Dexter

by Jesse Blackadder

  He’s on the ground, in the Bright, and his mother has told him so many times how dangerous that is. He rolls himself more tightly, makes himself smaller, hoping not to be seen.

  The footsteps fall silent and he waits, hardly daring to breathe. The rain comes down harder again and he can’t tell if the creature has gone away or not.

  He doesn’t know where his mother is. He’s been alone since the tree fell, huddling in the shelter of its branches, not knowing what to do. He’s called her, over and over, with soft yips, but she hasn’t answered him. He’s wet and cold, and cannot stop shivering.

  The creature must have gone, he thinks. He yips once, twice, for his mother.

  The branches in front of him part and the light streams in, dazzling him. A face pushes into the gap and two big eyes stare straight at him.

  He would run, but there is nowhere to run. He stares back, frozen.

  Chapter 11

  Ashley blinked. Looking up at her from behind the foliage she’d just pulled aside was a baby koala. It sat still, its eyes fixed on her, and she hardly dared to breathe in case she scared it off.

  Oh wow! She hadn’t realised how sweet a young koala would be. It was far cuter than Jemima. It was far more alert too: frozen, but staring at her fixedly.

  She didn’t want to frighten it by calling for Micky, so she slowly moved back and let the branch fall into place again. She backed away from the tree, turned around and started running after her aunt. When she was far enough away from the baby, she began to yell. ‘Wait! I’ve found one!’

  Micky halted and turned around. ‘What?’

  ‘There’s a baby. In the fallen tree.’

  ‘A joey,’ Micky said. ‘Well done. Grab the cage and let’s go check him out. Did he look hurt?’

  ‘I couldn’t tell,’ Ashley panted. She snatched up the cage and started to run back towards the tree.

  ‘Slowly!’ Micky called. ‘He’s not going anywhere. Move slowly and quietly around koalas, kid. Especially wild ones in trouble.’

  Ashley forced herself to walk at Micky’s limping pace, though it was frustrating. But at last they were back at the tree. She tiptoed to the same place and raised the branch.

  The joey was still there, staring out at them with wide eyes from his hiding place deep in the fallen branches.

  ‘Why hello, little one,’ Micky murmured. She scanned the site. ‘Where’s your mother, then?’

  ‘I didn’t see another one,’ Ashley said.

  Micky thought for a moment. ‘Let’s get this one first, and then we’ll look for the mother. She might still be around nearby.’

  ‘How do we get him?’ Ashley asked.

  Micky was silent for a few moments, looking into the tangled mass of branches and leaves. ‘I don’t think I can get in there, not with this stupid ankle. You’ll have to climb through the branches with the cage and one of the towels. When you get close to the joey, you gently put the towel over him and scoop him up. Don’t pick him up under the arms or by the ribs. You sort of tease him off the branch and bundle him into the cage, very softly. Joeys are usually easy to catch like that. What do you think? Are you up to it?’

  Ashley stood up straighter and nodded. ‘Sure.’

  ‘Good. It’s very rare for joeys to turn vicious. I’m sure you’ll be fine.’

  Vicious? Ashley looked in at the joey again. It was true his claws looked sharp enough to give a nasty scratch. Well, there wasn’t much she could do about it now. She picked up the cage and the towel, ducked her head under the branch and began manoeuvring her way towards the baby koala.

  The creature is coming for him. Youngster shrinks backwards.

  He thinks of his mother and what she did to the last creature that chased them. She used her claws to scare it off and give them time to get up the tree. But there is nowhere for him to go now, and no mother to protect him. He’s stayed unseen in The Hidden until now, but another creature has found him and there’s nothing he can do to escape.

  He wills himself to stay silent as it comes close. Where is his mother? If she was here, she would use her claws on the creature and protect him, but she’s gone.

  The creature raises an enormous hand and then blackness engulfs him.

  Ashley tugged gently at the bundle and felt the joey release its grip on the branches. So far, so good. Balancing him carefully, she angled herself around, which was hard in the muddle of criss-crossed branches and leaves. Finally she was able to place the bundle into the cage.

  ‘Make sure he can breathe,’ Micky called in to her. ‘Pull the towel back until you can see his nose.’

  Ashley moved the towel and again found herself looking down into the joey’s eyes. For a moment, in the half-light of the fallen tree, it was a bit like looking at a puppy’s eyes. Then the joey’s big black nose twitched as he stared at her.

  Dexter! she thought. And then wondered where the name had come from. She’d never even met anyone called Dexter. She shut the cage and began backing out between the branches. She knocked her head, but didn’t want Micky to notice her being clumsy, so she ignored it.

  ‘Just leave the cage under the leaves at the edge of the tree,’ Micky said. ‘We need to keep the joey as quiet as possible until we find the mother. If we do. You go that way, I’ll go the other.’

  They searched for about twenty minutes and Ashley was ready to give up when she heard a soft call from her aunt. She scrambled around the edge of the fallen tree and found Micky kneeling on the ground, holding up a branch. She wasn’t prepared for what was lying beneath it.

  The adult koala was lying on her side, not moving, and where her eyes should have been were two pink, swollen bulges of skin. There was barely even a slit to show where the eyes were.

  Ashley gulped. ‘Is she alive?’

  Micky nodded. ‘Unfortunately, yes.’

  ‘Why unfortunately?’

  ‘She probably won’t survive. See that blood on her fur? It looks like she’s been injured; and she has advanced conjunctivitis. The storm was the last straw for her.’

  Ashley felt a lump in her throat as she looked down at the motionless koala. ‘What are we going to do?’

  Micky looked grim. ‘Get her in the cage and get them both back home. Then I’ll have to make some phone calls. They need to see the vet urgently, but the road will still be flooded. I don’t know how we’ll deal with that yet.’

  ‘What about the baby?’

  Micky shook her head. ‘It’ll be tough without his mother, but he’s well grown. He might make it. Bring me the cage.’

  Ashley set off at a run to grab the cage. Her elation at finding the joey and getting him into the cage had been replaced by a heavy, sad feeling in her chest. The little joey was probably going to lose his mother, and it looked like there was nothing she could do about it.

  Chapter 12

  It seemed to take forever to get the caged koalas back up the hill. Fortunately Micky was able to help by carrying one side of the cage, though it was slow going as she hobbled along with one walking stick. Ashley carried the other side, staggering under the weight of the two koalas. The wind, though much quieter than it had been during the night, still whistled past them, and rainsqualls showered them with drops.

  At last they reached the house, manoeuvred the cage through the lounge room and put it down in the laundry.

  ‘Now what?’ Ashley asked. ‘Leaf?’

  Micky looked down at the cage thoughtfully. ‘Three things to remember for rescued wildlife: warmth, peace, quiet. But Mum also needs some first aid if she’s going to have any chance. I’ll rub some glucose powder around her mouth and give her some medication for the pain. You can heat up some water for a hot-water bottle to keep her warm. Then we’ll leave them alone.’

  Ashley warmed up the kettle. When Micky was finished treating the mother koala, she filled a hot-water bottle and handed it to Ashley. ‘Make sure you put it next to her very quietly and don’t disturb them. How you handle a newly rescued koala is
critical — do the wrong thing now, and they could both easily die. I need to get on the phone.’

  As Micky picked up the phone, Ashley headed back into the laundry. She opened the cage and pulled back the towel. Dexter blinked up at her and again she felt a lump in her throat. Now that she could see him in full daylight, he was even sweeter. He was about the same size as Puppy would have been, and his fur looked soft and warm. More than anything, she wanted to pick him up and cuddle him. He looked so helpless and his mother didn’t seem to have moved at all during the trip.

  Ashley could hear Micky in the next room speaking on the phone in a soft murmur. She tucked the hot-water bottle next to the unconscious mother koala, then stretched out her hand towards Dexter. She’d just give him a little pat. A scratch on the back, like she had with Jemima. Surely there was no harm in it?

  Her fingers had almost reached him when she hesitated. What would Micky say if she saw? She’d be furious. How you handle a newly rescued koala is critical — that’s what she’d said. Do the wrong thing and Dexter could die.

  Ashley lowered the lid of the cage and stood up. She took one last look into Dexter’s eyes as she backed out of the room. As she reached the door, she felt a rush of determination. She was going to do everything possible to help Dexter survive.

  Micky was hanging up the phone as Ashley came back into the lounge room.

  ‘It’s worse than I thought. The causeway is up to 0.8. There’s no way a car can get over there, not even a four-wheel drive.’

  ‘There must be some way out?’ Ashley asked.

  Micky shrugged. ‘There’s an old flying fox strung across the creek. Sometimes we’ve used that to get out in emergencies. But kid, even if we could get out, half the district is flooded and lots of roads are cut off. The vet is in Lismore, and we can’t get there.’

  ‘Isn’t there another vet?’

  ‘There’s the wildlife hospital at Currumbin, but I don’t know how we’d get the koalas up there. And even if we could, the mother might not even survive the journey.’

  Ashley put her hands on her hips. ‘So you’re just giving up?’

  ‘Look, kid,’ Micky said. ‘I’ve been doing this for a long time. You get a feeling for when a koala has a chance. The mother — well, it’s looking pretty bad for her. It looks to me like she’s been attacked by a dog, as well as having advanced conjunctivitis. Which means chlamydia. She’s probably too far gone for treatment. If we could get the joey looked at by a vet, he might survive. But I just don’t see how we can get him there. We’re stuck.’

  More lectures! Ashley rolled her eyes. ‘I thought you said every koala was important.’

  ‘Every koala is important. But the usual procedure is that koalas have to be seen by a vet immediately. They’re anaesthetised for a full examination. Many of the drop bears we pick up are euthanased by the vet, because there’s just no way they will survive for re-release.’

  Ashley turned away. That was the problem with adults. They didn’t care. It was just like her parents, telling her that she couldn’t have Puppy and thinking that the promise of another dog some other time would make it better.

  She swung around again. ‘What if we could get them across the creek? You must know someone who could drive them to the hospital.’

  Micky thought for a moment. ‘Yes. Brian and Magda live nearby and they love a good rescue. But the flying fox is only set up to go downhill. Someone from our side would have to take the koalas across and won’t be able to come back until the water goes down.’

  Ashley faced her aunt squarely. ‘I’ll take them across in the flying fox, if you find someone to drive us to the hospital on the other side.’

  She expected Micky to refuse. After all, it wasn’t exactly a safe plan and she knew her mother would have said no at once. But Micky ran a hand through her hair and then grinned.

  ‘Well, you’re gutsy, I’ll give you that. There’s a small backpack in the cupboard. Put in a change of clothes and anything else you might need while I make some more calls. I’m pretty sure I can get my stupid foot working long enough to drive the Argo as far as the creek.’

  Ashley felt a grin spread across her face. ‘Thanks, Micky.’

  ‘No worries,’ Micky said. ‘But kid — don’t get your hopes up too high, eh?’

  Ashley shook her head and turned for her room. She’d have to squeeze her way in there past the tree branch that had broken the window, but she didn’t care. She was going to fight for Dexter and his mother.

  Youngster calls to his mother, but there’s no reply. He can’t understand why she won’t respond.

  His world has changed. Instead of branches and leaves, he’s surrounded by cold hard bars. Instead of the whistle of wind around him, there’s only silence. Instead of his mother’s fur, a strange-smelling softness wraps around him.

  The creature comes and stares at him again, but this time it doesn’t attack him or cover him up. It smells of leaves, and when it is gone, there are leaves nearby. He’s hungry, and he reaches for them.

  But why won’t his mother answer him?

  Chapter 13

  Ashley felt sick in her stomach as she got out of the Argo and saw the wide stretch of brown floodwater rushing over the road. Above her head ran a single-wire cable, sloping down from a high tree on their side, right across the creek to a grassy landing place. It was so thin that she hadn’t even seen it on their way in the day before. Two people and a car were waiting near the landing place on the other side. The people waved, and Ashley gave them a small wave back.

  It had seemed like a great idea back at Micky’s — being the hero who got the koalas over the creek — but now that she could see what was involved, she wished she’d never volunteered. She should have known that any plan in Micky’s world would be dangerous.

  Micky came around the front of the Argo and joined her. ‘Having second thoughts?’

  Ashley didn’t know why she cared about impressing her aunt, but she did. She shook her head. ‘I’ll be fine.’

  ‘Course you will.’ Micky patted her on the shoulder. ‘I’ve had a look at the flying fox. It’s a bit rusty, but it should work OK. You clip into the harness and I’ll wedge the cage onto your lap. Then you just hold it tight and the slider will whizz you across the water. Brian and Magda will be waiting for you at the other side and they’ll help you off. It’ll be fun.’

  Ashley just nodded, hoping Micky couldn’t see how scared she was. This was way worse than the rock-climbing wall that she’d attempted with Emma, and she’d been hopeless at that. There was no safety line, no instructor belaying her, and she’d have twelve kilograms of koala jammed on her lap in a big cage. The flying fox was about twenty-five metres long. If she fell off, she’d be in fast-moving floodwater that would wash her away in moments.

  ‘You can’t fall off,’ Micky said as if reading her mind. ‘The worst you can do is drop the cage. If that happens, don’t try to save them. Just get yourself to the other side. Brian and Magda will look after you until the water drops and you can get back here. Ready?’

  ‘Yep,’ Ashley said, trying not to think about Dexter and his mother in a sinking cage. She followed Micky to the start of the flying fox. She stepped into the harness, which just seemed like a few straps — not nearly enough to hold her. Micky buckled her in and attached the harness to the pulley with a karabiner. She put a helmet on Ashley’s head, helped her pull on heavy gloves and then, with difficulty, managed to pick up the cage with Dexter and his mother and swing it onto Ashley’s lap.

  Ashley could see the mother’s nose poking out of the towel, but she couldn’t tell if the adult koala was still alive or not. Dexter poked his head out of the towel and looked around. He certainly looked alert. Ashley wondered what he thought about it all.

  ‘Hang on tight,’ Micky said. ‘Remember, you can’t fall. You’re clipped on to the pulley, which is attached to the cable. Good luck, kid.’

  Micky pushed and suddenly the flying fox was moving an
d Ashley was sliding along the cable towards the floodwater. She felt a rush in her stomach and kept her eyes fixed on Dexter. If she concentrated on him, it would take her mind off the drop below.

  The roar of the floodwater became louder, and when Ashley looked down, she could see the swollen creek sweeping below her feet. Dexter tried to look down too. At least he’s used to being up high, she thought. Looking down on things is probably less scary for him.

  But if Dexter wasn’t scared, Ashley decided she shouldn’t be either. In fact, it wasn’t so bad after all. She started to relax.

  There was a bump and the flying fox stopped suddenly and swayed from side to side in a sickening manner.

  Ashley looked down. Below her dangling feet, the floodwater rushed past in a thick brown cascade. Anything that fell in would be washed away in seconds. She gripped the cage tightly. There was no point in looking down. It was best if she didn’t.

  She tried to swivel to look back at Micky, but it was impossible with the big cage on her lap. She could see Brian and Magda waving at her and calling out, but she couldn’t hear what they were saying above the roar of the floodwater.

  She looked up, trying to work out why she’d come to a stop. Then she saw it. A forked branch had fallen across the cable and become jammed in the pulley.

  It was all very well for Micky to tell her she couldn’t fall, but what was she going to do now? As far as Ashley could see, she was stuck. There was nothing that Micky could do, or that Brian or Magda could do — none of them could reach her through the floodwater. She could feel the cable vibrating and it took her a few moments to realise that it was her own shaking that was causing it. Her teeth were chattering.

  The wind whistled past her ears and the harness rocked. Ashley wished with all of her being that she was somewhere else. She wished that her father hadn’t lost his job, that her mother hadn’t forced her to come and stay, that her aunt wasn’t an eccentric carer of koalas, and that Dexter and his mother hadn’t fallen from their tree. None of it was fair. All she’d wanted these holidays was to be with her new puppy.