Riverboat Point Read Online Free PDF Page B

the room. She pulled up a second then unlocked the door and slid it open. Fresh air flowed inside and she allowed herself to take a long deep breath.
    She looked at the small dining table then back out at the verandah. The end closest to Ethan Daly’s boundary was enclosed on two sides, with a small wooden table and two chairs tucked part way into the space. At least it was hidden from his house. Perched up on its stilts, Ethan’s pole house reminded her of her little place in Adelaide with the block of flats so close to the side fence. She decided it would be better to eat her meal out on the verandah than inside. Broom in hand she swept off the setting, retrieved her coffee and salad roll and sat down to enjoy them.
    After several mouthfuls she sat back and picked up her coffee. She took a sip and tilted her head back. Above her, thick wooden rafters supported the tin roof. She remembered from her first inspection, when Jaxon had been preparing to buy it, that the bones of this old place were good.
    She looked down at the concrete under her feet. It met lawn that, in turn, stretched down towards the river. Between her and the four houseboats below were a couple of shaggy trees, perhaps peppertrees, providing some screening between the boats and the shack. Large gum trees scattered along Ethan’s side of the boundary down to the bank. Framed between the two lots of trees was the river. Across the wide expanse of water, the low bank opposite was dotted with towering gums and scrawny saplings and beyond them the vegetation was thicker, forming a wall of varying shades of green. Birds swooped and glided but other than their occasional calls there was little other noise. Apart from Ethan’s house she could see no other signs of habitation.
    She sighed, leant back in her chair and stretched out her legs. The ache in her left leg had gone. Her eyes drooped shut for a moment. The sound of an engine made her sit up, probably Ethan returning from wherever he went. Savannah turned her head to listen. The noise was coming from in front, not behind.
    A small boat appeared from her left. There was one person huddled down at the back. She watched as the boat sped along then suddenly veered towards the houseboats. She jumped to her feet, grimacing as a sharp jab of pain caught her again. It looked like the guy was going to drive right into the moored boats then he disappeared behind them and continued on up the river.
    â€œManiac,” Savannah called as the sound of the motor faded, replaced by the slap and bang of a series of waves hitting the houseboats and rolling onto the bank.
    She walked across the lawn and stood on the bank watching the waves spread up the sandy slope then slide back. Parts of the low cliff were eroded. No wonder. There must be boats going up and down the river regularly, other houseboats among them, and she’d seen ads for paddle-steamers. She stepped back a little. The edge could be quite unsafe. Why hadn’t Jaxon made a proper landing?
    She turned back to the shack. She had no understanding of rivers and houseboats and houses that didn’t have proper hot water.
    â€œYou’d better get back here quick smart, Jaxon,” she muttered.
    She gathered up her cup and plate and steeled herself to go back inside to deal with the mess in the pantry. The thought of those little four-legged vermin gave her the creeps. What if they ran up her arms or her legs?
    Savannah went to her bedroom and opened her bag. She changed from jeans to trackpants, borrowed a pair of thick socks from Jaxon’s drawer which she pulled on to encase the legs of her pants. Back in the kitchen she snapped on rubber gloves. Small broom in hand and rubbish bin close by, she stepped up to the pantry.
    â€œComing ready or not,” she said and flung open the door.
    The light flicked on but nothing moved. She reached in with the handle of the broom and shifted a cereal box that had chew marks on one corner. It