Page 83 of Stockman's Sandstorm

It was a homecoming she’d never expected, even though they had Cap’s special five-day dog feeders and plenty of water, she was eager to spoil the dogs too.

Showered and changed into clean clothes, Harper felt human again. With Mason playing on the lawn, Ruby beside him, Harper tackled a load of washing.

At the old top-loader washing machine, she sprinkled in the powder, dropped the lid, turned the dial to wash, and the water flow kicked in, rushing through the pipes. Ah, yes, the joys of indoor plumbing.

‘We should have dinner, Mason. Pity we can’t order takeaway.’

Something moved in the corner of her eye as the machine shook. The washing machine was known to walk across the concrete during the spin cycle, so she checked the wood chocks were in place to keep it stationary.

When she spotted a strange brown stick lying beside the washing machine.

How did that get there?

Suddenly it moved.

She blinked, taking a step back. Her eyes widening, holding her breath as her brain finally registered what it was.

A snake.

A big one.

The washing machine knocked, and the hot water tap came on with a whoosh. The snake reared up as if covered in hot boiling water and propelled itself across the concrete, heading for the dead lawn. Straight for Mason.

‘SNAKE.’

She grabbed the nearby house broom.

‘Mason, move.’ Harper tried to outrun the snake that had to be over six feet long.

Ruby pushed Mason over to put herself between the child and the snake. It reared up as Mason wailed and Ruby growled, and then struck out at the dog. Ruby whimpered.

‘NO.’ Harper slammed the broom down onto the snake, where it coiled around the handle. She flicked it to the nearby trees as Sarge and Scout came running from around the front of the house.

‘Stop. Please stop. Sarge, Scout, halt. STAY!’ The dogs obeyed. ‘Come.’ And they did, as she dropped to her knees beside Ruby.

‘Rubeeee?’ Tears trickled down Mason’s chubby cheeks as he crawled to his dog.

‘Where is it …’ Harper searched Ruby’s fur for the spot. And found it. The red blood was bright against the dog’s cream coat, coming from the bite mark on her lower leg.

Harper ran back to the pile of sheets that were from her swag. With her teeth, she ripped one into strips and quickly bound the labrador’s leg. She wasn’t sure if her first-aid training from the embassy worked on a dog, but she wasn’t stopping.

She picked up Mason and ran for Ash’s ute still parked nearby.

With Mason safely in his baby seat, her muscles strained as she carried Ruby to the ute and lifted her to the passenger floor. Doors closed. Her handbag dumped onto the passenger seat with a bunch of water bottles beside it. ‘Stay, dogs.’ She rolled up the passenger window, adjusted the mirror, and her heart squeezed at the sad sight of Sarge and Scout guarding the farmhouse that was soon hidden behind a trail of dust.

Thirty-four

Ash scowled at Ryder, seated on the other side of the campfire with Cap and Dex, Bree and Charlie had already gone to bed. Thanks to the broken fence line, they were forced to muster their herd towards the new paddock. They were hoping to sleep in their beds tomorrow. If they were lucky. ‘You didn’t have to send Harper away like that.’

‘You weren’t concentrating on the job.’ The glow from the campfire only made Ryder’s hard edges meaner. ‘Stop thinking like an employee! Goofing off the first chance you get. We’re meant to be working together, doing this for us.’ Ryder’s harsh voice echoed in the night air as if he was dressing down a soldier.

Ash snarled, his upper lip twitching. ‘Are you saying I’m not as good as you guys?’

‘I didn’t say that.’ Ryder exhaled heavily, rubbing his hands over his denim thighs. ‘You did good with the drone.’

‘I agree,’ said Dex, with Cap nodding beside him. ‘And you’re a bloody good stockman, just not when Harper’s around. Then you’re too busy daydreaming, or too busy watching her, ready to play hero for her any chance you get.’

‘Was not.’

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