Page 16 of Obsession Under the Southern Stars

“Guys, this is my friend, Zoe. She’s an archaeologist too and works at the National Museum of New Zealand. Zoe, this is Clive and his wife Emma from the Bay of Islands branch.” Zoe shakes hands with them. Clive is in his forties, balding, and genial. Emma is practical and no-nonsense, and I like her a lot. “This is Hori, who’s also based in the Bay of Islands office,” I continue, indicating the guy next to Emma, who’s in his latetwenties, Maori, and an extremely hard worker, so I’m always happy to have him on my team.

Then I turn to the other Maori guy in the seat next to the one Zoe’s about to take. “And this is Manu, from Wellington.”

I’ve worked with Manu Waititi for a couple of years now. We’re both ambitious and hardworking, and partly because of this we soon became good friends. He’s the only one I’ve told about my feelings for Zoe, so he gives me a mischievous look as he says, “Lovely to meet you, Zoe. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Really?” She widens her eyes and grins at me.

He’s going to make my life a misery; I can sense it. “Excuse me,” I mumble, and extricate myself to say hello to some other friends.

*

Zoe

It’s a lot posher than I thought it was going to be.

The men are all in black tie, and the women are wearing long dresses. They’ve decorated the restaurant with pictures of artifacts and black-and-white photos of excavations, which is a nice touch. A banner declaring it’s the ANZAS Awards Dinner hangs over the temporary stage at the front.

Pristine white cloths cover the round tables, and the silver cutlery gleams in the light from the overhead chandeliers. Red serviettes folded into fans perch on our plates. Waiters are currently circulating, pouring champagne into gleaming flutes.

I accept one and sip it, watching Joel, who’s excused himself to go and greet the guests at another table. They all smile as he walks up, apparently recognizing him. The men are eager to shake his hand; the women all want to kiss his cheek.

“They’re from the Auckland branch of MOANA,” Manu says, and I look around to see him watching me observing Joel.He’s a good-looking guy with short black hair, light-brown skin, attractive brown eyes, and a natural charm I’m sure wins girls over easily.

“Oh,” I say, “I see. That explains why they recognize him.”

His lips curve up. “Everyone in the room knows Joel Bell.”

My eyebrows rise. “Really? Why?”

Now he looks most amused. “What’s he told you about his job?”

“Um, not much, actually. Do you work together?”

He nods. “Yeah, we’re good mates, and we split the office between us.”

“What do you mean?”

“Wellington is the head office of MOANA. It’s got about twenty branches nationwide. I’m the manager of the South Island branches, and Joel’s manager of the North Island.”

I stare at him. “Oh. I didn’t realize.”

“We’re both maritime archaeologists too,” he says, “and still enjoy doing fieldwork. But we’re both going for the same position at work: Director of Operations. The successful applicant will oversee the daily operations, the logistics, and the resource allocation for all projects in the company.”

I’m impressed. Manu must be in his mid-thirties, but Joel is only twenty-eight. “It sounds like a great role.”

“I’d be so excited to get it,” he says. “I love what I do, but all the traveling gets tiring, and this job would be based in Wellington. My wife’s about to have our first baby.”

“Oh, congratulations. That’s great news.”

“Yeah. It would be great to be more settled, you know? It’s an office-based job, which is fine by me, but I don’t know how Joel would cope having to give up his diving and his excavations. I mean don’t get me wrong—I enjoy that part of it, but I’d be happy to be behind a desk, whereas the sea is Joel’s whole life.”

I watch Joel greet a friend, enjoying this glimpse into his professional life. “Who stands the best chance of getting the job?”

Manu shrugs. “Fifty-fifty I guess, although if one of us wins an award tonight, it might help our case.”

“Oh! I didn’t realize Joel was up for an award.”

“Several, actually. We’re both up for the Archaeological Fieldwork Award and the Cultural Resource Management Award. I know more about heritage laws, and I have good connections with local iwi.” He’s referring to Maori tribes. “So that might help me with the Cultural Resource one. But Joel has all the diving stuff obviously, and that’ll stand him in good stead.”

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