The Wildwood Sisters (18 page)

Riding from the other side of the holding yards, Stanley met him with a tip of his head. ‘Well, that's this job done and dusted. We better head back to the homestead before sundown, hey?'

Dylan went to reply but the sounds of a four-wheeler coming up the dirt track diverted both their attention.

‘Oh bugger me dead. What's that silly old fool trying to do?' Stanley said, shaking his head. ‘He's going to break his other bloody leg if he's not careful.'

Dylan's jaw dropped at the sight of the bloke riding towards them, his broken leg resting on the front mudguard of the four-wheeler while he balanced unstably, his crutches resting over his lap and bouncing with every bump as he struggled to steer it. As he got closer, the look on his face told Dylan something was amiss, and that this wasn't a friendly visit.

Mick pulled to a sliding stop beside them, breathing heavily. He reached out to shake Dylan's hand. ‘I'm Mick, good to finally meet you, mate.'

‘What's up, Mick?' Stanley's tone was apprehensive.

‘You really got to get yourself a bloody mobile, Stan. It's not the bloody nineteen hundreds anymore.' Mick sucked in a breath while trying to adjust his leg. ‘It's Renee, she took off down to the caves and hunter's shack this morning… She promised me she'd be home over an hour ago and she's still not back.'

Stanley's face drained of colour. ‘What! Why would she go all the way out there by herself, especially without telling me?'

Mick shrugged a little cautiously. ‘She told me she just wanted to have a look about, and I reckon she was worried you'd stop her.'

‘Damn straight I would have bloody stopped her.' Stanley pointed his finger at Mick. ‘Why didn't
you
bloody stop her?'

‘Oh come on now, Stan. We're talking about Renee here. You know there's no stopping her if she wants to do something.' Mick threw his hands up in the air. ‘I woulda gone looking for her meself, but it's a bit difficult at the moment with my leg and all.'

‘Anything could have happened to her out there,' Stanley retorted, trepidation lacing his every word. ‘I have to go look for her before it's bloody dark—' he looked at his watch, ‘—which won't be too long, an hour at the most. Thankfully it's a full moon, so we'll at least have some moonlight to find her with if sundown beats us to it.'

Dylan's heart bolted like a wild horse—images of Renee lying hurt somewhere taunting him. And then in a sudden flashback, he was on the floor of his bathroom, holding Shelley in his arms as he sobbed, wishing with everything he had that he'd been home sooner and there was some way he could turn back time. No way in hell was he going to lose another woman he loved because he wasn't there for her. Realisation washed over him. He'd actually just admitted it to himself. He
loved
Renee, always had, and always would. It didn't mean he had to admit it out loud, though, to her or anyone else for that matter. It could remain his little secret—forever.

‘I'll come help, Stan. You can't cover everywhere on your own. If you want to check out the caves, I'll head to the shack.' He gave Turbo the cue to go, calling out over his shoulder, ‘I'll meet you back at the homestead if we don't cross paths out there, and if we haven't found her, we'll keep searching until we do.'

‘You don't know where the shack is!' Stanley called after him as he enticed his own horse into a gallop.

‘Yeah I do, I've been there before.'

‘Oh, right. You have?'

The look on Stan's face was one of confusion, but Dylan didn't have time to explain, and he wasn't going to admit what had happened at the shack all those years ago. Going hell bent for leather, he headed towards the place where Renee had stolen his heart, hoping that it wasn't about to be shattered into a million tiny pieces once again. He'd only just started to glue the pieces back together after losing Shelley, he didn't think he'd be able to survive heartache like that again.

Please God, let her be okay.

***

Waking from her afternoon snooze, Renee sat bolt upright, instantly checking her watch. Holy heck! She'd been asleep for almost four hours. A quick glance towards the sky told her dusk was closing in. There was no way she was going to make it back before her pa got home.
Shit!

Rushing to her feet, she pulled on her boots and then ran for the four-wheeler motorbike, jumping on it. She turned the key and then pressed the ignition button, startled when the bike did nothing. Checking the bike was in neutral, which it was, she pressed the start button again. Nothing. Shit! She got off the bike and walked around to the front, trying to figure out what was wrong with it. Hopefully it was nothing too serious. It was getting dark, so she went to turn the headlights on, to at least give her some light to work with, but they were already on.
Damn it.
Now she understood the problem.

She'd accidently had the headlights on and they'd drained the battery, and because she'd been riding in broad daylight, she hadn't even noticed. How in the hell was she meant to get back to the homestead now? It was way too far on foot. She regretted her decision not to ride Jackson out here now—he'd have got her home. Pulling her mobile phone from her pocket, her heart sank even further. She was near the border of the national park and there was no service out here. Bloody Telstra—so much for Australia-wide coverage! With darkness setting in, so did her panic. She had enough supplies to last her for the night, thankfully, but the thought of being out here all alone in the dark sent a chill through her bones.

Succumbing to the knowledge that she was going to have to wait here until help arrived, which it eventually would at some point—thank goodness she'd told Mick where she was heading today—she strode back into the shack with her torch. It felt slightly safer in here, partially out of the elements and away from the nocturnal wildlife. Her pa was going to kill her for not telling him where she was going.

Hands on hips, she stamped her foot in frustration, her boot breaking through the decaying floorboards and becoming wedged beneath one.

‘Great, just fucking great,' she muttered, trying to pull her boot free. ‘Could my day get any worse?' But it wouldn't budge. Sitting down, she tried to investigate what was stopping it. Her darn shoelace was caught on something. She pulled up the loose board and shone the torch down, and now with a clear view her eyes widened. The floorboard had been loose for a reason. Her shoelace was wrapped around a latch, a latch on what looked like a jewellery box. With shaking hands, she freed her shoelace, dug away at some dirt and then flicked the rusted latch open. It opened fairly easily, and inside, there was a diary that was identical to her own—it was Scarlet's diary.

Had her sister hidden it here? Breathless with exhilaration and with tears pouring down her face she lifted it from the box, being careful to not damage it. And then the scent hit her again. Frankincense.

Scarlet. She was here. She hugged the diary to her chest, just as the last of the sun sank behind the mountains, leaving her in shadowy muted light. ‘Thank you sis, thank you.'

As her tears flowed freely Renee rested the diary in her lap. She sat staring at it, a mixture of excitement, intrigue and nervousness tumbling in her belly. What was she going to discover within the pages? Would Scarlet's written words finally reveal who had taken her darling sister? Her heart thudded so heavily with the thought she could feel it in her eardrums.

The torch threw a bright light across the room, the deep shadows retreating to the corners. Running her fingertips over the front of the diary, Renee traced her sister's perfectly curled handwriting, the ache in her heart immense.

Scarlet Wildwood. Private.

She couldn't believe how well-preserved it still was, the jewellery box having protected it from the elements. For whatever reason, Scarlet had chosen to hide it down here. Renee was eager to find out why. Slowly, cautiously, she opened the front cover and began to read the very first entry, which was surrounded by pink love hearts. The pages were a little yellowed with age but the writing was still very legible…

January 1
^st

Happy New Year! I reckon this year is going to be the year all my dreams come true, I can just feel it in my bones!

I had so much fun at the ball last night. Everyone was there, including him. I can't believe I've had a crush on him for an entire year now and not told a living soul. It's my very own little secret. He kept looking across the room at me, smiling at me in a way that made my heart melt. I wish I had the courage to go straight up to him and kiss him, but I can't, for so many different reasons. Especially considering I'm with Billy. And I do love Billy, in a way, and I know Billy loves me, so I don't want to hurt him.

And besides, she was there with him the whole time, and no-one else can get near him when she's around. She hangs off him like a leech. I seriously don't know what he sees in her, she's so boring and annoying. And anyway, what if I told him I liked him and he rejected me? I'd never be able to look him in his beautiful eyes again. It would be so embarrassing.

I dream about him all the time, and I wish I could feel his hands on my skin. Who knows if anything will ever happen between us, only time will tell. A girl can only dream. For now, I have to be happy with what I have, and that's Billy Burton. And I have to admit, he's lovely too…most of the time.

Scarlet xx

Renee's mind was in a spin. Scarlet had feelings for someone other than Billy. But who was he? And why did she choose not to tell her about it? They'd always shared everything—or at least,
she
had. She turned the page, praying Scarlet would mention his name, or give more of a clue to who he was.

January 12
^th

I saw him in the street today; he was dressed for work and looked so sexy. I almost forgot my name when he stopped and talked to me. I felt like a complete idiot.

Being so close to him, being able to smell his aftershave, it made me want him even more. He brushed my hand when he said goodbye, and I swear I could feel electricity in his touch. I can tell he likes me, but he can't do anything about it because she has him wrapped around her little finger. I feel like I'm standing at the edge of the world when I'm near him. But if we are at the edge, where do we go from there? What would people think of me, and him for that matter, if they found out how we felt? And I can't do anything anyway because I'm with Billy. Damn it!

Maybe, one day, he'll just forget about her and take a chance on me, and then I can gently tell Billy we're not meant to be together anymore. Who knows?

All I know for sure is that I crave him, with every fibre of my being. He has me, hook, line and sinker. How can I ever like anyone else when I only have eyes for him? I just wish he only had eyes for me.

Poor Billy, I shouldn't keep stringing him along. I know it's wrong of me. But the hard thing is, I really like Billy too, just not in the same way.

Scarlet xx

What tangled webs—Renee's curiosity was piqued. Who was this mystery man? And who was the woman that Scarlet was so jealous of? Basically, the entire township went to the ball for New Year's back then, so it could be anyone's guess as to who the man was that Scarlet was clearly infatuated with.

Billy Burton would have been furious if he'd found out. Had he? Renee turned the pages, keen to learn more.

A few weeks passed, with a journal entry here and there, but no more mention of the man. Scarlet had never been one to religiously write an entry every day, and with the diary being hidden away down here it would have made it very difficult for her to write regular entries. Reading on, Renee got to an entry in late January that hooked her in once again.

January 28
^th

Grrrrrr! I'm so confused! I've been trying to ignore the fact I'm falling for this man, but I can't! Even deciding not to write about him anymore isn't working, my attraction to him only getting stronger and stronger every day.

He secretly flirts with me whenever he sees me and I'm helpless to resist. But what would people think of me if they knew I liked him, and he liked me? All hell would break loose!

Not that he's told me out loud that he likes me, but I know he does. I wish I could tell Renee about him, but I don't want to yet because I know it's so wrong of me to even think about being with him, especially when I'm with Billy, and he's with her. But I can't help it. It's like he's a drug and I'm addicted to him. I see him almost every day, and I know he looks at me when I walk past him, I can feel his eyes all over me, undressing me.

I just wish he'd get rid of her and go out with me, and in some ways I wish Billy would drop me, because it would be much easier than me being the one to break up with him. Damn it, love can really suck sometimes!

Scarlet xx

So she saw him almost every day? That could mean so many different people—the bus driver, the newsagent, someone working at the school, another student, or even one of the casual workers they had on the farm at the time. If it was one of the guys at school, was he in the same year as her and Scarlet or was he older? But hang on, she'd mentioned seeing him in the street when he was dressed for work. Maybe he was older. But then it was January—he could have been a school kid with a summer job.

Renee was just about to turn another page when she heard the thunder of a galloping horse's hooves and her name being called out. It didn't sound like Pa, but it had to be, who else would be out searching for her? It couldn't be Mick—it would be impossible for him to get on a horse with his broken leg. But then again, he was a determined old bugger.

She quickly wrapped the diary up in a spare t-shirt and shoved it into her pack, not wanting Pa to see it. He would only want to give it to the authorities and she didn't want that just yet. She wanted the chance to read the entire thing herself, and draw her own conclusions before handing it into the police as evidence—which she knew she had to eventually do. After all, she was the one and only person who knew Scarlet inside out.