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again.
    ‘How could I forget!’ came the ready reply. ‘Wet, water baby?’ He flung her a towel and she was glad of the excuse to hide her burning cheeks.
    ‘I won’t offer to help this time,’ he added sotto voce to her. His eyes held a mocking gleam as he rubbed the worst off his small nephews.
    ‘Will you come back for a drink?’ he asked Rupe.
    ‘No, thanks, we’d better get home so Frances and the boys can get dry.’
    ‘O.K. I’ll finish up here. See you at half past six in the morning.’ Thankfully Frances ran to her car, this time Thad with her as well. Rupert had a motorbike and she heard it roar as she flicked her Mini into action. The rain steadily poured down and Frances had to drive cautiously as the wipers could barely cope. Even the boys were quiet till the top gate was reached, then a hot argument broke out as to who should get out to open the gate. They were glad to be at home. After a quick shower they sat down to a piping hot casserole. Rupe kept glancing out the window to study the clouds. When Frances queried it, he explained that the rain could cause a lot of problems if it rained very hard for a long time.
    ‘You should see the Rakaia in flood—after a summer storm it can do a terrifying amount of damage. We have to make sure we clear the river flat paddocks. Actually Ian has a much bigger problem as his river boundary is twice the size and he has to keep a wary eye on soil erosion the whole time. However, I think this will clear in an hour or two.’
    ‘I do hope so,’ said Jenny. ‘I couldn’t bear shearing to be delayed again.’
    It was so unusual for Jenny to sound even slightly ruffled that Frances looked at her in surprise.
    Rupert put his hand over his wife’s. ‘Come on, love. Have a cup of tea, then bed for you. I’ll look after the boys.’
    ‘Aw, heck! Not now, Dad!’ Ivan complained. ‘We want to watch Superman.’
    ‘It’ll be over by seven-thirty, Dad,’ said Thad with his usual good logic.
    ‘Right! Get your pyjamas on now, then sit down quietly.’
    ‘Dad, can I stay home to help tomorrow?’ asked Thad.
    ‘O.K., son! You’re a big help to me at shearing.’
    ‘Me too!’ ‘Me too!’ put in Ivan and Greg.
    Rupe paused. ‘No—sorry, boys. Thad can. He’s doing well at school, so it won’t hurt him to miss one day. Ivan, your last report said you could work much harder. Greg, you mustn’t miss any school, your reading is too important.’
    The theme music sounded and in quick time three neatly dressed figures were sitting on the floor, eyes reflecting the wonders of Superman.
    After Jenny had said goodnight, Frances quietly stacked the dishes in the machine. In this household it was a necessary invention.
    ‘The rain’s stopping, thank God!’ muttered Rupert, Frances looked out. The steady thrum had died away and now only the odd spot reminded them of the cloudburst of a few hours before. Incredibly the night sky was dark but clearing fast and later the stars would shine.
    The caped crusader was triumphant over the forces of evil again, so the boys were piled off to bed. Rupe read them a story, heard their prayers and tucked them up.
    Frances decided to check that the sheep she had penned earlier were settling all right. She put on a light jacket, then told Rupe where she was going.
    The air was fresh and cool and Frances felt refreshed jogging smoothly over to the shed.
    One or two stars were peeping out and the moon, almost full, hung pale and lemon-washed in the sky, its shadowed face making ghostly figures of the dark band of trees. The woolshed stood blackly, the light-filled windows a welcome signal. Inside, all was quiet. Here and there green eyes of sheep gleamed at her in the light. She stood quietly for a few moments, then decided to check the other mob in Ian’s shed. It would save Rupe time and she felt like a run. She had a pencil in her jacket pocket and found a paper in the engine room and briefly wrote an explanatory note. She