Flight of the Jabiru (43 page)

Jerry thought he seemed a little distracted.

One of the younger men in the clan came out of a temporary shelter made from sticks and leaves, called a
gunya
. Jerry knew Jarli as a serious young man with a bit of a temper.

He was limping, so Jerry got up to have a look at his foot. He was examining a cut between his toes when he noticed the strong odor of rotting flesh. Jarli noticed he was sniffing at the odor and looking in the direction of another gunya. He said something to Warragul in the Larrakia language.

Warragul shook his head and waved his hand, apparently displeased about what the young man had said.

“Is something wrong, Jarli?” Jerry asked. He knew certain cultural issues were sensitive and the Aboriginals liked to handle them without interference, but sometimes initiations went wrong, especially where some form of mutilation was concerned. “Is someone here very sick?” He went to walk towards the other gunya.

A young woman who Jerry recognized as Maya, Jarli's young bride, got up from where she'd been sitting beside another fire with the women. She was no more than fifteen and Jerry noticed her tummy was protruding with a pregnancy. She came to her husband and said something that caused Warragul to shout at her. She ran back to the women, crying. Jerry was now certain something was wrong, especially when Tarni, one of the highly respected elderly women, came over with something to say. She shouted at Warragul and pointed towards the gunya that Jerry had been approaching.

Maya was also looking at that particular gunya fearfully.

Jerry looked at Jarli and spoke quietly. “If something is wrong, perhaps I can help,” he said.

Jarli couldn't go against an elder, so he spoke to Warragul again. This time the old man waved his hand dismissively, but he had a lot to say. Jarli appeared to be anxious. He then told Jerry to look inside the gunya.

It was dim inside but the smell was overpowering, making Jerry feel sick. It was the terrible odor of advanced infection. There was an animal skin over something on the ground. Jerry soon realized it was a person when he saw two feet sticking out. They were dirty, but they weren't Aboriginal. He lifted the kangaroo skin and almost vomited because the odor was so strong.

A man lay underneath the skin, wearing only torn trousers. His face was covered in beard growth and caked in dry blood and dirt. His hair was in the same condition. His arm was in a crude splint and he had abrasions over most of his torso that were infected. Some of them had obviously been very deep. Jerry felt for a pulse. It was very weak. He examined the wounds on the man's body, and then noticed a big scar on his shoulder that was old. The scar alerted him to look closer at the man's face. Then he gasped. It was Rick. Jerry tried to stand up, but the gunya roof was too low for someone of his height, so he stepped outside. His heart was pounding, so he took several slow, deep breaths. “How... long has he been here?” he asked Warragul.

“Long time. He bin found in the water lilies by the billabong. He bin attacked by a croc. The women bin makin' medicine. We don't want trouble.”

“No, of course not,” Jerry said. He was sure Rick was close to death, so he had a decision to make. If he took him back to Shady Camp, he would surely die and Lara's heart would be broken all over again and perhaps she'd never be open to love again. He was sure Rick wouldn't make it to the hospital in Darwin. He decided he'd leave him with the Aboriginals and let fate take its course, but as a doctor, who'd taken an oath, he had to do something to help.

“You got medicine fix him up?” Jarli asked.

Jerry fished in his bag and came up with some Iodine. “Mix this with water and bathe his wounds,” he said. There really wasn't anything more he could do, as he feared Rick would now have septicemia. “Don't cover him. The maggots will eat the rotten flesh. Once it's gone, then you can cover the wounds.” He gave Jarli some bandages. “Just do what you can,” he said. “But don't feel bad if he doesn't make it. It's a miracle he's alive at all. A real miracle!”

Rex and Jonno had told Jerry the graphic details of what had happened. To survive something like that was unheard of.

Jerry promised Warragul that he wouldn't tell anyone about the wounded man. He wouldn't bring them trouble.

As for not telling Lara, he was sparing her more pain. At least that's what he told himself.

CHAPTER FORTY

October, 1942

Lara came through the rectory door from the classroom at the end of a terribly hot school day. She was really looking forward to a cool shower and an afternoon siesta. But first, a ritual she'd come to enjoy, a nice cup of tea and a chat with Bea.

“Bea, where are you?” she called lethargically as she went through the living room, stepping around her houseguest's camp bed. There was no reply, which was unusual. Thinking Bea was at the store, she headed for the kitchen sink to get a drink of water. The first thing she saw was Bea's feet and lower legs around the side of the kitchen table.

“Bea!” Lara rushed to her side where she lay on the floor. Bea's eyes were closed, but as Lara touched her arm, her eyelids fluttered. “Bea! What happened?”

“I don't ... know,” Bea said drowsily. “I felt faint ... and that's all I remember.” She sat up with Lara's help and leant on the cupboard door because her head was still spinning.

“Don't try to get up. I'll get you some water,” Lara said, stepping over her to get to the sink.

Bea sipped the water. “I feel better,” she uttered.

“You don't look better,” Lara said in alarm, noting her perspiring brow. She was also as white as the cupboard doors.

“Help me up,” Bea said, struggling.

Lara assisted her to her feet. “You are going to lie down for awhile in my room,” she said firmly. “It's a bit cooler in there.”

“I've got a meal to prepare,” Bea insisted as Lara guided her in the direction of her bedroom. “You've been working all day.”

“There's nothing strenuous about my work,” Lara said. “I'll make you a meal tonight.”

Bea looked at her quizzically. “You're worn out. I can see it. No doubt Harry Castle has been a handful today,” she said.

“Harry can test my patience, but he's basically a good kid. I made him write a hundred lines last week while the other children played games, and he's been an angel ever since. I'm just hot and bothered, but I'm in better shape than you today, Bea. I'll probably just make a salad, but it will be a nice one, with hard boiled eggs,” she insisted.

Bea managed a smile, but she felt light headed again and swooned. They just made it to the bed before she was ready to collapse again.

“Now rest,” Lara said, making sure she was comfortable. “Jerry should be here soon.”

“Don't bother him about this, Lara. I don't want him worrying about me. He has enough to think about with his patients. It's just the heat. I'll be fine in a few minutes.”

“You're accustomed to the heat, Bea, so it can't be that. Besides, Jerry should know his mother fainted. He'd never forgive me if I didn't tell him.”

“Mother! What's wrong?” Jerry asked from the open doorway. He'd come in and followed the sound of their voices.

Lara and Bea were startled, as they hadn't heard him.

“Nothing, I felt a little light-headed, that's all,” Bea said.

Jerry rushed to her side, opening his medical bag. “Did you faint?”

“No...” Bea glanced at Lara, who was pursing her lips in disapproval. “All right, I might've fainted,” she admitted begrudgingly.

“I found her on the kitchen floor when I came in from school,” Lara said, only to receive a dark look from Bea. “I have no idea how long she'd been there.”

“Less than a minute,” Bea supplied. “I've been light-head before after getting up quickly from a chair in the heat. It's nothing serious,” she added, determined to play down what was turning into a drama.

“We'll see,” Jerry said, opening his medical bag.

“I'll give you some privacy,” Lara said, leaving the room.

Jerry came out of Lara's bedroom ten minutes later. He looked worried.

“Is everything all right?” Lara asked. She'd made a pot of tea, so she poured him a cup.

“Let's take our tea outside,” Jerry suggested softly, gesturing for her to follow. They were settled in the shade of towering trees.

“My mother is quite ill,” Jerry said solemnly.

Lara gasped. “I had no idea. Is it serious?”

“It's a condition she's had for quite some time but it's becoming progressively worse. I can't go into the details, not without her consent, but she really doesn't have that long.”

“Oh, Jerry, I'm so sorry,” Lara said, reeling in shock. “I've become so fond of your mother.” She felt emotional.

“I don't think you realize how fond of you she's become. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she thinks of you as a daughter.”

Lara was touched. “That means so much to me because I've never had a mother. I can't believe she's ill. Why didn't you say something before? I've been letting her look after me when I should've been looking after her.”

“She loves taking care of you. My mother is a natural carer, so she hated retiring from nursing, but she had no choice. Taking care of you makes her feel useful again. I couldn't take that away from her. Promise me you won't say anything and that you'll let things continue as they are?”

“Obviously she's doing too much for me, or she wouldn't have fainted.”

“She might've been overdoing it. I've had a word to her about that, but you can't pity her or say anything about this illness, Lara. If she thinks you know and that you are treating her differently, it will really upset her. And that wouldn't be good for her.”

“All right,” Lara said reluctantly. “But it won't be easy. Is that why you've seemed distracted these past few weeks, Jerry? Have you been worrying about your mother?”

Jerry had been worried, but for a different reason. He was afraid that Lara would somehow find out that Rick had survived the crocodile attack, and even worse, discover that he'd known for some time and hadn't told her. Even though the odds of that happening were slim, it hadn't stopped him feeling anxious and guilty. He was sure Rick would've passed away soon after seeing him, but he hadn't been able to bring himself to go back to the community and check. “I have been worried, yes. I know her time with us is limited and I feel like I've let her down.”

“How? You're a wonderful son.”

Jerry sighed and looked dejected. “I know she's disappointed that I haven't given her grandchildren yet. All she's ever wanted was for me to marry a lovely woman and settle down. She used to say I'd end up with a
lubra
and a brood of mixed-race children if I kept working out here.” He smiled wryly. “I should've taken a job in a city, but ... I did what I thought was right for the community out here.”

“You did the right thing, Jerry. The people out here couldn't survive without you.”

“Perhaps, but I'm still single with no prospects.”

“You had a home in the city, Jerry, so I'm surprised a handsome doctor like you wasn't snapped up by the daughter of a prominent civil servant.”

One corner of Jerry's mouth moved upwards. “Those young ladies know that a doctor who works in the wetlands doesn't get paid much, not in cash anyway. I've struggled to pay my rent sometimes. For some reason my landlord was adverse to accepting chickens, eggs, or jars of preserves in lieu of actual money.”

Lara couldn't help smiling.

“There's nothing stopping me moving to a city to work now, though. A lot of my patients out here have evacuated and who knows when or if they'll ever come back.”

“Then perhaps that's what you should do,” Lara said.

“I would make a lot more money, enough to buy a nice home,” Jerry pointed out, hoping Lara saw him as a good catch.

She didn't comment. They sat in silence for a minute.

“You know how I feel about you, Lara,” Jerry eventually said.

“I'm aware,” Lara said, but she couldn't look at him.

“I don't think I'd ever find someone who could replace you in my heart, Lara. Not if I lived in a hundred cities.”

“That's a very romantic thing to say, Jerry, but you know I love Rick,” Lara said.

“I know you loved Rick, but he's gone, Lara.”

“My head knows that, but my heart won't accept it.”

“Would you consider marrying me? I know that's not exactly a romantic proposal, but you don't love me right now. I think you could, in time, though.”

Lara's heart softened. “Jerry, if I hadn't met Rick and fallen in love with him, then perhaps I would've fallen in love with you. We'll never know that. You're a wonderful man and you deserve to be the only man in your wife's heart. You shouldn't settle for anything less.”

“I don't see it that way, Lara. If you married me, I'd consider myself the luckiest man alive.”

Lara didn't want to hurt Jerry. “Perhaps, in time, I'd be able to give my heart again, but not right now.”

Jerry looked across the billabong. “I'd be happy to wait as long as it took, Lara, but if my mother is to ever see me marry, she doesn't have the luxury of time.”

Lara understood he wanted to make his mother happy. “I'm sorry about your mother, but there's nothing I can do.”

“There is. You could marry me while my mother is well enough to attend the ceremony.”

Lara was taken off guard. “I don't know, Jerry...”

“It would have to be soon, so think about your reply.”

“I can't get married while I'm still mourning Rick, Jerry.”

“I'm proposing a marriage in name only, until you are ready for something more, and I don't mind how long that takes. It would make my mother so happy, Lara, and perhaps even give her a little longer. I really want her to know that kind of joy ... before it's too late.”

Lara didn't know what to say. “I'll think about it, Jerry, but I can't make any promises.”

“Take all the time you need ... well not all the time, but please do give my proposal some serious thought. We could be happy. I'm sure of it. And seeing us together, married, would make all the difference to what life my mother has left.”

November, 1942

“I can't tell you how happy I am that you're still here to see me get married, Betty,” Lara said.

“I still think Colin sabotaged the car. It's too convenient to think it broke down just as we were about to leave.”

Lara and everyone else thought the same, but Colin was adamant that he didn't do anything to the car. It had taken weeks for him to find parts for the car, and then he took his sweet time working on it. “It's fixed now, so you'll soon be on your way.”

“Let's hope so,” Betty said. “Just to be sure, I'm keeping a good eye on that car. I can't wait to go, though. The build up to the wet this year seems worse than ever.” Betty thought she saw sadness in Lara's features. “Are you sure you want to get married, Lara? Jerry is a wonderful man, but he's not Rick, is he?”

“No. But he is a good man, and Bea is so happy that I'm to be her daughter-in-law.”

“I like Bea, I always have, but making her happy is not a good reason to make yourself unhappy, is it?”

“I'm not unhappy, Betty. I don't think I'll ever feel the same depth of love for anyone that I felt for Rick, but I believe a love like that only comes along once in a life time.”

“It was very special,” Betty said remembering how wonderful they'd been together. “I know you wanted your father here when you were going to marry Rick, so I'm sure you'd want him here for this ceremony, too.”

“Of course I wanted him to walk me down the aisle, but I wish I hadn't waited, and married Rick right away. Obviously it wasn't to be.”

“No, sometimes I think our lives are mapped out. Other times I think we just make mistakes and learn to live with them.” Betty smiled to soften her words.

“Jerry has called upon the family minister to marry us. Luckily Father O'Leary was still in Darwin. He should arrive this evening. Monty is putting him up for a couple of nights. Apparently he likes a drink, so the option of staying in a pub was a great incentive to come all the way out here. Jerry said it's very unlikely he'd be fit to drive the day after our wedding, so that's why he's staying an extra night. Bea said he's likely to be here all week if the pub doesn't run dry, so we'll see.”

“There's not much chance the pub will run dry any time soon. Are you all right with the men moving Rick's boat out of sight?”

“Yes, I couldn't look out of the window and see Rick's boat while saying vows to Jerry. I wouldn't be able to do it.”

“If you really feel that way, I don't think you should be marrying Jerry,” Betty said.

“I have to move on, Betty. Rick is never coming back to me. I wish that wasn't true because my heart belongs to him and it always will. But he wouldn't want me to stop living, would he? It was that realization that saw me accepting Jerry's proposal.”

“I guess you're right. Rick would want you to be happy. I'm just not sure Jerry is the man to replace him. I'm very fond of Jerry. I've always been fond of him, and I want to see him happy, too. I've just never seen you look at him the way you looked at Rick.”