Kiss On The Bridge Read Online Free PDF Page B

the yellow
paper?” he whispered.
    “The note handed to you by the lad on the
bike has her last name on it. She will be in Darwin on Christmas
eve1974. If you want to make 1975 extraordinary, take my advice,
find her before new-years-day. Her father’s plans have been sped
up. She will be married at 5pm 1st January 1975.”
    “Why have you told me this? Who are you?”
    “Who I am is not important. There’s a rumour
buzzing around in certain circles there’s a man searching for
Anneli. There’s also a report her fiancé, the one she has never
met, is not happy.”
    “Not met yet?” Wade’s voice sounded
vague.
    “He’s put a price on your head,” whispered
the woman. She spied a group of men entering the lane. “I’ve
outstayed my time. To sum up our chat, Anneli will meet the man she
has been ordered to marry, the day after Christmas day. The wedding
will take place on the date I’ve told you.”
    “Is there anything else you need to tell me?”
asked Wade.
    The woman lifted her head to look him in the
eyes. “Don’t be late.”
    The mysterious woman’s last words were still
clear in Wade’s ears when she stepped away from the doorway. He
stood watching her run off in the opposite direction to the
Courthouse.
    Wade decided he didn’t want a rematch to his
fight. He sprinted up the lane to a side entrance to the courthouse
to strike up a conversation with the first cop he saw. The men
ambled past, glaring. At the far end of the lane they got into a
dark blue sedan and drove off. Wade handed the gun he took from one
of his attackers to the cop. He gave a watered down summary of what
happened before saying goodbye.
     
     
     

CHAPTER FOUR
     
     
    December 24th 1974. A tad less than eleven
hours before cyclone Tracy’s arrival time. The barometer needle
started dropping towards nine hundred and thirty hectopascals. When
the black needle arrived at the destructive point Cyclone Tracy
would strike.
     
     
    WADE JUMPED onto the wharf, tied the bow and
stern line of his one million dollar forty foot white coloured
yacht to the posts before bounding back down the steps into the
belly of the yacht. For a few moments he stood on the bottom step
appreciating the inner workings. Off to one side was the galley
which included a small bar. The small lounge on his right consisted
of a mini TV which he personally screwed to the wall. Two
comfortable bean bags sat neatly on dull red carpet. The small
table and two chairs were in one corner. A leather chair looked at
home in the other. At the front of the yacht the door led into the
bedroom. A king size bed filled half the room while a door next to
the bed led to the shower.
    Wade looked out of the porthole window,
enjoying the orange coloured sunset. Darwin’s temperature hit the
monthly average again, failing to drop a degree the entire day. He
shaved, showered and dressed in comfortable smart casual attire.
Walking past the mirror, glued to the inside of the wardrobe door,
he stopped to check his appearance.
    He hoped for the perfect night.
    Wade arrived in Darwin for only one reason;
find Anneli, the young lady he kissed on the bridge.
    Before closing the door on the mirror he
nodded at his reflection. Included in the eleven months of hard
digging and endless phone calls to unearth her last name, the
mystery woman’s timely message helped him to be in Darwin to stop
the so called farce of a wedding. Meeting the mystery woman plagued
heavy on Wade’s mind. Switching his thoughts to the identical
message left for him in Sydney and again in Queensland when he
stopped to restock his provisions, both handwritten messages
contained a photo. Wade felt convinced the messages were from the
same woman. She’d taken more than a casual interest in his voyage
to Darwin.
    Wade walked up the steps to the deck. “I
wonder if the mystery woman is Anneli’s sister?” he said louder
than he should have.
    “What did you say young fella?”
    Wade looked up at the old