The Other Side of Nowhere (30 page)

We hadn’t heard anything about what had become of Ali and Amira and the others. Nick’s dad said they’d be well looked-after, but there was no guarantee they’d get to stay in the country. I vowed that when I got home, the first thing I was going to do was find out where they were and to make sure they were okay.

A nurse bustled into the room. ‘You’ve got a visitor,’ she announced happily, as if the steady parade of police, journalists and overwrought parents hadn’t counted.

Stephanie walked into the room. I sat up in the bed and, conscious of the hideous hospital pyjamas I was wearing, pulled the sheets up a little higher. I saw George smile out of the corner of my eye, which only made me feel more self-conscious. I just knew I was turning beetroot red.

Stephanie said hi to everyone then came and sat on the end of my bed. ‘So, how’s it goin’, Captain Sparrow?’

‘Yeah, hi … Good,’ I mumbled like a total idiot. ‘You?’

‘I’m cool,’ she replied casually.

No kidding
, I thought. I’d thought of her heaps over the past couple of days. But I’d been pretty sure I’d never see her again.

Just then, two police officers came into the ward and stood right behind Stephanie.

She turned to look at them, then looked back at me. ‘I’m really sorry, Johnno,’ she began with a deadpan look. ‘But we’re going to have to press charges on account of you stealing my dad’s boat.’

I wasn’t sure I’d heard her right. ‘Huh?’ My mouth gaped open.

Then I noticed that the police looked as confused as I was.

Stephanie cracked a huge grin. ‘Just kidding,’ she said, putting a reassuring hand on my forearm. ‘I’ve never seen these guys before.’ She gave me a sly wink.

I shook my head at her, but all I could think was that I never wanted her to stop touching my arm.

One of the police officers cleared his throat and stepped out from behind Stephanie. He had a big belly and a neck like a turkey. ‘Sorry to interrupt, folks, but it’s come to our attention that there may have been a significant amount of money in a suitcase and some canvas bags – money paid in return for safe passage to this country. Those bags were last seen in the inflatable you used to get away. I don’t suppose you could shed some light on what happened to them?’

I swallowed nervously, feeling strangely guilty, as if I’d just been accused of stealing a boatload of money. Which I guess is pretty much what we’d done, albeit in unique circumstances. I guess we probably should have mentioned it at some point, but to be honest, in all the fuss of the last couple of days I had completely forgotten about the money. I glanced sideways at Nick and George and, by their sheepish looks, I figured they hadn’t thought about it either.

‘Um, yeah,’ I replied. ‘It’s on the island. We buried the bags.’

Officer Turkey Neck looked down at me from under the peak of his cap. ‘Buried, eh? You’d be able to find them again, I suppose?’

I pictured the tree with the X we’d marked clearly on its trunk. ‘Yeah, I’d say so.’

The policeman gave a satisfied nod and turned to the nurse, who was making a show of reading Nick’s medical chart, although I think she was hanging around just to pick up the gossip. ‘Miss, how long till these folks can be discharged?’

The nurse studied the chart. ‘Well, Mr Barnes and his son are not going anywhere for the next couple of days, but Mr Jones will be leaving us later this morning.’

The turkey neck wobbled like jelly as the policeman nodded his head. ‘I see. Well, before you go too far, son, we’re going to need you to come with us to the island and locate that money.’

My heart skipped a beat. ‘The island? Why? I mean … I can’t. Mum and Dad are coming to take me home,’ I stammered. Lion Island was the last place I wanted to go.

‘I’m sorry, son, but we need to recover that money. It’s very important evidence.’

I groaned and shot a look at George. She gave me a sympathetic smile. We’d tried so hard to get off Lion Island. I couldn’t believe I was about to go straight back there.

Stephanie looked over at me, and then at the cops. ‘Can I come?’ she asked enthusiastically.

This time my heart definitely skipped a beat.

She looked kind of embarrassed. ‘I mean, we have to stay here for a few days anyway, on account of some pirate trashing our boat … And it’s not like I’ve got anything better to do,’ she said casually.

I saw George smiling cheekily. ‘You know I’d love to come, Johnno,’ she said, ‘but I think if I spend one extra day here my folks are going to go totally nuts. And in any case, I don’t know exactly where you boys buried your treasure.’

‘Yeah, I guess not,’ I replied vaguely, my eyes fixed on Stephanie’s smile.

‘Right then,’ said Turkey Neck, no doubt satisfied we were all finally on the same page. ‘We’ll call in the chopper and head out there this afternoon.’

‘Chopper?’ echoed Nick. I could see in his eyes he was dead jealous.

But I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face. ‘Sorry, Nick.’

‘No need to take the boat when you can fly,’ said the policeman, turning around to leave. ‘We’ll be in touch later today, John.’

I grinned at Stephanie, who smiled back, her green eyes sparkling. Her fingertips reached out and touched mine.

Maybe going back to Lion Island wouldn’t be so bad after all.

To Carolyn, Lilli, Nicholas and Buster

The Other Side of Nowhere
published in Australia in 2014 by
Hardie Grant Egmont
Ground Floor, Building 1, 658 Church Street
Richmond, Victoria 3121, Australia
www.hardiegrantegmont.com.au

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Text copyright © 2014 Steve Johnston
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