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.Lorna was reading a book when the young nurse appeared, to announce another visitor.‘Brock!’ Lorna greeted him enthusiastically, lowering her book on to the bed cover.‘How very nice of you to come and see me.Were you, doing some business with Wade?’ she asked, sending him an interrogating glance.He came forward into the room and took possession of the chair by the bed.‘No, I came over especially to see you.’‘All that way?’ She stared unbelievingly.‘You drove here just to see me?'He leant back in his chair, his eyes roving her face and the pretty bedjacket she wore.‘Why so surprised? If you remember, I did say I’d come over yesterday, but Wade then mentioned that you were all going to town.’ He paused, saw that Lorna was embarrassed by what he had said and, with a small sigh, he changed the subject, asking how she managed to get herself lost.‘Wade gave you ample warning, surely? We always do warn visitors who might be ignorant of the hazards which the bush presents.’‘He did warn me, yes.But I forgot about his warning—’‘You forgot!’ he echoed.‘How in the name of Lucifer could you forget?'She shook her head.‘It’s hard to explain, Brock.Please don’t question me.’ She spoke with a certain finality, but gave him time to speak.He refrained and she went on, ‘How did you know about my getting lost? Did Wade contact you over the air?’‘He asked for our help.’‘He asked for your help?’ A hand stole to Lorna’s cheek as imagination flowed unhindered.‘You mean, all your father’s stockmen were out searching, as well as Wade’s?’‘Wade didn’t alert Father until yesterday morning.By that time he decided he required every single man he could get hold of— It seems that, at first, he had no doubts at all about finding you long before dawn, because he estimated that you couldn’t have gone far.However, by dawn he decided to ask for our men, and these were sent, naturally.’‘All of them?'‘Most of them.'‘How awful of me to cause all that trouble!' Guilt pressed down again.‘How - how did they come?'‘How did they travel, you mean? By cars.Every vehicle was brought into operation - station wagons, the ute and the homestead car.Some of the men have cars or land-rovers.' Mercifully he stopped on noting the flood of colour that gave evidence of her acute discomfiture.‘Don't worry too much about it, Lorna.You’re not the first person who's been lost out there.'‘But I ought to have thought about all the trouble and inconvenience I would cause— Oh, I shall never be able to forget it - never !'‘Certainly you will.It's all over and done with.' He paused a moment.‘How are you feeling?'‘There's nothing wrong with me, except that I'm burned, of course.'He nodded understandingly.‘Sunburn can be hell.But the thirst - that must have been hell too?'She shuddered at the memory, although her mind was still occupied with the trouble she had caused to everyone.‘It was,' she answered briefly, and Brock changed the subject.‘I had to come and see you, Lorna.Wade doesn’t know I'm here, but I’ll call at the homestead before I leave, of course.' Something in his tone brought a return of her former embarrassment.She hoped Brock was not going to complicate the remainder of her stay at Bali Creek.‘It was kind of you,' she murmured, and then, before he could speak.‘Your people - were they annoyed at having to send their men off to look for me?' She was thinking about Olga, and wondering if, when they next met, the girl would come out with some derisive comments about those people who fail to treat the terrain with due respect.‘Annoyed? - certainly not.It isn’t the first time we’ve been called out.Last year a party of tourists were lost.They’d left their car after it broke down and one of our men saw it as he was going into Yarralinga.He turned back, naturally, and both our men and Wade’s went off to find them.Stupid lot! They must have been told that the best chance of survival is to stay with your vehicle.Had they done that they’d scarcely have suffered at all.As it was, it took us two full days to find them, and as they’d been walking round in circles before that, they were in a pretty bad way.They were brought to the hospital here and had to stay for about four days, I think it was.’‘People don’t realize the dangers.I suppose that if your car breaks down you naturally begin looking for water — once you’ve used up your reserve, that is.’Brock nodded.‘That’s what happened in this case.They thought they might find a stream— A stream out here, and in the Dry! I ask you!’ Brock turned as the nurse entered.‘Are you having tea with Lorna, Mr.Norville?’‘Just a drink, please.’ He was not one for afternoon tea, he went on to tell Lorna when the nurse had gone.‘I’d rather wait for my dinner, and make a feast of it.’He stayed for another half-hour, then left.‘I’ll see you at Wade’s barbecue,’ he said, turning at the door.Lorna smiled and nodded, then her eyes lit up.Aunt Bertha was there in the doorway, beaming at Brock, who had stepped aside to allow her to pass in front of him.‘Brock.well, how thoughtful of you to come and see Lorna.Does Wade know you’re here?’ The sudden change from greeting to inquiry was so markedly abrupt as to bring a tiny gasp to Lorna’s lips.Brock had driven over a hundred miles in the heat of the day and all that interested her aunt was whether or not Wade knew of his presence at the hospital.‘Not yet—’‘You must call at the homestead, then.’Brock looked oddly at her, then exchanged glances with Lorna.‘I was about to say I intended going over there - now.’Aunt Bertha went a trifle red.‘Sorry I interrupted,’ she muttered, coming towards the bed.‘I should have known you would be calling on Wade before you left.’‘You appear to be most anxious for me to call upon him, Mrs.Gerrard.’ Brock sounded as though he could not help uttering these words.He was puzzled by the urgency of the interruption, as was Lorna.Aunt Bertha shrugged with well-feigned indifference.‘Me - anxious? But why should I be anxious for you to call on Wade? No - I merely spoke unthinkingly, as one does, you know, when one’s mind is on other things.’Lorna said, watching her aunt’s face closely,‘What things are on your mind?’‘Why, you, of course! I can’t stop thinking of the dreadful ordeal you went through
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