Page 118 of Atlas: The Story of Pa Salt

The lush garden is laid out by sections, with paths mown into the grass, some of them shaded by wooden frames covered in wisteria. The dark green topiary bushes are perfectly pruned, as are the herbaceous borders that contain brighter specimens – fiery pink and orange flowers, glossy green leaves and honey-scented purple blooms. I have spent hours marvelling at the large blue butterflies which dip in to drink their sweet nectar. The boundaries of the garden are lined by towering trees with unusual ghost-white bark, which produce a fresh herbal scent that wafts into the house on the evening breeze, when a chorus of insects produce a cacophony of sound.

Ralph Mackenzie had charismatic blue eyes, a strong jawline and thick auburn hair. To my surprise, he was significantly younger than Kitty – perhaps twenty years or so. When I knocked on his door a week after arriving in Adelaide, the reception could not have been warmer.

‘Mr Tanit? Welcome to Alicia Hall.’ He greeted me with an enthusiastic handshake and welcomed me in through the grand hallway. After sitting me down in the drawing room, he asked his housekeeper, Kilara, for a cup of hot tea.

‘I think a water would serve me well, actually, Mr Mackenzie,’ I interjected.

‘Aha! Clearly, like me, you come from the cold, Mr Tanit. I also could not picture anything worse than hot tea in this climate when I first arrived. However, my wise sister assured me that the hot tea makes you sweat, activating the body’s natural cooling system.’

I shrugged. ‘I had never even considered such a thing.’

Ralph gave me a grin. ‘Australia is full of surprises, Mr Tanit. You’ll find a new way of looking at the world.’

‘I hope so.’

‘Now, my sister tells me you’re in need of employment. I should like to say straight away that Kitty’s recommendation is enough for me. You are welcome to the job I have in mind for you... should you wish to take it.’ Ralph looked hesitant. ‘I’m sure she has made you aware of what she has done for me, so I am desperate to return the favour in any way possible.’

‘I should be grateful for any work you are able to provide, Mr Mackenzie. I’m not put off by a lot,’ I replied honestly.

Ralph leant forward on the old wooden chair he was sitting on. ‘What do you know of opal, Mr Tanit?’

I thought back to the pendant necklace worn by Kreeg’s mother. ‘Only that it is a fine and rare material, prized by jewellers.’

‘Quite right, Mr Tanit. Due to an unlikely combination of geology, Australia has been the world’s primary source of opal since the 1880s. We produce over ninety-five per cent of the stuff here. Now, to be quite honest, the pearling business in Broome has gone belly-up after the war. It’s recovering, but slowly.’ He sat up again and, perhaps unconsciously, adjusted his waistcoat. ‘As the new head of the corporation, it is my intention to restore the Mercer reputation to its former glory in that field.’

‘I see.’

‘My nephew, Charlie, was a wise young chap, taken from us too soon during the war. He saw which way the wind was blowing, and invested in vineyards and an aforementioned opal mine in Coober Pedy. The profits are healthy enough, but we’re not operating at full capacity. I’ve just come back from the place.’ Kilara returned with the tea, served on anornate silver tray. ‘Kilara, Coober Pedy is Aboriginal Australian, isn’t it?’

‘Yes, sir,’ Kilara nodded. ‘Kupa piti. Means “boys’ waterhole”.’ She proceeded to pour the tea out. ‘Lemon, milk, sir?’ She looked at me, and I was struck by her amazing brown eyes, which sparkled like moonlight.

‘Milk, thank you.’

Ralph continued. ‘As I was saying, Coober Pedy is the home of the opal. I am quite convinced we haven’t even scratched the surface of what’s beneath the earth. Whilst I was up there, I was offered some more land that’s going cheap. I’m going to invest in it.’

I took a sip of my tea. ‘It all sounds very intriguing, Mr Mackenzie. What did you have in mind for me?’

‘I’ll need a man to run the operation there. It’s... not going to be an easy position to fill. As with any mining, there are inherent dangers. And you’ll find that over here in Australia standards of health and safety are not quite as high as in Europe.’

‘Well,’ I said, ‘at least it might be cooler underground than it is above ground.’ I smiled, placing my teacup back on its saucer.

Ralph looked hopeful. ‘Might I take that as an expression of interest, Mr Tanit?’

‘You may, Mr Mackenzie. Thank you.’

‘Wonderful. But I do not wish to undersell the dangers of the role. We already have deep shafts, and it is my intention to build many more.’

I moved to reassure him. ‘Mr Mackenzie, I recently lost the love of my life. I can confidently tell you that I consider it a miracle I am still here and breathing at all. What’s more, I no longer possess any sense of fear. In truth, my life does not matter all that much to me anymore. I am glad of the opportunity you are kindly offering me.’

Ralph looked a little awkward. ‘Sorry to hear all that, Mr Tanit.’

‘Please, call me Atlas.’

‘Atlas. What a superb name. And quite appropriate, given you’ll be heading underground and holding up those opal mines on your shoulders!’ He reached over to shake my hand. ‘I’ll make sure you’re well recompensed, Atlas.’ He raised an eyebrow. ‘In fact, here’s an idea. In addition to your salary, why don’t I offer you a percentage of the opal we sell on? Shall we say... ten per cent of profits?’

I was shocked. ‘That’s very generous, Mr Mackenzie. But there’s no need to—’

Ralph cut me off. ‘In Scotland we have a saying, Atlas. “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”’ He smiled widely. ‘I want to incentivise you. I really think this could be pretty big stuff. If you do the job as I believe it can be done, I hope it can make you a lot of money. You’ll be in charge of increasing and maximising operations, exporting the opal, winning contracts... There’s a lot to do. You’ll be glad of the ten per cent, I assure you.’