Page 57 of Nothing Without You

‘Sure.’

‘I don’t feel sad he’s gone. I made a terrible mistake, leaving and going up north with him. When I was young, I thought he was great. Drugs, sex and music. He was cool. But I never loved him. I just went with him, so I could do something other than live with Mum and be at school. He was my out. But he treated me like shit. Sometimes he hit me, and he tried to control everything I did.’

‘Why didn’t you leave him then?’

‘He threatened me. Told me he’d track me down and kill me if I ever left. I was scared of him. Really scared.’

A smile crossed Rose’s face. ‘But now he’s gone. You don’t have to worry about that anymore.’

Evie smiled also. ‘That part is just starting to sink in. I keep looking over my shoulder, worrying he’s going to come and find me. But then I remember, he’s dead. I feel bad for saying this, but it’s a relief.’

Rose’s house backed onto the cane fields, and the moonlight lit up the swaying stalks that stretched as far as the eye could see. Cicadas called noisily, and frogs in a dam nearby also joined the chorus. Evie felt a long way from home, the bait shop and reality, and a heaviness filled her body. The events of the past twenty-four hours were starting to blur, and Ziggy’s words she had heard as she hid in the bush, plagued her. A tremor ran through her. She had no doubt he would have killed her if she’d remained there.

She emptied her bag onto the table in front of where they sat, her gaze falling on the assortment of items in front of her. ‘This is everything I own now. Nothing else. The rest went up in smoke.’

Rose pulled a face. ‘It’s so hard to believe.’

‘Matilda gave me this jumper and shirt, and I brought a pair of jeans.’ She opened a small timber box, her hands clutching it as she carefully opened the lid. She pulled out some letters her mother and father had written when she first moved away, an old silver bracelet that Peace had given her and, she laughed, ‘God knows why I’ve kept these. My grade one and two report cards.’

She passed them to Rose who read them aloud. ‘Evie is an interesting and interested student. She is to be promoted to Grade 2. Writing 9/10, Reading 10/10, Maths 7/10.

They smiled at each other. ‘Back when life was simple,’ Evie said, slipping the bracelet on her arm before pulling out an envelope that was filled with a collection of old photos. She passed them one by one to Rose. ‘Layla and I riding our bikes to school. Check out those cotton dresses. They’re so sixties. This one is Dad, Mum and me at Stradbroke, outside The Magic Fish.’ She looked at the photo for a long while. The next one she held in front of her, her stomach churning and her heart aching.

‘What’s that one?’ Rose asked.

Evie finally passed it to her, as well as a couple of others. ‘This is one with Chris in it, that first summer holiday on Stradbroke Island. We used to call it Saltwater Place.’

Rose turned the photo over and read the writing on the back. ‘Saltwater Place, 1974 Chris and me.’ She looked up at Evie. ‘I always thought you two would end up together. But then you left town so quickly. You know he was devastated for years afterwards. We were all so messed up with Mum being sick and then dying, and no one was happy. Obviously not Dad either.’

‘I made some really stupid decisions back then,’ Evie said, a heavy sadness pressing down.

Rose put her arm around her shoulders. ‘We all did; crazy, impulsive decisions. At least we’re still alive.’

Evie leaned into her friend. ‘Just. Just alive.’

Chapter Sixty-Five

Rose found Evie some old clothes that she no longer needed, so at least she had a change of outfits. The next day, she made her way into town and shopped at a large store called Best and Less. Using the money she had saved from the bait shop, she carefully purchased some underwear, a couple of T-shirts and a pair of shorts. A five-dollar cotton dress on the sale table at the front of the store fitted perfectly. When she looked at herself in the change room mirror though, she was shocked. She was thin. Painfully thin. The word, gaunt, came to mind as she ran her hands over her face. Dark shadows hung under her dull, lifeless eyes and her cheeks were pinched. At least she still had a bit of a tan. All the walking on the beach to Matilda’s place over the previous months had at least given her that.

By the time she returned to Rose’s place, she felt like she had some possessions to her name. While she was in town, she also rang Baker from a phone box. ‘I’m here with Rose. I’m safe and I’ll let you know where I’m going next. Rose said she has a plan for me to go somewhere further south. A quiet safe house. She just has to talk to one of her friends.’

It had been reassuring to hear Baker’s voice, and she hoped he realised how much she appreciated what he and Matilda had done for her. Baker’s voice lacked its usual positivity and he sounded tired. ‘That’s great, Evie. They’ve arrested all the other men involved with the fire, and your name hasn’t come up at all. I think the statement you gave, and considering the circumstances, you should be right. The Sergeant knows he can reach you through me at any time. Mum sends her love.’

‘Oh, tell her I miss her already. One day I’ll come back and see her.’ Her voice fell as she spoke. It was more than likely that unless she had to go back to Yeppoon for a court case or similar, she would never return there. She shuddered at the thought.

‘A solicitor will ring you about Bob’s will, or probably lack of one. I’m not sure if you’ll get anything out of the shop or house. I don’t think you had insurance, plus this is arson, so it will be complicated.’

‘I don’t care. I don’t want anything from it. It’s dirty money as far as I’m concerned.’ She thought of all her hard work, the years of putting her heart and soul into the bait shop, while Bob had been slowly destroying it with filthy money from drugs.

It was hard to say goodbye, and she could hear the angst in Baker’s voice. ‘I miss you, Evie. I wish things had turned out differently between us.’

He really was so kind and sweet. Baker and Matilda had been her only friends over the last few years. ‘Thank you,’ she replied, her heart heavy, knowing he had hoped for a different outcome between them.

When she put the phone down, she felt the gap widen between herself and Yeppoon. A numb feeling filled her and she methodically opened the door of the phone box and walked slowly back towards Rose’s place.

Chapter Sixty-Six

Rose had a salad lunch waiting for her when she returned. ‘I thought you might need something substantial to eat.’

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