Page 6

Indy swung her leg over the fence of one of the smallest paddocks on the property and dropped down on the other side.

She whistled to Scout, who was waiting outside the paddock.

‘Heel,’ she commanded the red cattle dog.

The sheep bleated loudly at the dog’s intrusion on their turf, but Scout obeyed, coming to stand by her legs. ‘Sit.’

‘I don’t get it,’ Mara said loudly from where she was standing with her feet on the bottom rung of the gate. ‘You just mustered the sheep into this paddock; why do you have to get them into the smaller pen? Is the paddock too big for them?’

‘They don’t stay in the pen. It’s a skills test for my commands and for Scout’s mustering. It also gets these yearlings used to being yarded, which will help with shearing in spring.’

‘But why?’

Nova joined Mara, resting her forearms across the top of the gate.

‘Indy’s taking these guys down to the district showgrounds on Friday to do a mustering demonstration for all the kids from the local schools.

It’s their careers expo and we want to show what types of skills you can learn as a farmhand. ’

Mara’s face lit up. ‘Aren’t those showgrounds out near Denarlie? Can I come?’

‘I thought you’d want to stay here with all the hot footy boys,’ Emery said, joining them.

Mara shook her head. ‘It’d be great to catch up with my friends.’

‘Friday is a workday and as you work here at the station, this is where you’ll need to be,’ Nova said.

‘Besides,’ Indy added with too much glee, ‘I’m taking the truck and picking up Ted, who’s giving a talk about being a professional sportsman.

That bench seat would be way too crowded with three people on it, as small as you are.

’ Ted Beckman had been on the 2004 Paralympic swimming team and had come home with a gold.

The Grangers might believe they were Windale’s answer to a royal family, but Ted was the pride of the town.

Mara pouted and Nova nodded to Indy. ‘Are you sure you want to go with Scout? Banjo has a lot more experience.’

‘She’s got to step up sometime.’ Indy ignored the instinct to start yelling about all the work she’d put into her dog and instead leant down to ru?e Scout’s ears.

At two years old, she was still very much considered a pup with energy to spare and a tendency to get distracted, but Indy had been working with her every free moment she’d had since she’d brought her home, and the pup was a quick learner.

She had faith in her. ‘She’s put in the work and has no trouble when she’s working a mob with Banjo.

Just needs to perfect doing it on her own. ’

‘I’ve seen the training you’ve put into her,’ Nova said more softly.

‘But is the career expo really the right place to test it? The expo is a great advertisement for the station to the other businesses and helps us prove ourselves as contenders in the agricultural field, as well as giving the children insight into the skills you can learn in a career working the land—Barty Granger would love the chance to say we’re not good enough and take over the gig.

There’s a lot of other property owners, all with dicks, who’d also like the spot. ’

The briskness in her voice had returned and Indy swallowed her need to argue. Nova just wanted the best for her property and her people; Indy couldn’t blame her for that.

‘How about I take Banjo as a backup in case the noise and crowd is too much for this little princess?’ She gave Scout one more pat.

Nova gave her a small nod. ‘Let’s see how she goes without Banjo now. Show us what you’ve got.’

Indy stood taller, turning her back on the audience along the gate and focusing on the dog at her feet. ‘You ready, Scout? We’re going to box those sheep up, okay? Just like we’ve practised.’

The dog tilted her head. Indy scooped up the black piping she’d been using as an extension of her arm during her training and gave the first command. ‘Scout, walk up.’

The red heeler moved towards the mob of sheep standing fifty or so metres away.

Indy moved closer to the left run of fencing so she wasn’t between the mob and the yards where Scout would take them. Hopefully. ‘Lie down,’ she called, and Scout dropped to her belly in the long grass. Good, she was in the zone. Sweat trickled down Indy’s neck.

If she sent Scout anticlockwise around the mob, it might push them into the corner behind the yards.

A clockwise loop might send them too low towards the fence line where Indy was, but it seemed like the better option.

She just needed Scout to remember the difference in the commands on her own.

Indy had an inkling that she normally took Banjo’s lead.

‘Come by, Scout.’

Indy wanted to cartwheel across the paddock when the dog went left. Then the sheep started to break away from each other.

‘Cast!’ Indy shouted.

Scout gathered them back into a group and Indy moved along the fence line to be able to stand behind the mob.

‘Push ’em up! Bark.’

Scout let loose a series of barks that got the sheep moving towards the gate the audience was standing behind. Indy kept one eye on the yards and one on the mob, waiting for the right time.

‘Away to me, Scout!’

The clever dog rounded to the right of the mob, pushing them up towards their target. As a team, Scout and Indy worked the stock until they were all within the confines of the metal panels.

‘Get back,’ she called, reaching for the gate and shutting them in as Scout ran out. ‘That’ll do! That’ll do, girl!’

Indy fell to her knees and gave Scout the biggest pats, pride blossoming in her chest. Clapping from the gate stretched the smile on Indy’s face even bigger as she tilted her head out of reach from Scout’s tongue.

‘Come on, girl. Let’s go get your praise.’

‘Well, I’m impressed,’ Nova said, reaching her hands above her head and clapping loudly. ‘Not one foot wrong!’

‘She did so well!’ Mara cheered.

‘You both did,’ Emery added.

‘All that effort’s paid off.’ Indy grinned at them before telling Scout to sit. She leant against the fence.

‘There’s still a few more days before the demonstration,’ Nova said, dropping her arms. ‘You’ll want to make time to run her through it every day, even twice a day, just to cement it.’

‘Get her used to it so there’s no distractions.’

‘That’s it.’

Voices echoed from the top paddock track and the women turned to look.

A quad went past with a couple of the coaches on it, before a steady stream of footballers jogged past, chunks of the tree that Indy had cut up yesterday between each pair.

The men turned to face them as Scout started barking loudly.

‘Stay, Scout!’

But the pup was already on her feet.

‘What are they singing?’ Mara asked.

Indy strained to hear the words.

‘We are the mighty, mighty Scorpions,

‘mess with us and feel our sting.

‘The mighty, mighty Scorpions,

‘step back to see what we bring.

‘Look out, move aside, Scorpions are the best!’

‘I think it’s their team song,’ she said.

Scout’s barking escalated. ‘Scout, sit!’ But Indy struggled to concentrate on the dog when Carter’s tall, strong figure came into sight.

His hands were behind his back, triceps straining under the weight of the wood.

Ink coloured his shoulder, but she couldn’t make out the design.

The man who had offered him the water when he’d been sick yesterday was jogging very closely behind him to support the other end of the log.

Footy shorts should not be allowed on the property.

She’d had no idea a man’s thighs could be so defined.

A brushing of fur against her leg startled her as Scout took off through the fence, barking and running along with the men.

‘Scout!’

The other women laughed as the pup gave in to the distraction and leapt about as if she were part of the team. Carter didn’t even break stride when Scout tried to jump onto the log he was holding before moving on to the next pair.

‘Sorry,’ Indy called. Her cheeks heated at the wink he sent in her direction and she pulled her hat down over her eyes.

‘Definitely take Banjo on Friday as well,’ Nova said. ‘Just in case.’ At least there was laughter in her voice.

‘Thanks, Janet.’ Indy smiled at the older lady as she switched out the empty tray of mashed potatoes for a fresh one.

The wink she received this time didn’t make her cheeks even the slightest bit pink.

She tried to push the thought away as she dolloped a spoonful of potato onto her plate before moving along the buffet-style table to add some greens and slices of roast lamb.

‘You guys must live like kings with food like this all the time.’

The voice came from over her shoulder. She looked back to find a tall man with neatly trimmed facial hair wearing a Scorpions coaching staff shirt. He’d been one of the men on the quad while the team had been running. ‘Or queens, I suppose would be the more appropriate royal term.’

Indy offered him a small smile. ‘Janet and Theresa do an amazing job catering for us. There’s nothing they can’t do.’

‘Good to know we’re in safe hands.’ The man spooned a mix of carrots, peas and corn onto his plate. ‘I’m Ray, second in charge after the head coach.’

‘Nice to meet you,’ she replied, knowing Nova expected manners even when she didn’t feel like giving them. ‘I’m Indy.’

She moved off, heading for the table along the side of the hall as she normally did when they had camp guests.

She slid into a chair next to Emery and watched the notably clean Ray heading to what was fast becoming the coaching staff’s table.

Her gaze swept around the room. The dining hall was an open space with two giant fans circulating the air conditioning that kept them all cool.

There were groups of guys everywhere. Some were having quiet conversations while others were laughing loudly and talking wildly with big hand gestures, as if replaying some training drill that had gone comedically wrong.

Her brow lowered slightly when she saw Carter sitting at the end of a table.

His was one of the more subdued groups and even though he engaged in the conversation, he somehow still seemed to be on the outer.

As if feeling her stare on him, his eyes flicked up and she was caught in those dark pools like a bug in a spider’s web.

‘Who were you talking to earlier?’ Emery asked.

Indy blinked a few times to focus. ‘Um, some guy named Ray. A coach or whatever. Just making weird small talk over the food.’

‘Ooh.’ Emery waggled her brows at Indy, who rolled her eyes.

‘Don’t go there.’ She picked up a knife and fork from the centre of the table as Mara sat down with a plate of steaming food.

‘Do you think Nova will let me have a dog if I promise to train it like you trained Scout?’ she asked, digging straight into her potato.

‘No,’ Indy said between mouthfuls. ‘You don’t know anything about training a working dog. They’re hard work. And you have to know what to look for in a pup. When I bought Scout, I didn’t choose her just because she was cute.’

‘I’m not afraid of hard work or taking care of animals,’ Mara replied indignantly.

‘Maybe you could ask her after you’ve been here for a while,’ Emery said. ‘Then she’ll know you’re serious about wanting to stay and can show the right kind of commitment to a pup.’

‘And you can show everyone how well you care for animals in the meantime,’ Indy added with a smirk. ‘You’re on bottle duty tonight.’

For the first time, Mara just nodded.

Indy pushed away the image of Bonnie’s face. It wasn’t her. It was just Mara.