Flight of the Jabiru by Elizabeth Haran Page A

she’d shop for was a bathing suit.
    â€œQuite the opposite.”
    â€œI’m confused.”
    â€œIt’s only safe to swim in the sea between May and September. Don’t forget that,” he warned gravely. “Your life might depend on it.”
    â€œMy life! Why is that?”
    â€œBox jellyfish have poisonous tentacles. If you happen to brush against them, or the tentacles wrap around you, the pain is excruciating. Young children can die from the stings and people with heart problems are vulnerable, too. You can’t see them in the water because they are virtually clear.”
    â€œSo it’s definitely safe between May and September?” Lara wanted to make sure as she was longing for a cooling dip in the ocean.
    â€œYes, if there aren’t any crocodiles about.”
    â€œCrocodiles! In the sea?” Lara assumed he was joking but she could never tell with Sid. “Crocodiles live in and around rivers, don’t they?” she said.
    â€œSaltwater crocodiles are sometimes seen in the ocean and on the beaches up here. They can grow to be monsters.”
    Lara paled.
    â€œDon’t worry. As long as you look out for signs warning of them, you’ll be right.”
    Lara was still standing at the railing a while later when Sid returned to her side. By now they were close to shore. Lara could see many ships in the harbor. There were cargo vessels like the Neptuna but also Australian and American naval ships, which was reassuring.
    â€œDo you know where you’ll be teaching?” Sid asked her.
    â€œA place called Shady Camp billabong.”
    â€œI’ve been there,” Sid said. “It’s a great fishing spot.”
    Lara was delighted. “Did you see the school?” She was anxious to know what it was like.
    â€œNo. I didn’t.”
    â€œAre you sure?”
    â€œYes, I’ve been there several times and I definitely didn’t see a school. There’s not much there at all, really, if I remember correctly. I caught a huge barra in the billabong, though.”
    â€œA barra?”
    â€œA barramundi. It’s a wonderful fish to eat. Make sure you try it.”
    Sid was called by the captain to help with tying the ship to the wharf, so Lara went to fetch her suitcase, which she’d packed earlier. She was quite concerned that Sid hadn’t seen a school in Shady Camp billabong. She wondered if there’d been a mix-up about where she was to teach.
    By now it was practically dark, but there were dim lights along the wharf and she could see the lights of the city on the bluff.
    â€œWhere are you staying?” Sid asked Lara as she was about to disembark.
    â€œI was told to head for a hotel called The Victoria. The address is 27 Smith Street. Someone will be meeting me there in the next day or so. Do you know the hotel? Can I walk there, or do I need to catch a taxi cab?”
    â€œThe Victoria Hotel just happens to be one of my favorite drinking holes,” Sid claimed. “You won’t need a taxi cab to get there, but it’s a bit of walk if you gonna wear those high-heeled shoes.”
    â€œI don’t have a choice. I can’t walk in nylon stockings and no shoes all the way to my accommodation.”
    â€œThen I’ll give you a hand with your suitcase, if you like. I can start my pub crawl at The Victoria.”
    â€œThank you,” Lara said, pleased to have the company as it was growing darker and she could see the outlines of fishermen on the wharf.

CHAPTER SEVEN

    Darwin, Australia
    On the walk to The Victoria Hotel, which took nearly half an hour because of Lara’s high heels, the hill they had to climb, and the crowds of people who were out enjoying the cool of evening, Sid told her that the first licensee of the hotel was a woman called Ellen Ryan.
    â€œShe was also the first woman to hold a publican’s license in the Territory and apparently one of the wealthiest landowners,