Page 19

Indy swung the gate shut, securing her ewes in the larger cordoned-off area on the showground oval.

Carter and his teammate Isaac had helped her with unloading and securing the panels for the smaller yard.

The air between her and Carter had been more tense than usual.

Now the footballers were off meeting their PR rep from Sydney and setting up their own gazebo.

Indy rested her forearms against the top of the fence.

Bloody Carter. She’d wanted to scream at him! Yes, that kiss had been the best one she’d ever had and she’d undoubtedly need to take a cold shower whenever she relived it, but she was not going to risk getting kicked off the mountain.

Lifting her cap, she wiped the sweat away with the rolled-up sleeve of her best Windale Mountain Station shirt.

It’d just reached nine o’clock and she was sweating up a storm in the oppressive summer humidity.

The radar had confirmed what she already knew—a thunderstorm would be rolling through in the late afternoon.

Indy hoped to be back home before the worst of it hit. It was going to be a monster.

‘Indy, you look like you’re all set up and ready to go.’

She turned to see Deb Malilly ambling over with her usual green clipboard in hand. ‘Sure am,’ she said heartily. It’s what Nova would expect of her. ‘Did Nova get in touch with you about Ted’s replacements?’

‘That she did. I’ve got them settled in just over there.

’ Deb gestured to the first row of gazebos behind her and Indy didn’t have to strain her eyes too much to find the Scorpions’ teal-coloured setup.

Kids in uniforms were milling around them already.

‘I’ve got you scheduled to run a demonstration at eleven and another at one. Will that work for you?’

‘Sounds fabulous.’

Deb beamed at her. ‘Brill—’ Her smile dropped to a frown as she caught sight of something over Indy’s shoulder. ‘Why are they putting that there? Excuse me, Indy.’

‘I’ll leave you to it, Deb.’

The careers expo organiser took off, waving her clipboard above her head and unleashing a ‘cooee’ that was promptly drowned out by the cheers and yells of the teenagers who were pouring off the buses in droves.

Indy chuckled before grabbing the leashes from the back of the truck and clipping them onto Scout’s and Banjo’s collars. They hated the leads, but it was a must in a community setting.

Together, Indy and her dogs wandered between the displays.

TAFE institutions and different universities had big setups with tables to sit and chat at amongst towers of brochures offering a range of courses from engineering and law to creative writing and musical theatre.

She skirted around the local police branch’s table, where Sarge was standing in the middle of piles of recruitment brochures, recounting an infamous story to the rapt teens that surrounded him.

The urge to call them all goody-two-shoes was still present, proving she hadn’t changed completely.

The memory of Sarge coming out to the farm with the news of …

She pushed the memory back in its box. There was no point reliving it. It wouldn’t change anything.

Indy waved to Miriam and Mack at their table.

The couple were the local agronomists who specialised in soil management and it was always good to see them when they came out to the station.

She continued past tents of different agricultural career options, including organic farming corporations, representatives from Graincorp, trucking companies, health care, lands council and park rangers.

The old white speakers attached to the posts around the showgrounds crackled to life. ‘The talk by professional football players Isaac Stringer and Carter Hendrix will begin in front of the Scorpions tent in the next five minutes.’

The crowd around her rushed forwards and Indy let their momentum carry her.

A whistle sounded and the sea of teens clad in school uniforms sat on the ground between her and the Scorpions display.

Indy hovered at the edge with the other adults, teachers, parents and other stall owners, keen to see what was going to happen.

Carter and Isaac stood in front of the giant board featuring a teal and black scorpion with a yellow stinger. Two holes had been cut from the board, which she guessed was where the kids were meant to pass the footballs through.

Carter clapped his hands together, drawing everyone’s attention. ‘Good morning, folks. My name’s Carter Hendrix and this handsome man next to me is the captain of the football team I’m privileged to play in, Isaac Stringer.’

Isaac gave the crowd a wave and a beaming smile. ‘We’re here today to talk to you about what it takes to be a professional athlete,’ he said. ‘Does anyone want to have a guess?’

Kids started yelling out answers left, right and centre. The guys did a good job of keeping up with them and replying to each one.

‘The biggest thing for us,’ Carter said when the shouting died down, ‘is not just being responsible for ourselves and our own goals and dreams in our careers, but recognising that we’re part of a team and we’re accountable to our teammates.’

‘That’s right,’ Isaac continued. ‘That means showing up for them not just during a game or training session, but at all times on and off the field.’

Carter’s jaw tightened and his gaze took on a steely definition.

‘Being a good teammate is the key to success. For me, it means filling my role to the best of my ability, backing them to do theirs, giving praise where it’s earnt and pulling them up when they’re falling short.

’ The serious tone in his voice sent a shiver down Indy’s spine.

‘It’s easy to celebrate the wins together, but it’s how you handle the losses that defines who you are as a team and as individuals. ’

Carter looked directly at Isaac, who dipped his head. He tossed a football towards Carter, who caught it neatly. Indy couldn’t describe how she knew, but it felt like something had changed between the two football players.

A rustling at Indy’s shoulder caused her to turn. She found herself looking up into the eyes of Ray.

‘They’re naturals at this, don’t you think?’ He grinned like a proud father. ‘Pretty much got the speech I wrote for them down pat.’

‘It sounded pretty ad libbed to me,’ she replied. ‘Like they were trying to give each other a message.’

‘Well, with all the drama Carter started at the end of last season and Isaac being the captain, it can be a bit tense, but they’re moving past it. Great community turnout!’

‘Yeah, everyone gets behind events like this.’ Indy’s bottom lip slipped between her teeth.

What a weird comment for Ray to make. In her prattling, Mara had said that the Scorpions had lost the grand final last year.

Did they blame Carter? Indy didn’t watch much football, but one person would have to make a lot of mistakes to shoulder all the blame.

With the talking over, Carter and Isaac started lining the kids up and passing them balls to toss through the board.

Then the posing for photos started. Indy kept a close eye on Carter as he stood next to a smaller boy, showing him how to hold the football and line it up.

Then he high-fived the other kids waiting in line and gave them every inch of his attention.

Something in Indy’s chest shifted. No—caved. Shit.

‘Do you play any sport?’

Ray’s question startled her and she gave her head a small shake. ‘Sport? No. I’m not really the sporty type.’

He looked her up and down. ‘You look fit.’

‘That’d be the farmwork, tends to be physical.’ She checked her watch. ‘I better get ready for the demonstration. Excuse me.’

She gave a tug on the leashes and Banjo and Scout took one last sniff at Ray then left with her.

Laughter erupted from the crowd gathered around the small paddock Indy’s demonstration was taking place in.

Stooped over to demonstrate a pass, a football in his hand, Carter paused and looked over.

Between the kids’ legs, he could make out Scout jumping at the fence line.

A smile spread his lips at the sight of the excited pup, obviously too distracted by the raucousness of the kids to listen to Indy’s instructions.

He’d been too busy speaking with the kids to attend her earlier demonstration but the smile he’d caught on her face as she’d walked past him at lunch said it’d gone well.

He tried to find Indy through the crowd.

Even from this distance he could see the smug grin on Barty’s face and the exaggerated puff in his chest. The man hadn’t minced his words when he’d stopped by the Scorpions stand earlier and Carter had been delighted to set him and his slightly built sidekick with the clipboard straight about the Scorpions’ stay at Windale Mountain Station.

‘I’m going for a quick walk,’ he called over his shoulder to Ray and Isaac, scooping the last ball into the sack and leaving it near the board. It looked like Farty Barty needed a reminder of their conversation.

He stalled when Indy’s voice rang out. ‘Looks like Princess Scout would prefer to entertain with her unique sense of humour rather than her mustering skills.’

Her audience laughed again and Carter moved closer.

‘It’s important to remember that all dogs have their own personality, even working ones. Just like humans, they have their strengths and their challenges, and for Scout here, she can’t ignore a good-looking crowd.’

By the look of the kids’ faces, they were lapping up every word.

‘She’s also still a pup and has a lot to learn.

’ Indy whistled and Banjo rose from his guard post at the fence to race to Indy’s side.

‘Let’s see if working with her mentor, Banjo, can entice her.

’ Indy cleared her throat and quiet fell over the crowd.

Carter snuck a glance at Barty, pleased to see his grin vanished.

‘Banjo, Scout, walk up.’

It only took the older dog walking a few metres towards the mob for Scout to realise what was happening and bound over to join in, ears flat to her head. Carter wanted to clap but scrunched his fingers into a fist so as to not make a sound.

He watched, mesmerised, as the dogs worked in tandem, obeying every instruction Indy gave them in phrases he didn’t understand.

In no time at all, the ewes were boxed into the little pen then up the ramp and into the back of the truck.

Indy shut and secured the back of the truck to the wild applause of the schoolkids.

She smiled broadly, a smile that matched the proud grin on Carter’s face, and gave her dogs a hearty pat before heading to the fence.

‘Any questions?’ she asked.

Barty spun on his heel and stalked off. Carter shook his head and headed back to Isaac and Ray just in time to help bring down the shade.

‘Did Indy go all right?’ Ray asked as Carter jumped on a corner pole.

‘Sure did,’ he replied, lowering the height so they could pull off the cover. ‘Maybe we need to teach the team her mustering terms. It’d confuse the hell out of the opposition.’

Isaac laughed. ‘We’ll take any advantage we can get this year.’

Carter grinned back. A weight lifted from his chest.

They waved Lydia, their pr rep, off as she headed back to Sydney with all the equipment except the footballs.

The crowd had dispersed from around Indy and the buses had headed out of the carpark.

Carter shaded his eyes with his hand and squinted.

Indy was heading towards the panels of the portable yards when a woman stepped into her path.

The woman’s build was so slight she’d probably blow away in a strong wind.

Perhaps she was carrying the shopping bags as anchors.

Her dark hair was messily pulled back from her face in a bun.

Indy listened to the woman talk, hands on her hips.

Carter’s brows lowered. The scowl on Indy’s face was deeper than he’d seen it before.

‘I’ll give Indy a hand pulling down those yards.’

He didn’t wait for a response as he walked away, intent on Indy.

The woman was saying something she didn’t like and she turned to leave.

Carter’s pace increased when the woman grabbed Indy’s arm.

It wasn’t a violent grab, rather a begging one.

She looked … worn. Her cheeks sank in and sores were scattered up her arms. Carter reached the fence as Indy shook off the older lady’s grip and reached into her back pocket.

He paused. What was she doing? She pulled out a twenty-dollar note and handed it to the shopping-bag lady.

Carter climbed over the fence as the woman hurried across the paddock in the opposite direction and Indy started pulling out the pins that held the yards together.

‘We need to get these down and packed up before that storm reaches us,’ she said with the same tone of authority that she used with her working dogs and Carter’s questions died in his throat. The walls were back up and he wanted to groan. But why did he care? He couldn’t offer her what she needed.

Why was he so drawn to Indy? Why did he want to be the one to break through those walls?

The faint rumble of thunder kicked him into action, and he scrambled around the other side of the pen to help.

‘What do we do now?’ he asked when all the panels were on the ground.

They both looked up as the farm ute was let into the paddock by the expo crew members. Isaac and Ray jumped out.

‘You guys need to get on the road before the weather gets worse,’ Ray said. As if hearing him, the wind picked up. ‘We’ll load the panels and be right behind you.’

Indy looked to the south, where the sky was near black, then back at Ray. ‘Don’t forget to tie them down securely. We can’t afford to lose them.’

‘We will.’

Carter reached for Indy’s hand and pulled her towards the truck. ‘Let’s go!’

They ran. The sheep bleated and Indy whistled for the dogs, who ran ahead, bounding up and into the open passenger door. Carter hefted himself inside as Indy climbed behind the wheel and turned the key. The truck grumbled to life.

‘I saw Barty talking to you earlier. What’d he say?’ Indy asked, letting the truck idle.

He smiled at the memory and the tension in her face eased. ‘I’ll fill you in once we get on the road.’