Inheritance (8 page)

Rosie raised an eyebrow. ‘Speaking of learning, why aren’t you at school?’ she asked.

‘We move round a lot, so I do School of the Air. Mum won’t let me skip lessons but Dad talked her into letting me come today to watch the branding and knackering. I’ll have to make up the time, though, she’s real strict. Oh!’ He clapped his hand over his mouth. ‘I forgot. Dad said I mustn’t say knackering in front of ladies, I have to say neutering.’

The two girls laughed at the look of consternation on his face.

‘It’s all right, Larry. I’ve heard people say ‘knackering’ before. Haven’t you, Rosie?’

‘A few times.’

He joined in their laughter then, his whole face lighting up and his dark eyes shining. Dressed in blue checked shirt and jeans, with a red kerchief tied at his neck, he was a smaller replica of his father. He finished his tea and cake and then jumped up enthusiastically.

‘They’re starting again. I gotta go. See you later.’ With a wave, he ran back to join his father at the dip.

The work continued, with a break for lunch, until late in the afternoon. Then Cassie and Rosie started the ride home together, across the paddocks, a little ahead of the others.

Cassie rotated her shoulders to ease her aching muscles. ‘Oh boy, will I enjoy a hot bath. I’m not used to such hard physical work.’

Rosie grinned. ‘You’re soft, just like a city girl. We’ll soon fix that. A few more days like this and you’ll be as tough as me.’

‘I don’t want to be as tough as you, as you put it. Now, try to be serious for a minute, will you, I want to talk to you. Do you think that people on holiday would be interested to see what we’ve been doing today? Not a whole day of it, but an hour or so. Maybe even take part a little.’

‘So you’re still thinking about paying guests. I wondered if that might be it, when you said you had some ideas this morning. Well, I know people do that on farm stays, and pay money for it. But I thought you didn’t want people in the house?’ Rosie glanced at her as they loped along.

‘Not in the house, no, but I am serious about cabins. Then we could combine the other attractions with some riding and finding out what station life’s all about. What do you think?’ Cassie looked across expectantly.

‘It sounds good.’ Rosie hesitated before she added, ‘But it’d take a lot of organising, wouldn’t it? And probably a lot of money for the cabins. And then how would you find people to come?’

‘It’d have to be marketed properly. And I think I’ve enough money to get started, in a small way. I’ve been giving it a lot of thought. I want to talk to you all tonight about it. There’s a lot to consider. For instance, if people were coming in by plane, we’d need to arrange transport to and from the airport. Do you think you could drive a mini-bus to pick them up?’

‘Me? Well, yes, I probably could. Yes, I’d like that.’

‘We could have day trips for guests, too, if you think you could be a guide. I think you’d be good at that, and there’re so many places to see and things to do, not too far away.’

‘Like what?’

‘Well, like Cape Tribulation, Mossman Gorge and Port Douglas. And then there’s the croc farm and the Cultural Centre in Cairns.’ Cassie’s voice became animated as her enthusiasm rose. ‘As well as the cable car and the tourist train between Cairns and Kuranda, and the markets, and, well, things like that.’

‘I see. Mm, you have been thinking a lot, haven’t you?’

‘Yes, I have. Because we’d all have to be involved, I’d need to be sure that everyone’s happy with the idea.’

‘How would it involve us all?’

‘Well, if we have guests staying, we’d have to feed them, at least for breakfast and picnic lunches, maybe more. That would mean more work for Lorna.’

‘Maybe Jessie could help.’

‘Yes, I’m counting on that. Taking them out for a few hours station work might disrupt their normal work, so Tom and Daniel would need to be happy with that. And Daniel would make a good guide for the caves. Maybe Sam, too, if he’s up to it. He could recount the aboriginal legends. And then there’d be campfire nights.’ Cassie’s excitement rose. ‘Oh, I have heaps of ideas!’

Rosie gave her an astute look. ‘You really want to do this, don’t you? I thought it was just an idea to try and bring in some extra cash, but it’s more than that, isn’t it?’

Cassie became serious. ‘That’s how it started out, but now, yes, to be honest, it’s more. I want to see if I can do it. It’s…it’s a challenge.’

‘If you can pull it off, it’d be great.’

***

That night, after dinner, Cassie gathered her group together. Daniel joined the other four for what she called an ‘executive meeting’.

She explained her ideas for the cabins in a businesslike manner. ‘We could start off small and add more cabins if we’re successful. But it would mean some changes and I’d need your support. I couldn’t do it without that. The station will still run the same way it always has, cattle will always be our first priority. You’re in charge of that, Tom. But, for instance, what we did today, I think city people would love to see that sort of thing. Maybe even participate in some way. Do you think we could have, maybe three, four hours when we could have guests watching, even helping to open gates and push the calves along? Then come back here for a barbecue lunch, perhaps. What do you think?’

Tom’s voice sounded doubtful as he replied. ‘It would mean a lot more work, looking after people. Maybe we might even need an extra hand. That’ll be extra expense at a time when we’re already losing money.’

‘I realise that, but I’m looking into the future with this. Perhaps one of the casuals could become permanent, what do you think of that? Is there someone you think would fill the bill?’

‘Well,’ Tom cleared his throat, sounding reluctant. ‘Tony’s a pretty good worker, if you’re sure you want to go to the expense.’

‘Leave the money side of it to me, Tom. I’ll work on that.’ Cassie turned to Daniel. ‘What do you think, Daniel, about Tony?’

‘Tony’s good with cattle. I know he’d like something steady now young Larry’s getting older.’

‘Then we’ll keep him in mind.’ Cassie turned to Lorna. ‘What do you think? It would mean extra meals, breakfasts at least and probably more. Jessie helps now, would you need someone extra?’

‘How many guests are we talking about?’

‘I’m thinking about six cabins to start with, that would mean twelve to twenty people. And don’t forget, it’d be mainly seasonal. We’re not going to get too many in the wet.’

‘We’d need extra. If Tony stays, perhaps his wife, Patty, would help out if we need her.’

‘You’d be happy with that?’

‘Yes.’

‘And you, Rosie? You know what we talked about earlier. I have Rosie in mind for driving and taking people sightseeing,’ she explained to the others.

‘I’m all for it.’ Rosie was enthusiastic. ‘It all sounds exciting.’

‘Daniel, I want to include visits to the cave to see the paintings. I plan on talking to Sam about this to see if he’s happy about having visitors go to an aboriginal site, and, if he is, if he’s up to taking people there and explaining the paintings. I’m just a bit worried that it might be too much for him. But perhaps you could be involved, too; how would you feel about that?’

Daniel laughed. ‘I think he’ll be happy about it, Cassie. But don’t be taken in by Sam’s act. He likes to tell everyone he’s a hundred, but in reality he’s closer to eighty, and he’s as fit as he ever was. He’s quite capable and I bet he’d just love the chance to show off. But as a backup you might consider Tony.’

Cassie sat back in surprise. ‘Tony! Would Sam be happy with an outsider being involved?’

‘He’s not as much an outsider as you think. He lived here when he was a child. He’s twenty years older than me, so I don’t remember him, but Sam does. His family moved away when he was only five. A whole group of them left together to look for work in the city.’

‘Well, just fancy that,’ Lorna said. ‘What a surprise!’

‘It’s another reason why he’d be happy to stay on here, so Larry could be where his roots are,’ Daniel continued.

‘In that case, I think it’s an excellent idea. Tom, will you speak to Tony?’

Tom nodded. ‘If you want me to.’ He still sounded unsure.

He’s probably worried about the finances, Cassie thought. ‘Don’t worry, Tom, I won’t take Yallandoo money for this.’ She looked around at the others. ‘So, if you’re all happy, I’ll go ahead and make some preliminary enquiries, do a bit of research to see if it’s feasible. Is that all right with everyone?’ They all nodded and murmured ‘yes’ although Tom still looked unsure. ‘So, I’ll let you know what’s happening as soon as I know myself. Now, who’s for a cup of tea?’

***

Later that night, Cassie rang her mother. She wasn’t looking forward to this; she knew Gwen would be upset at her news.

‘Hi, Mum, it’s me. How are you?’

‘A bit tired. We’ve been busy. How about you?’

‘Fine, fine. I’ve had a busy day, too. Rosie and I went out with the men, selecting and branding and so on today. We still have some good breeding stock in spite of the drought. Tom’s done a great job.’

‘I’m sure he has. Len thought highly of him. I hope you wore a hat if you were out in that hot sun all day.’

‘Yes, Mum, of course I did. And it’s not all that hot yet.’

‘I can tell you, it’s damn cold down here.’

‘Well, it’s the time of year for it, after all. The holiday makers are all over the place up here, catching the sun. The Esplanade in Cairns is as busy as Martin Place!’

‘It’s always busy up there in winter; I know heaps of people who go up there then.’ Gwen hesitated for a moment before continuing. ‘Talking of people going to Cairns, I had a phone call from Jason a few nights ago.’

Cassie drew a sharp breath. ‘Jason! What did he want? You didn’t talk to him?’

‘Yes, I did. He rang to tell me how sorry he was for all the trouble he caused us.’

‘You didn’t believe him, surely?’

‘I did. He was very sincere.’ Gwen’s voice tried to soothe her. ‘He explained to me how he’d been under terrible pressure at work then and he had a sort of breakdown. He’s really terribly sorry.’

Cassie’s voice rose. ‘Oh, Mum, I can’t believe you were taken in by that. After all the trouble he caused us, and all the threats he made against me.’ She shook her head. ‘How could you even speak to him?’

‘Cassie, calm down, for goodness sake. He was back to his old self. I always did like him before he went off the rails like that. And he was sick then, he explained it all to me.’

‘You are so gullible. He turned out to be a monster. I was frightened for my life when he stalked me.’

‘I’m trying to tell you. He’s not like that anymore.’

‘I don’t believe it.’ She suddenly remembered her mother’s earlier words. ‘Anyway, what did you mean by “people going to Cairns”? You didn’t tell him where I am, did you?’

‘Oh, he already knew. Someone had already told him. Actually, he’s being transferred to Cairns for three months soon, relieving someone in the company up there who’s going on long service leave. He wants to come and see you and tell you himself how sorry he is.’

Anger made Cassie’s blood pound. ‘I can’t believe I’m hearing this. If he dares to come near me after what he did, I’ll report him to the police, for breaking the restraining order.’

‘There’s no need for that, Cassie. He only wants to say how sorry he is.’

Cassie drew a deep breath as she tried to steady herself. ‘If he rings you again, you tell him what I’m saying. I mean it! I don’t want to be looking over my shoulder again all the time.’

‘All right, all right, calm down, for goodness sake. If he rings again, I’ll tell him not to try and see you.’

‘You’d better,’ she said grimly.

Gwen spoke soothingly. ‘I’m sorry to have upset you. Now tell me what else you’ve been doing.’

Cassie shut her eyes and took a few deep breaths before she could speak normally again. She remembered why she had rung Gwen, and tried to put Jason from her mind. ‘Actually, I have some news for you. Now it may be your turn to be upset, but I hope you won’t be. I’ve decided not to sell Yallandoo. I’m going to stay up here.’

‘Oh, dear.’ Gwen sighed. ‘I’ll miss you terribly.’

‘I’ll miss you too. But I hope you can understand. I feel as if Uncle Len left Yallandoo to me in trust. I can’t let it go out of the family.’

‘Are you planning on staying up there permanently?’

‘I think so. It all depends on what happens. I have some plans.’

‘What sort of plans?’

‘Well, there’s a real tourist boom up here. I’d like to be part of it. I still have to do some market research, but I’m thinking of putting cabins in the rainforest.’ Cassie outlined her ideas.

‘When are you thinking of starting this project?’

‘As soon as possible. There’ll be a lot of planning to do first, of course.’

‘Of course. Just make sure you don’t get out of your depth.’

‘I will. Now you take care, I’ll talk to you again soon.’

After she hung up the phone, Cassie’s mind turned back to Jason. She chewed her lip as she remembered how frightened she had been of him. Her heart raced; if he came here would it all start again?

She remembered the hatred in his face the last time she saw him.

When he came here, would he try to harm her in some way?

Cassie related the phone call to Rosie as they drove to Binbin on Sunday morning.

‘I must say I’m surprised Gwen let Jason pull the wool over her eyes like that,’ Rosie said.

Cassie shrugged. ‘She was always telling me how much she liked him. I guess she was happy to believe what he said. But I’m not fooled by him. If he comes up here, I’ll make it clear how I feel. Anyway, let’s forget about him. I’m looking forward to today, aren’t you?’

‘Sure. I’m curious to see what Mark’s done. I believe he’s spent heaps on the place.’

When Cassie and Rosie arrived at the impressive gateway to Binbin Station, they saw that, inside the gates, the driveway split in two. One track branched off and led to the original old homestead, a lovely old Queenslander. The main drive, lined with tall palms, led to an imposing modern stone building with steps leading up to a wide entrance. To one side of the building was a car park, almost full.