Next Step

Chapter 3-2

Hi, Mum, coping OK?’

‘Yes. I just want you to check whether we’ve got enough vegetables for dinner.’

‘Plenty. I went to the market early to get the best. I’m making mushroom and carrot loaf tonight.’

‘Dad’s favourite,’ Emma murmured.

‘Yep. I thought it would be a good idea, seeing as it’s the first anniversary today.’

Emma supressed a gasp. How could she have forgotten? There was no excuse, March 3 having appeared from the moment of waking, when she’d glanced at her bedside device! The date displayed on her wrist-band and work computer had also failed to register. Guilt surfaced, clogging her throat. She struggled to speak.

‘All right there, Mum?’

‘Yes,’ she spluttered, hoping Jack had used his wrist-band to answer her call. Her shocked expression would be clearly visible if he were sitting in front of their large living-room screen.

‘Mum, I don’t want to sound rude, but I would prefer if it was just the two of us tonight.’

Relief flooded through her. ‘Don’t worry, I haven’t made any other arrangements.’

‘Sorry to ask, I should have known you’d want it to be a family dinner. See you.’

Grateful that Jack hadn’t wanted to keep on talking, Emma sighed and reached for her bag before sitting down.

‘Something wrong at home?’ Harie asked, as Emma fished in her bag for sandwiches and a water bottle.

‘A sad anniversary.’ Emma kept her head bent. ‘It’s one year today since my partner died.’

‘Why on earth didn’t you say?’

‘There’s no need to bother anyone else.’

A warm hand reached out to stroke her arm. ‘So, you let me rave on about how I hate this job, instead of offering a shoulder to cry on. Now I feel like a real prick.’

Emma looked up. ‘Please don’t. And as for crying, I’ve shed enough tears to fill Port Phillip Bay! Right now, I’m trying to move on, consign grief to its proper place. I want to look back on our 20 years together with joy, not regret or anger that I can’t have any more. Does that make sense?’

‘Completely.’

‘And it’s better that you complain to me about the job, rather than bottle it up and then explode in front of Sarah.’

Harie nodded. ‘I can’t make her out. One minute I think she’s not so bad. Making the best of what must be a tedious job. Imagine answering questions on those b****y modules, week in, week out. Then the next minute, I feel as though she’s watching my every move, ready to pounce if she sees any sign that I’m not up to scratch.’

Emma chewed her sandwich, wondering whether to pose a question that could reveal why Harie felt so threatened. Her colleague might be slow to complete the modules, but as far as Emma could tell, she gave no other cause for complaint. Harie was always polite, always punctual and never the first to leave at the end of the day.

‘Ready for a walk?’ Harie asked, several minutes later.

‘Sure. I’ll just have a drink first.’

Harie got to her feet and wandered over to one of the newly planted eucalypts struggling to survive summer’s intense heat. ‘How stupid planting them in the middle of summer,’ Emma heard her say to no one in particular.

‘My thoughts entirely,’ answered a young woman, sitting on a nearby bench. ‘Waste of money. Stick to cacti, I say.’

Harie nodded and walked back to Emma. ‘Set to go?’

‘Yes. Where do you suggest we walk?’

‘It’s cooler by the river. Bit of a breeze down there.’

‘Fine by me. I might be a bit slow coming back up the hill. If so, you can go on ahead.’

‘No, we stick together. It’s safer that way.’

Emma wanted to ask what danger they were exposed to walking through a busy city in the middle of the day, but Harie seemed intent on leaving the park at once, her pace increasing as they turned into the street. Despite the downward slope, Emma struggled to keep up, and felt inclined to lag behind in the hope Harie would notice and slow down.

Before long, a major intersection provided an opportunity for respite, the roadside monitor flashing red before announcing that pedestrians must halt at the kerb immediately or incur a fine. Her chest heaving, Emma gulped hot air, wishing she hadn’t suggested exercise. Curls lay damp against the back of her neck and perspiration was running down her face. At least she hadn’t worn her face mask; with its taut elastic tugging on her ears and thick fabric pressing against her clammy skin, it was guaranteed to make matters worse.

Harie moved alongside. ‘Sorry about the rush. I just…’ She hesitated before bending towards her petite colleague. ‘I thought I recognised that young woman in the park, so I didn’t want to hang around. Obviously, she didn’t identify me, which is just as well, considering our last meeting was anything but pleasant.’

Citizens are to proceed at a moderate pace, the roadside monitor intoned.

‘Right,’ Harie said. ‘Off we go, and I promise to match my pace to yours.’

Emma looked up and smiled, hoping for an explanation once they reached the river.

They continued downhill for several hundred metres and were about to turn on to the paved path set well above the riverbank, when Harie grabbed Emma’s arm. ‘Well, look who’s just sprinted past.’ She pointed to a man and woman wearing matching running shorts, singlets, and trainers.

‘Is that Sarah?’

‘Yes. Out for her daily run with the boss.’

Emma peered at the man’s skinny, white limbs. ‘Colin Theobald?’

‘That’s the one.’ Harie grimaced. ‘Imagine spending your lunch break with a cold fish like him!’

‘After meeting him yesterday, I’d say cold fish is an understatement! He’s frozen solid! Have you met him?’

Harie shook her head. ‘Not officially. I’ve just heard others mention him and seen him around, mostly at lunchtime with Sarah.’

Emma raised her eyebrows. ‘Friends or lovers?’

‘Lovers, I reckon, what with matching exercise outfits and a daily appointment. I checked out his profile on the PCB website. He’s partnered with an adolescent son. There was a photo of the happy family alongside a list of his achievements, so I know he and Sarah aren’t partners.’

‘You should have been a detective,’ Emma remarked glibly, her thoughts focused on a more sinister label.

‘Spying on my fellow citizens; you must be joking! That’s why I was desperate to get away from the park.

‘You recognised an informer?’

‘I’m not so sure now. Perhaps I’m just being paranoid.’

Emma took a last look at the runners, now way ahead. ‘We’d better get going, otherwise Sarah will be back before us and that would never do.’

Harie followed her gaze. ‘s**t, they’ve stopped. We’d better get off the path.’

‘Why? We have as much right to be here as they do.’

‘You can keep walking, but I’m going back to work. I wouldn’t want Sarah to think I was spying on her.’

‘See you later, then.’ Emma walked over to the railing and stood staring at the wide Yarra River as it moved sluggishly towards the bay. A recent storm had churned its shallow waters; today they resembled thick milk chocolate poured from a factory vat on to stainless-steel trays. In the past, the Yarra had been the butt of jokes about its brown water – mostly the result of tannins leaching from eucalypts upstream – nowadays, citizens were simply grateful that the river had survived challenging climate change and the loss of forests.

Loud voices diverted Emma’s attention from murky water, and she turned to see the runners facing one another, Sarah standing with her hands on her hips and Colin Theobald gesticulating wildly. Their argument intensified – being too far away to make sense of what they were saying, Emma based her assumption on body language – evolving into a tangle of limbs that threatened to unbalance either or both combatants. Watching their struggle, her initial curiosity waned, to be replaced by concern, as Colin freed one leg and kicked Sarah’s right shin. Sarah countered with a shriek, followed by a slap to his face. An unwilling observer now, Emma moved away from the railing, intending to walk in the opposite direction, but a second cry stayed her steps, and she stared in disbelief as the pair fell to the path. The time for caution had passed, Emma rushing towards the wrestling pair seemingly oblivious to the concrete pavers beneath them. ‘Stop it before one of you gets badly hurt,’ she called, shocked by the potency of her voice. Their limbs halted mid-movement, stilled as though an electric current had been disconnected. Relieved, Emma slowed her approach, but remained ready to issue a further command should similar activity resume.

Sarah lay on her back gulping air, her head touching the path. Straddling her, Colin Theobald resembled a stick insect, his knees and elbows bent and his torso swaying slightly. Neither appeared willing to make a move or swivel their eyes in Emma’s direction. No doubt they felt acutely embarrassed and dreaded the gossip that might flow through the training office, should their newest recruit relate the incident to her colleagues. Not that Emma had any intention of doing so, her primary objective being self-preservation. Instead, she intended to reinforce the role of “teacher’s pet” that Harie had assigned her, by working hard to complete the modules in record time. The sooner she was promoted to the front desk, the sooner she could embark on evidence-gathering, the module exercises revealing nothing untoward in a trainee doorkeeper’s role. She had yet to meet any of the TDKs – during the morning break they drifted into the staffroom singly or in pairs and didn’t mix with the trainees – but she decided to introduce herself to one or two the following week.

Colin Theobald spoke first, his apology unconvincing. He kept his head down, leaving Emma uncertain whether he was directing his words to her or to Sarah. Motion followed speech, his limbs jerking repeatedly before he managed to achieve an upright position. After stepping over Sarah, he ran off down the path, thwarting Emma’s whimsical vision of a human-sized stick-insect rubbing his back legs together before taking flight!

‘Help me up, please,’ Sarah pleaded, her navy-blue eyes moist.

Emma extended a hand and pulled her to a sitting position. ‘Can you manage from there, only I don’t think I’ve got the strength to get you on your feet?’

‘Yes, just give me a minute, I’m a bit winded.’

‘I’m not surprised, wrestling must be exhausting in this heat.’ Emma tugged the brim of her sunhat to emphasise her point. ‘Take your time, I’m going back to work now. Why don’t you call the office to say you’ve had a fall, then you could go straight home?’

‘Thanks, I might do that. And, Emma, I’m so sorry you had to witness our foolish disagreement.’

‘These things happen in the best of relationships.’

‘Not usually between jogging buddies.’

‘Making up should be fun,’ Emma remarked, deciding that Sarah ought to know she wasn’t easily fooled. A shared secret could provide a distinct advantage, and one she wouldn’t hesitate to use, should the occasion arise.