September Read Online Free Page A

arm. ‘I can still drive, in spite of this.’
    ‘So what’s the plan?’ asked Boges. ‘We need a safe place to leave Gabbi.’
    Gabbi looked at Boges nervously, biting her lower lip.
    ‘There’s a regional police station about forty kilometres from Billabong,’ said Sharkey. ‘Open all hours. We could drop Gabbi off there. Or near there—we don’t want to bring our car in tooclose. Don’t want to be identified and linked to her return.’
    ‘Maybe if you park the car a few blocks away, I can walk her up,’ suggested Winter, taking Gabbi’s hand. ‘Not to the door, of course, but I can take her as close as possible, and then I’ll run for cover and meet up with you further down the road?’
    ‘Good idea, Winter,’ said Sharkey. He turned to Gab, who was looking more and more nervous by the second. ‘Don’t worry, sweetie, you’ll be safe there. They’ll take great care of you, and they’ll have your mum and uncle over in two shakes of a lamb’s tail. They’ll also want to know how you got there. You can tell them a kind stranger dropped you off.’
    ‘I guess that isn’t really a lie,’ said Gabbi slowly. ‘You were a stranger, until just now. And I can tell you are both kind,’ she said to Sharkey and Winter.
    My sister looked up at me. Her lower lip was quivering.
    ‘I know you said it’s too dangerous, but isn’t there some way you can come home with me, Cal?’ she pleaded. ‘You’re my brother! Can’t we just tell them it wasn’t you who hurt me? I know that. I’ll just tell them. We can explain everything to them. Together. Mum will believe us!’
    If only that were true.
    I wondered for a moment how Gabbi would react to finding out that she possibly had another brother out there. Ryan Spencer.
    ‘Gab,’ I said gently, ‘things are too complicated . I can’t go home. The cops don’t believe me. Even Mum …’ I paused. ‘Hey,’ I said, ‘please don’t cry on me. One day—soon—I’ll be home with you. We’ll all be together again. But I have to stay away for now. I have a lot of work to do that I can’t do unless I’m out here. In hiding. This secret that I’m working on affects our family. It involves things that belong to us, no-one else. Don’t you worry about me, OK? Now let’s get you home safely.’
    ‘But what will I tell them about the attack?’
    ‘Just tell them the truth—that you don’t remember anything up until tonight. That you were in your room when someone hit you. Just don’t mention seeing me here.’
    ‘That’s right, Gabs,’ said Boges, nodding vigorously . ‘And please leave me right out of the picture, too. Otherwise I will be in deep, deep … chocolate. I’ll come and visit you when you’re back home, but we’ll have to pretend it’s the first time we’ve seen each other since January, OK?’
    ‘I won’t say anything. I promise. I’ll just say I woke up in the river, got washed ashore and a… a bushwalker found me. I won’t tell them any more than that.’
    Gabbi and Boges high-fived each other.

    ‘Off you go, now, Gab,’ I said, after releasing her from a tight hug in the back of Sharkey’s car. Sharkey had driven us all to a secluded spot a safe distance from the police station. ‘I’ll see you again soon, I promise.’
    Gabbi took Winter’s hand and they both slid out of the car. Winter softly closed the door behind them, and silently mouthed, ‘Won’t be long.’ Gab reluctantly looked back at Boges and me through the car window with her bravest face on. We both waved as the pair walked away from us.
    They were only a few metres away when Gab dropped Winter’s hand and came running back to me, Winter following closely behind.
    ‘How come I’m wearing this?’ she said, holding up her hands to me. ‘I thought I gave it to you!’ She pointed to the little Celtic ring on her finger. ‘I did, didn’t I? I remember! It was after you nearly drowned in the bay. Back in the holiday house?’
    ‘You did,’ I