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Back The Orchardist's Daughter Save as PDF
Chapters (57)
  1. COVER PAGE
  2. PRAISE
  3. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  4. DEDICATION
  5. PROLOGUE
  6. PART I SEEDS
  7. 1
  8. 2
  9. 3
  10. 4
  11. 5
  12. 6
  13. 7
  14. 8
  15. PART II GERMINATION
  16. 9
  17. 10
  18. 11
  19. 12
  20. 13
  21. 14
  22. 15
  23. 16
  24. 17
  25. 18
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. PART III GROWTH
  29. 21
  30. 22
  31. 23
  32. 24
  33. 25
  34. 26
  35. 27
  36. 28
  37. 29
  38. 30
  39. 31
  40. 32
  41. PART IV UNDERSTOREY
  42. 33
  43. 34
  44. 35
  45. 36
  46. 37
  47. 38
  48. 39
  49. 40
  50. 41
  51. 42
  52. 43
  53. 44
  54. 45
  55. 46
  56. EPILOGUE
  57. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

There was Kurt, crouched on the track, rifle aimed at him. Huddling behind the wheel, Leon floored the accelerator. He had to drive straight at Kurt; he couldn’t stop now. The shot smacked—not through the windscreen, as he’d expected, but into a tyre—and the vehicle faltered and swayed, slewing sideways. Leon tried to correct, but the wheels were slipping.

He felt a sickening thud as he hit something before slamming into a tree trunk at the side of the track. The vehicle tipped. Glass tinkled. The side door sheared off. Leon slumped in the driver’s seat, disoriented by the sudden halt and a blossoming pain in his ribcage. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move; he could die here. But instinct propelled him out through the torn door and into the scrub.

On hands and knees, and buckled over with pain, he crawled uphill, trying to distance himself from Kurt and the ruined ute. Eventually, he stopped to inspect his injuries. He was a wreck: lacerations everywhere, a massive abrasion on his abdomen where he’d rammed into the steering wheel. Was he bleeding internally?

He couldn’t hear Kurt, so he lay down among dripping bracken fern while the trees spun in a vortex above. The rain eased, and he still couldn’t hear anything. Had he escaped? Why wasn’t Kurt following him? Had he given up, or was he being deliberately silent, planning to ambush Leon if he headed back to the Toyota?

With a sick feeling, Leon realised it was possible he’d hit Kurt on the track. But he couldn’t think about that now. He couldn’t go back. If Kurt was waiting for him, there would be no second chances.

He hauled himself to his feet because that was what he had to do. He couldn’t stay here. It was quiet now, but Kurt might still come for him. He stumbled forward on rubbery legs. He had to get through the forest and find another way out.

44

44

It was Max who saw the white Toyota go past. He was in the playground at recess, hanging out with Lily Moon down by the fence during a break in the rain. They had just seen a helicopter fly over, and then Leon’s LandCruiser swung into the street. ‘Hey,’ he said to Lily when he saw the Parks logo on the driver’s side door. ‘Here comes Leon.’ They climbed onto the fence to wave, but Leon didn’t wave back. He was bent over the steering wheel and driving fast, so maybe he didn’t see them. But Max thought it was weird. Leon always waved to him, and he and Lily had been easy to see, jiggling like crazy on the fence.