Zac stretched his brain to try to catch the nuances, but his thoughts were less flexible than he wanted. He was also trying to understand the intricacies of running a cattle station. ‘So you hire extra people to help with the muster?’

‘In the past, yes. And probably this year as well. We hire the already assembled regional gang. The head musterer runs it. He has his own crew, and usually a contact who has an R22 helicopter or two if the mob have really taken to the far boundaries. We don’t have the workforce for scattered stock, and he does the rounds of the stations that need manpower. That’s his livelihood. But the old man has retired and his son’s come home to take over.’ Jock glanced at Ava. ‘I don’t like Jai. Never have.’

Ava screwed up her face and Zac’s brain tickled him again. Then it clicked. Jai. The father of Ava’s daughter. The one who wanted to marry a fortune. No wonder Jock didn’t like him. Zac had never met him and he definitely didn’t like him.

The flies buzzed annoyingly when they slowed down to a crawl to move over or around obstacles, and the heat in the day was building despite the breeze they were making with the forward motion.

Ava was saying, ‘… Not so many stations this year either, so if we pull out then the business will be down for them. With the Wilsons gone. Have the new people taken over Dreamtime yet?’

‘Just. Mum said it was bought by an Italian guy for his son. Apparently, the son and his wife have been working on stations for a couple of years and Dad has enough money to buy them one. He came over last week with a cut hand.’

‘Over here? Mum’s met him?’ Zac felt Ava stiffen. ‘Our new neighbour came over here and she didn’t say?’

Jock’s eyes were roving across the landscape, unlike his sister’s, who watched the road when she drove. But then they weren’t on a road, they were driving through a paddock, Zac guessed and winced as Jock ran over a submerged boulder. ‘Mum stitched him up and gave him a tetanus shot. Said he seemed pleasant enough.’

‘You didn’t meet him?’ Zac felt Ava’s curiosity beside him. ‘Did he meet Mim? Funny. Mum didn’t mention it when I spoke to her.’

Jock peered at her, then back at something that caught his eye out to the left. ‘Why would she?’

‘She doesn’t get that many visitors, and it’s not exactly commonplace for a new neighbour to drop in. Especially for an injury. She’s usually full of that sort of news.’