Page 79 of The Knitting Club at Wagtail Ridge

‘Not from what I’ve seen so far. Bringing me into it seems an act of desperation. Especially as it’s not true. If that is all she has, Matt and Vicki are safe.’

‘But this case is going to be awful if it goes ahead. That poor little girl.’

‘Matt will protect her as best he can. He’s a good father.’

Rose got to her feet to collect their dishes. ‘No, stay put,’ she said as Bree moved to help her. After carrying the dishes into the kitchen, Rose returned with a pot of sweet-smelling herbal tea and two cups. They settled on the sofa with their drinks, and Bree talked about the farm and the alpacas and a show she was planning to attend.

‘Good luck with that,’ Rose said. Her face was serious for a moment. ‘Coming back today and talking this through with your parents, does it make you miss it?’

‘Miss what?’

‘The cut and thrust of legal work. The challenges. The satisfaction of winning an important case.’

‘No. Not at all.’ The words came out before Bree had even thought about the question.

Later, driving home to the endless round of chores that came with farming, she wondered if she had been too quick to answer. There were aspects of her old life that she did miss. Not paperwork nor the corporate stuff. It was more the pro bono work she’d done, helping people who couldn’t afford an expensive lawyer. Seeing justice served as a landlord was forced to do the right thing by a tenant. Helping a woman escape an abusive relationship. Protecting innocent people caught up in circumstances that were not their fault. She missed that.

But her new life had pleasures she hadn’t expected. The joy of hard physical work, even if mucking out the sheds wasn’t exactly a pleasant task. The feel of an alpaca’s lips on her skin, searching for a treat. The sight of a newborn cria taking its first steps. Listening to the conversation at the knitting club and knowing she had brought new friendships to the women in the group. These gave her great joy.

As she drove into Wagtail Ridge, Bree was happy with her choices.

And it’s not as if all those years of hard work were going to waste.

She pulled up in front of Matt’s office. He was there alone, his face buried in his computer.

‘Hi.’ She sat in the seat opposite him. ‘I talked to my parents. My mother is going to take your case forward from here.’

‘I really appreciate it, Bree. But I can’t afford to pay those sort of fees.’

‘You don’t have to. She’s doing it pro bono.’

‘But she doesn’t even—’

Bree held up her hand and shook her head. ‘You’re my friend. That’s all she needs to know. My mother has a good heart. She’s probably a far better person than I ever gave her credit for.’

‘Well, thank you for everything you’ve done. I’d like to have you over for dinner, so I can say thank you properly.’

He smiled in the way that made her want to smile back. She wanted so desperately to say yes. She wanted to spend an evening wrapped in that feeling of family she got whenever she was with Matt and Vicki. She wanted to listen to Vicki laugh. And she wanted Matt to look at her in that way he had that made her feel like she was special.

‘I don’t think so.’

His face fell.

‘It’s not that I don’t want to,’ she hastened to add. ‘But at the moment, Sally has nothing that a court would see as a reason to rule against you. But if you and I were to spend too much time together … well. It would probably be all right, but I don’t want to give her even the smallest bit of ammunition to use against you.’

Matt nodded. The disappointment on his face matched her own and that gave her heart a lift.

‘When this is all over …’ She let the words hang, because she wasn’t sure. Maybe he had nothing to give her. All she could do was keep the door open.

‘Of course.’

She got to her feet and he did the same, escorting her to the door.

‘Don’t worry, Matt,’ she said. ‘You won’t lose Vicki. Sally is clearly still suffering because of losing Kim. A judge is far more likely to suggest she get some counselling than take Vicki away from you. As long as that is all there is, there’s no chance you’ll be torn apart.’

For a moment, Matt seemed to hesitate. A small frown appeared on his forehead, below that sandy hair.

‘Is there something else?’

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