The Perfect Gift

by Mark Stewart

  THROUGH THE swirling dust the cows were slowly pushed along towards the Oasis.

  Naomi heard Trent whistle. The dogs barked faster at the lead cow. Their pace slowly increased. Naomi let go of a huge sigh. At last, they were heading for the Oasis at a reasonable speed.

  A cow strayed from the 500 head, making a beeline for her horse. In the distance, Naomi heard the scream of a motorbike. One of the dogs barked. The cow bumped into her horse, flinging Naomi sideways. Somehow, she managed to hang onto the saddle using a tight grip. She’d almost corrected the precarious angle she suddenly found herself in when the strengthening wind flew dust into her eyes. She screamed at the stinging sensation. She almost surrendered her body to the dirt when she felt something push her upright so she could sit high in the saddle. Finally wiping the dust from her eyes, Naomi she saw Mary-Lou’s weathered face.

  Trent finally burst through the herd, his rope at the ready.

  “You should keep an eye on the city chick,” spat Mary-Lou. Revving the bike’s motor, she’d been swallowed by the dust in seconds.

  “I’d almost made it here,” whimpered Trent, re-clipping the rope back onto his belt.

  “I know,” replied Naomi. “If I can make a suggestion, I’m more of an expert on a bike.”

  Seeing Mitch close, Trent whistled.

  Standing on the seat of the bike he momentarily split the herd of cattle, followed by a quick doughnut in the dirt. When the bike dropped to idle, he grinned at Naomi’s serious expression.

  “Mitch, I need you and Naomi to swap. She’s having a bit of trouble staying on the horse in this wind. If we want to beat the storm, we have to pick up a lot more pace.”

  “Sure, it’s not a problem.”

  The leather saddle squeaked when Naomi slid to the ground.

  Trent saw lightning fork across the sky. The familiar clap of thunder soon followed.

  Mitch gave a sharp nod. Trotting off, he wore a knowing expression on his face. Naomi couldn’t comprehend the silent communication each member of the Stanton family seemed to have mastered. She secretly wondered if she could eventually master the silent nod too.

  “Go,” Naomi whispered to Trent. “Just like you I’ve been looking at the sky. Even though I’m no expert, I think the rain is ready to fall.”

  Trent motioned a sharp nod. He gave his horse a slight kick. Feeling the first rain drop fall, Naomi heard his whip crack. The noise seemed to make the cows double their walking speed.

  Overhead, the sky darkened further. The wind gusts quickly intensified. Naomi shielded her eyes from the stinging sand. The wind swung from a tail wind to a head wind in a matter of seconds when they changed to a more direct approach to the Oasis.

  The dust grew thicker at each tick of the clock. Naomi caught a glimpse of Mitch at the front of the herd before she lost sight of him through the swirling dust. Even the cows seemed to be agitated at having to walk head first into the wind.

  Naomi jumped on the motorbike, twisting the accelerator throttle. Whenever a cow strayed from the path, she’d smack its rump. Each beast she smacked seemed to get the message to stay in line.

  The minutes quickly ticked off. The approaching storm seemed relentless in trying to scatter the skittish herd of cows.

  Eventually, Naomi felt her strength starting to wane. Time and again she wondered how much further? Half an hour after they picked up the herd she needed to fight the idea they might be going in the wrong direction.

  A figure on a horse loomed out of the dust.

  Trent looked down, yelling over the wind.

  “We have about five minutes before the storm hits. At roughly the same time we’ll be starting our descent into the Oasis.”

  Seeing Mitch galloping up Naomi nodded. When Mitch pulled alongside his brother, both men portrayed a different look. Mitch glanced Naomi’s way, gave her a quick sharp nod before galloping off.

  “What was meant by the nod?” asked Naomi.

  “Mitch suggested we try to sprint the cows down into the Oasis. I told him if we pull off the stunt and only lose no more than ten cows it will be a miracle. Don’t get me wrong; we don’t want to lose a single cow if we can help it. I wouldn’t want an animal to fall to its death when the Oasis is so close.”

  “You got a whole conversation from a look?”

  “Not really,” chuckled Trent. “We’ve done this sort of thing too many times to count.”

  “Quit stalling; get these cows moving,” yelled Mary-Lou, roaring up on her bike.

  Trent faced her trying to explain the situation. Mary-Lou snorted before riding off into the wind.

  “She’ll be okay,” advised Trent, looking at Naomi’s wrinkled brow. “She needs some time alone. At least the cows listen to her whining.”

  “Where do you want me?” asked Naomi muffling a laugh.

  “I want you first down the path. The moment it starts to rain, I want you safely on the ground, standing on the covered cattle-grid counting the cows when they walk past.”

  Naomi roared off to join Mitch at the head of the herd. She loved every minute of suddenly feeling important. Brandt never made her feel important. He’d been a total loser. Feeling a warmth creep through her body, Naomi never dreamt of being out in the middle of Australia, riding a motorbike down a steep, narrow dirt path that leads into the belly of a possible ancient meteorite site could be so thrilling. She grinned at the thought of fitting in. Deep down she prayed Trent might seriously consider asking her to marry him. She’d given into her heart. Now she wanted to stay right next to the cowboy who called himself Trent Stanton.

  Naomi slowly slid down the entire steep descent. When finally reaching the bottom, she felt a deep sense of relief. Stopping her bike next to the covered cattle-grid, she switched the motor off and studied the sky.

  Above the Oasis Trent also studied the sky. He cupped a hand around his mouth, yelling over the increasing wind. “Dad, if I can make a suggestion.”

  Earl Stanton made his horse trot over to his son.

  “We have to get these cows down the cliff face right now. It did cross my mind to get them back exactly where we found them. I think we’ll lose the whole heard if we try. The idea Mitch has is sound. He reckons we should send the cows down in pairs.”

  Stanton nodded. “You’re right. Being so close to the Oasis, if we don’t risk the cows going down the track two at a time, we might lose the whole herd. Let’s do it. Time is at an end.”

  Trent whistled for the dogs to keep the cattle moving while his brothers forced the cows to double up by poking their ribs. Looking annoyed at being prodded the cows came together to start their descent into the Oasis.

  Naomi roamed her stare between the cows and the sky. The clouds looked angry. At any moment, they threatened to burst, dumping a torrent of water.

  “If only the rain would hold off a little longer,” she mumbled.

  The cows walked across the covered cattle-grid in pairs before fanning out to eat the luscious green grass. By the time, three hundred and fifty-seven cows were safely down the heavens opened. The raindrops were huge, landing heavily at Naomi’s feet. Overhead the Lightning slashed the sky. The deep rumble of thunder made her cringe.

  “I hate thunderstorms,” she mumbled, lifting the collar of her button up shirt.

  The rain started falling in torrents. Naomi’s black eyelashes felt heavy when water glued the dust to the ends. Each strand of her hair dripped water. In seconds, her clothes were wet through.

  Mitch followed a dog down the cliff face making the cattle ahead a little nervous. One of the bulls lost his footing, slipping perilously close to the edge. Naomi held her breath, watching the four-hundred-pound beast struggle to gain a good foothold.

  “Four hundred and seventy-one,” reported Naomi, when the bull finally walked over the cattle-grid. She wanted to reach out to hug its large neck. When the bull looked her in the eyes, Naomi decided the idea might make him more irate.

  Looking up the cliff face, Naom
i shielded her eyes from the rain using her hands. “Mitch, why have the rest of the cattle stopped?”

  “They’re probably starting to get a little agro. I reckon Trent has slowed them down. Dad’s leading the rest single file. If you study the track, it’s looking too slippery for two cows at a time. Up to now, we’ve done well. Not one beast has fallen.”

  Naomi felt sick to the stomach at the idea of seeing a single cow falling to its death.

  Mitch gave her a wide grin. “Don’t worry. She’ll be right.”

  Naomi raised an eyebrow at the comment. She could do nothing except wait patiently for the remainder of the herd to walk past her.

  The rain poured down the path turning it into a water slide. The fast-flowing river looked to have risen substantially covering the mouth of the tunnel. To Naomi, the river seemed far worse than when she fell into it the first time. She grimaced at the thought of falling in again.

  Lightning and thunder rolled together across the sky. The storm seemed to be hovering, determined to wash the Oasis from the Australian map.

  “I’ve counted four hundred and ninety-nine cows. We only lost one,” reported Naomi, facing Earl Stanton. Glancing about the landscape, she looked directly at Mitch. “Where is Trent?”

  “Everyone is here,” replied Earl Stanton. “He must have gone ahead; everyone back to the house.”

  The group rode off in the direction of the mansion, scattering the newly formed congregation as they slowly mixed with the original herd.

  Naomi hesitated long enough to decide Trent must still be on the plateau above the Oasis. She revved her motorbike to screaming pitch and tore up the slippery, narrow trail. She surfaced from out of the crater to find the countryside awash. The rain resembled a wall of grey. Naomi blinked rapidly to help disperse the growing number of water droplets clinging to her eyelashes.

  “What a transformation,” she moaned.

  In several places lightning split the dark sky. Thunder shook the ground under her feet. Squinting, Naomi studied the surrounding water covered desert. Two shapes were standing in the rain at the edge of her sight. They came together and fell to the ground. She gunned the bike’s throttle fully open, roaring towards them. Mud sprayed out behind her in a thick sludge. The flooding plain forced her to do doughnuts in the mud in an attempt to keep the bike moving forward.

  “Stop,” she yelled. “Please stop.”

  Both men were wrestling in the mud. They couldn’t hear her feeble attempts to make them quit. Dropping the bike in the mud, Naomi ran towards them. She saw Henry pushing Trent’s head further into a puddle trying to drown her hero. Naomi screamed. She curled her fingers into tight fists, ready to king-hit Henry. Raising her fists high in the air she waited for the perfect time to strike.

  Trent pushed hard against the ground, managing to fling Henry off. He unclipped his rope, lassoing Henry when he sprinted at Trent for the final onslaught. He stumbled over the tightening rope about his ankles, hitting the mud face first.

  “What’s going on?” screamed Naomi.

  “My mate Henry wanted the cows back,” said Trent. “When I tried to explain the sale in more detail he didn’t want to listen. I even told him he’d be given fifty dollars for each cow.”

  Henry sat in a puddle of water, glaring up at Trent.

  A motorbike came roaring up. Mary-Lou jumped off and ran towards her brother. Twelve large steps from the bike she stumbled in a pothole full of water and sprawled face first into a shallow puddle. Before she came to a stop, she had slipped into unconsciousness.

  Trent sprinted over, dragging her onto the mud flat.

  “Will she be okay?” asked Naomi.

  “I hope so.” Trent pushed the wet, muddy hair from her face.

  The cold drops of rain falling heavily onto Mary-Lou’s face were enough to bring her back. She opened her eyes, screaming.

  “My ankle,” she sobbed.

  “Her ankle looks broken,” blurted Naomi, noting the precarious angle her boot was laying.

  Pulling his mobile phone from his pocket, Trent dialed the Oasis. A quick sharp conversation followed. Slipping the phone back into his pocket, he reassured both girls help was on the way.

  Trent and Naomi squatted over Mary-Lou to stop the rain from hitting her face. Naomi felt like a schoolgirl again. The second the teacher turned his back, the kids could talk using their own developed silent signals. Trent and his family appeared to have developed a unique one of their own.

  Mary-Lou watched Trent and Naomi. Between sobs she shook her head, pouting. For the first time, her eyes sparkled. Nodding at the two lovebirds, they didn’t see her widening smile. They certainly didn’t hear her giggles.

  The reverberating throbs of a helicopter flying slowly across the now inland sea burst through the downpour. The wind from the rotors swirled the rain.

  “The helicopter is giving us a cold shower,” shrieked Naomi, watching the craft’s wheels sink into the mud.

  “More like having your body peppered by hail,” reported Trent.

  He picked up Mary-Lou and carried her over to the helicopter. Naomi helped to strap her into the seat then talked to Earl Stanton while Trent helped Henry in and closed the door.

  The helicopter’s rotors spun at breakneck speed, lifting the craft into the air.

  “What did you whisper to my father?” asked Trent.

  Naomi put her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. “Can’t I have at least one secret?”

  After watching the helicopter vanish into the rain, Naomi faced her cowboy.

  “I thought something awful happened to you.”

  “She’ll be right,” he answered.

  “How can you always say; ‘she’ll be right?’”

  “Henry and I were in the middle of a friendly wrestle. Besides, I always look on the positive side of everything.”

  Naomi reached up to give Trent a friendly slap on the shoulder. “You sound just like your brother.”

  “No way, he sounds exactly like me.”

  “I have some good news. I finished counting the cows. Only one was lost.”

  Trent reached out to reel Naomi in.

  ‘This time, the moment won’t be interrupted,’ thought Naomi.

  Something hard bumped the pair, forcing them to fall into the mud. Trent cushioned Naomi’s fall and glared up at the beast. It blinked before lowering its head.

  “He’s number five hundred,” blurted Trent. He stood to scratch behind the young bull’s ears. Watching him walk off, Trent said seriously.

  “He won’t go far. He’s just looking for something to eat. I saw him wander off from the main herd. Henry jumped me before I could go find him.”

  “You told me it was a friendly wrestle?”

  “Eventually,” replied Trent.

  The two stood in the rain in a tight embrace looking into the eyes of the other. Trent reached for Naomi’s chin. In a slick move, their lips were locked. To Naomi, they were standing in a bubble full of warm sunshine and not in the middle of a storm.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN