by Di Morrissey
Antony parked in the Cairns CBD and the two of them walked to a nearby pub. Bella was somewhat surprised by Antony’s choice, as the hotel looked rather run-down.
As though reading her mind, Antony said, ‘I know it looks a bit the worse for wear, but believe me, the locals all like coming here, ’cause the tourists don’t. You’ll see a bit of authentic north Queensland in here.’
Antony was right. It was full of locals, and noisy, and a bit on the rough side, Bella thought. They sat at one of the small tables near the window. As Antony went to get their drinks, Bella looked around at the other customers. Most were dressed in singlets, shorts and thongs and several of them were eyeing her up and down. They all seemed to be speaking loudly at each other and she could hear a very heated argument occurring at one end of the bar. If this was Antony’s idea of authentic Queensland, she could do without it. She could see Antony at the bar and wished he would hurry back so she could drink her wine and get out of there quickly. But Antony seemed to be in no hurry as he chatted to two men at the bar. They all had their backs to her, but she could see that one of them had a striking mullet hairdo.
When Antony returned a couple of minutes later, she asked him who the two men were.
‘No idea. They just started talking to me while I was waiting for our drinks.’ Antony handed her a glass of wine and began telling her in more detail about his plans, but Bella wasn’t really paying attention. She gulped her wine down and when Antony offered to buy her another, she shook her head, and they left the pub not long after that.
Since she was going to stay only one more night in Cairns, she decided to book herself into one of the city’s good hotels. Antony drove her back to Irene’s, where she’d left her car. Irene was not at home, so she said goodbye to Antony with some firmness and drove herself around to the resort hotel. She wanted to have some time by herself to think about Antony’s proposition.
Stepping into the shower in her room, she let the warm water flow over her hair as her thoughts wandered. On the face of it, it seemed outrageous for her to throw in her secure life back in Tennyson for such a wild idea. There was no way she could take up his offer. She’d be crazy to leave her well-paid job with its built-in security. And how on earth could she tell her mother and Brendan that she was going to leave Tennyson and her life there and start afresh in north Queensland? Brendan could hardly drop everything and join her – she wasn’t sure she would want him to, in any case – so it would probably mean the end of their relationship. Was she prepared for that? But the more she thought about Antony’s brainchild, the more she was persuaded that with the right research and organisation, his plan just might work. It would be so exciting to have her own business, to be in charge of her own destiny. Her heart was telling her to seize the offer, as such a chance might never come again, while her head told her that the whole idea was a pie in the sky and that she should forget it.
She stepped out of the shower, towelled off and dressed again. She ordered a club sandwich from room service and was just about to start eating it on the balcony when her phone rang. Her stomach clenched when she saw who was calling.
‘Hello, Brendan,’ she said.
‘Hello yourself,’ Brendan said. ‘How are you? What have you been up to?’
Bella quickly told him about finding the musicians and learning that Ned had probably gone to Cooktown, and that she had decided she would drive up and try to find him. ‘I shouldn’t have any trouble doing that. He’s supposed to be living in a pink house. How are things with you?’ asked Bella, taking a bite of her sandwich.
‘Nothing very exciting. I’ve been over to see Josie. She’s just fine,’ Brendan replied. ‘I ran into Ash the other day. Tim Martin was away sick, so I covered a few of his urgent cases. I don’t think she was all that happy to see me but she didn’t have a choice as she was in a fair bit of pain.’
‘How was she apart from that?’
‘Good, I think; well, she seemed to be, didn’t say all that much.’
‘She’s a nice person.’ Bella paused and then took the plunge. ‘Bren, I need to tell you that I’ve had a . . . well . . . a kind of a job offer.’
‘What sort of job?’ Brendan asked slowly.
She explained Antony’s ideas, hearing the enthusiasm in her voice as she did so, and talked about all the wonderful things she had seen and done and how much she was enjoying Far North Queensland. Brendan was silent as he listened.
‘I just think it could be terrific,’ Bella finished. She waited for a response from Brendan.
‘It would mean moving north, I suppose. What will your mother say?’ asked Brendan.
Bella didn’t reply. She knew the answer. Her mother wouldn’t make a fuss, or try to stop her – she might even encourage her – but she knew Josie would miss her terribly if she left Tennyson. But this decision wasn’t about Josie, Bella thought to herself. It was about her, Bella, and her dreams and ideas. Josie would be supportive if she knew that the change would make Bella happy.
There was a long pause. Then Brendan said, ‘Are you really sure that this idea will work? I know that you’re good at tourism, but north Queensland? It’s hardly your field of expertise. And there are so many start-ups like this that fail in the first year. How would you even go about setting this business up? You haven’t got very much experience.’
Bella felt like she’d been slapped. Her mouth fell open. She couldn’t believe how negative and critical Brendan was being. Sure her announcement was a surprise, but his response was so harsh. She had a lot of experience and business savvy. Suddenly Bella felt angry. How dare he! She was more than capable of doing this job and making it a success.
‘Don’t question my ability, Brendan Miller,’ she snapped. ‘Of course I could do the work if I set my mind to it.’
Brendan drew a sharp breath. ‘Bella, I’m just saying that it’s not exactly a foolproof plan,’ he replied in a reasonable tone which somehow made Bella even more annoyed.
‘Well, Antony thinks I’d be great at it,’ she shot back.
Brendan’s voice hardened. ‘I see. Well, if you’re sure that it’s the right thing, then go for it. I don’t think our relationship would survive being long-distance, but since you don’t want to move in with me anyway, that doesn’t really matter. This sounds like a great opportunity for you.’
Bella couldn’t believe what she was hearing. ‘So what are you saying, then? You think I should move up here permanently?’ she asked crossly.
‘Well, it’s no use my asking you to come home, if that’s not what you want to do.’ He cleared his throat and continued in clipped tones. ‘I’ve been asking you for ages to move in with me and you’ve never given me a proper answer. It seems like you really don’t want to be with me, and I’m not going to pressure you into it. If this is what you want, then it could be a good thing.’
He didn’t even sound upset. Maybe in the time she’d been away, he had decided that he could do without her. His criticism hurt. Before this conversation she’d been only idly considering Antony’s idea but now, hearing Brendan doubt her, her stubborn streak surfaced and she felt her feelings harden.
‘All right then, Brendan,’ she shot back. ‘It seems you want me to stay up here, even if you don’t think I can be much of a tour operator. Well, I’ll show you. I’ll make a success of this business. Just you wait and see.’
‘Bella, I’m not going to fight with you, but –’
It was just like all the other conversations they ever had. He never wanted to fight her. It was so infuriating – and so typical! ‘Brendan, you never argue with me about anything!’ Bella cried. ‘Do you even care about me? You don’t sound in the slightest bit concerned about what I do. Well, at least you’ve helped me make up my mind.’ Her voice had risen to a shrill pitch. ‘I am going to accept Antony’s offer and start up a new business with him, and you can get on with your life without
me!’ She hung up the phone, seething, and threw herself onto her bed, hot tears springing in her eyes. Did he not consider their relationship worth fighting for? He had just closed up as soon as she articulated her plans. He didn’t mention even the possibility of moving north with her. He had barely even become emotional. She wiped her face. She couldn’t believe he’d been so cold and scathing about her plans. She gazed out at the view from her hotel room. After everything she’d been through in the last year, she really felt she deserved something good to happen. Antony’s idea had merit, and for the first time in a long time she was excited about something that could really challenge her. Why couldn’t Brendan understand that? She felt a bubble of anger rise in her chest. Well, she wasn’t going to let some dentist spoil her dreams. It was her life and she could make a success of this business if she wanted to.
*
Bella was glad to arrive in Cooktown the following afternoon. She’d made a booking at what seemed like the best motel and checked in to it. Then she started looking for the pink house.
Cooktown was a small place and it wasn’t long before she found the old house with its lurid hot-pink trim and messy front yard. Bella was a bit taken aback.
She rapped on the door and waited. She was about to give up when she heard movement inside. There was shuffling and a cough and then an apparition appeared in the doorway. Bella took an involuntary step back as a man, possibly in his thirties, leaned against the doorjamb rubbing his eyes. His long hair was matted and his clothes appeared to have been unchanged for weeks. He stroked the stubble on his face and stared at Bella with bleary eyes.
‘Hi. I was looking for Ned. Is he around?’ When the man didn’t answer, Bella asked tentatively, ‘He does live here?’
‘Ned who?’ croaked the fellow, starting to cough.
Bella took a step back. ‘Ned Chisholm. He’s my brother. He is supposed to be housesitting.’
‘Not here. Dunno him.’
‘You mean he’s not living here?’ While Bella’s heart sank, she was also glad Ned wasn’t living in such a dump.
He shook his head. ‘Sorry.’ He turned away and closed the door, leaving Bella standing on the verandah wondering what to do next.
Spotting a café where a couple were sitting outdoors having coffee, she felt an overwhelming need for a short espresso. There was a friendly woman behind the counter who smiled and asked, ‘What’ll it be, dear?’
‘A strong black –’ Bella looked at the shop’s noticeboard and then stopped what she was saying in shock. Pinned to it was a flyer with a picture of Ned holding his guitar. Bella snatched the flyer and stared at her brother’s face. After all this time spent chasing him, there he was. She could hardly believe it. Reading the details on the flyer, she saw that Ned was going to be part of a fundraising concert the following evening at the Verandah Room at one of the pubs.
Bella paid for her coffee, folded up the flyer and walked outside. What was it about this strange little town that so attracted Ned? Why on earth couldn’t he rent a place near home and work from there? But deep down she understood his restless drive and his need for new experiences. Maybe that was what she was after, too.
She reached for her phone to leave him yet another message, then stopped. No, she thought, a better idea might be just to turn up at the concert. That way he couldn’t avoid her.
She had a day to fill in before the show, so she decided she might as well walk around the town and see what there was to do. By the looks of things, she thought, that wouldn’t take long. She opened an app on her phone that searched for things to see and do depending on where you were, and top of the list for Cooktown was the James Cook Museum, so she followed the directions.
There were a few tourists about. She paid her money and went in, but soon lost track of time as she lingered over the exhibits. She was particularly moved by the personal family collections that the museum displayed: the tea sets and jewellery, ornaments, tools and other memorabilia. She looked at a formal studio portrait of a serious young Islander girl in a long white dress, hair neatly coiled, wearing a row of beads and with a beribboned straw hat at her feet, sitting close to two sweetly smiling blonde children in a homemade contraption resembling an old-fashioned pram and surrounded by urns and other photographers’ props. The small children were dressed in elaborate lace and frills. The caption explained that the trio were Rosetta and Endeavour Seagren with their amah. Another photograph showed an obviously well-to-do older couple posing in their finery. The European woman wore what appeared to be an embroidered silk taffeta dress and she held a rose in her hand, while the silver-haired Chinese man was resplendent in a sombre black suit, complete with a gold fob watch chain, his hand resting on the back of his wife’s chair. The caption told their story in a few lines: In 1874 Jimmy Ah Foo and his European wife, Eveline, arrived in Cooktown from the goldfields of Charters Towers. They first opened the Millchester Boarding House and then a ham and egg shop in Charlotte Street. Encouraged by their success, a year later they opened the Canton Hotel in the same street.
Bella wondered what had happened to Jimmy Ah Foo with the advent of the White Australia policy. Perhaps because he was married to a European, he’d been able to stay in Queensland.
After half an hour, she’d had enough and made her way back to the motel. She decided to ring Antony to tell him what she was doing in Cooktown. Despite what she’d told Brendan, she hadn’t formally accepted Ant’s offer, but she was thinking about it very seriously.
Antony sounded pleased to hear from her and listened as she told him about what she had found.
She took a deep breath, ‘This isn’t a definite yes to your offer, but Ant, I think you could be on the right track. Maybe organised tours for the Chinese would work. There was obviously a large Chinese presence here once upon a time and if you can find out which part of China they mainly came from, you could perhaps target that region? What do you think?’
‘Great idea, Bella. You’re on the right wavelength there. How much longer do you think you’ll be in Cooktown?’
‘Not sure. At least till the weekend. My brother’s performing in one of the pubs. After that I can’t really say.’
‘Well, let me know as soon as you know, and keep those good ideas rolling in. Ciao for now.’
Bella smiled to herself as she ended the call. It was fun thinking up ideas that could work for the new business. Maybe she and Antony really could make the tailored tours succeed.
Filled with enthusiasm, she spent the next day asking around about big game fishing, how to get to the old goldfields, and what sort of journeys could be made up Cape York. She considered renting a four-wheel drive, but thought perhaps she might be able to talk Ned into taking her to some interesting-sounding places once she’d found him.
It was dusk as Bella arrived at the old hotel where the modernised restaurant and balcony area upstairs was the venue for the concert. The main restaurant area in front of the small stage was filled with rows of chairs and a few tables were scattered along the verandah. Bella found the people around her were mostly locals but with a smattering of tourists. Everyone was very friendly, and there was a mood of happy expectation.
The publican stood up and thanked everybody for coming to support the fundraising effort and added, ‘I especially want to thank Ned Chisholm for agreeing to sing for us. All proceeds from tonight’s ticket sales will go to our wonderful museum and the splendid work it does. So now it’s over to Ned Chisholm. Give him a big Cooktown welcome!’
There was loud applause and a few whistles as Ned ambled onto the stage and sat on the stool by the microphone.
Bella applauded loudly, a huge smile on her face. She was thrilled to see her brother looking so fit and handsome.
As soon as he started singing, Bella remembered again his rich husky voice and the way he connected with an audience, making each person feel as though he was singing directly to
them.
In what seemed a very short time later, Bella, like the rest of the audience, came to her feet to cheer Ned’s performance, feeling as though they had all shared a special journey with him and his music.
After acknowledging the crowd, Ned took his guitar, thanked the band and headed off stage and towards the bar. Bella squeezed through the crush of people to where Ned was affably posing for photos with some of the audience. As she got near him, she saw him smile broadly as he hugged an attractive woman. As she tipped back her head, he kissed her lightly. They separated and Ned turned to acknowledge a fan approaching from his other side.
Bella pushed her way through the crowd and tapped Ned on the shoulder.
‘Hi, Ned.’
Her brother turned to face her, and his expression quickly changed. ‘Bella!’ he exclaimed.
7
Ned felt momentarily stunned when he saw Bella, and then a flash of anger surged through him. How on earth did she find him in Cooktown? He didn’t want her here. But before he could ask her anything, Bella had thrown her arms around his neck.
‘Surprise, eh, big brother?’ She pulled away and grinned triumphantly at Ned. ‘Found you at last.’
‘Why are you here, Bella?’
‘Like I said in my messages, I wanted to catch up with you,’ Bella said too casually. She glanced at Toni, motioning for an introduction.
Ned groaned inwardly with rising anxiety. He could guess all too easily Bella’s real motivation. She was like a dog with a bone. With some reluctance, he gestured to Toni, ‘Toni, this is Bella. My sister.’
Toni smiled broadly and reached out a hand. ‘I gathered that. Hi, Bella, so nice to meet you. Ned mentioned you were travelling up this way,’ said Toni. ‘Have you been enjoying your holiday?’