The Minnow by Diana Sweeney Page A

back into the house with my mother. I remember feeling so torn. I loved being outside with Dad. I loved sleeping in the hammock and rummaging around at the scrap yard.
    I looked up at Dad, and he just smiled his Dad smile.
    â€˜Mum misses tucking you in,’ he said.
    â€˜I know,’ I said, because I missed her tucking me in, more than I’d realised until that moment. So I moved back into the house with my new toys.
    Two men stood at the entrance to the jetty. Both were holding rifles. Bill was facing me so I wasn’t sure if he knew.
    â€˜We might have to swim for it,’ suggested the Minnow. She was serious.
    â€˜Bill,’ I managed.
    â€˜One or two?’ he asked.
    â€˜Two,’ I replied.
    â€˜They moving?’
    â€˜Not yet.’
    â€˜How far?’
    â€˜Jetty entrance.’
    â€˜He’s going to bolt,’ said Papa.
    â€˜What’s going on, Bill?’
    â€˜Too hard to explain,’ he answered. ‘Just tell me if they do anything.’
    â€˜One of them is talking on the phone.’
    â€˜What’s the other one doing?’
    â€˜Nothing. Bill, they’ve got guns.’
    â€˜Shit.’
    Great, I thought. I should have walked to the letterbox.
    â€˜Whatever happens, Tom, stay perfectly still,’ said Bill. ‘They’ve no interest in you, so don’t give them any reason.’
    â€˜What are you going to do?’
    â€˜I have no idea,’ he said, but as the words left his mouth he folded forward and toppled into the water.
    â€˜Bill!’
    â€˜Don’t move, Tom,’ said Papa.
    One of the men ran towards us and the other took off in the opposite direction.
    â€˜I didn’t even hear the bullet,’ I said to Papa as I realised what had just happened.
    â€˜There was no bullet,’ said Papa. ‘I told you he’d do a runner. Sneaky bastard is probably under the jetty catching his breath.’
    I wanted to lean down and have a look.
    â€˜Hey kid, you see where he went?’ The man had a handsome face. He wasn’t even panting.
    â€˜Yes, straight off the edge. I thought you shot him.’
    The man with the handsome face lifted the rifle over his head and placed it carefully on the jetty, crouching down beside it. He leant forward and scanned the dark water of the inlet. ‘How deep is it?’
    â€˜Not sure, I’ve never been in.’
    He flattened his body against the deck and pulled his torso far enough over the edge to get a look underneath. Papa nudged my arm.
    â€˜Look towards Ponters Corner,’ he whispered. ‘Left of the split rock.’
    Directly opposite, on the inlet’s farthest bank, was Bill. I have no idea how he made the distance without being seen. He was sitting perfectly still, tucked in behind some lantana. I would never have seen him without Papa’s help.
    He was watching us. No, he was watching Mr Handsome.
    â€˜Tom!’ shouted Jonah.
    I got such a fright, I screamed. Mr Handsome jumped to his feet and grabbed his rifle.
    â€˜It’s Jonah and James Wo,’ I said, trying to calm myself.
    Papa and Mr Handsome and I watched Jonah and James Wo walk up the pier towards us.
    â€˜What’s going on?’ Jonah asked. ‘Who is this?’
    I looked across the inlet. Bill was gone.
    Nana wants to know everything. Mavis Leitch and Betsy Groot and Mike Spice have crammed into her room and the four of them are buzzing with excitement. Nothing much happens at the Mavis Ornstein Home for the Elderly, so the news of my lucky escape from Bill and the two men has spread like wildfire. Jonah and James Wo have been allocated hero status, and Hazel has invited them for Saturday lunch in the common room.
    Nana’s room feels rather crowded.
    â€˜I’m off,’ says Papa as Jonathan Whiting appears in the doorway.
    â€˜Hi, Jonathan,’ everyone says in unison.
    â€˜I see you’re already here, Miss,’ Jonathan says to