It was the contrast. He lived in this run-down shack and in walked this lady. Of course he was making her out to be something she wasn’t, because he was comparing her to his environment.
Hogwash.
She was beautiful and it was best that he stopped thinking about her.
He looked down where the blanket touched the floor. Something was sticking out. He bent down and picked up some kind of device. It was black and fitted into the palm of his hand—the girl must have dropped it. He was too tired to be bothered with it for now. He heard the retreating sound of a helicopter, but the soft thumping sound was drowned out by some ravens squawking.
There was a tap on the door. “Hello, anybody home?”
It was a female voice, but not a familiar one. He’d hoped everyone had gone. He quickly placed the device under the mattress and headed out of the bedroom. He wondered where the other lady was—she worried him, scared him, but also fascinated him.
“Yes, I’m here.”
It was a police officer with her baseball cap tucked under her arm. Her hair colour and style reminded him of Isabella.
“You okay? As there have been a few things happening around here, I thought I’d check on you. We have the man in custody and will be taking him back to the station for transfer back to Melbourne.”
“The girl?”
“That’s a Defence matter. She went with the helicopter. She’s in safe hands. You related?”
“No. Just curious. I’ve only just met her. She’s the granddaughter of my neighbour who also is in Defence custody—they must be spies or something.” He paused. “Sorry, that was a feeble attempt at humour.”
The police officer smiled and gave a nodding approval. “There are still defence personnel next door. I’d think they’ll be here until whatever it is they’re up to is completed, so if you need anything or have any concerns, let them know.”
“Yeah. Thank you.”
“Well, I’ll be off then.” She turned and headed towards the front door.
James watched her as she departed and wondered how heavy the belt around her waist was. It seemed to hold every disarming device known to mankind. He went back and sat down on the bed again. So much for peace and tranquillity but he wasn’t even sure if that was what he wanted. Another joint would be good now. He thought of smoke swirling its way up to the ceiling and then his thoughts went to people floating up the sky to be with the Lord. It would be good to be raptured now, because he was confused about many things. But would he be one of those floating? He didn’t think so.
He put his hand under the mattress and located the device. Surely this wasn’t what they used to do the transporting? He needed to get out of here. Maybe he could use the device. A close inspection didn’t reveal any means of using it—there were no buttons, only ports to connect things into. He decided it was something else but he’d take it with him anyway.
Thoughts of the woman jumped into his head again. She was trouble, and he needed to get away.
He quickly packed his bag, throwing in plenty of snacks because he was super hungry.
He knew a place he could go to.
<°)))><
Perdu used up some energy getting back to the car but still felt chilled as she drove away from the shambles at that shack. She headed in the opposite direction from which she’d come and drove until she collected her thoughts.
The drive took her further into the damp Jurassic type world. She pulled over and looked at her dashboard clock. Mid-afternoon, and it was already getting dark. It must be the large ferns and trees blocking out sunlight. She half expected to see a dinosaur head appear through the shrubbery. Chilled even more, she turned on the heating and ramped up the noisy fan.
Now sufficiently warmed, she turned down the fan. Good. She could hear again. She saw a number of large black birds circling something. Vultures? Were there vultures in Australia? She didn’t think so. She could just make out a rumbling sound—it must be the rubbish tip, and the birds were crows. There must be another access road, as she couldn’t imagine rubbish trucks trekking this narrow road.
She’d passed an elevated house not far from the shack. It was for sale, looked vacant, and offered a good vantage point. The driveway came just after the For Sale sign and she turned into a lengthy driveway with numerous pot holes. She got out of the car and did a quick scout around and confirmed that the property was vacant. The view over the shack and its property was even better than she expected.
She saw some defence personnel darting around. They must have come in by helicopter. The sound of its arrival would’ve been well camouflaged with all the racket that had been attacking her senses.
Ah-ah-ah-aaaah
She looked up to see a few of the birds had decided to check her out. They landed not far from her vehicle, some on the ground, others sitting on a fence post. Why were there crows here? Do they think she was going to cark it?
Ah-ah-ah-aaaah
They were squawking loudly. She was tempted to shoot them. She walked over to shoo them off.
Ah-ah-ah-aaaah
She returned to her viewing spot. A soldier carrying a pink backpack was a site to behold. She could just see the tail end of the helicopter. He was heading in that direction and the technology was going with him. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. A strategy realignment needed to take place.
Ah-ah-ah-aaaah
Her gun was pointed at a crow. Her finger on the trigger. But she relented and turned her attention back to the shack.
A police car had arrived at the scene. Her view of the car was partially covered but using her binoculars she saw Isabella’s friend being escorted to the back seat. Isabella must already be in the car. Why weren’t they being transported in the helicopter? She’d no time to reason that out as the police vehicle would leave soon.
Ava rushed back to the car and started the engine. She wanted a head start on them.
Although professionally trained to manage her emotions, Ava considered her innate survival mechanics were complex, particularly her desire for revenge. Maybe her training had helped develop this thirst for vengeance. She knew not satisfying the desire was making it grow. She felt it—something was trying to burst out. She would do away with the girl and face the consequences later. Anthony and Ava would survive. Comfortably, in fact.
Why do things pop in your head? Thoughts of her dad. Why now? She hated him. He was a pig of a man. A violent man. Maybe that fed the vengeance. Next, thoughts of her mother came in. Such a miserable and depressed person, no doubt because of the miserable life offered by her husband. Ava often wondered how she survived her mother’s lack of care for her. But that lack of care probably made her what she was now—she didn’t need anyone to look out for her.
A small pothole brought her back to reality. She was back on the narrow dirt road. She had a plan and it was about finding the right place to execute it.
It did not take long to find. A blind corner, the view ahead completely obscured. She just hoped appropriate material could be found there.
