by Gary Weston
Jenny went and sat on the toilet, thinking what that all meant. She was sure of one thing. Daddy would be shooting Moppet in the morning. Sneaking past the lounge door, Jenny took her jacket off the hook on the back door and carefully went outside. On the step were her yellow gumboots and she pulled those on. Then she hurried across the paddock to the old shed where Moppet lived. She was unaware that in the trees surrounding the paddock, dozens of beady eyes were staring at her.
She found Moppet wide awake, eating a carrot. 'Moppet. You gotta listen to me. I gotta let you go, 'cus my Daddy will shoot you.' She opened the cage and Moppet climbed onto her and she cuddled him in her arms. 'I love you, Moppet, and I don't want you to go, but you have to go. Maybe you can find a girlfriend and have babies. I'm going to miss you, Moppet.'
Jenny took Moppet outside and after giving him one last kiss and a cuddle, she placed him on the ground. He sat there confused, unsure what to do.
'Go. Shoo. Go, Moppet.'
There was a rustling in the nearby trees and Moppet stared up at them, his keen sense of smell picking out his own kind.
'Jenny? Jenny?'
'Mum and Dad are coming. Please, Moppet. Daddy's got his gun with him.'
'Jenny,' yelled Dave Rice. 'Come here this minute.'
Moppet started climbing up a tree to join the pack. Soon, he was just another pair of beady eyes staring down at the humans. Jenny hadn't seen the other possums, but her parents had.
Claire said, 'Jenny. Come to me. Walk slowly. Don't run.'
'I had to let Moppet go, Mummy.'
'That's okay. Now very carefully come here to me.'
Dave Rice had his gun ready, his heart in his throat. He knew if the possums decided to attack, there were too many to stop them getting at his daughter. But the possums stayed in the trees as Jenny reached her mother. Slowly, the Rice's retreated to the safety of their home.
Chapter 51
Major John Burns had seven battalions to deploy. Burns had served for over thirty years, putting his neck on the line in more than a dozen countries. He had risen through the ranks because of his solid, dependable character and his ability to get the job done. He was also known as brilliant strategic planner.
Burns prided himself in being able to put himself in the enemies position, and to see what they were thinking. But his enemies had always been human beings. He had no idea how to think like a possum.
They had set up a base on a farmer's field, the farmer being only too glad to have the benefit of their protection. Burns and his officers were in the large campaign tent.
'This has to be the main area,' Burns said, jabbing the map with his finger. Maybe there are three or more separate packs, but this valley is fairly central to all the attacks.'
Lieutenant Troy Fuller suggested, 'Maybe there is one super pack, and they all break off from that to hunt in smaller packs.'
'That's a possibility, and it could explain quite a few things,' said Burns.
Captain Jake Sanders said, 'If that's the case, it makes our job harder. We'd be splitting ourselves up chasing them in all directions. Be better if we could contain them in one pack.'
'If we can do that, we will,' said Burns. 'From the times of the various known attacks, their natural nocturnal habits are mostly gone. So we can't rely on sneaking up on them in the daylight while they are half asleep. Our main concern is to prevent them attacking the three villages again. We have to place ourselves between the possums and the people.'
Captain Sanders said, 'I'd like to have a more verified target before we go in. I'd be concerned that if we didn't surround them perfectly before we attacked them, we might be just scattering them all over the place.'
'I agree,' said Burns. 'The helicopters didn't see anything that looked like a pack. Just the odd possum. Captain Sanders. I want you and lieutenant Fuller to go in on foot. Take Sergeant Philpotts with you. He's one of the best marksmen we have. Just the three of you will be less obvious than a whole battalion. Once you are satisfied of the enemies position, I want Lieutenant Fuller back here to report the situation, and you and Sergeant Philpotts keeping an eye on the pack at a distance. Only radio in if there's a significant movement by the possums.'
'Right, Sir,' said Sanders. 'We can drive as far as this point, then it'll be a ten mile hike to this high point here.'
'Right. Get some shut eye. Be ready to go out at first light. If the possums are where we suspect they are, we can trap them in the valley and surround them.'
Chapter 52
'Just for once, I hope I can depend on you two,' said Charlie Matai.
'We won't let you down, Dad,' said Rickie.
'First time for everything, I suppose. It's been hard enough since your mother ran off. I was hoping the three of us could work this place and make it pay. I can't do it all on my own. You might as well know. I've decided to sell up and retire.'
Stevie said, 'What happens to me and Rickie then?'
Charlie shrugged. 'I guess you'll have to find proper jobs and pay your way in the world.'
'But I want to stay here,' said Rickie.
'Yeah,' said Charlie. 'Only because you got everything laid on a bloody plate for you. I'm not prepared to carry you any more.'
'We can knuckle down, Dad,' said Stevie.
'Words are cheap, boy. I've hardly seen any hard yacka * out of either of you. This possum problem is the last straw. It has made me think straight and make my mind up. It's time to throw in the towel.'
* hard work.
'Dad...'
'No, Rickie. I said my piece. I'm going to get some sleep. I expect you two to keep an eye on the place. Those possums come back, you come and get me. Think you two can just do that much without either getting stoned or falling asleep?'
'We won't let you down, Dad,' said Stevie.
'We'll see,' said Charlie.
Charlie went off to bed, leaving Rickie and Stevie with the bombshell their father had just dropped on them.
'I'll take first watch,' said Stevie. 'If I see any possums, I'll start shooting and you get Dad.'
'I'll be ready,' said Rickie.
Chapter 53
Max Harrison had the phone in one hand and swirled the cognac around in the crystal cut glass in the other. Schubert played in the background, and the lighting was low.
'I wanted to know why nothing has been done about Pritchard. Why do I keep seeing his face on the news? Shouldn't he have...disappeared by now? I see. And they were top professionals, were they? But that was two nights ago. You didn't pay them upfront, did you? Just ten percent.
So why haven't they been earning the rest of the money? Are you saying Pritchard might have gotten the better of two hit men? I have no idea. I might have known you would stuff it up. Pritchard's a ticking bomb. Even more so than before. With so many deaths from the possums, people are already asking questions such as how this came to happen.
If Pritchard goes public, he'll be untouchable. You need to get rid of him before he does that. I don't care how damn busy you are. Besides. You need to do this more for your sake than mine. The longer this goes on with more deaths, when it does hit the fan and Pritchard finally goes public, well, I wouldn't want to be in your shoes.
As an incentive, just remember the evidence I have squirreled safely away. Right. See that you do.'
Harrison hung up. How on Earth did two top hit men simply vanish? Every time Harrison saw Pritchard's face on the television, he thought, here it comes. The bombshell. But Pritchard was still just doing his job as a cop.
Perhaps Pritchard had decided not to go public with it anyway. After all, knowing that there had been a cover up by some top people wouldn't change anything now. No. That wasn't it. If by some miracle the cop had killed the two hit men, wouldn't he be even more determined to open up the biggest can of worms in the country's history?
Harrison drained his glass. It was time to get more proactive. If Pritchard hadn't been dealt with in the next twenty four hours, he would take matters i
nto his own hands.
Chapter 54
Captain Sanders, lieutenant Fuller and Sergeant Philpotts, all dressed in camouflage gear, were on the ridge above the valley. All three were scanning the dense foliage that covered the valley floor. They had high-powered binoculars.
'Anything?' asked Sanders, his voice in a whisper.
'I see one possum,' said eagle eyes Sergeant Philpotts. 'That tall tree close to the southern end of the valley.'
'I see the little sod. Do you have him, lieutenant?'
'Yes. Hardly a pack, though.'
Sanders suggested, 'Unless they were high up like that one, we wouldn't probably see them. We need to get down there and take a closer look. How far away are we to the start of the trees?'
Philpotts said, 'About three miles, Captain. But going straight means crossing open ground. Even dressed like this we'd stand out.'
Lieutenant Fuller pointed to the end of the valley. 'See that rocky cliff? If we keep on this side of it, it looks like a gentle slope to the valley floor, and we'd only be exposed for a few minutes.
'It's a ten mile hike at least,' said Philpotts. 'About forty minutes over this terrain. Can we afford the time?'
'I don't see any alternatives,' said Sanders. 'If we stay here, we're not going to see anything worthwhile, if we take the short route, we'll probably be seen. We need to know for sure about that damn valley. Come on. Let's get moving.'
Using the low bush as cover, the three men set off on the ten mile hike to establish whether or not the valley was home to the possum super-pack. Time was running out and more lives hung in the balance.
Chapter 55
Pritchard was adamant. 'Right. We're off duty. We're going to the pub, my shout.'
'With all this going on?' said Prickle.
'No arguments. We got the army taking care of things. Not only that, I owe you two big time.'
So they ended up in the Nagging Bladder, and Pritchard was quite happy to spend money from the wallet of the man hired to kill him.
'Cheers,'he said.
'Cheers,' said Bill and Pam.
'Not many in here,' said Pritchard.
'Are you surprised?' said Pam. 'Picking up the freebie paper off the drive is an adventure laced with danger. None of my friends dare to open their front doors these days.'
'We'll sort this out,' said Pritchard. 'I was impressed with the major in charge of things. Got his head screwed on the right way.'
Pam said, 'He's used to dealing with people. Nobody has the experience to deal with this.'
'Pam. We are Kiwi's. We don't take shit lying down. I've decided to go public about what I know. The more people know what happened, the safer I will be. No point killing the whistle blower, if the whistle has already been blown. If I give myself the most media crammed publicity, exposing the cover up, they won't be able to touch me, because everyone will know me.'
'And that's going to be your bulletproof vest, is it?' said Prickle. 'Because of the media, everyone will know what you look like and also what you've been up to.'
'I'm just speaking my mind. I'll get another round in.'
Pritchard went to the bar for refills and Maggie Driver the landlady said, 'Nice to have a few customers at last.'
'Business that bad?'
'This curfew is killing me. I get a few in at lunchtime, and customers buy during the day to drink in the evening at home, but we are still well down on the takings. I've had to lay off staff until things get back to normal.'
'Well, now we have the army here, hopefully we can resolve it soon.'
'Actually, I wanted a word with Bill. I need to know what's happening about Pam's surprise birthday party this weekend. Is it on or off?'
'Birthday? Pam's? Bill hasn't mentioned it to me. I'll have a word with him.'
'Right. Only with the curfew, I don't know even if we'll be allowed to open.'
'Leave it with me.'
'Thanks. We really need something to lighten things up around here.'
Pritchard returned with the drinks and when Pam went to the toilet, he had a chance to talk to Bill alone. 'You need to have a word with the landlady, Bill. She wants to know about Pam's birthday.'
'Pam's what? Bloody hell. I clean forgot.'
'I thought you had. The pub's been hit hard with this curfew. A decent party would help.'
Bill went over to the bar. 'Jeez, Maggie. I'm sorry. With everything going on, I clean forgot about Pam's birthday.'
'Men. Typical. Look, Bill. Business is pretty dead at the moment. I need to organise the food if you're having the party, and I can't afford to be out of pocket.'
'Leave it with me, Maggie. I promise I'll get back to you some time today.'
'Thanks, Bill.'
* * *
Captain Sanders, lieutenant Fuller and Sergeant Philpotts finally reached the valley floor. Each had their guns at the ready as they scanned the trees.
'Nothing,' whispered Sanders.
'We need to go deeper,' whispered Fuller.
'Don't look at me,' whispered Philpotts.
'We'll go in together,' said Sanders. 'Stick together and cover our backs.'
'In there?' Philpotts, said. 'You want us to go in there?'
'Have you any better ideas?' Sanders asked. 'How else are we going to see if there are bloody possums in there.'
'Bloody hell,' said Philpotts. 'Talk about putting our heads in the lion's mouth.'
'Follow me and keep close,' said Sanders.
Ready to shoot anything that moved, the three men went slowly into the trees. There was an eerie silence, the soldiers not even daring to breathe. They had gone two hundred yards when it became obvious that the possums weren't in the valley.
'Come on,' said Sanders. 'We need to tell the Major.'
Chapter 56
'Sergeant Prickle,' said Major Burns, offering a hand. 'Welcome. Take a seat.'
'Thanks. I won't hold you up. How's it going?'
'Give me men to fight any day of the week. We were pretty damned sure the main pack were in a valley not far from here. Nothing.'
'It won't be easy finding them.'
'I've helicopters taking another look using thermal imaging but there's a hell of a lot of bush to cover. Had a report from a chap south of the Whanganui River in the Parapara's. He saw a few possums on his property. When he had a look in daylight, nothing.'
That wasn't good news. 'Spreading further than we thought.'
'It looks that way. Was there anything specifically you wanted to see me about?'
'It seems trivial, under the circumstances,' admitted Prickle, sheepishly. 'It's my wife's fiftieth birthday on Saturday. I was planning a surprise birthday for her but with the curfew....'
'Hmm. I see where you're coming from. I suppose the pub's being hit hard.'
'Just a bit. I reckon the best thing to do will be to cancel the party until the curfew's been lifted.'
Burns seemed to be thinking things over. 'That would be like letting the bloody possums win. No, damn it. I tell you what we'll do. You give me a list of everyone local invited and their addresses and contact details. I'll organise our boys to collect them and see them safely home. Not only that, I'll make sure any of my men off duty are free to go to the pub. The business shouldn't suffer because of a few pests.'
'That's very kind of you, Major. That'll do a lot to raise moral.'
'My pleasure. Now. If you'll excuse me, I've a bunch of possums to find.'
Prickle called into the Nagging Bladder on his way home to give Maggie the good news.
'That's brilliant, Bill. If the army become regulars, I'll need more staff, not less.'
'You might as well get something out of it while it lasts. The Major is itching to get stuck into the possums and blast the crap out of them. At least he would if he could find them.'
'It gives me nightmares thinking they're out there somewhere, getting ready to eat us.'
'Thanks, Maggie. That's just about put me off my dinner. I'll see you
later.'
Chapter 57
'You're early,' said Rickie Matai. He had spent the last three hours in the barn, with the door slightly open, watching over the cows.
'I couldn't sleep,' said Stevie. 'Seen anything?'
'Nothing. Maybe they don't go back to the same place twice.'
'Dunno. What do you think about Dad selling up?'
'He doesn't mean it. He's not the type to be just doing nothing.'
Stevie wasn't so sure. 'This place could be ours one of these days. Maybe if we knuckled down, he'll change his mind.'
'We might as well. If we don't work hard here, we'll only end up grafting for some other bugger. At least if we stay here we'll have something to show for it at the end of the day.'
'Listen to us two. We must be growing up. Hey. Did you hear something?'
'No. I...Yeah. Cows are getting restless.'
The boys opened the barn door wider. 'See anything?' Stevie asked.
'Nothing. But the cows are coming this way. Shit. Look. Over there.'
'Go get Dad.'
'No need when he'll hear this,' said Stevie, picking up his gun. 'Come on.'
The super-pack of possums were pouring over the fence to get at the cattle. Even though it was dark, Rickie and Stevie made most shots count. Three minutes later, Charlie, barefoot and shirtless was by his sons side, blasting at random.
'I called the army,' he said between shots.
'There's too many, Dad,' said Stevie. 'They'll be on top of us soon.'
'We gotta keep them off the cows until the army gets here,' said Charlie. The possums were coming at them thick and fast and the ammunition was being used up. They needed another option. 'Keep shooting.'
Charlie ran to the barn. Minutes later, there was the sound of a big diesel engine firing up. The door of the barn was flung wide open and Charlie Matai drove his hay bailer out, black smoke belching out of the exhaust. Charlie turned the lights on and the brightness stopped the possums. With a clear view of the enemy, the boys blasted into the pack.