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“Good idea,” I said, aiming for a smile, even though it felt like a grimace.
“You’re still a terrible liar.” Derek was smirking at me. “Were you hoping for some alone time with me?” he murmured, but there was a glint of honesty in his eyes.
I hadn’t realised just how much I was hoping for some alone time until it occurred to me that I wasn’t getting it.
“Don’t flatter yourself,” I hissed at him.
He laughed, and my god, I’d missed that sound. But Norah was back before I could reply. She had her backpack on and her LED lantern in her hand. She was like a girl scout sponsored by a camping outlet. It was kinda fun. I showed her my lantern, which was like hers just ten times more powerful. “Are we ready?”
She nodded eagerly, and Derek rolled his eyes.
I led them to a cleared spot in the scrub I thought might be good. Just far enough away so the lights weren’t a bother but close enough to hear if Marit or Kari needed me.
I set the lantern down while Derek set up his telescope. He’d always loved the stars and the vastness of space. Quite often I’d wake up to an empty bed and find him sitting in the backyard of the place we’d rented with his old telescope, his view looking ever upward.
I never thought to ask him what exactly he was looking for.
Or if he ever found it.
He used to say he’d just look at everything and nothing. I never questioned why he searched the skies. I just accepted that he did.
“Your new telescope looks pretty flash,” I said as he set it up.
“Uh, thanks,” he said. “I’ve still got the old one. But I can see more with this.”
“Uh, Paul?” Norah said. “What wildlife is nocturnal out here?”
She was looking into the scrub, which was more of a wetland/lowland forest. There were trees, ferns, tall grasses, and a whole cacophony of wildlife that we couldn’t see—but they could undoubtedly see us.
“There’s a lot,” I said. “Lots of mammals, frogs, lizards.” I wasn’t mentioning wild pigs and bats.
“Are there any crocodiles here?”
“I wouldn’t have brought you here if there was,” I said. “And I wouldn’t be standing here.”
She seemed to relax for a bit... until she thought of something else. She spun to me, her eyes wide, her face pale by the stark LED lantern. “Cassowaries?”
“You mean velociraptor turkeys with helmets?” Derek replied, not looking up from his telescope eyepiece.
I snorted but quickly reassured Norah. “No. There aren’t any cassowaries here. And they’re not nocturnal.”
“But there are snakes and goannas,” she added.
“This is Australia,” Derek answered flatly. “So, yes. There is.” He stood back from his telescope and gestured to Norah. “Take a look.”
She wasn’t as tall as him, so she had to pull it down a bit, but as soon as she put her eye to the eyepiece, she gasped. “Oh my god.”
Derek grinned at me, and the warmth of it curled around my belly.
Norah looked up at Derek. “Is this for real?”
“Sure is.”
She looked again for a few seconds, then stood back, wide eyed and excited, and let me have a look.
And holy shit.
I could see... everything. I could see it all.
