At five o"clock the next morning, Ben woke to a banging on his door. "Get up, lazy bones. Breakfast in fifteen minutes."
Remembering where he was, Ben threw back the covers and pulled on his old jeans. Jacie"s footfalls echoed down the wooden boards of the hallway, reminding him of years before when they used to slide in their socks down the polished floor. Grinning at the memory, he buttoned up his shirt and ran his fingers through his hair.
The smells of sizzling bacon and a huge pot of coffee percolating on the stove made his stomach rumble. He could see Louise had already poured herself a steaming mug. "Did you sleep okay?"
Louise nodded as she buttered a piece of toast. "I only woke up when I heard Graeme and Jacinta get up. How about you?"
"Yeh, like a lizard drinking, flat out." He chuckled as he perched on a stool and accepted a plate of hot food from his cousin.
"Dad"s already eaten. He and John are rounding up the horses." Jacinta joined the other two at the bench and tucked into a huge plate of bacon, sausage, eggs and tomatoes.
Ben mumbled through a mouthful of his own meal. He swallowed and tried again. "I was hoping to go with him. I love riding the bikes in the dark through the paddock."
"You"re mad. My horses at Mum"s come to a whistle. That"s much easier."
The pair bantered on about the start of the day. Having washed up his plate, Ben headed for the back door. "I want to check on Brandy. I"ll meet you over at the cattle yards."
Snifter greeted his owner with huge bounds and a hot wet tongue as Ben pulled on his boots. Unlatching the gate, Ben let the dog bounce alongside him as he went to look over his stallion. Brandy had spent the night in the round yard to minimise the chance of him hurting himself with the excitement of a new place. The young brumby greeted him with a whicker as Ben approached. "What"s up, fella? Can you smell the horses coming in?"
Ben could hear the motorbikes idling in the dark. He knew the horse paddock covered almost a thousand acres, far too big to look for horses on foot. The stock horses knew the morning routine; as soon as the bikes went around them, they cantered towards the yards.
Snifter started to bark.
"Quiet! It"s not your job here."
Brandy swung around to face the sound of pounding hooves as a dozen horses streaked for the yards. Ben"s eyes had adjusted enough to see the moving shapes in the dawn, legs blurring and tails flying. A chain clanged on a gate as one of the men secured the horses. Ben strode past the cattle race to greet them.
A yelp followed by the snarls and growls of a dog fight made him stop. Ben looked down to check that Snifter followed at his side, but the blue heeler had disappeared. Ben realised with a sinking sensation in his stomach that his dog hadn"t been barking at the horses, but at Graeme"s station dogs that had run in behind the herd.
Breaking into a run, Ben raced across to the dog fight. He could see that a large cross-bred mastiff had Snifter by the neck as he struggled on the ground. Saliva sprayed as the dogs wrestled for a hold on each other.
Graeme reached the pair a moment before Ben. He grabbed his dog by the collar but neither animal released their bite. "Get the hose. Next to the trough!"
Twisting the nozzle open as he turned on the tap, Ben shot a spray towards the fighting dogs. The sudden shock of cold water broke them apart. Snifter remained laying on the ground as Graeme dragged the larger dog away.
As Ben reached Snifter, the blue heeler sat up and started licking his wounds. Ben could see numerous places where the hair had been scraped off and blood seeped from a number of scratches. "You stupid dog. You should know better. Isn"t only having three legs bad enough?"
Graeme returned from chaining up the mastiff. "How is he? Anything broken?"
Ben ran his hands over each of Snifter"s legs, along his back and under his belly. "No, I don"t think so. I expect he"ll be very sore for a few days though. I"d better lock him in the garden again."
Clipping a horse lead rope onto the dog"s collar, Graeme straightened up. "I"ll take him. I need to change into dry clothes. You go and pick out a horse for yourself."
Ben hadn"t noticed until then that Graeme"s clothes clung to his skin. "Sorry, Uncle! I hadn"t meant to get you."
"No problem. Go on, I"ll look after Snifter. There"s some wound cream in the kitchen. Where"s Louise? She can start tacking up Splash."
The dog fight had taken all other thoughts from Ben"s mind. "I expect she"s helping Jacie clean up after breakfast."
"Alright, I"ll send them both out. Don"t worry about your dog. That one of mine always dominates visitors, but it"s more show than aggression." Graeme turned away and encouraged Snifter to follow with a tug on the rope. The dog had trouble walking with only one front leg and one hind leg injured.
Ben couldn"t bear to watch Snifter as he struggled along without a whimper. "I"ll take him, Uncle Graeme."
The roar of a helicopter starting its engine drowned out Graeme"s answer. When his uncle waved him away and pointed to the yards, Ben could see the young horses spook at the strange noise. Understanding that he needed to help the stockmen, he gave Snifter a final glance and hurried across to the yards.
Dust from the horses" hooves clouded the scene in the early morning light. Ben felt his pulse race in time to the throb of the quickening helicopter"s propeller. The excitement of a muster overrode his concern for his dog, his horse and his father. Grabbing a halter, he entered the round yard to catch the chestnut mare that he had been assigned. She threw up her head and tried to duck away from him as he approached.
Telling himself to calm down, Ben relaxed and let her settle before sidling up to her shoulder. Now that he had let go of his tension, the mare responded and stood still. Wrapping the rope around her neck, Ben slipped the halter on her head and gave her neck a rub. "Big day today, girl. Come on."
Leading the mare away from the others, he tied her outside the yard to a rail and commenced brushing her down.
Jacinta walked out with Graeme from the house with Louise trailing behind. Ben had spotted Jacinta"s old skewbald pony in the mob of horses. He hoped Louise wouldn"t mind riding such a small mount.
"Let"s get these horses loaded up." Graeme"s voice rose above the sound of the departing helicopter as it banked away from the yards, its tail almost vertical in the air, en-route to the muster.
"Why are we putting the horses on the truck?" Louise appeared at Ben"s side, trying to keep the pony from rubbing his head on her hip. She smacked the pink nose as the skewbald tried to nip.
Ben straightened up from checking his mare"s feet. "The chopper will bring the cattle to a meeting place where we"ll hold them. There"s no point wearing the horses out riding there, so we truck out and ride back with the cattle."
Louise shivered and rubbed her arms through her cotton shirt. "I hope it warms up later."
Nodding, Ben untied his horse. "Yeh, it will. Have you got plenty of water with you?"
"Heaps. And you forgot your sandwiches. Here." Louise handed Ben a bag of food for his saddlebags.
With their gear and lunch sorted out, Ben and Louise joined the others at the truck. The horses had calmed down since the helicopter had departed and clattered up the ramp, one after the other. Ben"s mare tried to bite the horse next to her until he tied her short to the side of the truck.
Striding back down the ramp, Ben couldn"t see how Louise"s pony would fit with a full load of stockhorses. Before he could ask, the tiny horse trotted up the ramp and forced his way under the neck of all the others.
"He hates being left behind. He"ll keep those young ones in line, too." Jacinta patted the rump of her old favourite, swinging down after closing the tailgate.
The journey only took twenty minutes. The horses came off the truck in a rush of anticipation, leaping from the ramp. Ben unclipped one end of his reins and lunged his mare to settle her. Bringing her back to a halt and holding her head around to her shoulder, he tightened her girth and mounted. She fidgeted and stepped sideways. Ben held his reins short ensuring that the only place she could go was in a circle. After a couple of spins, she stopped.
Rising above the outcrops of rock, the sun shone straight in Ben"s eyes causing him to blink. Everywhere he looked, the landscape glowed a deep orange—the rocky ground, the craggy hills in the distance, the castle-like termite mounds, even the dust on the leaves of the sparse scrub—unlike the towering greenery of the trees back at home in the mountains.
Leaving the truck to be collected later, the riders walked their horses a couple of kilometres to the meeting point. Louise rode up beside Ben. "Why didn"t the truck take us all the way to the start?"
"This way the horses" muscles have a chance to warm up in case we have to chase after any cattle." Ben cocked his head to one side. He could hear the throb of the helicopter in the distance, roving to and fro like a sheep dog working a flock. His mare napped and snatched at the bit, ignoring his attempts to keep her straight. Ben could tell the young chestnut had not been ridden much. He steadied her and came to a halt.
"Here they come." He pointed out the first of the cattle heading towards them.
Graeme directed everyone to line up a distance away from the nearby waterhole to block the cattle from trotting past. Seeing the riders, the cattle pulled to a stop and milled around at the edge of the water.
Ben"s mare snorted and pawed at the ground. He tapped her on the shoulder with the end of his reins to make her behave. After tossing her head, she stopped fidgeting.
As the sun rose higher, more and more cattle thronged in to join the mob. Ben had forgotten how slowly a muster started. There had been little for him to do with the experienced stockmen chasing back cattle that didn"t want to stop. He"d hoped to have a chance to chat to Jacinta, but they needed to keep their separate posts. Looking across to where Louise sat on Splash, he thought she seemed relaxed in the shade. The pony appeared to be asleep; an old hand at this game, he knew he"d need his energy for later.
A shrill whistle alerted Ben. Graeme signalled for them to start walking the cattle out. He had explained earlier how he wanted everyone to work—Ben and Jacinta on the wings, the head stockman and one other in the lead, and Louise with the remainder of the riders on the tail. They planned to keep the cattle close together and move at the pace of the slowest calves.
Ben"s chestnut mare pranced as she closed in on a large Brahman bull, his neck hump wobbling with each step. Pushing his horse into the bull"s shoulder, Ben guided the old male back towards the mob. He turned without complaint, lumbering his great bulk with plodding steps. Pleased how his horse responded to his leg aids, Ben patted her neck.
Settling in for a long walk, Ben rode automatically, watching the cattle for any that might try to stray. Every so often, another small group would come running in from the scrub to join the herd, chased from far away by the buzzing helicopter. The heat had returned to the day and dust clung to his sweaty skin. Ben took a long swig from his canteen, letting some of the cool water dribble down his chin. While trying to re-secure his water bottle, the chestnut mare shied.
"Whoa! Steady there!" Ben slipped sideways, almost coming off. Grabbing the mane, he hauled himself back into the saddle. Overhead, a kite flew low with a snake in its claws, the writhing body of its meal casting shadows over the horse. The reptile had been easy prey while slithering away from the thousands of trampling hooves.
"So that"s what spooked you." Ben shortened up his reins and sat deep, preventing the mare from bolting as she continued to panic. As he brought her back under control, the helicopter appeared from behind a small bluff with a roar.
Too much for the green horse, she snatched at the bit and broke into a gallop. Ben slung the strap of his canteen around his neck and concentrated all his efforts into trying to stop. Years of experience paid off and, with only a little trouble, he brought the mare back to a walk. Returning to the herd, he realised his absence had caused a break in the cattle. Three heifers split in different directions, two stockmen chasing after a pair of them.
Ben spun his mare to head after the last of the fleeing cattle, but his mare, agitated from her fright, stopped responding to his aids. From the corner of his eye, Ben spotted Louise urge Splash after the retreating heifer. Glad she had understood the need not to stop the beast getting away, though embarrassed that it had escaped due to his inattention, Ben turned his concentration back to his horse. This mare wasn"t going to be as easy to control as he"d first hoped.