Outback Ghost (3 page)

‘Kay.' Heidi nodded, distracted as she looked out the window as the town they'd call home for next few months came into view.

Stella hadn't been this far north since she was a kid and her family had gone to visit old friends up in Carnavon but the place didn't look like it hadn't changed much in the last couple of decades. A row of shops still stood along the main street – an IGA supermarket, a post office, a café that looked surprisingly funky for the small town, a medical centre, chemist and, of course, the obligatory pub. Not that she'd be spending any time there.

When she'd seen the small cottage for rent on the Internet farmstay site, recollections of that family trip had come rushing back. She remembered they'd stopped for an ice-cream in Bunyip Bay, how she'd been sick of driving and asked why they couldn't just stay here forever. The two-bedroom cottage was only a four and a half hour drive from Perth and sounded simply perfect for them. For years she'd dreamed of giving Heidi the kind of family holiday she'd enjoyed as a child herself. Although estranged from her family now, she couldn't deny her parents had given her a childhood filled with fun and joy and she wanted to give Heidi the same opportunity. She'd held her breath as she entered her details on the online form and waited to see if the cottage was available for the period she required.

It was. And it was a lot cheaper than she'd envisaged, which would mean she wouldn't have to be a scrooge for the two months they were away.

‘Bunyip!' Heidi cried.

Stella looked in the mirror to see her daughter pointing towards something coming up on their right. She slowed the car, smiling at the large statue of the mythical creature that stood on the edge of the local park. ‘You know what? I think it is. Let's stop and take a photo.'

Heidi, always happy to pose for the camera, had her hand on her seatbelt and practically bounced out of the car the moment Stella went round to help her out. Laughing, she shut the car door, only to be told seconds later, ‘Mummy, Polar inside. Wants to see Bunyip.'

‘Sorry.' Stella stifled a smile as she opened the door again. ‘Is she out yet?' she asked after a few moments.

‘Yes, she's climbing.' Heidi ran, giggling, towards the massive Bunyip landmark, presumably after Polar. Whatever Polar was, she must be fast, Stella thought as she closed the door a second time. Although the imaginary friend's characteristics could change from day to day depending on Heidi's mood and what else was happening. Polar had been with them for about three months now, which made Stella think she'd be leaving any moment. Usually Heidi's ‘friends' only stayed a few months. She wondered who would come next.

Maybe one day Heidi would grow out of these special friends, but Stella didn't mind them at all. She loved hearing her daughter talk to or about her latest friend because it proved her to be far more complex and intelligent than many gave credit for. Heidi continually proved that it was stupid to try to put any child in a box.

‘Heidi. Polar. Smile!' Stella yelled, as she held up her iPhone to snap a memory.
The beginning of the best summer of our life.
She let Heidi crawl all over the statue for a little longer, but when she asked if she could play on the climbing frame, Stella shook her head.

‘Sorry, hon, but we can come back soon. We'll be here all summer, remember?' She knew if Heidi got on the swing, hours would be lost before she managed to get her off, and she wanted to get to the cottage and settle in before dinnertime.

‘Okay, Mum.'

Stella's heart turned over in her chest with love and pride as her daughter ran towards her and placed her little hand in hers. Every day with this gorgeous girl was a blessing. Yes, there'd been tough times but Stella thanked the Lord she'd been strong enough to fight the forces of those who'd tried to take that from her. They took a quick detour to the public conveniences so Polar could go to the toilet and then headed back to the car.

‘Shall we let Polar in first?' Stella asked as they arrived at the car and she opened the back door.

‘Yes.' Heidi nodded seriously. ‘She's lady and ladies go first, don't they, Mummy?'

‘They sure do.' Smiling, Stella helped Heidi into the car, clicked her seatbelt into place and then kissed her on the forehead. ‘I love you, sweetheart.'

‘Love you too, Mummy.'

Stella swallowed the lump in her throat as she slid into the driver's seat and turned the ignition. It was that unconditional, overflowing love that got her up in the mornings. It was what drove her every thought and action, through each and every day and had made her life worth living during the numerous times when everything had seemed too hard.

With one eye on Heidi as she tore around the small picket-fenced yard of the cottage, Stella glanced at her watch, which read three-thirty. Could they be in the wrong place? She looked behind her up the three wooden steps that led to what could only be described as a quaint outback cottage, the exact description used on the farmstay website. And if they
were
in the wrong place, then she'd found that cottage's twin. She dug her phone out of her pocket, pulled up the image she'd saved off the website and compared it with this house. Yep, the white-washed walls, the shuttered windows, the love-seat swing on the veranda, the shiny red tin roof and the newly planted water-wise garden, not to mention the white picket fence. All of it was an identical match.

So where the heck was Adam the owner? He'd agreed to meet her here at three o'clock to hand over the key and was now officially half an hour late. She hated tardiness in any situation but was most annoyed because if she'd known he was going to be late, she'd have let Heidi play for longer in the park. Not that Heidi seemed to be at all concerned – she was happily picking summer flowers from the garden beds that bordered the cobbled path.

Tapping her foot, Stella wondered if she'd made a mistake. There'd been so much on her mind the last few weeks that maybe she'd misunderstood his email. Maybe he'd left the key somewhere.

‘Heidi,' she called to her daughter, who was now twirling like an uncoordinated ballerina through the garden. ‘I'm just going to check round the back. Come with me?'

Holding her flowers close to her chest, Heidi ran to her mother. Hands joined, they climbed the steps together and ventured round the back of the veranda. There was nothing sweeter in life than a veranda that wrapped right around the house, Stella thought. She could already visualise sitting out here in the early evening with a quiet drink and a book to read after Heidi had gone to bed. That's if she ever managed to get inside. She'd tried the front door and now she tried the back, which was also locked. The curtains were closed and she felt like an intruder creeping around looking for a good point to break in.

‘Mummy, look.' Heidi let go of her hand and crouched down to point at a fat tabby cat slinking along the back veranda.

Stella wondered if it was wild, it looked scruffy to say the least, but before she could utter a word of warning, Heidi had dropped to her knees, scattering the flowers at her feet as she bundled the cat into her arms. Stella cringed, expecting the cat to lash out, but it didn't. It kind of flopped into her arms, its head leaning on her shoulder and its big belly hanging over Heidi's arms. Stella couldn't help but laugh.

‘Likes me,' Heidi cried excitedly.

Stella knelt beside her daughter and stroked the scruffy cat's head. Its purr, the loudest she'd ever heard, sounded like some kind of farm machinery.

‘Keep him? Please?'

At Heidi's question, Stella lifted her hand from where it was rubbing the cat's chin. ‘He belongs to the farm,' she said, softly, ‘but looks like he'll be happy to be friends for as long as we're here.'

It was stupid; they hadn't even set foot inside the cottage and already that time didn't seem long enough. While she was glad the cat appeared to be happy to humour animal-mad Heidi, at the same time she didn't want her daughter getting too attached. She'd wanted a pet since she was a toddler, before she could even talk, but Stella had steeled herself against getting one. Quite aside from the fact their rental agreement didn't include pets, she worked long hours and didn't like the idea of leaving an animal home alone too long.

The cat began to squirm in Heidi's arms.

‘I think you need to let him go for now,' Stella said, standing up. ‘We can put some milk out for him later but for now we need to take a drive.'

‘Where?' Still clinging to the cat, Heidi looked at Stella suspiciously.

I'm annoyed too, sweetie
, Stella thought, biting her tongue so not to voice her frustration. ‘Mummy has to go get the key for the cottage. Come on.'

With a grumpy pout, Heidi reluctantly loosened her grip and the cat sprang away.

Stella bundled Heidi into the car and headed back along the gravel track. She'd seen the impressive homestead when they'd arrived, but Adam's email had said to drive straight past and on to the cottage. Still, she wasn't going to sit around here waiting all night for him.

‘Mummy, look. Sheep.'

There had to be hundreds of them. Stella thought nostalgically of home, sad she couldn't take Heidi there and show her round the farm she'd grown up on. Off in the distance, in a far paddock she saw a header with golden dust billowing behind it. She frowned, wondering if it was Adam driving. Probably, but rather than chase him through paddocks, she'd head to his house and hope his wife or someone was there to give her the key. As they continued, Heidi sang
Baa Baa Black Sheep
in the back; at least she didn't seem upset by this less than smooth start.

Stella parked the car under a big gum tree not far from the homestead and then helped Heidi out of her seat. She held her hand firmly as they progressed up the path towards the house, not wanting her to run around in this magnificent garden and cause havoc. The house looked like something out of
Country Style
. She guessed it to be almost a century old, but it had been well loved through all those years. A rocking chair and an old golden retriever sat on one end of the veranda. The dog looked up as they approached the front door, let out a lone bark and then dropped its head back onto its paws as if it couldn't be stuffed acting as security. Stella raised her hand to use the heavy steel doorknocker, but before she could do so the main door peeled open.

‘Hello? Can I help you?' came a shaky voice.

Stella narrowed her eyes, trying to see through the dark flyscreen door. ‘Um. I'm looking for Adam Burton. I need the key for the cottage.'

‘I see.' The door opened and there stood a woman who looked almost as forlorn as the dog. Her hair was neither blonde nor brown and hung loosely around her shoulders and halfway down her back. She looked as if she could have been quite pretty in her day, but those days were long gone. Her bloodshot eyes and the bags beneath them told Stella she'd been crying. ‘Did he say to come here?'

Stella shook her head. ‘He told me to meet at the cottage but I've been waiting almost an hour and my little girl needs to settle in. I'm sorry to bother you.'

Without a word, the woman's gaze dropped to Stella's side. To Heidi. She stared intently and Stella felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise. So, Heidi was and looked different. People didn't need to stare at her like she was some kind of freak show.

Stella drew her daughter into her side and cleared her throat. ‘Do you know where I can find Adam or the key?' Right now the latter would be preferable. If another person stared at Heidi like that, Stella was liable to snap.

Before the woman could reply, Heidi escaped from Stella's clutches and flung herself at the scraggly woman, wrapping her little arms around the woman's thin waist.

‘Oh.' The woman let out a half-laugh, half-breath and her lips crinkled upwards at the edges. ‘Hello there.' She moved her own arms to accept Heidi's hug, her hand moving to stroke the little girl's hair. ‘What a sweetheart,' she added, looking up and meeting Stella's gaze.

‘She is.' Stella relaxed at the genuine warmth in the other woman's eyes. This wasn't the first time Heidi had thrown herself at strangers. She had incredible empathy and often took on board the feelings of others. Whenever she saw someone in a wheelchair or another person crying, she wanted to make them better.

No one spoke for a few long moments but when Heidi eventually pulled back, the recipient of her hug did look a fraction better than she had when they'd arrived.

‘You two must come inside while I call Adam for you. I have some lemonade and a packet of chocolate biscuits if you'd like.'

Heidi's eyes widened as she looked between the two women.

‘That would be lovely,' Stella said, reminding herself that she too shouldn't be so quick to judge.

‘I'm Esther.' The woman held out her hand. ‘Lovely to meet you.'

Stella returned the handshake. ‘Stella, and this is Heidi.' They followed Esther down a long dark hallway, their shoes click-­clacking on the polished wooden floor.

‘Oh, I'm sorry, we should have left our shoes at the door,' Stella said. She'd been away from the farm so long that she'd forgotten the custom of leaving boots outside.

‘Don't be silly. Your shoes are hardly dirty, besides, I've got nothing better to do than clean anyway.'

Stella didn't know what to say to that, so she laughed lightly. Moments later they emerged into a massive farm kitchen – the type with pots and pans hanging from the roof and a table that could sit a dozen shearers in the centre of the room.

‘Have a seat. I'll call Adam and then get you those refreshments.'

Esther turned away and went to use a radio on the far wall. Heidi climbed onto a chair, her little legs dangling but not reaching the floor. Although she was seven, she had the physique of a five year old. Stella didn't feel right sitting until Esther returned, so she took a moment to look around the kitchen. Dim like the rest of the house, it gave off the same sad vibe as the woman, in total contrast to the front garden, which bloomed with summer colour. On the fridge a few photos hung. One was of a little boy and girl about nine and seven and the others were only of the girl. They had a yellow tinge and were ruffled round the edges, suggesting newer ones should have replaced them years ago.