how’s he treating you?’
Beth’s pretty face tightened. Suddenly she burst into tears. ‘He’s still doing it, Mary. Not often, but enough to knock me up.’
‘Only takes once. I’m surprised it didn’t happen before.’ Mary’s old, wrinkled face hardened. She sucked in air over smooth, toothless gums. ‘You sure you’ve been with no one else?’
‘No one, Mary. Honest. Some of the station hands have tried. But when they pester me I just say I’ll tell Mr Elliot and they leave me alone quick smart.’
‘Mr Elliot don’t know yet, does he?’
‘No.’
‘I thought not. Or he’d have had you drinking mentholated spirits or would’ve sent you back to the mission by now.’ Mary ran her hands over Beth’s belly. She shook her head again. ‘But I reckon it won’t be long before he does know. In a few weeks even Blind Freddie will be able to see you’re going to drop one.’
‘That’s why I had to come and tell you.’ A new surge of tears flooded Beth’s eyes. ‘When Mr Elliot finds out, he’ll send me back to the mission, and me and my baby won’t ever be allowed to leave it. You know as well as I do, an unmarried half-caste, house gin loses everything when she gets knocked up. Oh, Mary, what can I do?’
‘You got to get off Yallambee. Even if Mr Elliot tried to blame one of the station hands for your baby and let you stay there, he be sure to swing its head into a tree just as soon as it’s born, like they did in the old days.’ Mary took Beth by the hand. ‘Come on, let’s go down to the camp.’
‘What for?’
‘Some of them down there know people that’s got work in places like Charleville and Roma. Someone will be able to help. ’
‘But I couldn’t get work while I’m carrying a baby, Mary.’
‘But you could afterwards. You’re over sixteen, Beth. As long as Coltranes don’t know about the baby, you got the same freedom of movement as any half-caste Aborigine.. You’re a good housemaid and you can cook. And, lucky for you, you got more white in you than black. What you need is a place to stay until you’ve had the baby.’
Even though only fifty miles separated Essex Downs from Yallambee, Patrick Coltrane greeted Elliot like a long lost son. Elliot shook hands with his father, then kissed his mother lightly on the cheek. When he looked into her eyes, he could see she had been crying.
‘Great news,’ Coltrane said loudly, defusing the moment. ‘You are looking at the soon-to-be-appointed Senator Patrick Coltrane.’
‘That’s wonderful, Father.’ Elliot grinned. ‘I’m so pleased for you.’
‘Laura, Elliot and I have much to discuss.’ Coltrane steered his son towards the living room. ‘Please bring us some tea and see we aren’t disturbed.’
‘Mother’s upset,’ Elliot said as soon as they were behind closed doors. ‘What’s happened?’
‘Young Bruce McKenna turned up here last night. He ran away from that farm he went to, little bugger. I had the station manager take him back to Goombungee first thing this morning. Little ingrate. There are lots of homeless children who’d give their eye teeth for the opportunity to be well fed, well clothed and educated, all for free.’ Coltrane waved Elliot to a chair. ‘Your mother didn’t want to send him back. She’ll get over it soon. You know how women are.’
Coltrane and Elliot spent most of the afternoon together. Coltrane told Elliot he would have to take over the management and decision making at Essex Downs as well as at Yallambee. It was a development which pleased Elliot immensely.
Coltrane put his arm around Elliot’s shoulders. ‘The burden of responsibility will be the making of you, my son. All you need now is a wife.’ Coltrane grinned. ‘Not just one who spreads her legs and raises your children, but one with connections. Before I go to Canberra, I shall be making the rounds in Brisbane, meeting a lot of important people. You should come with me. It will be an opportunity for you to meet some young ladies of quality. And you must come with me to Royston Silver’s home at Roma. I’ve been invited there to advise him on some land investments. He has a daughter around your age, a real beauty, I’m told, and single.’
It was late in the afternoon when Elliot prepared to leave. When he walked to the truck with his parents he saw no sign of Beth.
‘Beth suddenly took sick,’ Laura said. ‘She went to see the blacks down at the creek earlier on. Mary said she must have eaten something that was off, or picked something up. Several of the blacks have been sick lately. Mary said it only lasts a few days. We’ll send her up to Yallambee as soon as she’s better.’
‘But she’s got work to do,’ Elliot snapped. ‘Better go and fetch her.’
‘Oh no. She’s got diarrhea and she’s throwing up every few minutes.’
‘She’ll be all right in the back of the truck.’
‘But she’s down at the camp. She should stay
there until she’s over whatever she’s got.’
‘Your mother’s right, Elliot,’ Coltrane interjected. ‘You don’t want her going back to Yallambee and giving Joe and Jessie the trots.’
*
The moment Bruce arrived back at Hope Farm, Brother Lucas took him to Brother Benjamin and demanded he be sent to the hole. Brother Benjamin concurred, pointing out that Bruce’s irresponsible behavior must be dealt with severely because it had led to Jack running away also.
Alone in the pitch-black confines of the abandoned well, with its damp, seeping brick walls and hordes of biting insects, Bruce lost track of time completely. For the first two days in the cramped, stinking prison, the door of the small wellhouse far above him had been left slightly ajar, allowing just enough daylight in for him to discern the difference between day and night. But on the third day there had been no light at all, not even when the bucket containing his daily ration of bread and water was lowered down to him.
Bruce had no idea how many days he had been in the hole. At first his mind had been occupied in the endless blackness by his burning hatred for his Uncle Patrick. But gradually the fury gave way to emptiness and despair. Initially he tried hard to be brave and not to cry. Later he discovered tears refused to come anyway and his eyes remained stubbornly dry. Only thoughts of Jack having also managed to escape gave Bruce hope and the will to survive.
*
In addition to water stored in catchment tanks, Hope Farm relied heavily on water from the small lake beside the residence. To keep the supply of gravity-fed water flowing freely from the lake down a crude wooden aqueduct, it often became necessary to clear away accumulated leaves, reeds and other debris from an iron grid filter at its mouth. Six days after Jack’s disappearance the flow of water from the lake had slowed to a trickle and Brother Josef told Strickland to go and unclog the grid. He ran up to the lake, stripped down to his underpants and waded into the neck-high water.
A minute later he was horrified to see Jack’s bloated, bluish-grey face staring at him from amongst the rubbish blocking the grid.
The Light Horseman's Daughter Page 21