by Ali Lewis
Gum Tree and Cockatoo Creek were the two water holes nearest the station, and they were both fed from the same borehole.
Ron said he’d been to Gum Tree and the situation there was just as bad. He told Dad that him and Greg would be over to help as soon as they could. Normally Dad would have said it was OK, that we would manage. But this time he didn’t. He just said, ‘Thanks, Ron.’
When Mum and Liz arrived with some food for us, I realised I’d forgotten about eating. It was getting dark, but we’d been so busy scraping carcasses off the desert I hadn’t thought about food. It was hard to feel hungry when there was such a bad smell everywhere. The Pommie looked like she did when she saw Dad and me butchering the killer. She’d gone real white and held her hand over her mouth and nose. After a minute or two she went round the other side of the ute where no one could see her. When she came back, wiping her mouth with a hanky, I guess we all knew she’d puked. She pretended to be OK, though. Mum just looked angry, like she was about to pick a fight with someone.
Mum and the Pommie lifted pots of chilli out of the ute. We all stopped what we were doing and sat down, as far away from the pile of stinking dead cows as we could. Mum rubbed Dad’s back, and I could tell she was real worried. The Pommie dished the food up and we didn’t speak until it was all gone.
Afterwards Elliot asked Dad if he wanted him and Lloyd to go over to Gum Tree Dam to start cleaning up there. Dad said he couldn’t decide what to do next. He said he thought the best thing would be to start burning the dead ones at Cockatoo Creek. As soon as the fire was lit, someone would have to stay with it until it had gone out. He was real concerned about the weather. It had been so dry, and if there was even the slightest breeze, it would take the fire and make it spread across the Territory. We didn’t want a bushfire on our hands too.
While he and the fellas talked about what to do, Mum and the Pommie cleared the food away. We heard the tanker rumbling towards us before its headlights made our eyes water. When it roared into view and stopped, Reg leaned out of the truck window, like it was a nice, cool, sunny day, and shouted down to Dad, ‘Where d’you want it, Derek?’
Dad had his back to us and we couldn’t hear what he said above the engine noise, but he pointed his arms to his right, at an area of flat ground further over towards where the dam had been. Jack was behind, in the Toyota. He had a trailer on the back, full of fencing and some troughs, so we got up ready to unload them. Jack left the Toyota’s headlights on so we could see where we were working. The fence panels felt twice as heavy in the dark.
The Crofts arrived. Even Dick came. He had his overalls on and his hat. I hadn’t seen him dressed like that for ages. In the dark he looked like normal, but when his face caught in the headlights he looked old and empty, and if you were near enough you could hear his chest rattle. He walked straight over to Dad and Reg. He put his hand on Dad’s shoulder. His voice was raspy because of whatever was inside him. He said, ‘We’ve seen worse than this, Derek.’ Dad shook his hand and said how glad he was to have Dick and his family there.
Dick reckoned the weather was about right for having a fire. He said he’d checked the forecast and thought we’d be as well getting the fire going as soon as we could. Dad explained we would have to go to Gum Tree Dam, to clear out the dead there too. We didn’t want both water holes to become poisoned. Dick nodded and said Dad should leave him to see to the fire at Cockatoo Creek and take the fellas to Gum Tree.
Dad shook his head. He said he reckoned it would be better for them all to get some rest and tackle Gum Tree in the morning. Dick looked at Ron and Greg and they nodded at him, like they could read his mind. They said Dick would stay with the fire at Cockatoo Creek Dam while Greg and Ron went to Gum Tree to start cleaning up over there. ‘You take Danny home and get some rest,’ Dick said. I guess the sooner we’d dealt with the dead, the sooner we could get the live ones mustered. We needed to get them together into the yards where there would be water troughs.
Dad told me to get in the ute with Mum and the Pommie, who were going back to the station. I told him I wanted to stay with him and the fellas, to help.
But he rubbed his eyes as he squinted through the darkness and said, ‘There’ll still be plenty to do tomorrow.’
Twenty-five
In the morning Mum had to go to work, even though everything was going wrong at the station. Dad had stayed out all night with the fellas. Emily, Bobbie, the Pommie and me were in the dining room eating our brekkie. The everybody jam didn’t taste as sweet as normal.
When the phone rang, we all stopped what we were doing. We knew the only person who’d ring at that time was Aunty Ve. And if it was Aunty Ve, she’d only be calling about one thing – the baby. Bobbie answered it because she was the oldest. Emily, the Pommie and me got up and went to the kitchen to listen. Bobbie said, ‘G’day, Timber Creek Station … It’s on its way already? … Right. Yep … OK. I’ll tell them … OK … Take care. Bye.’
She gave us a quick look and then swapped the phone for the radio, to see if she could catch Mum before she got all the way to Marlu Hill. Bobbie said into the little black receiver, ‘Come in, Sue, Timber Creek to Sue. You read me? Over.’ There was nothing coming back except the crackly desert noises, so she tried again. Eventually Mum’s voice fizzed and said, ‘Go ahead, Bobbie. Everything OK? Over.’
Bobbie said, ‘You need to come home. Over.’ I guess Mum knew that was Bobbie’s way of telling her Sissy’s baby was coming early, without the rest of the Territory understanding what was going on.
The Pommie said something to Bobbie about getting some food together for Mum to take with her for the journey to Alice. That’s when Emily asked what for, so Bobbie explained that Mum would have to go to Alice to be with Sissy because the baby was on its way. Emily looked confused. Bobbie said Sissy needed Mum with her when she went to hospital to have the baby. She reckoned Mum would only be gone a few days or so. I was mad when I heard that. I couldn’t help it – before I knew what I was doing I’d shouted out, ‘BUT IT’S THE MUSTER – WE NEED HER HERE!’ That’s when Emily started to blub. Bobbie rolled her eyes at me as she squatted down to give Emily a hug. Bobbie reckoned we both had to act real grown-up because we were going to have a niece or a nephew soon. She said we all had to pull together. It didn’t feel like Sissy or her gin baby were pulling together.
Before we’d finished washing our breakfast plates, Mum got home. She burst through the door and ran into the kitchen. She grabbed the phone straight off the wall and rang Aunty Veronica without even speaking to us. She said the same things Bobbie had said to Aunty Ve a few minutes earlier, except Mum finished by saying, ‘Don’t worry, love, I’m on my way.’
We watched Mum run into the bathroom to get her toothbrush and a bottle of shampoo. She threw them in a bag. She dropped that by the door and went back into the kitchen. First she radioed Dad. When he answered she just said, ‘Derek, I’ve got to go to Alice. They’re ready.’ There was a pause before Dad replied, ‘You’re kidding?’ Neither of them said anything for a moment, then at the same time as Dad asked if Sissy was OK, Mum said she was sorry, but she had to go. I guess we all knew Mum couldn’t be in two places at once – I just couldn’t believe she would leave the station when everything was going wrong. Dad said, ‘Drive carefully and phone later. Over and out.’
Then Mum phoned the clinic at Marlu Hill. She said she wouldn’t be going in because she had to go to Alice. She didn’t need to explain anything else. Then she wiped the tears off Emily’s cheeks with her thumb and said we had to listen to Bobbie and Liz and do what they told us to. We all went outside and watched Mum get in the Ford. She was still in her work clothes. The electric window zoomed down as she reversed. Once she was pointing in the right direction, she shouted out to us, ‘Look after each other. I’ll call you tonight.’ The engine revved and her arm waved from the open window as she drove away through the dust cloud.
*
Long before we all got to Cockatoo Creek we
knew the fire was still burning because we could see a big pile of brown smoke moving straight up into the sky – floating like a feather. It was already hot. I pointed at the smoke and said, ‘At least it’s a still day.’ I watched the smoke get bigger and bigger until eventually, as we got nearer to Cockatoo Creek Dam, we could smell it. The Pommie closed her window and told me to do the same, but barbecue and bonfire smells still wafted into the ute. It got so strong, it made my eyes water.
No one had said much on the way over to Cockatoo Creek, but when we pulled into the yards and saw the pile of dead cattle waiting to be burned, it was like someone sucked the air out of the desert. I couldn’t breathe. We got out of the ute, and I guess it was a bit like when Jonny died – no one knew what to say.
I’d never seen so many carcasses. They were piled up like horrible fire wood – waiting to be burned. I knew Emily would blub. As soon as she did, Bobbie got back into the ute and sat with her on her knee. I guess on a day like that, the yards weren’t really a place for a little kid like Emily. Not long afterwards, Bobbie took Emily back to the station. I looked at the Pommie and she seemed whiter than normal. Her mouth was open and she looked a bit like when you can’t catch your breath. I felt my chest tighten then, so I sucked on my inhaler as I studied the pile of carcasses. It looked like a horror movie – only it was real. The loader appeared then out of the bush, piled high with more dead.
I looked at the fire, and there was Dick, crawling round the edge like a little ant. He had a shovel in his hand. He was using it to manage the fire, to stoke the hot ashes and make sure it didn’t get out of control. His hands were black and he had grey marks all over his shirt. He’d taken his overalls off at the top, so the arms were tied round his waist, but he still wore the blue legs. It was hot work standing in the sun poking a fire, and I wondered about his rattly chest.
Reg was putting the finishing touches to the yards. Everyone had the same look on their face. Water was getting warm in the line of troughs inside the fences. The tanker had gone. I went over to where Dad was. I asked him where the tanker was, and he said it would be at Wild Ridge, filling up again. He said they’d have to keep going back there to get more water to take to Gum Tree Dam too. He rubbed his face and said things were so bad on the eastern side of the station that he’d decided there was no way we could continue without a helicopter. He reckoned we could herd the cattle faster from the air than on the ground. They couldn’t hide from us up there, so we’d spend less time looking for them and chasing after them. I guess the quicker it was, the less cattle we’d lose. Dad said it would be worth the money. I nodded so he knew I understood and then asked what he wanted us to do to help. He shrugged and said it was hard to know what to do for the best. That probably scared me more than anything. Dad always knew what to do.
Mary arrived then. She’d come to make sure her dad, Dick, was OK. He was holding a dirty hanky over his face when she arrived. Mary handed him a supply of tablets in a little box, which Penny had sent to keep him going. He started coughing and he sounded like his chest was trying to jump out of his throat. Mary looked worried and reckoned Dick had been working too hard. Dad agreed and said Dick should go home with Mary, or he’d have Penny to answer to. Dick looked at the hanky he’d been coughing into and then carefully folded it up. He didn’t look too happy about it, but he went with Mary anyway.
Dad took the shovel Dick had been using and went to keep an eye on the fire. I saw another in the back of Elliot’s ute, so I ran to get it. I followed him to the fire and asked again what we were going to do. He reckoned the only thing we could do was pin our hopes on the helicopter turning things around. He explained how some of the fellas were with the Crofts out at Gum Tree, clearing the dead out there. The Crofts had brought their tanker in from Gold River to make sure there was water at Gum Tree. I knew that was a real kind thing to do. If we were suffering on the eastern side of the station that meant the Crofts would be having a tough time on the west of theirs. I asked Dad if they were OK over there at Gold River and he shrugged. He reckoned it wasn’t good, but they hadn’t got the same problems as us – none of their water holes or dams had gone dry – yet.
The Pommie had come over with us to the fire. She’d tied a scarf round her face. She wouldn’t look at the piles of carcasses around us. She said in a muffled voice how she’d really like to do something to help. Dad reckoned the best thing she could do would be to boil a kettle and get some tucker organised. He said, ‘An army marches on its stomach.’ I guess we were kind of at war.
Dad and me kept walking round and round that bonfire, making sure the dead were burned and we didn’t start a bushfire. Every now and then, if I felt a slight breeze, I’d feel sick. I was scared we’d have no cattle left, but I couldn’t even let myself think about what would happen if a bushfire started. Everything was so dry, I knew it would spread faster than the drought.
Lloyd kept appearing from the bush in the loader with more and more carcasses. With each load, I got more and more worried. I wondered if all our cattle out there had died.
Reg came over to tell us the Pommie reckoned smoko was ready. Dad told me to go and get myself some tucker. I told him he looked like he needed it more than me. I reckoned he hadn’t slept all night. He smiled and told me he was OK. Someone had to stay with the fire at all times. Reg nodded, so I stuck my shovel in the ground and went to get some food.
It felt strange sitting there eating the food without everyone else. Dad and Reg had decided the best thing to do was to split the team up, so they could clear out both Gum Tree and Cockatoo Creek Dams at the same time. It was important we got rid of the dead and got water for the cattle that were left as quickly as possible. Reg said it was a race against time. So, as soon as most of the work was done at Cockatoo Creek, Dad had sent the fellas over to Gum Tree to get things sorted out over there. That meant there was only Reg, Dad and Lloyd left at Cockatoo Creek, putting the finishing touches to the yards and burning the carcasses.
As we ate the sandwiches the Pommie had made, no one really said much. Lloyd reckoned there weren’t too many more carcasses in the bush around Cockatoo Creek. I realised there wouldn’t be many live ones, either – that made it hard to swallow my food. I guess we all knew there wouldn’t be much to muster. Then Elliot’s voice came through on the radio. Reg answered it. Elliot reckoned they needed Dad to go over to Gum Tree. They needed to know what he wanted them to do. Elliot said there were as many, if not more, dead over there. Reg swore when he heard that. Elliot said the Crofts reckoned that instead of burning the carcasses, it might be quicker to dig a pit in the desert, as far away from the dam as possible, and bury them. Reg took a deep breath and told Elliot he and Dad would be over at Gum Tree right away.
I felt like my eyes were going to burst out of my head. I looked up and saw the Pommie staring at me and I could tell she understood how serious things were. She looked as scared as I felt. I just hoped no one could see it on my face. Lloyd, Reg and me went over to the fire to talk to Dad. When Dad heard what Reg had to say, his head dropped and he looked at the ground for a moment. I wondered if he’d decided there was no point. But then he said, ‘Right, well we’d better get over there.’ I saw his face had hardened. His jaw kind of jutted forward, like when he was angry. I guess he hadn’t given up. He looked at me and said he was counting on me to look after the fire – ‘Do not take your eyes off it, you hear?’ he said. I nodded. He told Lloyd to finish off moving the carcasses as quickly as he could because it sounded like they’d need the loader at Gum Tree Dam. Then he and Reg got in a bull catcher and sped off into the desert.
I was glad Dad had let me be in charge of the fire. It was a real important job. There was no way I was going to screw it up. I walked round and round, making sure not a single spark or a bit of hot ash got away. I made sure every hoof and horn, each tail, ear and eyeball, everything, was burned. I wanted to make sure there wasn’t even the slightest trace of the drought left.
When Lloyd dumped the
last load of the carcasses onto the fire, he jumped down from the loader and told me he was going to Gum Tree. I nodded. He looked at me and asked if I’d be OK with the fire on my own. I nodded again. I knew what I was doing. I told him it was hot, but that was all. He punched me gently on the shoulder and said I was a good kid.
I heard the noise of the loader grow quieter and quieter as he drove away, until I couldn’t hear anything any more, except for the cracks and fizzes from the carcasses on the fire in front of me. As I looked at the pile of smoking legs, stinking bodies and breathed in the horrible, sweet smell of burning fur, I thought about Mum and wondered where she was now.
Twenty-six
I looked up at the sky and the sun caught on my face and made my eyes sting even more than the smoke did. I hoped Jonny was paying attention and that he’d had a word with someone up there about getting us some rains – just because he was in heaven, it didn’t mean he couldn’t help.
Liz came over and picked up the second shovel. I kind of smiled at her. For a vegetarian, I reckoned she was pretty handy. The two of us didn’t say much. We just kept an eye on the fire and tried not to think about what was on it. It was nearly dark when Bobbie’s ute arrived back at the Dam. She’d brought some dinner for us. Emily was with her. She wouldn’t get out of the ute, though. I guess after what she’d seen that morning she was too scared. Bobbie said Mum had called to let us know she’d got to Alice OK. The Pommie asked how Sissy was, and Bobbie told her there wasn’t really much happening – yet.
I asked if Mum was coming home. I mean, if Sissy wasn’t having the baby, she should just come home. Bobbie said she hadn’t told Mum about how bad things were on the station – she said she didn’t think there was much point in worrying her. I didn’t get it – if Mum knew, she’d definitely come home. I said that to Bobbie. She said, ‘Exactly – Sissy needs her there.’ Like that explained everything. She dropped the tucker for us and sped off to Gum Tree to take Dad and the fellas theirs, and tell him the news about Sissy. I reckoned Dad’d be real mad at her for not just getting on with it and having the baby so Mum could come back and help at the station.