Silver Clouds (11 page)

‘‘I'm not sure I can face it,' said Tessa.

‘Just open it,' Elsie said gently.

Tessa tore at the envelope and her stomach did a little tumble turn as she saw her great-aunt's familiar handwriting.

‘“My Dear Tessa,”' she read out loud. ‘“I do hope you come back from England for my funeral. Your continuing silence is worrying me and I wonder if it's time for you to start on something fresh. And I have just the thing for you. My house will need cleaning out and guess what, my darling? You're it.”'

Tessa was silent as she re-read the sentence over and over.
Clean out her house?
As the words sunk in, she began to shake her head.

‘No!' The word erupted from her. ‘No way. She can't keep me here. No, that should be Dad's job or Mum's. Not mine!' Tears formed. Her hands began to shake. A movie of images spun in front of her eyes; Spider's house, her bedroom, the kitchen. The Story Telling Chair.

‘Read on,' Elsie urged.

Tessa wiped her eyes, still shaking. How could Spider ask her to do that?

‘Um . . . “Cleaning out. Please take what you wish and ask the others what they would like. But the things I want you to take care of are the letters and history of our family. I'm entrusting this to you. Yes! Our family has a few skeletons and secrets.

‘“You can squawk all you like, my dear, and curse just as much. Don't worry; I know you're doing it! But I have a reason for doing this. As I said, your silence is bothering me. When you don't write to me, I know something isn't right. You need to come home, which, if you remember, I suggested you do before you left for England. You need to face your fears, get back to your roots, and heal properly – something you've never done.

‘“And you don't know it yet, but your whole family needs you. Ryan isn't happy – maybe that's something you can help him with. Peggy is tired – she needs another pair of hands. And Marni needs a friend.

‘“I know you aren't the answer to all these problems and I don't want you to try and fix everyone's issues, because you need fixing, too, but you being on Danjar Plains, even just for a short while, will make a difference. To everyone.

‘“I love you, my darling girl. You were the daughter I never had – corny I know, but it's the only way I know how to express my love enough. Now make me proud and do as I ask. Love, Spider.”'

Tessa's tears fell onto Spider's last letter.

Tessa was staring intently at the computer screen when Ryan's LandCruiser pulled up at the homestead in a cloud of dust. She quickly shoved the letter, which she'd been carrying with her constantly, into her pocket and exited Facebook.

Her mind was all over the place. One moment she was thinking about Spider and her request. The next, she was trying to track where those bloody photos had come from, but she always ended up in the same place – a Troll account, just as Jaz had said, and which had since been deleted.

Leaning back in her chair she contemplated the options. It didn't take long. Really, the only one was to forget about it. So what if the photos had appeared on the ‘Drunk at a Nightclub' photos page. And did it really matter if friends had left comments about them on her Facebook wall? After all, she didn't have to face any of these people. She wasn't in London. She was here, on Danjar Plains, with the world's worst job hanging over her head.

Spider's letter had left her in shock. She had never once thought about cleaning out a dead relative's house. How would she feel when she pulled out Spider's favourite pair of pants and shirt? And then there was this hinting at family skeletons. Well, obviously there was nothing too much there! Tessa thought the Mathisons might well be the most boring family in the history of the universe.

‘Want to come for a drive?' Ryan was at the office door. He looked worn out.

‘Didn't you sleep? You look terrible.'

‘I went for a drive last night. Didn't get home until after midnight. Bit too hot last night to get any decent rest after that. The bloody mozzies gave us hell, too. Noisy, annoying little buggers.'

Tessa's face lit up with a smile. ‘I hate it when they just buzz round and around your head and wake you up. I'd forgotten that!'

‘I wish I could. There was more than one in the room last night and fly spray doesn't seem to kill them anymore. I reckon Marni's sprayed them so much they've become resistant!'

‘Why were you out driving last night?' Tessa asked, curious.

‘Someone's dropping fences and pinching stock. I was out driving the boundary to see if I could find anything. Spider and I used to do it together some nights. Anyway, I'm heading out to Deep Bore. Thought we could swing past Aunty Spider's place if you want to. You haven't been there since you arrived home.'

‘I'll come for a drive, but I don't know that I want to go into her house. It would feel like trespassing or something.' Tessa held out her hands like she was warding off something.

‘Yeah, I know, but there's no one there. We should at least check on it.'

As they drove out to the bore, Tessa saw many places full of memories. The spot where they used to have family picnics in the rocky outcrop; and the place where she had fallen off the ute and broken her wrist during the last muster she'd ever been involved in.

‘You know my wrist still aches, from when I broke it on that muster,' Tessa said, gently rubbing her arm.

‘That was all
your
fault,' Ryan said with a grin. ‘If you hadn't been yelling into the wind, I wouldn't have stuck my head out the window to hear you and not seen the trough.'

‘I still can't believe you hit it!' Tessa laughed. ‘Remember how cross Dad was?'

‘I remember how sore my bloody pride was.'

‘So was my wrist.'

‘And we didn't get the sheep in for shearing, so we were both in the shit! Fun times.'

Tessa thought for a moment. ‘Yeah,' she answered, nodding. ‘Yeah they were.'

‘And the pool comp we used to have!'

Tessa grinned. ‘Yes! That was the one thing I could beat you at.'

‘Bit of a shame Mum and Dad sold the table. I could've tried to redeem myself.'

‘In your dreams!'

They wound their way through the bush and it wasn't long before Tessa thought of another childhood memory.

‘Do you remember the way we used to race? You on the motorbike and me in the ute? Up the airstrip? It was so much fun!'

‘I always won,' Ryan said matter-of-factly.

‘Could have had something to do with the fact that you could take off from a standing start and get to sixty clicks in no time at all. I had to change up through all the gears!' She whacked Ryan's arm and giggled.

‘It's nice to hear you laugh, little sis,' he said.

‘I like laughing.'

‘Good to know. So, you gonna spill on the whole story about why you resigned?'

The question took Tessa by surprise, although it probably shouldn't have. ‘Only if you tell me why you're really so tired and looking not particularly happy with life,' she shot back as quickly as she could.

Ryan glanced across at her.

‘Watch where you're going.' Tessa pointed as the LandCruiser hit a pothole and bounced a couple of times. ‘Don't think Dad would forgive us if we stuffed something at our age!'

Ryan didn't answer, but a wry smile played on his lips.

They drove in silence until they reached the bore. Ryan stopped the ute and they both jumped out. A windmill towered above, the blades creaking as it turned. Water gushed into the cement tank, the sound resonating across the flat ground. There wasn't any stock Tessa could see, but a magpie was sitting on the edge of the tank and further out in the sun two galahs were pulling up grass for the roots. White limestone rocks littered the ground. The stock tracks wound in between the clumps of bushes and low trees, all the way to the water.

‘Gotta check the oil in the head,' Ryan said. ‘Can't wait until we replace all these bloody mills with solar pumps.' He began to climb the tower. ‘Can you look in the tank? Needs to be at least three-quarters full. Better if it's only about a foot from the top.'

Tessa gingerly picked her way through the ankle-high bushes. Her Converse sneakers were now much worse for wear – she'd have to get some proper boots if she was going to stay. Not that she'd made up her mind.

She watched as Ryan shimmied up the ladder of the mill.

Flashback: Kendra climbing up the house windmill.

She squeezed her eyes shut.

Flashback: Jaz at the top of the ladder.

Tessa rubbed her eyes, trying to rub away the images.

‘No,' she muttered. ‘No. He does this all the time.' Slamming the door shut on her memories, she reached the ladder that was leaning up against the cement tank.

She swung herself up onto the first rung.

It fell backwards and she let out an ear-piercing shriek as she fell and landed on her bum. ‘It's not attached!'

Ryan looked down from halfway up the windmill and started to laugh. ‘You are so citified. I wish you could see yourself.'

Heart thumping, Tessa got to her feet and put her hands to her chest for a moment. She took a few deep breaths and then dusted off her shorts. ‘Ouch!' She looked down at her hands and saw four bindi-eye prickles stuck in one palm. She pulled them out, her eyes smarting.

‘You could have told me.'

‘Wouldn't have been as much fun.'

Ryan made his way to the top of the windmill, checked the oil and started to climb down.

Tessa stood the ladder up and leaned it back against the tank, carefully putting her foot on the first rung.

‘Don't worry,' Ryan said. ‘I can see it from here. It's full.'

‘Did you just want to see me fall?' asked Tessa standing with her arms folded as Ryan jumped the last few feet and landed lightly on the ground.

‘I'm just catching up on all the brotherly tricks I should have been able to play, when you weren't here. Don't be so uptight. Live a little! Laugh a lot.'

I've lived more than you know
, Tessa thought as she opened the door to the ute.

‘Don't get back in there. Come and sit in the shade,' Ryan said as he opened a tucker box. ‘It's smoko time.'

‘You're not going to light a fire and boil the billy, are you? Surely not today? It's as hot as Hades! What about fires?'

‘We have a new invention called a Thermos,' Ryan quipped.

He poured a pannikin of tea and handed it to her. ‘Milk and sugar is here,' he said, handing her a tube of condensed milk.

‘What?'

‘That's the milk and sugar – bloody hell, Tessie, it hasn't been that long. We did this when we were kids. Saves taking real milk out with us. It would go rotten in the heat. Have you purposely forgotten everything to do with the station?'

Tessa squeezed the milk into her tea. ‘Possibly,' she said quietly and took a sip. ‘So you said something earlier about dropped fences and Aunty Spider?'

Ryan crouched down, resting his pannikin on one knee and scraped the ground with a stick. ‘It's a bit unclear really. Someone is dropping fences and encouraging stock across into holding yards on the neighbour's place. It's happening everywhere out here. Every so often, I go for a nightly drive, just to see what's what. Especially on moonlit nights, when it's more likely that whoever's doing it would be operating. Aunty Spider loved coming with me. There was a mystery to be solved and she wanted to be a part of it. Anyway,' he flicked his hand, ‘let's not talk about that. Let's talk about London.'

‘Let's not,' Tessa said firmly. ‘How's Marni? I've hardly seen her since the funeral.' She hoped the swift change of subject would deflect any more questions.

‘She's fine. It's not unusual to not see her around much. She stays in the house a lot.'

‘She seems unhappy,' Tessa ventured.

‘Yeah, I think she is.' Ryan finished off the last of his tea and threw the cup and spoon into the tucker box. They landed with a clang and Tessa figured that was the end of the conversation, so she did the same.

‘I'll tell you a secret,' Tessa said as they climbed back into the ute. ‘Spider asked me to stay and clean out her house.'

‘Like that's a secret!' Ryan scoffed. ‘Who else was going to do it?'

‘Not me! How on earth did she think I would get time off work to do that? I'm always so . . .'

‘Busy, yeah, we know.'

Tessa threw him a look. ‘I never really gave it any thought, I guess.'

Ryan started the ute and put it into gear. ‘So, you going to stay and do it or what?'

‘I'm not sure I have a choice.'

‘Well, if you haven't got a job, you might as well hang around. You could stay at Spider's – get out from under the olds. Must be difficult to stay with them when you've been living by yourself for a while.'

Tessa pretended to give it some thought.

‘Even if it's only for a month or two,' Ryan continued. ‘The Nullarbor Muster is coming up. It's got to have been seven years since you've been to one of them. We used to live for it when we were kids. You'd get to see a few of your old School of the Air friends, too.'

‘Well, I guess I could,' Tessa mused. She thought for a little while then glanced across at Ryan. ‘So are we going to Spider's?'

‘Yeah. Be there in about half an hour. You know, her house was always just far enough away from all the homesteads and yards that it was private for her, but close enough for us kids to walk if we wanted.'

‘Yeah. That's just how she liked it.' She shivered and noticed Ryan glancing at her. ‘What?'

‘You'll be okay. It's just a house that holds some memories. Mostly good ones. You'll probably enjoy seeing it again.'