All Alone - 35. Alo Chapter 35

“Coral Bay, isn’t that were they had a cyclone that went over them recently?” Tim asked, and I chuckled at this.

“You are right about the cyclone going over the coast, but it went straight over the top of the station, as a category 5, and that is one experience, I don’t want to deal with ever again” I replied.

“Wow, I didn’t know it was that strong, we have had cyclones here sometimes, but no higher than a category two, that must have been really scary” Tim said.

“Yes, it was, but we all got through it, without any injuries, which was the main thing.

“We will need to organise flights back to Perth for all of us, and then up to Northampton, for you Davis and your tribe of boys, so I suggest that we climb into the hire car, thank goodness it has 7 seats in it, and head over to your home, so you can collect everything thing that you need, in the way of clothes and personal belongings” I suggested.

When we arrived at the house, after passing through the locked front security gate, that was not locked when we last visited, the front door opened, and a lady stepped out, with a concerned look on her face.

“Bene ragazzo, dove sei stato, e dov’e il Signor Tim e la Signora Gloria?” the lady said in Italian.

I groaned, having understood all of that, and Tim faced me.

“Did you understand all that?’ he asked me and reluctantly I nodded my head yes.

“Si, maestro Tim” I replied, and both Tim and Marcus smiled broadly.

“Maria. I nostril genitori sono in grossi guai, questro e’ nostro cugino Davis, mio nipote, che si prendera cura di noi da ora, manell’ Australia occidentale” Tim said fluently, explaining that Davis would be looking after them from now on, and the lady, who I presumed is the housekeeper, frowned then smiled at Davis, before stepping forward towards him.

“My, my, how you have changed, since I last saw you Davis” she said in broken English, as she hugged him tightly then stepped back and squeezed his cheeks.

“You have not changed at all Maria, still young as ever” Davis replied as he rubbed his sore cheeks, which made Maria blush and chuckle a little.

“Maria, this is Lloyd, Sarah’s husband” Davis added.

”Yes I see your picture of you together, such a happy couple back then” Maria replied, looking sad, as she approached, but I stepped back and held out my hand, to avoid the treatment that Davis received, and Maria laughed, as she slapped away my hand and wrapped me in a tight hug.

“You better let him go, before he faints from lack of air, Maria” Tim said, and Maria released me, and I gasped for some air, and Maria motioned for all of us to come inside. While Maria prepared some lunch for all of us, at her insistence, Tim explained to Maria in Italian everything that has happened since yesterday, and Davis added some information in between, in rusty Italian.

By the time that lunch had been eaten, Maria had been fully briefed on what is happening, and that the house is to be closed, which she was very sad about, as she would have to find another job. After lunch, Maria was busy running around organising getting the four boys packed. She had retrieved the two family - sized suitcases, and two small suit cases, to pack all the boys clothing in.

From the garage, she retrieved a large trunk, which would have all of the boy’s books, games, toys, memento’s and anything else they wanted to take with them, while the boys each had a backpack, which they placed their laptop computers, iPads, mobiles, a change of clothes and toiletry bags into them.

While this was all happening, Alistair sat in the lounge watching television, while Davis and I sat at the dining room table, watching all the activity happening around them. “So, what are we going to do with all of this luggage?” Davis asked me, looking concerned.

“Easy, I will call a minivan to come and collect it and follow us back to the hotel” I replied, and Davis just laughed.

Returning to what I was doing on my I pad, I had booked flights for all of us, to Perth for tomorrow morning, leaving 10.30 am, and 2 ½ hours after landing in Perth, we board a flight from Perth to Geraldton, arriving at 5.30 in the afternoon, after nearly 6 ½ hours of flight travel.

I had also booked us into a hotel for one night in Geraldton, before we head home to Northampton, and I was still arranging that part of the journey. “What are you plans when we get back to WA?’ Davis asked me.

“Well, I will have to make some slight alterations to what I had organised previously, as you know, I was planning to have Jeremy and Angela take over running Galena Estate, but now with my two boys with me, I need to think about them, so the boys and I will be your neighbours, living in the cottage” I announced.

“Oh good, that will be excellent for the boys, I am thinking of enrolling Tim and Marcus into the district high school, although, I feel it will be quite a large adjustment for them to be out of a private school, but it will be good for them too, I hope” Davis said.

“Well, I will be close by to help, where ever I can, and I will be enrolling my boys there too… wow, that is going to take a bit to get use to” I replied, and Davis smile.

“Welcome to parenthood mate” Davis said to me.

“Hopefully all is going well for the hand-over of Doorawarrah, and I am positive that Dave and Sue with be able to handle that easily. I will have Jeremy and Angela take over as managers of Coral Coast Station, or what is left of it, and they can coordinate the improvements to visitor accommodation. I will need to extend that home runway by about 200 metres, as it is a bit tight for room for private jets to land and take off” I commented.

Since Dave and Sue are moving to Doorawarrah, Jeremy and Angela, can use that house, and I am thinking of relocating my fancy little house to the family farm north of Northampton” I announced.

“What about the rest of the staff up there?’ Davis asked.

“Well, Chris and Anne have been caretakers there when the Dalworth’s were running the station, so that won’t be a problem, and I am sure that Toby and Rebecca will fit in there too, but the lads maybe another issue, as they had a run-in with the Dalworth’s son, who is an arrogant prick, and you didn’t hear me say that. Nicholas is responsible for putting me in hospital as well, so that is why he is banned from the station.

I might ask Dave and Sue if I can lease their farm, which is next door, and that would allow me to accommodate the lads in their house” I replied. Once we were all packed up and we said farewell to Maria, we climbed into the hire car, and with a minivan following, we headed to the hotel.

Once we had arrived at the hotel and we had checked the boys in, we had a group meeting, so as to let the boys know that we will have a longday of travelling tomorrow, with two flights from Brisbane to Perth and on to Geraldton, were we would stay overnight before driving north to Northampton.

It was a long and tiring day, and I was glad that it was finally over, when we collapsed into our hotel rooms in Geraldton, and after everyone had showered, we went to the hotel restaurant for a light dinner, before heading to our rooms to get some sleep.

Davis had stored his vehicle at the airport, while we were away over east, and that was no parked in the hotel carpark, and in the morning, I would be collecting a second-hand Holden Colorado, that will be used for work on the farm, but first to help get us up to the farm from Geraldton.

After a good-sized breakfast, the boys remained at the hotel, while I had Davis take me to the dealership to collect the second-hand Colorado, before returning to the hotel, just in time for checking out. With Davis, Alistair and their cousin in his vehicle, and my boys and I in my older vehicle, we set off for the 45-minute journey north to farm, just out of Northampton.

While Davis’s cousin settled into their new home in the main house, Toby and Isaac began to get settled in to the much smaller cottage. “How come we are in the cottage and not in the main house, when you own the property” Isaac asked me, once we had unpacked most of the boy’s belongings into their separate bedrooms.

“Well, I guess that is because, Davis has a bigger family, and they need more space, and we don’t” I replied.

“But Dad, this place is really small?” Toby complained, and I smiled, knowing that this will not be the case for long.

“If you be patient, I will be changing that very soon, I have a small cyclone coded two-bedroom house that I will have sent down here, and I will be putting it directly in front of the cottage.

When it is in place, you boys can have those two bedrooms in there and I will remain in the older cottage” I replied, as I was thinking of ways to change things around in the cottage, to make it more useful. The dining room will become the main television room, and the cosy lounge at the front, will become my new administration office, while one spare bedroom, will be used for storage, and the other as a guest bedroom.

Less than a month after returning from Brisbane, my little house on the station, had been put into its new place, on raised footings, so it was level with and right up against the front veranda of the cottage. Local carpenters installed two partisan walls at each end of the veranda, to create a breezeway, and link to the new part of the house, with a door leading directly into the lounge area of the new house.

To celebrate the extension to the house, which Toby and Isaac were thrilled about, I asked Davis, Alistair, Tim and Marcus to come and have a BBQ dinner at my place.

“I am surprised at how well Tim and Marcus have settled into their new school, and apparently they love living on the farm” Davis commented to me.

“Yes, my boys appear to be doing well at the new school too, and although they were not too keen on living in the small cottage, they are very happy now” I responded.

“So, how are all the changes at Doorawarrah and Coral Coast going?” Davis asked me.

“Very well, Dave and Sue have settled in well at Doorawarrah, and they have allowed me to lease their farm for two years, and to let Matt and Greg to live in the house, and they love working for me down here.

It’s a bit of a different story with Coral Coast, Troy and Rebecca, the south end caretakers do not like the Dalworth’s and have resigned, and so Chris and Anne have moved their caravan down to that site, to take over that position, and they have reported that the Dalworth’s have removed some of the barrier fencing, that was put up to restrict access to the north area of the station.

Last week, I had to send a strongly worded email to them, to put back into place all barriers on roads heading north, and that all station staff and visitors are prohibited from entering that area of the station. I may have to drive up to the station and deal with it personally” I replied.

“So, not such a good idea letting them return to the station” Davis commented, just as I received a text message from Chris and Anne.

“Just seen Nicholas D, he was tearing down the station track at breakneck speed, and nearly ran into a guest’s vehicle, I’ve tried calling Jeremy and Angela on the radio, but they are either ignoring me or not in range. What are your suggestions on what to do? Chris”.

I groaned, when I saw this message, “I need to go there tomorrow, and sort this mess out, they need to get off the station” I said and I showed the message to Davis, just as another message arrived.

“Talk about divine intervention, P&W ranger has caught up with Nicholas, and will be taken back to Carnarvon, Chris”, and I chuckled when I read this. “Well maybe I don’t need to go after all” I commented, as I sent a text back to Chris.

“Inform Jeremy and Angela, that for disobeying my directives in regards to the management of the station, and allowing a banned person to enter the station, who is now in transit to Carnarvon Police Station, you are here by dismissed as Managers of Coral Coast Station, and you have 24 hours to leave the station, with just your personal belongings only”. “Ok, and very pleased to do so” came a quick reply.

“I think it is time to rid myself of that station, once and for all, my place is here in Northampton, and with Doorawarrah Station, I am happy here, and it is where I want us to stay” I said to Davis.

“That is very good to hear brother in law, and I would love to stay here with my son and cousins and your family” Davis replied.

I sighed in contentment before speaking, “You know, it feels perfect being here. When I began that journey to the station to release Sarah’s ashes into the ocean, feeling so sad and alone, I never expected that it would turn out like this, with an awesome brother in law, a nephew, your two cousins, and now my two sons. I am happy, that I am no longer all alone”.

The End