Deleilah Read online

  “He’s been real nasty, but I didn’t know that before I came here. He seemed nice in Hamilton.” Dee crossed the room quickly, putting her cool hands on Vaughan’s upper arm and feeling the heat radiating from him. “You’re burning up. I’ll call an ambulance.”

  “No!” Vaughan’s eyes flashed with anger. “Don’t you dare! I’ll drive myself out of here, thanks. I only came back for my car and the horse. I’m not leaving her here any longer.”

  “How?” Dee waved her arm up the length of his body which pivoted against the chair, taut with agony.

  “I just will,” he replied, his teeth gritted. “And if you’ve got the sense I remember you having, you’ll leave too.”

  “I want to.” Dee’s misery rose to the fore at her own stupidity, experiencing a flash of annoyance which lit up her face when Vaughan sneered.

  “Well, I hope he’s worth it, Leila. You clearly don’t know him very well. Is that how you work nowadays? Whoring yourself for psychos?”

  “I don’t know him at all!” Dee wailed, fear overwhelming her and removing the urge to slap Vaughan’s sanctimonious face. Pretty blue eyes glittered with tears and she gnawed at her bottom lip. “I met him a few weeks ago and he offered me a break for a few days, just as friends. Like a fool, I left my car in Hamilton and my phone won’t work. I’m stuck here! What shall I do?”

  Vaughan closed his dark eyes and sighed, a frown set on his angular face. “I thought you’d grow out of climbing trees and getting stuck.”

  “That was once!” Dee prodded the wall of chest in front of her, drawing back as pain crossed Vaughan’s face. “Sorry, sorry,” she gushed. “I’ll help you leave. Tell me what you need. Please take me with you?”

  Dee helped Vaughan into his clothes. It was a slow and painful process. He sat on the bed while she turned up the hem of his jeans to stop him tripping over them as they sagged from being left undone at the fly. She fitted socks over his feet and slipped a dirty checked shirt over his shoulders. “Leave it open,” she suggested. “At least then you can see if it gets any worse.”

  Vaughan sat stiffly on the bed, his arms braced behind him and his eyes closed. His face channelled a sickly shade of grey. Dee leaned her arm on his knee, squatting in front of him, her face filled with concern. “Vaughan,” she said. “You can’t drive like this.”

  He groaned. “Driving’s the easy part. First, I’ve got to float the bloody horse.”

  Dee stood up and put her hands on her hips. “You think you’ll catch and load a horse and then tow a trailer back to wherever you came from? Are you mad?”

  Vaughan nodded, his dark fringe covering his eyes. “Utterly insane,” he replied, without blinking.

  Dee glanced at the digital clock next to the bed and bit her lip in thought. “We’ve got an hour before Harvey gets back. I’ll help you and then stay and lie my head off.”

  Vaughan coughed, his face creasing in anguish but he shook his head. “He’ll kill you, Leilah. Staying won’t help anyone, least of all you.” He puffed out a breath through pursed lips and hauled himself to a standing position. “Just grab your gear.”

  Dee hovered in front of him, her forehead barely reaching his chin. The oozing mess on his stomach robbed him of energy and memories assailed Dee’s mind. A tousled haired thirteen-year-old Vaughan picked her up off the ground after the old mare threw her into a hawthorn bush, using his sleeve to wipe away the bloody scratches from her face. Dee remembered the thrill of his gentle hands and the masculine smell of hard work and sweat. She stared at the floor and blushed, imagining Vaughan’s soft lips over hers. She looked into the familiar brown eyes and nodded. “Ok, Vaughan. Tell me what to do?”

  Chapter 10

  Escape

  “What happened to her?” Dee observed the bay mare as Vaughan gave a low whistle. Spiky ribs showed through her sides as she responded and muscle wastage around her flanks gave her a withered appearance.

  “I put her up for sale last year as a novice. She’s better suited to someone wanting to ride rather than round up cattle,” Vaughan said, sadness shrouding him. He gripped the fence rail as the mare hugged the rear fence, her eyes flashing in fear. “He seemed genuine but sold her to Gilroy without me knowing. I only found out when he rang me and said she was a dunger. She’s not. It was a big mistake and the mare’s paid the price. How could I know the guy would on sell to Gilroy? His daughter rode her at my place. It’s either a crazy coincidence or he set me up.”

  Dee gasped at the sight of the weal marks on the mare’s face and neck. Raw and open, they oozed with infection and flies buzzed around, irritating her. Her dark eyes were lacklustre and beaten and her hooves dragged on the dusty ground as she observed Vaughan. “Sorry, sorry,” he breathed through lips pursed in pain. “I’m takin’ ya home, baby.” Vaughan reached out with a shaking hand, palm upwards, groaning as the mare’s eyes widened and she shied away. “This is gonna be a nightmare,” he sighed. “Serves me right.”

  The pretty Kaimanawa appeared to recognise Vaughan but refused to approach him, seeing his maleness as a threat. Wary and skittish, she dodged his gentle attentions until he bent double in pain, breathing heavily. “I don’t have time for this, Hinga,” he told the mare. “You’re the whole reason I’m here!”

  “Let me try,” Dee offered, swinging her leg over the fence rail. Her trousers flapped around her knees in the gentle breeze and she approached the mare, eyes down and hands by her sides. A few metres out, she stopped and turned her back as her father taught her, daring equine curiosity to override fear. She glanced across at Vaughan, propping himself up on the fence. “Her head collar’s cut into her face,” she whispered and he nodded.

  “I saw. Bastard!”

  “Why don’t we just call the authorities?” Dee asked, smiling as the mare snuffed her blonde hair and scented the back of her dress. She focussed on centring herself in calmness and peace, keen for the mare to trust her.

  “By the time they pull their asses up here, she’ll be shot and buried. Someone will tip him off.”

  Dee nodded, feeling whiskers on the back of her bare arms. “She’s got too little grass and the water trough’s empty.”

  “Shut up, Leilah. You’re reminding me of all the reasons I should shoot bloody Gilroy when I need to stay quiet for her.” He pointed his index finger at the mare.

  “We’re good, Vaughan,” Dee whispered. “Where’s your truck?”

  The mare flinched as he limped away, regaining her confidence as Dee stroked the prickly nose and let her snuff her face. Dee kept her eyes closed, breathing out confidence as the frightened horse lipped her cheeks, tasting the salt in her skin. “Good girl,” Dee soothed. “Let him take you home, sweetheart. He’s a kind man, but you know that already, don’t you? I bet he trained you, didn’t he?”

  The mare sighed and lowered her head, signalling her trust. Dee raised her hand and stroked the underside of the strong jaw, feeling the stubbly hairs on her palm. “I’ve missed this,” she whispered. The hitch in her chest caused the mare to nod in alarm and Dee pressed her free hand over her lips. “Sorry, Daddy,” she breathed as unexpected tears fell. “I’ve let you down.”

  The mare gave a snuffling breath and rubbed her hard forehead along Dee’s hip. She moved in a rhythmic action, satiating an itch on her face and enjoying the security of decent human company. Dee tried not to look at the overgrown hooves or the cuts on her fetlocks, concentrating on the sound of Vaughan’s battered blue ute as it rounded the corner towing a horse trailer. Dee’s heart clenched in her chest as Vaughan clambered out and lowered the back door, trying not to clang the rusting metal. He walked towards the gate with slow precision and laid a halter rope over the top rung. Noticing the horror on Dee’s face he swore. “I forgot,” he said. “I should’ve warned you. Sorry. Uncle bought up some of the equipment when your dad’s place sold. Leilah?” He took a step towards the gate and the mare lifted her head in a single bounce of fright. “Leilah?”

  Dee exha
led and swallowed. “It’s fine,” she said. “I’ll see if she’ll walk in by herself.” Dee stepped towards the gate with exacting steps, avoiding the sight of her father’s favourite halter rope. The metal fixings of the gate jangled as she unlatched it and pulled it inwards on bouncy hinges, almost filling the tiny arena with its presence. Dee pushed it as far back as she could and clicked to the mare. “Come on, Hinga,” she said as sweetly as she could muster, putting all her father’s expertise and willpower into the confident steps between her and the ramp. To her surprise the mare followed, baulking at the sound of her painful hooves on the wooden struts but stepping carefully up and into the trailer. Dee crawled down the other side of the partition and secured the lead rope on the head collar, tying it through the ring on the trailer. “Here you are,” she said with kindness, pulling down a hay net which the horse attacked with naked greed.

  Dee exited the horse box and helped secure the mare with a safety strap behind her flanks before closing the door. Vaughan pushed the bolts home and turned to her, his face serious. “Well done,” he said. “You’ve still got it.”

  “Na,” Dee replied. “That was easy.” She turned to face the pristine house, her heart sinking into her stomach.

  “Get your stuff.” Vaughan caught her forearm in his strong grip. “I’m not leaving you here. Go get your gear.”

  Dee shrugged, despondency filling her heart and brain. “Where will I go? He knows where I live.”

  “Anywhere, Leilah,” Vaughan replied with surety. “It can’t be worse than here. I’ll drop you at a bus stop or wherever you want to go. But first you need to grab your stuff.”

  Dee hovered as Vaughan squeezed her arm, infusing her with a sense of greater urgency. “Leilah, quickly! He’ll be back expecting a gourmet lunch and I don’t want to be here when he doesn’t get it.” His hand moved along her tender skin, finishing over her hand and clasping her fingers in his. “I can fight him, Leilah; I’m not scared. But not today, sweetheart; it won’t be a fair fight, just like it wasn’t before and he didn’t care then either.”

  Dee threw her belongings into her suitcase with haphazard speed. She snatched her toothbrush and paste from the ensuite bathroom and hurled it into the front pocket, yanking the zipper closed and snagging her fingers. Her face paled as she skidded to a halt alongside Vaughan in the kitchen. “I left the breakfast mess!” she said, a hitch in her voice. “He’ll go crazy.”

  He laughed and handed her the keys. “Best hurry then, woman!”

  Dee stared at the keys in her hand, her mouth hanging open. “I haven’t towed a horse box for years! And where did you find those?”

  “In his office.” Vaughan raised an eyebrow, warning her not to ask further.

  Vaughan heaved himself into the passenger seat, struggling to fix his seat belt in place. The horse clattered around in the box behind and Dee panicked, jumping into the driver’s seat and starting the engine. “Don’t say a word about my driving!” she warned, wagging an index finger in his face. As a final show of defiance, Dee hauled the overlarge men’s boots off her feet and dumped them outside the window. She eyed the trousers and glanced back at her case. “I can post these back,” she said, looking at Vaughan for approval.

  He nodded, his action slow and laboured and he said nothing, laying his head back against the seat and sighing with exhaustion. Dee gunned the engine, trying not to make the mare scramble on the metal floor of the box and eased forward, her heart racing with fear and the faintest hint of exhilaration.

  Chapter 11

  Te Mutunga Iho

  The drive from Feilding to the foothills of Pirongia seemed to take forever. For two hours, Dee steered the ute, hearing the tyres of the trailer clattering over uneven surfaces as she peered in the side mirrors to check it was still following. At Waiouru she pulled over, filling the gas tank with difficulty. It took two attempts to park the truck and trailer, only to discover the cap on the other side.

  “Hey, miss. It’s fine, I’ll do it.” The garage attendant hobbled towards her, an elderly man well past retirement age.

  “Sorry.” Dee rubbed her tired eyes and inhaled the dry heat. “It’s not my vehicle.”

  The man raised bushy white eyebrows which reminded her of her father and Dee rushed to dismiss the suspicion she saw in the set of his jaw. “It belongs to my passenger. He’s not well.” The attendant cast his glance towards the ute and saw Vaughan shift in the passenger seat. The horseman’s full lips parted in a grimace of pain as he sank lower, strong medication maintaining his stupor. Clattering inside the horse box drew Dee’s attention and she opened the side door and stroked the velvety nose which reached towards her.

  “Steady, Hinga,” she soothed. Spotting the empty hay net, Dee climbed the steps and hauled the rest of the hay bale in front of the mare. Consumed by impatience, Hinga nibbled the back of Dee’s sweatshirt and rubbed her forehead against her shoulder. “Steady, girl, shift your face out of the way.” Dee positioned the bale in front of the dinner-plate-hooves and stepped back to brush the dried brass from her clothes. “I don’t have the energy to fill the hay net so go steady and don’t eat all of it.” She peered around the half tonne body and sighed at the dung gathering into a pile behind the back hooves. “I guess that’s what you call a nervous poo.”

  Dee filled an empty bucket with water from the car wash hose and hauled it up the side step, drenching her raggedy trousers and remembering her bare feet encased in a pair of Harvey’s holey socks. She clambered to ground level and closed the door, fastening the handle and double checking it. “Thank you.” She smiled at the forecourt attendant as he nodded and clambered between the truck and trailer, almost losing his footing over the tow bar as the pump cable wrapped itself around his foot.

  “Bloody good job it stretches,” he chuckled, seating the nozzle back on the pump.

  “Sure is. Thanks again.”

  Dee dragged a dress and nice sandals from her suitcase, changing in the garage bathroom. She held the raggedy pants, tee shirt and socks in her hand and then dumped them in the trash, concluding Harvey didn’t deserve the postage. She paid for the petrol inside and snagged sugary drinks to give her the energy to continue the painstaking journey. Through the window she saw the elderly man lumber towards another customer. He looked disappointed as the smartly dressed male waved him away. The sun baked down on his blue bucket hat as he grabbed a broom and swept the encroaching volcanic sand from in front of the tyre pressure machine. On a whim, Dee withdrew a ten dollar note from the cash machine in the garage and asked the checkout assistant to pass it onto the attendant for his kindness. She doubted the old man would ever see her money but chastised her uncharitable thoughts as the cashier banged on the glass to attract his attention and flapped the money in a wide arc.

  Vaughan slept fitfully as the vehicle passed through the rugged landscape of the Desert Road. The barren wasteland seemed to absorb the warmth from the overhead sun and super-heat it, turning it into a weapon of dust and flickering mirages. The road shimmered as the heat rose and Dee cranked up the air conditioning, rewarded with a warm facial of tepid air. “Nice!” she exclaimed, killing the switch and winding the window down instead. The constant breeze which plagued the Desert Road and sent the reeds tossing from side to side, gifted her a face full of orange dust to make her choke and splutter.

  Vaughan disturbed, turning sideways in his seat and stretching the seatbelt across his throat. He clawed at it, his dark fringe damp and matted over his forehead. Dee reached across, keeping one eye on the never ending road and pushed at the side of his face, trying to sit him more upright.

  “I don’t understand.” Slurred words escaped the rosebud lips and Vaughan’s eyes flicked open. His fingers closed around Dee’s wrist and she felt a tremble go through his body.

  “It’s ok. We’re almost half way there,” she soothed, steering one handed and glancing in her rear-view mirror at the horse box following obediently behind. “Lay on your back; the seat belt’s h
urting you.”

  Vaughan’s eyes glazed over as he struggled with consciousness and Dee grew concerned. “How many pills did you take?” she asked, freeing her wrist and prodding at the man’s bulky shoulder.

  “You didn’t come back,” he muttered, turning in his seat and knocking the dashboard with his long legs. “It hurts. It still hurts.”

  Dee swallowed and wound the window up to prevent the whistling breeze which whipped through the cab. “It will hurt,” she said, keeping her voice calm. “You’ve had surgery; it’ll get better in time though.” She tutted as a smart SUV overtook them on the wrong side of the road, pulling dangerously across her as an oncoming camper van passed, blaring its horn. “One bloody car in half an hour and it wants to wipe me out!” She checked the trailer again, grateful that she resisted the urge to slam on the brakes.

  “My dad taught me to tow a trailer,” she said, digging her finger into Vaughan’s shoulder again. “Remember Hector, Vaughan? Remember my dad? Wake up and talk to me. I’m tired and I think you’ve taken too many pills. How many did you take?”

  “Pills,” Vaughan repeated, the word trailing off.

  “Yes how many?”

  “Two.”

  “You took two?” Dee sounded disbelieving. “Well you need to wake up now. And don’t take anymore.”

  “Two,” Vaughan repeated.

  Dee chewed her lips and her lips parted in concern. “Two of one lot, or two of both? Vaughan, two of both?” She nudged his shoulder again and Vaughan groaned.

  “Two.”

  “Bloody hell!” Dee complained. “Why do men not read instructions? It was either or; not both at the same time!”

  “Two,” Vaughan mumbled.

  Dee sighed. “Yeah, buddy. And if you’re not awake by the time we get to your place, I’m driving right on by and parking up in front of a hospital. With the horse box!”

  Dee pushed the ute and trailer through Taupo, snaking past the lake left over from a volcanic blast centuries ago. Impatient drivers burned tyre rubber as they took foolish risks to pass the slow-moving vehicle as Dee navigated the tight mountainous roads. A courier van left it too late to cut back in on a treacherous bend and Dee held her breath, hearing the mare clatter in the trailer as she tapped the brake. She flashed her lights and offered up an offensive gesture. The driver gave her a hazard signal in response and sped away. “Idiot!” Dee hissed, checking her mirrors again.