Where There Is Smoke

by Elisabeth Rose

  The breakfast room was similarly bare, with no sign of Gemma waiting to provide coffee or eggs.

  Had everyone gone? Had Hugh left late last night as well? It seemed he had. The large master bedroom where Mama had packed last night was empty. Voices outside took her to the terrace when she headed back to the kitchen for food. Two delivery men moved about folding and stacking the tables and chairs onto trolleys. The marquee was already gone as was the portable dance floor. They must have arrived early.

  She ran into her own bedroom to throw on shorts and T-shirt over her bikini and shove her feet into scuffs before going down to greet them.

  ‘G’day,’ one said as she appeared. ‘Good party?’

  ‘Yes, thanks. What time did you arrive?’

  ‘About seven. Orders were to get cleared here by ten.’

  That sounded like Hugh. He and Mama were planning to leave The Grange by eleven at the latest. Those plans had changed drastically last night.

  ‘Did you see anyone this morning?’

  ‘That girl who was here when we set up—the blonde?’

  ‘Gemma. What did she say?’

  ‘Nuthin’ much. Just asked if we were right because everyone was leaving.’

  ‘What time was that?’

  ‘When we got here.’

  ‘Did you see them go?’

  ‘Heard cars leaving around seven-thirty.’

  He grinned. ‘Didja get left behind?’

  ‘No. Thanks.’

  She walked out the gate to the yard and checked the garage on the way to the stables where Rod would be up doing the morning chores. Her car stood in solitary state.

  ‘Gone without so much as a goodbye,’ she muttered. Wind whipped dust up in little eddies and tugged at her hair as she walked. The sky had a coppery sheen, the scent of smoke stronger than yesterday.

  The bushfire. Rod’s words crashed into her head, driving out all other thoughts. ‘If the wind picks up we could be in trouble.’ Were they in trouble? Which way was it blowing?

  She hurried over the remaining distance, heart pounding with a whole other primal fear.

  ‘Rod,’ she called as she entered the big open doorway, blinking as her eyes adjusted to the relative gloom inside. ‘Are you there?’

  ‘Down the end.’ His voice came from the last stall on the left.

  Two horses watched curiously as she passed them. Neither was Calypso. If a fire was coming what would they do?

  She reached the stall. Rod was with the big black stallion.

  ‘Hi,’ she said.

  ‘Morning,’ he said. ‘I’ll have to call Oliver. This boy’s not feeling too good.’

  ‘Fine. Rod, did you know everyone’s gone?’

  He patted the horse’s neck and joined her, closing the door carefully. ‘I heard the cars this morning.’

  ‘Did Hugh speak to you?’

  He shook his head. ‘Weren’t they supposed to leave today?’

  He didn’t know. How could he?

  ‘What’s wrong?’ He frowned, studying her face.

  ‘They had a massive bust-up in the middle of dinner. Viivi slapped him and walked out.’

  ‘Wow. That sounds …

  ‘Serious,’ she said. ‘She’s furious and she’s talking divorce. She and Brenda left last night. Took the Mercedes.’

  ‘And now everyone else has gone, too. Leaving you here alone. Are you staying?’

  ‘Angus took my keys so I can’t get into my apartment.’

  He shook his head. ‘Christ. I’m sorry, Krista.’

  ‘He rang me last night just as he was about to fly out of the country.’

  ‘He never said a word to me about doing that.’ He cursed under his breath. ‘Where does that leave you? What about the Calypso thing?’

  ‘It’s now my problem. Hugh isn’t getting involved. He reckons nothing will happen.’

  ‘Right. Okay. Well, something is about to happen. You can smell the smoke, can’t you?’

  ‘Yes. Is it dangerous?’

  ‘Not right now, but I was going to bring the horses in and be ready to leave if we have to. I’ve had the owners of the two mares on the phone asking about it but they seemed happy enough that we were well prepared.’

  ‘Where would you go?’

  ‘I got a text from the local fire service saying the Taylor’s Bend showground is the centre for evacuated horses and other livestock. They have some stables and yards. I’d like to get them out of here early to be on the safe side but they aren’t expecting anyone until later today.’

  ‘What can I do?’

  ‘Call Oliver about the stallion. He might be able to house him there. I can’t take him near other people’s horses. Does he have a float?’

  ‘I didn’t see one but he has a horse so maybe.’

  ‘We can’t take all the horses in one trip thanks to Angus smashing up the double float. The other one takes four and we have six to move. Good thing Archie is already gone.’

  ‘I’ll ask him. What else?’

  ‘Pack up anything you don’t want to lose and load it into the car. I’ll bring in the other mares so we’re ready to go when we have to.’

  Krista ran back to the house. The two men were loading tables into the truck, moving much faster than before.

  ‘Not looking good,’ one of them said as she hurried by.

  ‘Are you nearly finished?’

  ‘Just about.’

  She sprang up the stairs, taking them two at a time, and pounded into her bedroom to snatch her phone from the bedside table.

  Oliver answered almost immediately.

  ‘Hi, it’s Krista,’ she said and had to pause, swallow and regain her breath.

  ‘Morning. How are things?’

  ‘Everyone’s gone. It’s just me and Rod and the fire is coming. He says we should get ready to evacuate the horses and he wants to know if you have a float because we can only move four and we have six.’

  ‘Slow down. How close is the fire?’

  ‘I don’t know but he said we should be safe and take the horses into the showground soon, just in case.’

  ‘Okay. I do have a float.’

  ‘He wondered if you could take the stallion to your place because he was going to call you anyway about him. He’s sick.’

  ‘I guess so. Calm down, Krista. I checked the fire report a little while ago and it’s moving slowly.’

  ‘But the wind’s much stronger.’

  ‘It’s taking it away from you at the moment.’

  ‘But it can change.’

  ‘Yes, it can. I’ll be out there in about forty-five minutes.’

  ‘All right. Thanks, Oliver. Thank you.’

  ‘Are there any other animals out there? Chooks or whatever?’

  ‘I don’t know. Rod will take care of them. He’s really good.’

  ‘You’re lucky he’s there.’

  ‘I know. See you soon.’

  She disconnected, trembling, and for a moment stood frozen in place, undecided about what to do next. Pack. She sprang into action. Luckily she hadn’t brought much but what she did have was totally unsuitable for what was happening. Idiot. Fancy not bringing socks and sneakers. She dragged on jeans and the T-shirt. Maybe Mama had left something behind. They wore the same size shoe. She dragged her bags downstairs to the front door then raced along the corridor to the master bedroom. Mama would have taken anything important with her and there was nothing personal here she needed to rescue for her.

  She charged into the walk-in closet. Two pairs of shoes lay on the floor along with a hideous pair of yellow fluoro joggers. Her phone rang.

  ‘Mama?’

  ‘Krista, look after Lola will you, please? I couldn’t find her quickly last night. I don’t know where she was.’

  ‘Sure.’

  ‘Is Hugh there?’

  ‘No, everyone’s gone.’

  ‘Did he say anything?

  ‘I didn’t see him. I was asleep when he left.’

&
nbsp; ‘Typical. Bye-bye.’

  ‘Mama there’s …’ Too late, the line was dead.

  Typical of Hugh or of herself?

  And Lola? Where was Lola?

  Chapter 9

  Krista shoved her bare feet into the joggers and yelled, ‘Lola, where are you? Here girl,’ as she ran along the corridor flinging doors open in case the dog was shut in somewhere. No answering yap came from anywhere downstairs.

  ‘Lola.’ She charged back upstairs

  The dog hadn’t been in the house this morning. Usually she was pottering about getting in the way of the kitchen staff and wanting food. Maybe Hugh took her with him. Doubtful but worth a try. Surprisingly, he answered.

  ‘Krista.’

  ‘Hugh, do you have Lola with you?’

  ‘No, ask your mother.’

  ‘She wanted me to look after her but I can’t find her and there’s a bushfire coming.’

  Silence.

  ‘I’m sorry to leave you in a mess,’ he said and he sounded genuinely remorseful. ‘How close is it?’

  ‘Rod said it’s not dangerous yet but that can change. We’re moving the horses into Taylor’s Bend later today.’

  ‘Good man. Do what he says, Krista, and get out of there. It’s not worth risking your life.’

  ‘I won’t.’

  ‘I have to go. Look after yourself.’

  Another line clicked dead in her ear. No mention of the other threat. Look after herself? She’d give it her best shot because no-one else in her family gave a damn.

  ‘Lola.’

  No response upstairs.

  In the garden?

  One of the men was closing the back of the truck when she ran out the gate. The other one, already in the cabin, started the engine.

  ‘Have you seen our little dog this morning? Brown and white?’

  ‘No, sorry.’

  ‘Okay, thanks.’

  He waved and climbed aboard.

  Where the hell was she?

  ‘Lola,’ she yelled. Still calling, she went back into the garden and peered into the beds that had so fascinated Lola yesterday. No sign of her. She stood, hands on hips, staring around the deserted area. There was no more she could do other than hope Lola decided to reappear.

  Krista went to the garage to bring her car to the front door ready to scramble if necessary. The wind hadn’t increased but swirled in unpleasant gusts. She scanned the sky anxiously as she brought her suitcase out and loaded it into the boot along with her dress bag. Still the same strange colour as earlier, and the same tangy smell of smoke.

  Rod was in the yard adjoining the stables, putting a halter on the last horse.

  ‘Oliver’s coming with a float,’ she said. ‘He’ll be about forty-five minutes and he said the stallion can go to his place.’

  ‘Good. Is it a double float?’

  ‘I didn’t ask, sorry.’

  ‘It’s okay. We can do a second run if we have to.’

  ‘Rod, I can’t find Lola.’

  ‘Damn. Have you looked all over the house? Opened doors?’

  ‘Yes but she’d bark if she was shut in somewhere. Those two guys packing up the tables and chairs hadn’t seen her this morning. They’ve just left.’

  ‘Have another look around outside.’

  ‘Oliver wondered if there were other animals here?’

  ‘No. Amy and I are going to get chooks we but haven’t yet. Too busy.’

  ‘Okay. I’ll look for Lola.’

  She turned to go but he said, ‘Love the shoes, by the way.’

  He had a massive grin and she had to laugh.

  ‘Mama left them behind.’

  ‘I’m not surprised. Hope they don’t frighten the horses.’

  ‘Ha-de-ha.’

  This time she did a more thorough search of the garden, kneeling to peer under bushes, opening the door to the changing room by the pool and peering in even though that was a highly unlikely place to find her, and standing on the tiled edge searching intently for any sign of a little brown and white body sunk to the depths of the water.

  ‘Lola,’ she yelled, louder each time.

  She walked right around the outside of the large house. Where could she possibly be? Had someone taken her last night? Why would they? Everyone in attendance could buy their own pedigreed dog without a moment’s thought. Everyone knew Mama loved Lola and everyone liked Mama enough to attend her party. No-one would want to take her pet and anyway, why would someone bother with Lola? She was yappy, getting on in years so past breeding, shed hairs everywhere and got in the way most of the time.

  Krista walked across to the paddock fence behind the house and stared across the hostile, brown expanse. A few gum trees offered patchy shade from the relentless sun but now their upper branches thrashed about in the increasing wind. When she shouted, her words were snatched from her mouth and sucked away to disappear into the turbulent air. She turned and followed the fence line to its junction with the white-painted wooden rail fence running beside the driveway.

  She crossed the dusty track and climbed onto the fence to scan the other field, deserted now Rod had brought in all the horses. Nothing. No small white and brown figure broke the dismal stretch of dried grass. It was as if this land had swallowed her whole.

  The sound of an engine made her jump down and walk towards the stables. Rod had used his ute to bring the big horse float closer to the stable doors and opened the back, ready to load the first evacuees.

  ‘Find her?’ he asked.

  She chased the mad imaginings of a cannibalistic countryside from her mind. The unrelenting heat and the wind, bearing with it gritty dust and dead leaves, was enough to drive anyone insane.

  ‘No. Not a sign. Do you think someone might have taken her last night?’

  ‘It’s possible, I suppose. Why, though?’

  ‘I don’t know, I’m just guessing. Could she be hurt somewhere?’ She pushed hair from her eyes. Short though the style was, the longer front bits were annoying in these conditions. Normally it sat neatly. Normally she wasn’t outside being sandblasted by the wind.

  ‘That’s more likely, I’d say. There are a lot of snakes around.’

  ‘Oh no.’ She hadn’t even thought of snakes, snakebite.

  ‘Take a look around the stables. I haven’t seen her in the yards or anywhere obvious, but she could be in one of the empty stalls or even over near my house. Check there too. Go round the back and look under the steps. She could have got under the house. There’s a torch in the laundry.’

  ‘Okay. Do you need help here?’

  ‘No, thanks. I won’t get the horses on board until Oliver gets here and we’re ready to go, so I’ll check the stables properly after I’ve loaded some feed into the truck. Do you have spare room in your car?’

  ‘Yes. I’ll bring it down here.’

  Having reparked the BMW, Krista strode to the small, neat weatherboard cottage tucked away to the side, behind the stables. Amy had managed to keep roses alive in the drought and a flourishing herb garden grew in pots along the verandah. The front of the house was only two steps up, with no access underneath for even a little Lola-sized animal, but the land sloped down to the rear.

  ‘Lola,’ she yelled as she walked down the path. A Hills hoist washing line with a towel, underwear, shirts and socks pegged up spun in the wind. Krista ran across and caught the wildly flapping towel, bundling it and the other garments under her arm. She snatched the peg bucket up and ran to the house. The torch lay on a shelf in the laundry.

  Back outside, she got down on hands and knees next to the steps leading to the verandah. ‘Lola.’

  The beam was strong and illuminated, through a wire-netting barrier, bare earth and the brick pile foundations under the house. ‘Lola. Are you there?’

  The only sound was the wind rustling busily in the trees nearby and the rattle of a loose board somewhere. Krista straightened and gazed around the yard. Lola could be anywhere and she had no way of knowing how lo
ng she’d been missing. If she’d been bitten by a snake she could have died immediately. She could be lying in a paddock, hidden by a fallen branch or a dip in the ground.

  Krista walked slowly back to the stables. Rod had moved her gear to the front seat and was stacking sacks of something and a pile of empty buckets in the boot of her car. Her stomach growled, suddenly complaining about the lack of breakfast.

  ‘No luck?’

  ‘No. I’ve no idea where to look now.’

  ‘Oliver phoned and said he’ll be a bit late. Emergency with a pregnant pig.’

  ‘Do we have time?’

  ‘I haven’t had any notice of immediate evacuation but we’re on standby. Last update said the wind had shifted and the fire had swung around to the west a bit more, which is good news for us. Things can change very quickly though.’

  ‘Shall I make tea? I haven’t had anything to eat yet.’

  ‘Sounds good. I could do with some food too. We might not get a chance later.’

  ‘Sure. Come in when you’re ready.’

  In the kitchen, Krista discovered plenty of leftovers from last night’s dinner in the form of avocados, sliced and unsliced melons, salads, bread rolls, cold meat and chocolate mousse. She prepared a pot of tea and set about making a couple of meat and salad rolls for Rod. Then she ate some of the fruit while eggs boiled on the stove for her breakfast.

  What would she do if Rod said they had to leave before she found Lola? If Mama and Hugh didn’t know where she was, no-one else would have any idea. She hadn’t seen Lola since pre-dinner drinks in the garden when she was talking to Oliver. She wasn’t in Mama’s room when she was packing and Mama had been far too furious and preoccupied to think of her dog if she wasn’t actually in sight. She was leaving Lola behind, in Krista’s care, when she and Hugh went skiing, so in her mind Lola was taken care of whether plans changed or not.

  After Rod had devoured the rolls and slurped down two cups of tea, he checked the fire status report.

  ‘No change,’ he said.

  ‘What does that mean? Shall we leave?’

  ‘Not yet. We might not have to at all if the fire keeps on the way it’s going now.’

  ‘Will you tell Oliver not to come?’

  ‘I want him to check Fred and if he has the float he could take him anyway. Then, if we have to leave fast, we can.’