Eighteen
‘Charlie, you need to ask her,’ urged Dex, seated at their outdoor table on the porch. Ash cradled his coffee mug, alongside the rest of his brothers, for their morning meeting.
The old stockman scowled. ‘I don’t need my granddaughter’s permission to go on a muster, not when I’ve been flamin’ managing musters long before any of you lot were born.’
‘We know Bree won’t let you go,’ said Cap.
‘Hey, does Bree have an illegal still?’ Ryder took a deep mouthful of his coffee.
‘Who told you that bulldust?’ Charlie narrowed his eyes at them.
‘The Station Hand visited last night. He also mentioned you and Bree are brand makers.’
‘Dying trade, I’m afraid.’ Charlie thumbed up the brim of his old Akubra. ‘But we make ‘em for sheep, pigs, even some alpacas, but mostly cattle right across the country. Bree takes care of the register, makes sure no two brands are the same. I’ve got a clever granddaughter, for sure.’
‘And you’ll need her approval to come on this muster?’ Ryder leaned closer to the old man. ‘We can’t do this without you, Charlie. You’re the only one who knows the path through the Stoneys to Wombat Flats.’
‘Bree knows it, too. She’s been up and back plenty of times to check on the cattle. They’re safe enough, getting fat out there.’
‘But if we don’t move them and they decide our dam isn’t legal …’
Charlie’s grey eyes flared open. ‘Cor blimey, it’ll be a flash flood. They’ll either drown or get cut off for good. And that’s a bloody fine herd you don’t want goin’ to waste.’ Charlie shifted to rest his forearms on the table. ‘Have you lot got stockhorses? You’ll need two per man, and then a couple of pack horses for your gear.’
‘The Station Hand and our brother are finding us some,’ said Cap. ‘I’m taking the dogs, too.’
‘Long, bloody walk for them dogs, you know. That beagle won’t make it.’
‘Long walk for cattle, too. But I’m only taking the cattle dogs.’
‘What about Sarge, there?’ Charlie nodded at the regal-looking shepherd that lived on the far corner of the porch.
‘He’ll stay to guard the property. Don’t worry, I’ve got special feeders for the dogs that are staying.’
‘We’ll be locking the front gate, which we plan to fix ASAP, and we’re putting up some more cameras, especially around the dam, along with these signs.’ Ryder held up a tin sign stating Private Property, under 24-hour surveillance.
‘You should hang signs that say Trespassers will be shot . That’ll make ‘em think twice.’ Charlie chuckled. ‘Hey, what’s stopping them from smashing the cameras? They broke the fences and didn’t care about hiding their tracks the last time. Have you got many cameras?’
‘Not yet. We’re making fake ones until our next order arrives.’ Ash showed off his latest creation. The top of a glass beer bottle sat on a plastic container, cut down to size, painted white. It even had some shiny foil on top to look like a solar panel.
‘What the flamin’ heck is that?’
‘A fake camera. If we make enough of them, they won’t know what’s real and what’s fake.’ Ash held up two clunky security cameras side by side. He was going to enlist Harper’s help to make more with him, and maybe talk more about gamifying the station.
‘I’ve gotta hand it to you lad, that’s clever.’
Ryder sipped on his coffee and cleared his throat. ‘Charlie, we want you to ask Bree to come with us.’
Charlie spluttered out a laugh. ‘Fat chance that’s gonna happen.’
‘We need an extra pair of hands,’ said Cap. ‘The dogs can only do so much on a herd that size.’
‘We also don’t want anyone to know where we’re going and that you’ve stashed the cattle out there.’ Ryder pointed at Charlie. ‘Technically, that herd of cattle wasn’t your property to hide.’
‘I did that for the new owners. You lot. It’s your cattle, most are branded to say so.’ Charlie crossed his arms over his chest and stared at the map for a good while. ‘You’ll have some ferals in that mob, for sure. But it’s prize stock, that’s been out there a year in that valley that’s thick in pockets.’
‘Which is why we need you and Bree.’
Charlie leaned back in his seat. ‘Yeah, you’ll need Bree to come. She’s a damned fine stockwoman and a brilliant muster cook, too.’
Ash leaned forward. ‘Is it true you guys have pizza nights on Saturday night?’
Charlie squinted, deepening the crevices around his eyes. ‘You’ll have to speak to Bree about that, she’s the party coordinator.’
‘But will she work for us?’
‘You boys? Never.’ Charlie’s laugh echoed around the verandah.
‘That’s why we need you to ask her. We’ll pay you double to cover her wages,’ said Ryder. ‘We need both of you on this muster, with you leading it.’
Charlie sat straighter, giving them a curt nod. ‘Fair enough, then. I’d better get cracking.’ He stood from the table. ‘You’ll wanna do a deep clean of the troughs before we go, Ash. None of that flyover business with that toy, either. Get into your ute and get ya hands dirty. I found algae choking up the trough on the east side.’
‘It’s on my list.’ He hated being spoken down to, especially in front of his older brothers.
Charlie hobbled down the front steps. ‘Who’s watching the homestead while we’re away?’
They all looked back at the house.
‘You can’t leave that city girl here. Not on her own.’
‘Why not?’ Dex said. ‘The nanny will stick to the house like she does now.’
Charlie shook his head. ‘What’s wrong in lettin’ that girl come with? That poor kid has been nowhere, all locked up in the homestead. And Wombat Flats is paradise, fellas. She’s pristine country, that’s worth the stickybeak.’
‘No!’ The stern word echoed across the verandah, matched by Ash’s frown. ‘They’re not going. I will not risk their safety out on a muster.’ His protectiveness over Harper and Mason flared like fire inside him.
Oh no, had he already gotten too attached?
‘I can’t see Harper climbing into a saddle. Not unless it was for some country club,’ mumbled Dex.
‘Oi.’ Ash frowned at Dex. ‘Leave her alone.’
Dex held his hands up in surrender. ‘Okay, okay.’
‘The boy can ride with you, Ash. Bree’s made this special baby halter to strap him to your chest,’ said Charlie. ‘Harper can help cook.’
‘Harper can’t cook,’ said Ash. ‘She’d tell you that.’
‘Guess that’s why Harper’s been having cooking lessons with Bree.’
All four men raised their eyebrows.
‘It’s why we’d appreciate it if you can get Bree to come,’ said Ryder. ‘We’ll leave Harper here.’
‘But if you leave Harper here, fellas, that’ll be Bree’s excuse to stay and keep an eye on the girl. And trust me on this, lads, we need Bree to go with us. Because once that kid makes up her mind, she’ll stock up on supplies for all of us, baby gear and dogs included. Bree runs a flamin’ good muster camp.’
‘Right, that’s settled then.’ Ryder tapped on the table. ‘Harper will come with us. I’ll ask Jonathan for two quiet horses for Harper to ride. Do you need horses, Charlie?’
‘We’ve got our own well-trained stockhorses getting lazy in the stables.’
‘You have stables?’ Dex swivelled in his seat to face the caretaker’s cottage. ‘How many horses?’
‘Enough for me and my granddaughter to take mustering.’
‘Are you sure you can convince Bree to come?’ Ryder made more notes on his tablet. ‘Because if we ask Bree, she’ll laugh in our faces and walk off.’
‘Ain’t that the truth,’ said Dex, with Ash and Cap nodding.
‘I’ll get my granddaughter to come, don’t you worry ‘bout that. You lads just need to convince Harper.’ Charlie pointed at the house where Harper was inside Mason’s room.
‘Not me. I’m pretty sure the nanny wants to string me up alive,’ said Dex with an evil grin. ‘Ash can talk to Harper, she listens to Ash.’
‘Dex is right.’ Ryder plonked his elbow on the table and pointed at Ash. ‘You were the one who sweet-talked Harper into working out here as a nanny, when she’s clearly not a nanny. So, you can convince Harper to come on the muster. Then Charlie can convince Bree to help save our cattle, so we can pay for a legal team to help save our station.’