Precipice of Doubt

by Mardi Alexander

  Three weeks later

  “Good news,” Charlie said quietly as she eased the door open to the prep room.

  Pip looked up from feeding a koala joey and smiled. “What’s that, sweet?”

  “The osprey is eating better.” She went to the sink and washed her hands.

  “That’s great. Hopefully her bruised wing will heal quickly and she can be on her way soon.” Pip set the now empty milk bottle down and cleaned the little koala.

  “It is, but it also means we’re now out of fish.”

  “We’ll go over to the Maclean co-op and see if they have any extras they’d like to give us.”

  “I have a better idea.” Charlie joined Pip on the lounge and reached over to stroke the joey. “Hey, cutie.”

  “Are you talking to Monkey, or me?”

  “Monkey.” Charlie shot Pip a mischievous grin. “And you of course.”

  “Good comeback. So what’s your idea?”

  “Let’s get some bait and go fishing. Chilli will love playing on the beach while we catch dinner for us and food for Grace.”

  Pip rolled her eyes. “I still can’t believe you named the osprey Grace. She hardly looked graceful dragging that wing behind her in the cane field.”

  “It’s to encourage her to heal faster. Anyway, what do you say?” Charlie flashed Pip her most endearing smile.

  “Ha! How could I resist that look?” Pip got up and put the koala in the nursery pen they’d set up in the corner of the room. She turned to Charlie and held out her hand. “Come here, you.”

  Charlie walked into Pip’s arms.

  “A month ago, I would’ve said we didn’t have time, and we should just go to the co-op. But after what happened up in the mountains, I’ve learned that we need to take advantage of the life we have on this earth.”

  “Being philosophical, are we?” Charlie kissed her on the cheek.

  “Not at all. More sensible, I think. Near death experiences’ll do that to you. From now on, I want to take time to do the things we like. Even if it’s only for a few minutes, or a few hours. But I’m telling you now, if you or I want something, then we’ll do our best to make it happen. If we want to do something, same thing. I think we both had a major focus readjustment—we have no idea if we’ll be granted another life to fix any regrets from this one. So I reckon we make the best of what we’ve got.”

  “Does this mean we’re going fishing?”

  Pip laughed. “Yes. It means we’re going fishing. If you get the gear together, I’ll go pack us some lunch.”

  “Hear that, Chilli girl? We’re goin’ fishin’.” Charlie did a little jig out the door.

  Chilli happily pranced beside her and woofed her excitement. But the dog stopped in the doorway as Charlie knew she would. Ever since Pip had been released from the hospital, Chilli refused to leave her side. She’d always been attentive to Pip’s every move, but in the three weeks since their ordeal, Chilli had been even more vigilant.

  Charlie thought about Pip’s words as she gathered the beach rods, tackle bag, landing net, and a five gallon bucket to hold what she hoped would be a lot of fish. The nightmare of getting bitten by one of the deadliest snakes in Australia and Pip going into a hypoglycaemic coma and seizures was something she never wanted to repeat. One or both of them could have died a horrible death in the mountains. Cole and Jodi were the true heroes, and she and Pip would be forever in their debt. Especially Jodi. She wasn’t sure she would’ve had the fortitude to cover the distance Jodi did on basically one leg, and in terrible pain, to get help. They were also lucky to not suffer any residual effects, although she would probably always wear the scars from the bite, and Pip would have to be extra diligent in monitoring her sugar until her doctor was satisfied and gave her the all clear.

  Pip was right in wanting to savour every breathing moment. Charlie was willing to live with only one regret: not having found Pip earlier in life. But she imagined all their experiences, prior to them meeting and falling in love, had made them the women they were today.

  Charlie sighed contentedly. To this day, she couldn’t quite believe she was in love with and loved by such an amazing woman as Pip.

  “The fish aren’t going to jump in the bucket by themselves, my love,” Pip called from the truck.

  Charlie emerged from the shed with the rods tucked under her arms, bag over her shoulder, and her hands full with everything else. “I feel like a walking tackle shop.”

  “A cute one though.” Pip met her halfway and relieved her of the bucket and one of the fishing rods.

  “Flattery will get you everywhere.” Charlie smiled at her.

  “I’m hoping that’ll be the case for later.” Pip winked and slapped her playfully on the bum.

  Pip had already opened the door for Chilli, who wasted no time in jumping into the back seat. As soon as the gear was securely stowed in the bed of the truck, they headed to a popular beach fishing spot in Iluka.

  Jodi moaned in appreciation as she took a sip of her favourite dark roast coffee while sitting at her desk. It was her fourth cup of the day, and she relished every single drop. She’d only just begun drinking coffee again since spraining her ankle. She loved drinking coffee. But when her ankle was at its worst and the doctors recommended staying off it, she quickly realized it was just too painful and too much work to have to get up and pee fifty times a day.

  Now that her foot was encased in a moon boot for support and protection, she could stand for longer periods of time and even walk short distances. The only disadvantages were it felt hot and wasn’t ideal for sleeping. But her ankle was on the mend.

  “You’re going to float away if you keep drinking all that coffee,” Cate said from the doorway.

  Jodi closed her eyes and sighed. “I don’t care. It tastes so damn good.”

  “You’ll only have yourself to blame if you’re up all night.” Cole suddenly appeared next to Cate.

  Jodi wiggled her eyebrows at Cole. “That’s not all bad, is it?”

  Cole blushed beet red. “It’d be fine if it weren’t for that bloody boot.” She lifted her pant leg to reveal a series of light bruises.

  Jodi rolled her eyes. “I told you we could switch sides of the bed, but you won’t sleep next to the window.”

  Cate looked at Cole. “I would think that would be the perfect place on a hot night to catch any cool breeze coming in.”

  “It would be, if Jodi would get rid of the huntsman spider that lives in the corner of the window.”

  “Hey, you leave Windex alone. She keeps all the other bugs from coming in.”

  Cate laughed and shook her head. “I’ll leave you two to figure out your sleeping arrangements. I’m heading out to Byron Bay for the afternoon and then leaving for Brisbane for the weekend from there. I’ve got a herd of polo ponies to vaccinate and write health certs for. You’ll be right to handle the rest of the afternoon?”

  Cole replied, “We should be fine. It’s been quiet all day.”

  “Righto. I’m off then.”

  “See ya when we see ya.” Cole sat down across from Jodi and crossed her legs. “She’s good value, hey.”

  Jodi shook her head. “I honestly don’t know what we would’ve done without her after all this,” she said, indicating her ankle.

  “How’s it feeling? You’ve been off it most of the day.”

  Jodi tapped the boot. “Yeah, good. I’ve whacked it against the desk a couple of times. The first time I did it, I cringed, waiting for the pain, but this thing is worth its weight in gold.”

  Cole glanced at her watch. “There’re no appointments scheduled from here to close. How about I duck out and get us some lunch? You need something to soak up all that caffeine you’ve been ingesting.”

  “Beaut. Thai?”

  Cole rose from her chair. “Ha. You don’t ask much. I have to go all the way to the other end of town to get that. But,” she said, walking around to Jodi’s side of the desk, “you’re totally worth it.” She bent dow
n and kissed Jodi.

  Jodi closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around Cole’s middle. She teased Cole’s mouth open with her tongue and moaned when entry was granted. Their kiss was warm and wet, and Jodi felt the stirrings of arousal in her centre.

  Cole broke the kiss and drew back. She wagged a finger at Jodi. “You are a dangerous woman.”

  “You inspire me.”

  Cole stroked Jodi’s cheek and rubbed her lips with her thumb. “Mm. I’ll see you in a while. What are you going to do while I’m gone?”

  Jodi indicated a pile of lab reports and X-rays on her desk. “Work on these. I’m hoping to have at least half done by the time my gorgeous woman arrives back here with lunch.”

  “I’d best get going then. I wouldn’t want to miss her.” Cole kissed the top of Jodi’s head and rubbed her back gently. “Love you.”

  “Love you back.”

  Jodi stared after Cole as she left her office. While things had started to get better between the two of them before the trip into the mountains, they were happily back to normal now. They’d had long talks into the night. Cole had held her as a captive audience because she sure as hell hadn’t been going anywhere fast. Her life was as complete as she’d ever wanted it to be. They hadn’t made love yet. Cole insisted that Jodi be one hundred per cent first because, as she put it, she had plans for her.

  Grabbing the first lab report on top of the pile, she read the top line, and then stopped. Cate had stepped up and worked harder and longer hours than Jodi would have ever expected. She’d kept the client base very happy. Her progress in surgery was outstanding, just as Jodi knew it would be. Although Cate was quite skilled with her hands, she still needed experience with the delicate surgeries, such as cruciate ligament repairs and arthroscopic procedures. And Jodi wanted to be the one to teach Cate these skills. However, she hadn’t tested herself surgically since she’d been back to work. She wanted to keep the consultant role for now, despite that the desire to pick up a scalpel was starting to take seed. But right now she needed to focus on getting these reports read and noted.

  Pip turned off the Pacific Highway onto the road leading to Iluka. Charlie loved the drive, taking them through the heart of Bundjalung National Park. She’d only been to the area a handful of times, but there’d been no opportunity to explore the beaches or the variety of other habitats there, such as the rainforest and coastal cypress stands.

  The familiar smell of the beach wafted through the open windows, briny, sulphury, and fresh, all rolled into one.

  Chilli whined from the back seat.

  Pip looked in the rear-view mirror. “Almost there, kiddo.”

  “Aren’t we going all the way into Iluka?”

  “Nope. Too many tourists. We’re going to Shark Bay to fish.”

  “Um, that sounds kind of ominous. Are you sure we should go there, especially with Chilli?”

  “Meh. They call it that because the reef is the perfect habitat for the reef shark. We’d be lucky to see one though. It’s a great spot for flathead and bream. I think we’ll have more chance of filling up that bucket with fish. It’s a beautiful bay. You’ll love it.”

  The small sandy parking lot was deserted but for their ute. Charlie heard waves hitting the beach on the other side of the tree line, which made her all the more eager to get moving. They gathered their gear and walked the short distance through a small picnic area that the parks department kept nicely mowed. Chilli seemed barely able to refrain from running ahead. But when they reached the path that led right onto the beach, Pip encouraged her to go. Chilli looked at Pip, then towards the beach, then back to Pip.

  “Go for it, Chill. Run like the wind, girl. You deserve it.”

  Chilli didn’t need any more convincing. Sand flew up behind her as her paws found purchase in the loose sand. She was gone in a flash, leaving them laughing in her wake.

  A moment later, the trail emptied them out onto the beach. They were alone except for a fisherman out in his boat about a half kilometre out.

  Charlie stopped short. “Wow.” The bay was surrounded by hills in the distance and low growing bush. To the right was wide-open water, leading out to the ocean. The beach was strewn with driftwood of all sizes, with patches of seaweed littering it elsewhere. A breeze blew in from the ocean, tousling their hair.

  “The beach is usually a lot cleaner than this. Looks like that storm front the other night chucked all this up on the wash. I’d be willing to bet that after a couple high tides it’ll be back to its pristine self again.” Pip pointed to the right. “See that point down there? It’s where the reef starts and juts out about three hundred metres. That’s where all the fish are.”

  “Well then, that’s where we should go.” Charlie started walking in that direction, eager to wet her line and see what grabbed it.

  “Come on, Chilli. This way.”

  Charlie laughed as Chilli raced past, her face one big smile, tongue lolling out the side.

  Pip caught up to Charlie quickly and they watched the dog dart in and out of the water, chasing waves and making splashes of her own. “Yeah, definitely have to do this more often, babe. Gem of an idea.,” Pip said.

  Once they reached the point, it didn’t take long for them to tackle up and make their first casts into the water. The waves were small and wouldn’t change until the tide started coming in.

  Charlie stood barefoot in the water, rocking back and forth as the ebb and flow of the water shifted the sand beneath her feet. She took a deep breath, checked the slack in her line, and held it gently with a finger next to the reel. She focused on the feel of the line and what it did on top of the water.

  “Hey, Charlie, look!” Pip pointed up. Three pelicans circled above them and seemed to be looking to land.

  “Looking for a free meal?”

  “Or spilt bait.”

  “Chilli won’t let them steal our bait, will you, girl?” Charlie patted Chilli, who’d lost interest in the water and was staring intently at the huge birds that quickly landed a ways down the beach.

  Suddenly something snatched the end of Charlie’s line. She jerked the rod up to set the hook and then turned the reel to pull out the slack. She tightened the drag a little, dropped the tip down a bit, and reeled. As she raised the rod again, she backed up, hoping the waves would help her land the fish. Charlie was vaguely aware that Chilli had left and was trotting up the beach.

  Pip arrived at her side. “Do you know what it is?”

  “No. It hit hard and then took off.” Charlie patiently played the fish.

  “Could be a nice flathead. Fingers crossed, that’ll be our dinner. I caught a couple bream for Grace.”

  Charlie grunted with the effort of holding the rod steady.

  Pip laughed beside her. “I guess Chilli decided she didn’t want the birds on her beach. She—”

  “Pip, I need you to help me.”

  “Okay, okay. You have my undivided attention.”

  “What I need is the net. I’m worried this flatty might break off before I can get him on shore.”

  Pip ran to the higher part of the beach behind them and retrieved the net. She waded calf deep into the water alongside Charlie’s line. “Okay, steady. Don’t loosen up the line or he’ll be able to crank it and your line’ll break.”

  Charlie dipped the rod slowly and pulled in some more line. She backed up two steps and then braced herself against the fish’s pull. The dark brown flathead broke the surface of the water briefly before slapping its tail and attempting to pull off the hook.

  “That’s a nice lizard, baby!” Pip reached forward with the net, but the fish narrowly avoided it.

  “Lizard?” Charlie grunted with the effort of fighting the fish. “I thought you said…it was a…flathead.”

  Pip waded further into the water and netted the fish. She laughed gleefully. “Same, same. Ooh, that’s a keeper, for sure. He’s a ripper! Well done, my love!” Pip needed two hands to carry the wiggling flathead out of the water and
up onto the beach. “Be careful. It’ll try and nail you with those spines. Would you go get my filleting knife out of the bag, please?”

  Charlie set the rod down, grateful to relieve the strain on her arms. She rolled her neck and shoulders to ease the stiffness, and walked to the shaded spot where they’d left the bait and tackle bag. She rummaged around and found the knife. On her way back, she looked for Chilli, surprised the Lab hadn’t been right there with them. And then she spotted her, standing still, looking in the opposite direction. Something about how the dog was holding her head didn’t sit well with Charlie. “Hey, Chilli! Chilli girl, come here.” Chilli remained motionless. That’s odd. She should’ve been able to hear me. The wind is blowing from me to her. Charlie returned to Pip and handed her the knife, her focus still on Chilli. “Babe, can you whistle for Chilli?”

  “Yeah. Why?”

  Charlie pointed with her chin. “She’s just standing there. I hope she’s not staring down a goanna or something.”

  Pip whistled. But Chilli still didn’t react.

  “That’s just weird. You good here?” When Pip nodded, Charlie said, “I’m going to go see what she’s looking at.”

  “Yep. No worries. I’ll be here when you get back.”

  Charlie strolled the hundred metres to Chilli. “Chilli? What’re you doing?”

  Chilli whined mournfully and panted hard, her sides heaving with the effort. But she still didn’t move.

  Charlie trotted the remaining distance to the dog and her heart stopped. Chilli had impaled herself on a sharp piece of driftwood. “No.” Charlie dropped to her knees next to her. “No, no, no.” The branch had entered the lower part of Chilli’s chest, in her right armpit, with the pointed end sticking out at her flank. “Oh, baby girl.” Charlie was afraid to touch her. She stood up and yelled for Pip, waving her arms frantically. But to no avail. So she ran down the beach as fast as she could. “Pip! Pip!”

  Pip looked up with a smile on her face, which quickly disappeared. She stood up and ran to Charlie. “What’s the matter?” She looked over Charlie’s shoulder in Chilli’s direction.