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“There’ll be food at the house. We’ll be there soon,” she promised. Although she had no idea if that was true. Wazza hadn’t mentioned anything about what sort of rations she might find out there. She hoped Daisy kept a well-stocked pantry.
Kee sat back and was content to soak in the scenery and let Wazza drive unhindered. She could ask about food later. She stared through the sparse scrubland, which opened up as they came over a small rise. Tall, spindly, eucalyptus trees were scattered randomly across an open savannah of brown tussock grassland. Now and then, one of those huge trees with spider-like branches reaching for the sky was dotted in between the eucalypts. Wazza had called it a bottle tree, from memory. He’d also said that when the rain came, there would be green grass as far as the eye could see. But now, they were surrounded by dead, brown clumps, and the desiccated skeletons of weeds rustling in the dry wind.
Squinting through the trees, she thought she could make out a flash of dull red and a square shape at odds with the native vegetation. As they got closer, she could see the faded, red metal side of what looked to be shipping containers.
“Over there,” Wazza indicated with his chin toward the buildings.
“I see it.”
They followed the road through a thick copse of trees and then emerged into a cleared area around the buildings. Wazza pulled up in the middle of the gravel clearing. Kee tried to take everything in at once. Four containers were set up onto high concrete pads, and it took a second for Kee to decide this was probably to keep them away from any flooding damage.
This strange-looking homestead consisted of two shipping containers, adjoined end-to-end to make one long, thin room, and two more at right angles, forming two wings that jutted out on either side.
“This place was pretty run-down when Daisy first moved here,” Wazza said.
Kee raised her eyebrows but said nothing. It still looked pretty run-down to her.
“Daisy works for Angel Gold Corp, a Queensland-based, gold-mining company, finding more sustainable methods of rejuvenating old mine sites, as well as discovering ways to help to give back to remote communities.” Wazza’ voice held a touch of pride and Kee suddenly decided she’d like to meet Daisy one day. She sounded like a special person. And if Wazza liked her, then she must be nice.
“They added these two sea containers to the main structure, one at each end,” he said, undoing his seatbelt. “There’s now a whole new bedroom, and a modern bathroom in the wing on that side of the building. You’ll like it, I think.”
Kee found it hard to stop the skeptical lift of her mouth. But beggars couldn’t be choosers, and at least this would be a roof over their heads.
“Where are we?” Benni’s voice came from the back seat, reminding Kee of her duties. Quickly, she unbuckled her own seatbelt and jumped down onto the dry earth. The scorching heat hit her as soon as she opened the door. She’d never experienced such dry, unrelenting heat as this. It was enough to suck the moisture straight out of your skin. She reached in and freed Benni from her booster, holding her on her hip so they could both survey the place they might call home.
“This is where we’re going to stay for a few days,” Kee replied. “It looks like fun, hey? A new adventure.”
“Yeah.” Benni’s eyes lit up and Kee smiled. It didn’t take much to ignite Benni’s delight. Sometimes she wished she could hold on to such childish optimism. She made a decision that she was going to like this place, no matter what. She was going to look at things through Benni’s eyes, for once.
“Wait here.” Wazza disappeared around the side of the building, leaving her and Benni standing in the hot sun. Now she understood why Wazza wore that big, wide-brimmed hat, to keep the sun off his face. A cowboy hat. She needed to get them both one of those.
A large, covered patio jutted out from the front door, with a set of out outdoor furniture scattered under the iron roof. It might be a nice place to sit and enjoy a leisurely dinner, once the fierce sun had disappeared. Kee walked over to stand in the shade, Benni still balanced on her hip, her daughter’s eyes wide as she took everything in.
“Found it.” Wazza held up a key as he jogged around the side of the structure. “I’ll show you where it’s kept before I go.” He slipped the key into the lock and opened the metal door wide, waving for Kee to precede him.
It was even hotter inside, almost like an oven, and Kee hesitated on the threshold.
“Don’t worry, I’ll get the air con going,” Wazza said, hovering behind her until Kee stepped into the room. A kitchenette took up most of the far wall directly ahead, with a small, round table and four chairs to be able to sit and eat. Farther down the long room was a living area, with a couch, and two winged chairs, a television mounted on the wall, and a small stereo set. It all looked surprisingly fresh and modern, with floorboards, a brand-new gas stovetop, a microwave, and a gleaming, stainless-steel sink.
Wazza brushed past her shoulder and flicked a button on the wall. “It’ll take a few minutes to cool the place down, but I can vouch for how well it works. When the mining company updated the place, they made sure Daisy had the best of everything. They even installed a brand-new block of storage batteries, and new solar panels on the roof. The system supplies more than enough electricity to run everything.”
Kee looked up at Wazza. He was so tall, he seemed to dwarf the room, the roof almost brushing the top of his head. It made her suddenly aware of how close he was standing to her. A shiver of awareness ran down her spine and settled low in her belly. To cover her reaction, she made a show of turning to her daughter and placing her gently on the ground. But she kept a tight hold of her hand. Had he felt it, too? She dared not look at him to find out.
“There’s also a backup generator if you ever need it. I’ll show you how to work that before I leave. It’s easy,” he added as he caught her look of dismay.
Kee wasn’t convinced. She was the opposite of a handywoman. She wouldn’t know the first thing about generators or batteries. This Daisy woman must be terribly self-sufficient to live out here on her own. Kee was starting to see it took a certain type of person to exist in the outback. Back in the city, these sorts of things never bothered her. She never had to think twice about where her electricity came from, she just flicked a switch.
“Why don’t you take a look around and I’ll bring in your bags.” Wazza disappeared out the door, before she had a chance to comment.
“Oooh, look, a TV.” Benni ran up and touched the screen. “And the couch is blue, my favorite color.” Benni climbed up on the couch and settled in with her dolly. Cool air began to flow past Kee’s face as the air con finally kicked in.
Hesitantly, Kee made her way toward a doorway at the end. It led to a bedroom, which was small, but had a queen-size bed, a closet, and a bedside table. The bedroom was neat and tidy, done up in soft blues and grays. A pile of books dominated the small table. This lady must read a lot. A couple of shirts were draped over a small chair in the corner and a pair of cowboy boots took pride of place at the foot of the bed.
She suddenly realized she was intruding on someone else’s life. Her palms began to itch, and an uncomfortable knot lodged in her chest. Not only was Wazza going out of his way to help her, but this other woman was unknowingly doing the same. It was too much. Kee couldn’t do this.
Wazza came in at that moment, carrying both of their bags.
“We can’t stay here,” she said, gathering Benni up from the couch. “This isn’t right. We have to go.”
