Sunday morning came cold and crisp. Clouds told the tale of snow on the mountains and Rebecca took the advice of her friends and dressed warm. Even an old beanie of her Pops came out, smelling of naphthalene and the musty smell of a wardrobe drawer.
Sarge had spent the night sleeping on the foot of the bed, curled up and to Rebecca’s surprise snoring like a wood saw. The dog had stayed there fast asleep, even after Rebecca had gotten up, showered and made her first coffee. Only after the smell of bacon began to waft down the hall did Sarge finally come wandering out.
“You have a big night girl?”
Sarge sniffed at the table and then wandered back down the hall to the back door, scratching at the floor.
“Ok. Toilet break.”
When the back door swung open, Sarge did not hesitate to run out into the cold but Rebecca took a step back when the icy but light breeze washed over her face.
“Don’t be long young lady. It’s freezing.”
Rebecca turned back down the hall, leaving the door open and made her way back to the kitchen. Despite the dietary instructions that Uncle Paul had given her, Rebecca placed two strips of bacon into Sarges bowl and waited. After only a few minutes she heard the pad of paws coming down the hall, which stopped and almost had Rebecca investigate before she heard the door shut and the click of claws begin again as Sarge once again made her way into the kitchen.
The short-cut bacon disappeared almost instantly and when Sarge turned to look at Rebecca, she was sure she saw a huge grin on the dog’s face.
“You are priceless…. You ready for a day out?”
Sarge tilted her head, giving that look that meant ‘I have no idea what you are saying…but I like the bacon.’
For the next half hour Rebecca set about cleaning up after the night before and getting ready, all the while aimlessly chatting to Sarge. She never expected an answer from the dog and jumped when Sarge finally gave a low growl and bark.
“You talk too much miss. You better not be doing that today…and I’m guessing that bark was for a car coming up the road.”
Rebecca checked the time on her new phone.
“Only twenty minutes late.”
The sound of car pulling into the driveway was quickly followed by a door slamming, a horn honking, and a female voice.
“Settle down already. I’ll get her.”
Rebecca scratched the top of Sarges head.
“C’mon girl, lets go join these two comedians.”
Rebecca beat Tracey to the front door and Sarge almost knocked both over as she shot by them and waited at the back door of Landcruiser.
“Well she’s keen.” Tracey gave Rebecca a quick hug. “How about you Bec? Sleep okay?”
“Like a rock. So, did Sarge…but she’s more of a snoring, farting rock.”
Tracey turned and yelled toward the car.
“Wind down the window…she’s a farter.”
Rebecca saw Tony raise his eyebrows as he reached for the window controls.
“Not Bec you dag…Sarge.”
“Seriously Trace, you’re so embarrassing.”
“Yeah well paybacks a bitch. Now come on. Let’s go. We got lunch ready and the perfect spot.”
Rebecca buckled herself into the backseat and Sarge lay down on the seat beside her.
Tony turned his head to look into the backseat as he began to reverse out of the driveway.
“You two ready? We could be in for a bumpy ride.”
Bec pulled at her seatbelt, ensuring it was tight and rested her hand on Sarges head.
“Ready to rock.”
The trip took them back through town and onto a tarred road that headed up into the mountains. The slope dropped away dramatically on one side of the road but gave glimpses of the valley and town below, through breaks in the straggly gums. It soon became a dirt road and the trees turned to plantation pine all planted in lines that gave geometric views into the deeper parts of the forest. The corrugations on the road sent a rhythmic shudder through the car.
“Is this the bumps you meant?”
“Oh no, no, no. This is just the warmup.”
And on saying that Tony turned from the dirt road to a narrow track that quickly became hidden amongst tall pines.
Rebecca looked over Tracey’s shoulder at the track ahead.
“Is this where you bury all your victims?”
“Ha...he smells like that’s what he’s been up too sometimes.”
“Trust me girls. It’s worth the ride.”
The track became bumpier, and they slowed down considerably to negotiate some of the bigger ruts. At one point they had to stop as Tony got out and pushed a large fallen branch out of their way, and again when he unlocked an old gate.
Rebecca looked deep into the trees as they stopped and caught a glimpse of a white patch.
“Oh my god. Is that snow?”
“Yeah. Tony said there might still be some up here. Some places got a little fall last night.”
For the next fifteen minutes Rebecca scanned the trees beside the car, finding an ever-increasing amount of snow on the ground. The car topped a small rise and the forest opened to a small meadow.
Tony brought the car to a halt in front of a large log.
“Here we are. Ashton’s Glen. This is almost the headwaters of the Shard river, and guaranteed we are the only ones here.” Tony held up the key he had unlocked the earlier gate with.
“So why is it locked up?”
“There’s a couple of old ruins of a homestead up near the top of the paddock and some Aboriginal significant sites hidden down near the stream. So, now it’s off limits to the public. I check on the place from time to time but the main reason I come here is to check on Tubbs.”
“Who or what the hell is Tubbs?”
They all climbed out of the car, Sarge included and Tony climbed on top of the log and gave a whistle.
“Do me a favour Bec.” Tony looked down to Sarge and Rebecca noticed the more serious tone in his voice. “Just keep an eye on Sarge.”
“Yeah sure.” Rebecca looped her palm through Sarges collar.
Tony gave another whistle and clapped his hands.
“Here he comes.”
Tracey wandered down to the end of the log and around to the other side of it. Rebecca followed, still holding Sarges collar and when she saw what Tony had been calling too, she gasped.
“Oh my god it’s so cute”
Dawdling through the low grass came a small wombat, obviously a juvenile. Sarge whimpered when she caught its scent, not menacingly. She seemed just as curious as Rebecca.
The wombat paused, half obscured behind a hummock of grass, having itself caught the scent of the dog, but as Tony jumped down from the log ‘Tubbs’ began to edge forward again. It stopped at Tony’s feet, sniffing at his shoes. Tony reached into one the zippered pockets on his jacket and pulled out a zip lock bag. Inside was what seemed to be a mixture of diced fruit and vegetables.
He knelt and emptied part of the bag onto the ground, which ‘Tubbs’ wasted no time in devouring.
“She loves this stuff. You guys come around slowly. She’s tame…that’s the problem, but first sign of Sarge going crazy, you need to put her in the car. Promise me. We’ve already lost her brother.”
“Ok. Promise. I’ve got hold of her.” Rebecca firmed her grip on the collar but Sarge seemed to understand and sat quietly tilting her head and examining the small wombat.
With one hand on Sarges collar, Rebecca reached out and touched the top of the wombat’s head. Its hair felt coarse and wiry to touch and Rebecca felt compelled to scratch it behind the ear, which the wombat seemed to enjoy.
“She’s gorgeous isn’t she Bec. Tony has brought me up here a few times when he’s been keeping an eye on her.”
“She is gorgeous. You said she had a brother.”
Tony stood up and looked over the meadow, “Yeah. Something got him. Maybe wild dogs, or a fox. Their mum got hit by a car and I found them, they were old enough to fend for themselves but not street smart if you know what I mean. ‘Crockett’ just disappeared one night. All I found was a bit of bloody fur and a scared ‘Tubbs’. She was hiding under this log, poor girl, but she’s doing good now. Knows what to do when she’s in trouble.”
“Crockett and Tubbs. Is that from that show? The one with Don Johnson.”
“Yeah. Some guy was talking about old theme songs on the radio just before I found them, and then he started playing the Miami Vice music.”
“Couldn’t you have given her something else. Tubbs isn’t very feminine.”
“Trust me she ain’t very feminine.”
Tubbs had now wandered toward where Sarge was lying with her muzzle on the grass and Rebecca, Tony and Tracey watched carefully as the two animals gave each other the once over. Sarge looked up at Rebecca questioningly.
“It’s okay girl, she won’t hurt you”
Sarge lifted her head from the ground and sniffed the wombats face and for a moment it looked as though ‘Tubbs’ was about to take an exploratory nibble on the dog’s nose, but she turned and walked away back to Tony. She knew there were more treats in his pocket and as far as she was concerned, Sarge was just a big wombat. Nothing to see there.
Sarge took the rejection gracefully, sat up on her hind legs and nuzzled Rebecca. It was only a small nudge but enough to throw Rebecca off balance and onto her butt.
“Thanks a lot girl.”
Sarge apologised by licking her face.
“Ok ladies. It’s time for lunch. I’ve fed one of you.” Tony gestured toward ‘Tubbs’, “now the remaining trio, if you would like to step back toward the car, I’m sure we can rustle up a picnic blanket, some sandwiches and a flask of Coffee.”
With blanket, sandwiches, and coffee the group made their way to a small grassy ledge above the creek. The water flowed over rocks and cascaded into a small pool, that Tony confidently told them was ‘home to Platypus and a ‘shitload’ of yabbies’.
For the next hour they sat chatting, laughing, and taking in the bushland sounds. At one stage Rebecca had to stop herself from falling asleep as the warm, winter sun played over her face. She kept thinking about ‘Tubbs’. An orphan that lost her mother in tragic circumstances and deep down she knew she was thinking about herself.
“Ok folks. Time to move out. Pick up all the crap. I don’t want any rubbish left behind. Stretch your legs if you need to but in twenty minutes we are out of here.”
Tony headed back toward where hey had last seen ‘Tubbs’ and surprisingly Sarge followed him.
“Hey Tony. Looks like you’ve made a friend.” Rebecca yelled.
Tony turned his head, saw Sarge following him and smiled.
“C’mon girl. Let’s check her out one last time.”
Tracey stood and began packing up their gear. Chatting to Rebecca as she went.
“He’s really good with animals. They all seem to connect with him. Like ‘Tubbs’…and now Sarge. Who only last night was ready to attack him if he looked at you the wrong way.”
“You found a good one there.”
“And mum adores him. I think he’s the one.”
“I hope you mean future husband.”
The smile on Tracey’s face told Rebecca all she needed to know.
“Oh my god. It’s happening isn’t it. When?”
“We’ve talked about it…but he hasn’t asked yet...don’t worry, you’ll get an invite.”
“An invite. I’m shooting for a seat at the big table.”
“Anything is possible if you play your cards right.”
The two continued chatting as they finished cleaning up and were soon joined by Tony and Sarge as they all headed toward the car.
Rebecca took a poke at Tony “That’d be right. Turn up after the cleanings done…almost acting like a married man.”
“Got to get in some practice, don’t I Trace.”
They all climbed into the car. Tony opening the door for Sarge and gesturing for her to get in. The dog and man acting like they had been lifelong friends. Something that Rebecca thought weird but could only smile about.
The trip back down the mountain was broken by a few stops as Tony checked gates and performed quick drive-bys of some of the camping areas. There were a few tents dotted amongst the pines and when they reached the major camping ground at The Pane, they all stopped and made use of the facilities,
The Pane was an old dam, built during the gold rush days by an American mining company. At one stage over a thousand people had lived on the site, or so Tony said, but right now it consisted of three caravans, around ten tents and several swags.
The Pane itself stretched down a small valley. Protected from the wind on all sides it was usually a mirror-like sheet of water, hence the name The Pane. Like a Pane of glass. It was at its widest around ninety metres wide and nearly two hundred long. At its far end was a rough dam wall, with water running through a narrow causeway toward the falls.
The falls were those from which the town below had gotten its name. They dropped eight metres in a wide spanning sheet of unbroken water, much like The Pane from which it had originated, but then a jagged outcrop of rock broke the sheet into a mass of splintered cascades that fell down another seven metres to the creek below. This was Shattered Falls and down below the creek flowed into the Shard river.
Rebecca remembered coming here with her parents and sometimes Pop, for picnics, a swim on a hot summer’s day or just for somewhere to go. She made a mental note to come back here soon. Just to walk down to the falls, to remember the good times and just because she could.
It was mid-afternoon when Tracey and Tony drove back into Rebecca’s driveway. After some goodbyes, and a rough cuddle between Tony and Sarge, Rebecca found herself once again in the country quietness of her home.
As soon as they were inside Sarge curled up beside the fire, even though it had died out. It was like a message to Rebecca and she knew she had to get it going soon anyway. It would be another cold winter’s night.