Catherine Jinks TheRoad (50 page)

‘And the kids . . .?’

‘Can sleep in the caravan,’ Verlie declared. ‘Peter can have Ross’s bed, and the girls can sleep on the floor, on quilts. There’ll be just enough room. You can have the other bed, Linda, and Ross and I will sleep in the car.’

‘Oh no.’ Linda shook her head. ‘You’re not sleeping in the car, Verlie, that’s not good.’

‘It’s all right. I’ll take the back seat.’

‘Dad.’
Again, Peter pulled at his father’s clothing. ‘Are we stopping here?’

‘Yes. We’re stopping here.’

‘Until morning,’ Linda added.

‘Why?’

‘Because something bloody peculiar is going on,’ Del broke in, her voice sharp. ‘We shoulda been there long ago. It doesn’t make sense.’

‘We must be on the wrong road,’ Linda said quickly, trying to reassure her son. ‘And since we can’t see where we are, exactly, we’re going to catch up on our sleep, a bit. Just until daylight.’

‘Stop. Revive. Survive,’ Verlie remarked, quoting an RTA advertising campaign. But Del was shaking her head.

‘We can’t be on the wrong road,’ she objected. ‘How can we be on the wrong road? It’s bloody
bitumen
.There’s only one bitumen road around here. That’s what I’m sayin – either we’ve got ourselves turned around, facin the wrong direction, or something’s completely bonkers.’

‘Yes, well, there’s no point discussing that again,’ Ross interrupted. ‘What we have to do now is get some sleep, because otherwise we won’t be able to
drive
, let alone work out what’s happening.’

‘But do you think – you know – that maybe someone
should
stay awake?’ Linda suggested, hesitantly. ‘I mean – with the gun?’

There was a brief silence. Peter realised, with a sudden chill, that most of the adults around him were as lost and confused as he was.

‘Oh, don’t worry about that,’ Del said dismissively. ‘We got Mongrel, eh boy? He’s a terrific guard dog.’ The old dog wagged his tail, panting, as Del scratched his head. ‘Doesn’t miss a thing.’

‘So we’ll just bed down, then?’ Verlie inquired. ‘And talk in the morning?’

‘I think so,’ said Noel. ‘Is that agreeable to everyone?’

Ross grunted. Linda nodded. Verlie smiled, and Del shrugged. Alec was staring at the ground, the butt of Del’s rifle tucked under his arm, its barrel sagging towards the earth.

‘What about you, Alec?’ Noel asked. ‘What do you think?’

Alec cleared his throat. He swallowed. Finally he said: ‘I think we should head for the nearest farm. Find a land line. Call the coppers.’

‘Yes, of course. That’s a sensible suggestion, but – was it Linda? – as Linda pointed out, we can’t do much in the dark,’ Noel observed gently. ‘You’ve no objection to sleeping in Del’s car, I take it?’