by Di Morrissey
But here the sky, the space, the wavering distant horizon was enveloping. After the night had settled she watched the pale pinpricks of light begin to dot the twin hills and the fluorescent glow from the pub bar shining out onto the road.
Everyone quickly found out her first name and the fact that she was from Adelaide but beyond that no one asked her about herself. Thelma told Anna to keep her business to herself, then asked her if she could cook and looked resigned when the young girl shook her head.
‘Mum’s a good cook. Ordinary things, nothing modern. If I have to cook for myself it’s generally protein,’ said Anna.
‘Barbecue things? That’s not cooking, love. But at least you’re not one of them vegetable people. Don’t know how they keep body and soul together living on greens and salads.’
Anna smiled. ‘Rabbit food, my mother calls it. No, I like to keep my stamina up with meat and good carb food. I like to exercise a lot,’ she added.
‘I thought as much, to keep a nice trim figure like yours.’ She waved a floury hand at her shapeless bulk. ‘Once you let yourself go, that’s it. Make the most of it while you can. I used to wear shorts and skin-tight pedal pushers. Can you believe it?’ She chortled.
‘Actually, I want to get back to my fitness routine pretty soon,’ said Anna.
Few noticed that Anna left her room early each morning. Dressed in shorts and running shoes, her favourite baseball cap pulled low on her head and her hair tied back, she jogged quietly down the dirt road in the dawn light, turning onto the dusty track that led arrow straight towards the north. Three kilometres along the track there was a dead mulga tree, branches outstretched, which she used as a marker. Here she would turn and run as hard as she could back to the hotel. Sometimes she glanced at her watch, noting the time she had taken. Other times she just ran as fast as she could with a sense of exhilaration, and whatever time she took was of little consequence.
Mick sometimes heard the rattling of the hot water pipes and wondered why Anna got up so early when she didn’t have to, but he quickly went back to sleep. It wasn’t his business what she did, just so long as she was on deck when the pub opened.
After a few days of this, Anna decided to vary her routine, settling on a new route. In the pearly new daylight she turned in the opposite direction, circled the two hills, sprinted up the taller one, and did the circuit at the top past the dugouts and the sleeping machinery awaiting the cooler months and the return of their owners. Then she sped back down the hill, sometimes dislodging a small stone that rattled away, breaking the silence. She assumed that by running so early in the day she was unobserved by people living their strange underground existence.
But she was noticed. Once or twice Shirley, who found she needed less and less sleep these days, was up early and sitting at the side of her dugout entrance with her cup of tea to watch the sunrise. The first time she saw the slim shape dash past she was startled. But she quickly saw that the girl was not troubled or distressed. There was an easy fluidity to her movements, the long strides, the firm arms, and a determined thrust to her head. This must be the new young woman working at the pub whom Davo had mentioned.
It was a slow afternoon. Anna was looking for something to do so she started to tidy the fridge in the kitchen that Thelma had hinted needed a good clean-out.
‘Anna, if you’re looking for work, could you do Marg next door a favour and run Shirley’s groceries up to her? The old girl wants some cold drinks too, so I’ll sling them in with the food,’ Mick called to her.
‘I’m happy to help, but when you say run, you don’t actually mean carry, do you? Where is this Shirley?’
‘Doncha know Shirley yet? Great old bird. Take Marg’s car. Greg’s away so she can’t leave the store.’
‘What sort of a car is it? I’ve passed my driving test, but I’ve never driven a manual.’
Mick stared at her. ‘Cripes, you gotta drive out here, love. I’ll see what I can do. Do you want to have a few practice runs in Marg’s ute?’
‘I’d rather not. Is there an automatic I could use?’
‘Let me have a think. We need to get those groceries up to Shirley.’
Anna shrugged and went back to the kitchen.
A few minutes later, Mick called out to her again. ‘It’s okay. Davo’s here. He’s going up to see Shirley anyway, so he’ll take the stuff up. But he has an idea about getting you driving.’
‘Davo? I’m not sure I’m thrilled about that.’
‘I don’t mean driving his van. Listen, pop up with him and say hello to Shirley and see what he’s got in mind.’ Seeing Anna’s dubious expression, Mick added, ‘You’ll like Shirley. Been here for years. Knows a lot of local history, where the bones are buried, that sort of thing. I know she’s an older lady, but she’s special and I think she might be able to help you out.’
‘How long have you known Shirley?’ asked Anna as Davo’s little bus wound up the hill.
‘Few years. She gave me a bit of a hand when I started the business, so I like to pop in to keep an eye on her.’
Shirley recognised Anna straight away.
‘You’re new here. Can you stay for a bit? Sit down. Davo, I think a cuppa would do us all good. Can you put the kettle on?’
‘Shirley, how’s that old banger of yours doing?’
‘Do you mean my ticker or my wheels?’ She smiled.
‘The car. Anna has no wheels. Thought I’d give her a lesson and then if it’s okay with you she could take your car out for a bit of a spin.’
‘Really, it’s not necessary,’ began Anna.
‘I’m sure Anna manages to get around on her own two legs quite well,’ said Shirley. ‘But you’re welcome to use the car any time you want. It’s going fine. Kerrie used it the first time she was here and Doug still checks it for me.’
‘I don’t need a car,’ said Anna.
‘She’s only used to fancy automatics,’ said Davo. ‘Got to teach her how to drive a stick.’
‘Actually, that’s not true. I’ve never owned a car, automatic or otherwise,’ said Anna. ‘And I don’t think I need one while I’m here.’
‘Davo, could you check the car anyway?’ said Shirley. ‘Anna, could you help me make the tea?’
Davo went outside and Shirley muttered to Anna, ‘You know how men are about cars. Be patient and have a lesson with him.’
‘I don’t know, and I don’t want to give Davo the wrong idea,’ said Anna.
Shirley studied Anna as she spooned tea leaves into the teapot. ‘Are you planning on staying round here for a bit?’ she asked. ‘You seem to like the great outdoors.’
‘How do you know that? You don’t know me,’ said Anna lightly.
‘I know you like to get out early in the morning for a jog,’ said Shirley.
‘Run,’ Anna corrected her.
Shirley smiled, but didn’t probe any further. ‘I think you’d find having access to a car out here quite handy. I’m happy to let you borrow my old bomb any time.’
‘I thought you had a friend who uses it,’ said Anna, as she poured boiling water into the pot.
‘Kerrie arrived with Davo the first time she came here. Came on a whim, like I imagine you did. She drove her own car the next time she came.’
‘I came for the job.’
‘Let Davo give you a lesson. You’ll be independent. Besides, I’d like to see more of you.’
Anna looked at Shirley, then eased the tea cosy onto the pot and put it on the table. ‘Why do you want to bother with me?’
‘Why not? I enjoy the company of interesting, intelligent young women. They are few and far between out here.’ She pulled out a chair and reached for the milk jug. ‘But suit yourself.’
‘Thank you, Shirley. I’d appreciate a loan of the car now and then, if I can drive it.’
When Davo came back inside, Shirley was telling Anna about her days training as a nurse and the fun of living in a nurses’ home and how her father had brought her here as a l
ittle girl.
‘Any tea left? I’ve checked out the car. It’s fine.’
‘Thanks, Davo. Sit down.’ Shirley poured his tea.
‘I was telling Anna about my father being a teacher and how opals were his hobby and passion.’
Davo sipped his tea and half listened while Shirley talked. As soon as they’d finished he carried the pot and his cup to the sink and turned to Anna. ‘You ready to go back to work?’
Shirley reached for Anna’s hand and squeezed it. ‘Thanks for coming to see me. And thank Mick for sending up my goodies. You too, Davo. And Anna, it’s been lovely to meet you at last. I’m sure we’ll see each other again.’
Anna nodded. ‘Thank you for the tea. I’ve enjoyed your company.’
‘She’s a good old stick,’ said Davo, breaking the silence as he drove Anna back down the hill.
‘You seem to be very friendly with her.’
‘Yeah. Gotta help out where you can, right?’
‘Where do you come from?’
‘Mostly Melbourne, but I hardly ever go south. Too cold. What do you reckon about that driving lesson?’ He turned to look at her, reaching out to give her a friendly pat on the shoulder.
Anna felt her body stiffen, but if Davo noticed, he didn’t show it. ‘I’ll think about it. Thanks.’
Anna varied her morning run and didn’t always go up the hill past Shirley’s dugout, instead choosing to run to the outskirts of town where the small cemetery stood in barren isolation.
A couple of days later, as Anna emptied the dishwasher and set out the beer glasses on the bar on a clean towel, Mick commented, ‘Pam and Doug are back. You’ll like them. They’ll pop in some time. They run the Golden Dome B&B. They take a holiday each summer.’
‘Do they get someone to run the B&B while they’re away?’ asked Anna.
‘Not worth it. Too damn hot. Not enough tourists to worry about, so they don’t take bookings.’
‘The miners seem to stay on.’
‘Yeah, well, some of them haven’t got anywhere else to go or can’t afford to leave. When someone takes off on a trip you can bet they’ve sold some opal. Anyway it’s cool working down a mine, better than the pub. You seem to be coping okay. Smart to get out early morning. I wouldn’t recommend jogging about the place at night. Could be dangerous in the dark.’
‘This place is okay as long as that AC keeps going,’ said Anna, pointing to the noisy air conditioner in the bar. She was also grateful for the rusty old air conditioning unit in her room. It might use a lot of power but it made sleeping at night possible. When she asked about her morning shower, he told her that hot water wasn’t a problem because he’d installed solar panels years before. Later Anna realised that solar units were fast becoming a fact of life for most of the dugouts and the town’s buildings. Those who could afford it had set up portable solar panels to provide their power. Mick told Anna that there had been experimental solar dishes set up at White Cliffs in the 1980s to service the whole town as a test project and even though it had been successful, it was now closed down and White Cliffs ran on individual solar panels like Opal Lake.
As Mick predicted, Pam and Doug came into the pub early that evening. Word must have spread because a lot of locals were there to catch up on their news.
Anna quietly served everyone and in a lull Pam leant across the bar and held out her hand. ‘I’m Pam. I’m a friend of Shirley’s too. Would you like to come over for a coffee when you can get away?’
‘I’ve just met Shirley. A coffee would be nice. I’ll see when it’s all right with Mick.’
‘Just come over whenever you can. We’ll be there, getting ready to open for business. If Mick gives you a hard time, come and see us, we can always do with an extra pair of hands,’ she said with a smile.
‘Don’t try and steal the best asset I’ve ever had in the bar!’ Mick chided Pam.
Anna merely smiled and served a customer.
‘How on earth did you find her?’ Pam asked the publican.
He shrugged. ‘Lucked out, I guess. She answered an ad in the paper. Nice girl. Comes from Adelaide. Quiet. Bit of a loner. Fitness type. She jogs for damn miles, and eats meat like it’s going out of style. Never touches a drink. Keeps to herself here, but she might tell you more.’
‘I bet business has picked up among the young blokes since she arrived,’ said Doug as he joined Pam.
‘Word’s out she’s off limits. Polite but not interested,’ said Mick.
‘What she does is none of anyone’s business,’ said Pam.
‘Would you like another?’ asked Anna, coming over to her.
‘No, we’d better be going. Promise you’ll come and see us soon,’ said Pam. ‘Come for a late lunch. We can’t offer bright lights and dancing, but we’d enjoy your company.’
Anna gave a rare, big smile. ‘Thank you. I’ll try to stop by in a day or so.’
Davo spoke briefly to Pam and Doug as they left, then came over and leant on the bar, watching Anna. ‘Pam and Doug, lovely people.’
‘They seem to be.’
‘I’ll be heading back to the Hill tomorrow arvo, so you want that driving lesson in the morning?’
Anna busied herself for a moment at the beer taps. ‘If it’s no trouble, I suppose so.’
‘No worries. See you out the front, say nine?’
Anna showered after her run and was ready for her driving lesson when Davo drove Shirley’s car down the hill and pulled up outside the pub.
‘Hop in.’ Davo got out and into the passenger’s seat. Mick came onto the verandah and watched with interest.
Davo handed Anna a sheet of paper. ‘That’s the gears.’ He went through his diagram, pointing to it with a grubby finger. He explained about easing out the clutch, and described what to do, but Anna’s initial attempt saw the car jerk forward. She stabbed her foot on the brake. ‘S’okay, don’t panic. Try again,’ said Davo.
As Anna tried again, he rested his hand casually on her leg. ‘Slow, slow, right. Accelerate . . .’
Anna tried to push his hand off.
He took no notice, and squeezed her leg. ‘Now, change down . . .’
Anna angrily flung his hand off her leg. She grabbed the gear stick and pushed it into gear. The car moved forward and picked up speed. As she tried to put the car into second, the gears made the most awful noise.
Davo leant back and chuckled. ‘You’re grinding the gears.’
‘If you don’t shut up I’ll stop the car right now and we’ll forget this,’ snapped Anna through gritted teeth.
She looked at Davo’s rough diagram again and then braked and started again, working her way through the gears. The car kangaroo hopped a few more times down the main street. Then she suddenly felt her feet co-ordinate and she discovered she could let the clutch in and out smoothly as she changed gears. She turned around at the end of the main street and drove back towards the pub.
‘Go up the hill. See if you can do a hill start,’ challenged Davo.
Anna found this manoeuvre difficult. She hated the sensation of rolling backwards before she engaged the gears. She raced up the hill towards Shirley’s dugout.
‘Whoa. Do a turn and go back down the hill,’ said Davo.
‘I get the general idea. Let’s take the car back to Shirley.’ She pulled up outside Shirley’s place.
Davo leant over and patted her shoulder, idly ruffling her hair. ‘Not bad, not bad.’
Anna pushed his hand away. ‘I’m not a damned dog! Thanks for the lesson. I’ll practise a bit more by myself.’
‘Anytime. Give us a yell.’
‘Aren’t you leaving this afternoon?’ She got out of the car.
‘I’ll be back.’ He smiled easily.
Anna didn’t answer. She turned to walk back down the hill.
‘Hey, aren’t you going to say hi to Shirley? I’ll give you a lift back in my bus!’
‘I have to go to work.’ She broke into a jog and headed down the hill.
/> Davo watched her go as Shirley called out to him.
‘How’d she do?’
‘Smartarse chick,’ he muttered under his breath, then turned to Shirley. ‘She’ll get the hang of it. Independent little miss.’
‘Yes, she is. I’m not sure she’s your type, Davo.’
‘You’re right. She’s not,’ said Davo. ‘Here are your keys. See ya next time.’ He headed out to his van. Shirley dropped the keys onto her table and watched him leave.
The bar was unusually crowded for the Opal Lake Hotel. It still amused Anna to compare the pub to the sleek, chic coffee shop where she’d worked in Adelaide. She was intrigued by two men who stood in a corner, close together, their backs to the rest of the room as they looked intently at something one of them held. Anna walked around the room and out onto the footpath, collecting dirty glasses and emptying the makeshift ashtrays Mick had improvised out of earthenware mosquito candle holders. She came close to the two men and they stopped talking and straightened up.
‘Can I get you two chaps a refill?’ Anna asked as she picked up their schooner glasses.
‘Yeah, thanks.’ One reached into his pocket and handed her twenty dollars. ‘Keep the change, love.’
‘Thanks.’ She smiled. ‘Had a bit of luck, did you?’
She’d seen men be generous with their money once or twice before, and some got drunk before a more sober miner dragged them from the pub, with the whisper ‘They’re on opal’ accompanying their exit.
The other man nodded. ‘A bit. Luck’s been a long time coming.’
‘Well, good on you.’ Anna went and got them another drink. No one else appeared to be taking much notice of the men. She brought their beers over and put them on the small table beside them.
‘Thanks.’ One of the men handed a drink to his friend. ‘What’s your favourite opal, eh?’ he asked Anna.
‘Oh, I don’t know. I don’t know much about them,’ said Anna.
The second man rolled his eyes. ‘Probably only seen rough opals. Or you’re the type who fancies diamonds, are you?’
‘Not on what I earn here,’ she said with a smile. ‘Are you selling opals?’