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‘For what?’ Amelia asked quietly.

Lisa shrugged. ‘I don’t know. For something to change, I guess. But it won’t. Places like this don’t come back once they start to go. They just fade away.’

Amelia looked around the pub—at the old farmers nursing their beers, at the elderly couples, at the handful of middle-aged locals. Lisa was right. Where was the next generation? Where were the families with young children, the thriving businesses, the sense of a future?

‘It’s beautiful here, though,’ Sophie said. ‘The landscape, the space, the community feeling.’

‘Beauty doesn’t pay the bills,’ Danny said, but not unkindly. ‘I’m actually leaving in a few months. Got a job lined up in Brisbane. Better pay, more opportunities. I’ll miss home, but I can’t stay forever.’

‘What about you, Mitch?’ Jill asked.

He took off his glasses and cleaned them on his shirt. ‘I love teaching. I love these kids. But it’s hard. The school’s always under threat of closure. If student numbers drop below twenty, the department will shut us down and bus the kids to Emerald. And I’m twenty-five, single, living in a town where the median age is fifty-seven. My parents keep asking when I’m going to move somewhere with prospects.’

‘Have you thought about it?’ Amelia asked.

‘All the time,’ Mitch admitted. ‘But then I think about my kids and what will happen to them if I leave. We’ve already lost two teachers this year. There’s only three of us left. If I go...’ He trailed off, shrugging helplessly.

Lisa touched his arm gently. ‘You can’t save the town by yourself, Mitch. None of us can.’

They drank in silence for a moment, the music from the jukebox filling the space—Jimmy Barnes singing about working-class dreams.

‘Sorry,’ Danny said, forcing a smile. ‘We’re being depressing. Tell us about your travels. Where are you headed after here?’

Jill launched into stories of their journey so far—the coast, their trip west with plans to see the dinosaur country around Winton. But Amelia found herself only half-listening. She was looking around the pub, seeing it with new eyes. Here was a community holding on by its fingernails, watching its young people leave, knowing each departure made the next one more likely. She thought about the local pub in her village at home, the warmth and the gathering place for the small community.

And then she thought about the old pub where they were camping, that beautiful ruin sitting on the edge of town. Once upon a time, it must have been like her local at home—full of life and laughter, the beating heart of the community. What had happened to make it close? What happened to towns when their hearts stopped beating?

‘—and that’s when we found the snake in the shower block,’ Sophie was saying, making everyone laugh.

‘You get used to them,’ Danny assured her. ‘Stomp around, make noise, and they’ll leave you alone.’

‘That’s what Jill keeps saying,’ Amelia said. ‘We’re not convinced.’

The evening wore on. More locals drifted over to say hello, curious about the new girls. A farmer named Ted bought them a round, welcoming them to town. The elderly women from the corner table introduced themselves—Harriet and Hazel, neighbours and lifelong friends who’d lived in Garnet Creek for seventy-plus years.

‘Nice to see young people stopping here,’ Harriet said, though her tone was more assessing than warm. ‘You’re not planning to stay, though, are you? Just passing through?’

‘We’re here for a few weeks at least,’ Jill said. ‘Working and saving money.’

‘Hmm,’ Hazel said. ‘That’s what they all say. Then they leave, and we’re short-staffed again. Town can’t survive on drifters.’

Drifters? The comment stung a little, though Amelia couldn’t argue with it. That’s what they were; they had no plans to stay beyond stocking up their travel fund.

But did that have to be true?

The thought surprised her. She’d only been here five days. How could she even think about staying?

Around nine-thirty, Sassy came through the door, still in the clothes she’d worn to the shop, looking tired but still wearing her usual smile. She spotted the girls and came straight over.

‘There you are! I hoped I’d find you here.’ She pulled up a chair without being invited, completely at ease. ‘Who’s buying me a drink?’

Danny laughed and headed to the bar.

Sassy settled into the chair, accepting a beer from Danny with a grateful nod when he returned.

‘Right then,’ she said, looking around the circle with warm eyes. ‘Catch me up. What have I missed?’

‘Not much,’ Lisa said. ‘Just the usual Friday night excitement.’