Page 58 of Nothing Without You

‘Thank you. I’ve lost so much weight. I didn’t realise until I was in the change rooms trying on clothes. I look like shit.’

‘You don’t. You are thin though.’

They ate and talked. Rose was about to start a new job at the hospital. ‘The pay’s good and I can work around the kids’ school hours. I need to start making some good money.’

‘Money. That’s what I’m going to need too. That shop and house weren’t insured, and you can bet Bob didn’t keep much of the big stash of money he told me about in the bank. That’s gone up in smoke, like everything else. Lucky, I hid some cash away.’

Rose put her knife and fork down. ‘I have a plan for you. I’m not sure you’ll like it, but I’ve been on the phone, and I think I have a place for you to stay.’

She had Evie’s attention. ‘How much is it a week?’

‘I would have thought your first question would have been, where is it?’

‘I don’t care, as long as it’s south of here and not in the city. How much is the rent?’

‘Well, it will be free to begin with, until you find a job. It’s got furniture and there’s even an old Datsun in the shed that you can use to try and help you find a job.’

‘What? No rent? What’s the catch?’

Rose picked up her fork and pushed her food around her plate. ‘You might not like it, but I know it will be the best option for you right now.’

Evie’s eyes narrowed. It’s not back in Beaudesert where we used to live, is it? I don’t think I could go back there.’

‘No, not Beaudesert. It’s on Stradbroke Island.’

‘What? Rent free?’

Her next words came out in a hurry. ‘It’s a little place Chris owns. He doesn’t live there. He just rents it out sometimes. At the moment it’s empty and I rang him when you were out shopping. He’s overseas so it took me a while to get him, but he said no worries at all.’

Evie’s heart thumped hard and she took a deep breath. ‘You didn’t give him all the details of what happened to me, did you?’

‘Look, I just said that your ex had been killed, something to do with drugs, and you needed to get away from Yeppoon. I said you hadn’t been involved, and you weren’t with him at the time it happened.’

Putting her head in her hands, Evie tried not to burst into tears. The shame of everything. The humiliation, to think that she had indirectly been involved with organised crime that had ended up with two murders. ‘I can’t live there. I just can’t.’

Rose grabbed her arm and made her look up. ‘Take the help, Evie. Chris helps me out all the time. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be surviving, bringing up these kids. He’s offered me that house numerous times, but I’m settled here. He bought this house for me and there’s been plenty of other times he’s helped me out. The boys’ dad has the kids on the weekend and he’s not a bad bloke. I’m okay. But, take a look at yourself. You’re a bloody mess. What ever happened to that beautiful, vibrant young girl you once were? If you don’t grab this opportunity, you’ll sink lower. You’ve hardly any money, and you don’t want to reach out to your family. Your mind isn’t working as it should be. You hardly smile or laugh; it’s as if you’re just going through the motions. You’ve only been here a day, but I can see where you’re headed.’

‘I don’t care about much, anymore.’

‘Well, if you don’t care, just take the house for a while, at least until you get yourself sorted. Chris is overseas for a couple of months, so it would only sit empty anyway. His house at Point Lookout is also empty, with him being away. He did say he’d love you to stay there, but I thought that might be a bit much for you.’

‘Do you think I’d get a job on the island?’

‘I reckon you would. There’s a pub and some shops. Probably a bit of cleaning work with all the holiday rentals. The house is nice and small and close to the beach.’

‘Where is it?’ Evie asked.

‘It’s your old holiday house, The Magic Fish.’

Chapter Sixty-Seven

Aweek with Rose allowed Evie to get her mind adjusted to what lay ahead. She loved staying with her friend, but after a few days, the kids were starting to get on her nerves, and she craved the solitude and space she needed to process what had happened. The past years had been spent in the company of Bob, or if not, worrying about when he was coming home, or what he was going to accuse her of, or berate her for next. With each day, the relief that he was no longer controlling her every move gave her a growing sense of freedom. By the time the week ended, she was ready for the next step.

Rose hugged her and saw her onto the Greyhound bus that would take her to Brisbane. A short train ride to Cleveland and then a ferry ride at five o’clock in the afternoon across to the island would see her nearly to her new home. ‘There’s a shuttle bus to Flinder’s Beach that runs from where the ferry comes in at Dunwich. I haven’t been there for years, but Chris tells me nothing much has changed.’

‘I’ll ring you once I’m settled,’ Evie said as she stepped onto the bus. ‘Thank you for saving me. I won’t forget what you’ve done.’

Thankfully there had been people along the way who had helped her; firstly Matilda and Baker, and now Rose. If it wasn’t for them, who knew where she would have ended up? There was no way she was going to her parents. More shame. More embarrassment at the stupid decisions she had made over the years. She knew she would have to ring them and let them know about Bob, but it could wait. At least some time on the island would give her a chance to get her head around what was to come next. A range of ideas crossed her mind as to where she should move to. New South Wales sounded like a good idea, although Western Australia was further away from her old life. At least now the choice was hers and hers alone.

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