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“First job is repairing the fence by the road.” Vaughan strode off the deck and clamped a baseball cap over his hair. He glanced back at Wiri. “I’ll get the gear to tighten the wires. Then we’ll drive to town to get some posts.”
“Okay.” Wiri stood still and listened to the gentle clank of crockery as Leilah cleaned up the kitchen. She’d waved off their offers of help with an easy flap of her hand. If he closed his eyes, he could imagine Phoenix loading the dishwasher and the steady hum of voices as the Du Roses readied themselves for the day. He missed them all with a tangible ache.
Vaughan opened the roll door to the huge shed after navigating the front bumper of the old-fashioned truck. He disappeared inside, but emerged seconds later with a pair of pliers in his hand. Jerking his head towards the main road in the distance, he turned along the rutted driveway and bid Wiri to follow.
They walked side by side without speaking, the soles of Wiri’s boots loud in the morning’s silence. Afraid of revealing more of himself than he could bear, Wiri trudged next to Vaughan without attempting to start a shallow conversation about nothing. Vaughan’s shoulders lost their tension, and it occurred to the teenager that his employer didn’t appreciate idle chatter, either.
They operated together with an effortless grace, as though the alliance held no newness. Vehicles sped by on the fast road and two of the drivers honked their horns and waved. A knot of curious calves watched their activity, ears forward and feet splayed as the men fixed a bad sag in the fence.
Wiri hauled the wire taut, wearing a borrowed pair of work gloves which protected his fingers. He stretched it past the post and created a loop, twisting the wire to create a join. Vaughan used the pliers to press the twist and prevent the wire from recoiling. Between them, they pulled the loop around the post. Vaughan shoved a bolt through the end, which he drew from his back pocket with an impressive sleight of hand. He used it as a lever to twist the loop around the strand of wire until it tightened to create a decent barrier. “Good job,” he said, rising with a grunt and admiring their work. “Only four more to go.”
They repeated the exercise on each of the runs until the whole fence had regained its integrity. The cool breeze remained, but the sun had risen high enough to negate its bite.
Vaughan wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, catching the brim of his hat and knocking it to the floor. He dipped to retrieve it, but rubbed his stomach with a wince as he rose. “We’ll grab Leilah’s truck,” he said, turning to walk across the paddock towards the driveway. “Then we’ll nip into town for the posts.”
Wiri removed the gloves and shoved the knitted wrists into his back pocket. They flapped against his buttock as he walked like a series of inappropriate butt slaps. Vaughan reached the driveway first, his long legs traversing the paddock gate rather than opening it. Wiri pressed his fingers on the top rail and prepared to follow when Vaughan released an indecent exclamation.
“What’s up?” Wiri paused with his right boot on the bottom rung.
Vaughan grunted and pressed himself against the gate, obscuring his view. Curiosity made him slide sideways to observe the expensive utility vehicle turning into the driveway. The indicator light flashed orange and as the black vehicle made the turn and straightened, Wiri spotted the immaculate horse trailer bouncing along behind it.
The ute stopped next to Vaughan and the tinted driver’s window lowered to reveal a stunning redhead with perfectly aligned features. She looked from Vaughan to Wiri and then back again, the light catching her irises to make the colour indiscernible. “Hi,” she said, lifting her chin as she considered Vaughan. Wiri set her age around twenty, the porcelain tones of her skin still revealing the perfection of youth.
“Hi.” Vaughan lifted his right arm and placed it across his stomach, the flat of his hand resting over his ribs as though for protection. Clearing his throat, he said, “Leilah is still up at the house.”
“Thanks.” She didn’t smile when she continued, “I’ll check in with Deleilah and then find somewhere to put Ruffian. I picked him up this morning on my way through Hamilton.” It seemed to Wiri that she emphasised Leilah’s full name with a determined arrogance.
Vaughan nodded for a whole ten seconds before any words emerged. He waved his hand towards the paddock behind him. “Your horse can go in here, if you like?”
The woman snorted. “No thanks, not with cows! I’ll find somewhere closer to the house. I’m guessing you’ll shove me next door in Grandpa Hector’s house again.”
“No.” Vaughan shook his head and pushed himself away from the gate. “We weren’t expecting you.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder in Wiri’s direction. “My new lad moved in yesterday. The lodger is still in the master bedroom. You can stay with us.”
As Wiri absorbed the information that this was Leilah’s daughter, he watched her top lip curl back into an ugly sneer which destroyed her proportioned face. It wreaked a horrid kind of havoc, drawing her brows together into an angry line and creasing the bridge of her nose. “Great!” she snarled, her tone sounding anything but thrilled with the solution. She stamped on the gas and the ute lurched away, dragging the horse trailer behind it. A clatter and a snort revealed the occupant being taken by surprise at the sudden forward momentum.
“Wow.” Wiri struggled to stop the word from escaping his lips. He realised his error as Vaughan’s face darkened and his eyes took on a gimlet hard appearance.
“Don’t even think about it,” he said, misunderstanding Wiri’s disgust for admiration. “She’ll eat you for breakfast.”
Wiri’s mouth opened to correct him, wanting Vaughan to understand that Leilah’s arrogant daughter was far enough away from Phoenix’s gentleness to revolt him. But the right words wouldn’t form on his tongue and so he followed in silence, trudging back up the winding driveway in the wake of the woman’s dust.
