Tears of the Moon - Di Morrissey [115]
‘One shot, we shoot food, two shots quick quick, need help,’ said Ahmed.
‘What about us? What if we need help?’
‘Give a cooee. Don’t worry, I have my pistol,’ grinned Tyndall.
Olivia produced a knife in a leather sheath from her pocket. ‘I can look after myself,’ she added, taking up an aggressive stance which had the crew chuckling.
They plunged into the thick undergrowth discovering strange plants and exotic flowers. It was green and cool and so unlike the heat and barrenness of Broome. Tyndall saw a tree snake looped and draped like a vine hanging from a branch, but decided against pointing it out to Olivia.
They found a rough track that wound up to the plateau. As they climbed, they rested frequently to admire the view across the glassy waters to the model-sized schooner and islands beyond. In an overhang they spotted caves and, almost at the plateau, they came upon a ridge where a narrow ledge led to several caves.
‘Feel game enough to explore?’ asked Tyndall.
The ledge along the cliff face was wide enough to walk along, but there was a sheer drop to the jungle floor a long way below.
Olivia nodded and followed him, her heart thumping. She swallowed hard and looked only at where she was putting her feet.
They entered the centre cave, which was the biggest, and found themselves in an antechamber with smaller passages leading off it. Tyndall reached for Olivia’s hand and they ducked down a short passage to an inner cave. It was quite dark but no sooner had their eyes adjusted to the gloom than Olivia let out a screech and jumped back. Before them lay whole skeletons and assorted human bones. Skulls glared at them from sightless holes and teeth were bared in snarls.
‘Ugh. How awful. What is this place?’ she whispered.
‘Aboriginal burial cave. Hey, look at this.’ He moved forward.
‘Don’t disturb them. It might be bad luck.’
‘I won’t. I just want to have a closer look.’ He pointed to one set of bones. ‘This fellow brought his favourite things with him.’
Olivia saw a large mother-of-pearl breastplate lying amongst the bones. ‘Do you think it came from round here?’
‘Could be.’
‘Let’s leave. This place frightens me.’
They retraced their steps and made the final ascent to the plateau. Far below was the speck of one of the dinghies rowing to the schooner.
‘Maybe they’re going to sail away and leave us,’ said Olivia in jest.
‘Well, if we’re going to be marooned we might as well make the most of it.’ He grinned and took her in his arms and kissed her. They made love on the grass, by the baobab tree, at the top of a magical island, and felt they could touch the clouds. Olivia, naked in the daylight, surrendered herself to the caress of the breeze, the warmth of the sun and the whisper of Tyndall’s lips.
The next day Tyndall made the first dive off the point of the island. He rose within an hour and a basket of pearl shell spilled onto the deck. His enthusiasm bubbled over. ‘It’s magnificent down there.’ Olivia, you must see this. You said you wanted to try a dive. This is perfect. It’s only twelve fathoms and so beautiful. You’ll love it.’
His eagerness swept away her momentary apprehension. She had always wanted to see the world beneath the sea. Tyndall and Ahmed schooled her closely and she’d watched enough dives to be familiar with the procedure. Tyndall would be able to dive with her as they’d set up two hand pumps on the Shamrock.
The weight of the suit scared her and as she sank through the water, she felt she would never rise to the surface again. Then she felt lightheaded, as if she could float away and realised quickly she had to adjust her pressure gauge.
By the time she felt comfortable, Tyndall was in front of her, giving her hand signals and she looked about her. Nothing had prepared her for the wonderment of this eerily silent blue and green world. Tiny multihued fish darted at the glass