AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘Or plant,’ Ava intervened.
‘Yes, or plant. Opalised fossils are similar, except they are preserved in silica. Most of the time fossils are preserved in minerals like agate, or limestone.’
‘How does the silica get there?’
Ava revelled in the questions Noah asked. He was showing a real, intelligent interest.
‘Another very good question. You sure you’re not an archaeologist?’ A pause for laughter. ‘Usually from volcanoes. Opalisation can occur in two ways—firstly where the internal parts are not preserved and leaves an empty shell. Or secondly, the insides are preserved, leaving an entire specimen.’
‘Do you have a whole turtle?’
‘We haven’t extracted it yet. Much detailed work required in that, it looks flat to me, what do you think, Matthew?’
‘I’m hopeful, but most likely the way it’s lying would indicate nothing inside is preserved. The shell might look different.’
No one asked her but Ava added, ‘I don’t think it’s whole either.’ And jumping up, she continued, ‘and this is the tub I found today.’ She pulled a few objects from the top after lifting off the lid.
James and Matthew sprang from their chairs and trawled through the container, exclaiming at each item they examined. ‘These are incredibly beautiful. The colours! Noah, these will provide new information about our heritage and the evolution of our land. Matthew, are you aware of anywhere else that has these types of opalised fossils in Queensland? I know there are other states, but here?’
‘Not sure.’ He stood. ‘But imagine if this is the first find. Here, and we are leading it. We need to call in the big guns at the university to formally register the find, secure some funding, establish a dig site, oh, and advise the press. This will go viral!’
James pulled out his phone.
‘What are you doing?’ Ava’s tone had become high-pitched.
‘Calling our contacts.’
Rougher than intended, Ava snatched his phone. Both men looked at her in surprise.
‘Ava, this is bigger than us, this is huge, it is national. We need everyone involved and to tell the world!’
‘No!’
‘No!’
Noah simultaneously responded with an emphatic “no”. She turned to him at the same time he faced her. Her eyes shot to her forehead while she spread her hands wide in confusion. He had the nerve to turn away, acting sheepish but her heart was already hammering in her chest. Holy shit, she hadn’t thought this through.
Press?
International notoriety?
A dig site?
This was getting bigger by the minute and the safe haven she’d created, that she needed, wanted, was slipping away. Ish would be at risk. It was an impossible situation. And it was all her fault. Her desire to find out the truth of the find had led her here. And now she’d involved other people. Other people knew.
Back when she’d been building the courage to leave her life in Egypt, her reserve had become steely, ferocious in the way only a woman can become to save her child —the mother bear syndrome. Ava had risked everything to remove her son from an environment that was not in his best interests and to protect him and herself from a life that they had never agreed to be part of.
She would not jeopardise how far they’d come.
Like a suit of armour coming down, protecting her and turning her heart to stone, she needed to regain control. So often, these things were about control and she needed to be in charge.
Sitting up tall, she prepared herself. She’d done this before; she could do it again. ‘This is my private land. Nothing happens here without my permission. There will be no contact with the press, nor outside parties about what we’ve found here. You’ve been invited here, and I appreciate your assistance. I’d like you to stay and preserve this site, find out what else is there, record the historical detail, but if you can’t abide by my rules, then I’ll have to ask you to leave.’
‘Ava,’ Matthew held up his hand in a placating gesture. ‘We are employed by the university. They expect a report back, we are obligated to them. If we report what we’ve found, then they might provide much needed funding to run the site.’
‘I can fund it.’
Ava saw Noah’s legs start to jiggle but she ignored him.
