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‘Yes, it was very special to me.’ She caught herself then, laughed out her nerves. ‘But very unsuitable for country living.’
‘Sure. There aren’t any places in town where you could sell this, but there would be in Brisbane. Are you heading to the city anytime soon?’
Ava shook her head, avoided his eye.
‘I can make some enquiries next week when I’m back at work if you’d like?’
‘That would be great, Clive, thank you, I’m grateful. I’m not planning on heading to Brisbane anytime soon,’ and she returned the ring to her pocket.
‘I’ll come back to you as soon as I can. Oh, and Ava, have you heard from the uni? They said they replied.’
‘Oh, I haven’t checked my emails. I’ll do that straight away.’
‘I hope it’s good news. Cheerio!’
At the fence Ava glanced back. Clive remained at his door before slipping back inside after a brief wave.
Should she read anything into that interaction? Clive was always friendly and happy to chat. She was being silly; she had no reason to doubt Clive. Perhaps like her, he was having a bad day? He’d been nothing but reliable, good company and had given her a sense of protection out here on her isolated property. She shut down her intuition that something felt off.
After their last chat she’d written a letter to the university attaching photographs and setting out what she thought was significant information on her finds. Ever so briefly she’d forgotten about it, but now her tummy bubbled with excitement. What would they think?
Before retrieving her laptop again, she checked on Ish. In the dying remnants of the day, he ran around the spacious yard, a smile on his face, playing with the dogs. Moving here had changed their lives. She had to keep to the plan, had to pull it off. She felt for the ring in her pocket. Giving it up was a small price to pay.
Ish squealed with delight as Daisy performed a trick at his command. He slept well here since they had been in the country. London, the short stop they’d made after fleeing Egypt, had been fraught with uncertainty, but here, with his active outdoor lifestyle and constant stimulation, he zonked out most nights. Ava hoped that meant he was adjusting to their new life well.
Opening her emails, she clicked on the message from the university. Holding her breath, she read the content and smiled. Yes, they were interested in seeing her finds. They agreed with her suspicion that they might be specimens of opalised fossils. And she was right about the pine cone! Not bad for an archaeologist with no experience in these sorts of digs.
Thank you, Ms Montgomery, for informing us of this discovery. We are keen to see the items in real life and suggest travelling up to your property next week. It is also important to visit because, as you would appreciate, often there are more significant finds on the site or its surrounds, where samples are found. With any luck, this might be a great new discovery. If you could please reply with confirmation that our suggested arrangements are suitable and provide us with your address.
Great new discovery! This response was better than she’d expected. Her gaze instantly went outside to the site.
Shooting off confirmation, Ava scanned the remainder of her inbox. Given it was a new address, there was little spam and the mailbox wasn’t congested yet. Scrolling, she paused on one message. An unfamiliar name and handle. Her heart immediately jumped into her throat. Could be random? With fingers hovering, she clicked it open.
Jumping up, her laptop crashed to the floor and the lid banged shut. She raced to the back door and screamed. ‘Ish! Ish!’
She ran to the spare room and raced over to the curtains and shut them. Went to the empty kitchen and pulled down the blinds, and then the same with the remaining rooms. The back sliding door didn’t have any coverings to block out prying eyes. Instead, she turned off the lights to reduce visibility.
An owl hooted outside, and she jumped. Twigs scraped on the new Colourbond steel roof and guttering. With alarming volume, every sound crept its way into her head and rather than enjoying the normal bush orchestra, these noises taunted her. Had she locked the gate? Unable to remember, she resisted the urge to race down the long drive. She double checked that each window was bolted and the front and back door.
Ish scurried up the back steps. She pulled him into her chest and held him hard and close before dragging him inside. Bless her child that didn’t ask any questions. Ava slammed the glass panel and locked the door. Only when she was satisfied someone couldn’t infiltrate the house, she sat tensely with Ish by her side on the couch.
She dragged in a breath and put a hand to her chest. Could someone locate your whereabouts from an email address? She found her phone in between the cushions and was about to Google the question. What if her phone was hacked? Or traced? Or bugged? Whatever the appropriate description was. Henry had both the resources and skill to do that. It was a new phone she reasoned and had not been in her possession when she’d fled. So, it couldn’t have been tampered with, right? But what about the email? How did he get it? Nothing made sense. She had been so careful. Except … she put the phone down.
She’d given her email to Clive and the university, two strangers. Clive assured her it’d be private and the university, why would they pass her details to her husband? How would any of these people even know her husband? Nothing made sense.
But still the fact remained that she had received an email from Henry to an address that she’d only recently set up and barely used. A new address with a cryptic handle.
Ava couldn’t answer those questions right now. She had to read the email, even though her lunch now burned her throat. Turning towards their makeshift kitchen, she turned the kettle on, but gagged at the thought of the fragrant chai going down her throat.
Flicking off the switch, she picked up the kettle and dumped it back down on the bench. Okay, no tea. Racing back into the living room, she put on the television for Ish. Turning to him, the boy sat rigid, silent tears streaming down his cheeks. ‘Oh, Ish, honey.’ She sat down and embraced him. They sat like that silently together for a short while. ‘How about some time watching the Disney channel?’ Thank goodness she’d invested in the streaming service. Just for times like this. For times when she couldn’t get her thoughts straight and she needed Ish occupied and safe, and most importantly, distracted. The blaring music of Guardians of the Galaxy boomed out and spiked her adrenalin even more.
Giving him the remote she collected her computer from the floor and sat at the dining room table. She puffed up her cheeks with air and blew out a deep breath as she flipped the lid. Her sweaty hands made the top slip and shut with a bang. Finally open, the screen flashed, then went dark as she waited too long to punch in her code. If she clicked on the email, would that send him anything? Her location?
The nightmare was starting; she’d been foolish. She’d taken for granted that they would be safe in this sleepy back hollow of a town. And this is what happened when you let your guard down. What an idiot, she’d been
Dear Ava. Polite, formal. Closing her eyes, she took a couple of deep breaths not sure she could read the words.
Disappointment
