Three days go by with me and Jag sitting on the hill in the shade of the poles watching for that Valley of the Sun boat to come, hopefully bringing back Uncle Sorren. We’s making plans to rescue him if we don’t see him soon. Got rocks and bits of bark laid out in a map marking out the coastal towns and where we guess Valley of the Sun is.
When the spyglasses finally catch the twinkle of that gold sun shining on an approaching boat, I shove it into Jag’s hands and hurtle down the hill screaming, ‘Valley of the Sun! Valley of the Sun is coming!’
Saleesi joins me letting everyone know, banging on roofs with her cutlass, kicking up a row.
Jag stays up top to make sure his da’s in the boat. Ma and Dizzy take our best fishing boats and hide them up the creek, jus’ in case Valley of the Sun want payment for something. Everyone else hides the littlies for the same reason.
Marta puts on her best shirt and comes to the top of the jetty standing tall as she can. ‘Neoma, go and hide like the others,’ she says. ‘We don’t want to lose you. Let adults handle adult business.’
I nod, but Jag is tearing down the hill and the most excellent grin stretched across his face tells me his da is on board.
He jumps up and down when he gets to me. ‘He’s okay! He’s okay!’
‘Yay!’ I say and jump up and down with him.
‘Get on to somewhere you won’t get taken again.’ Marta waves her hands at us like we’re noisy chooks.
‘But Jag ain’t seen his da for ages!’ I say, and we don’t get away, we hang close jus’ ducking down behind some dinghies on the beach.
Ma and Dizzy get back about the same time as the Valley of the Sun arrives, and when Jag’s da sets foot on the jetty, and ties the boat off for them, it’s too much for Jag. ‘He’s home!’ he whispers. Then he leaps out before I can grab him and runs flat out to the jetty!
Me and Saleesi jus’ watch over top of a dinghy.
Three Valley of the Sun people have guns and the older woman with the hair that’s black instead of grey is with them again. They help Gerra out of the boat too. Has she remembered? They hold Jag off when he tries to get to his da, and that makes me burning hot. I leap up to go running over there to yell and kick some shins or something but Saleesi tackles me and drags me back behind the dinghy. ‘Don’t be a numbat,’ she says. ‘Wait and see what they’re here to do.’
What they do is stomp about waving the guns and shouting. They stomp right past Marta and Ma and Dizzy up to the empty village. They’re dragging Jag’s da around like they don’t intend to let him go. Maybe they only come to take Jag back. Maybe Gerra still don’t remember what really happened.
‘We gotta go tell them what happened out at Jacob’s Reach,’ I say.
Saleesi shakes her head. ‘Do they look like they’re gonna listen to a scruffy kid right now?’ she asks.
Gerra and the older woman are talking with Marta in that funny language they use. ‘We told you we were coming back for answers!’ the older woman shouts in our language.
Jag is up the hill clinging to his da, as the people with the guns drag them hut to hut in search of someone. Is it me they’s looking for?
It don’t look like anyone’s gonna be sitting down over a cup of tea for a chat, so there’s nothing for it. I sprint along the beach, then down the jetty, cast off the Valley of the Sun boat and leap into it. There’s a thud beside me – it’s Saleesi. ‘Where we goin’?’ she asks.
‘Jacob’s Reach,’ I say.
‘Ha!’ she laughs and shoves the boat out from the jetty.
‘Hey!’ the older woman shouts.
Ma and Dizzy run down the jetty. ‘Get back here, right now, Neoma!’ Ma yells.
I wave and grin and keep going. We’re already turning and hoisting the sail and there’s no boat but Marta’s old boat to chase us with, the bigger boats all hiding up the creek. This is an excellent idea.
Ma and Dizzy run to grab Marta’s boat but Marta shouts, ‘No! I’ll take it.’ Maybe Marta knows my plan.
The older woman yells and the three people with guns come running back down from the village with Jag and his da. All of them shouting at us.
Then all five of the Valley of the Sun people climb into Marta’s boat, along with Jag and his da, and Marta. A boat that normally holds two or three sitting low and heavy in the water, with eight in it!
‘Look at it!’ Saleesi says and laughs. She stands on the stern, legs wide apart like a pirate, and screams, ‘You’ll sink, you wormy-brained dogs!’
I’m jus’ happy they’re all leaving Cottage Hill and following me to Jacob’s Reach. That’s where the trouble should be. With Jacob, who lied about what happened.
