Discoveries Awaiting

Sunday February 6, 11am

Magill Bakery,

Lillie

The Kitchener bun, its mouth between the sweet bread filled with cream, begged Lillie to take it. Eat it.

Lillie ruminated over the Sunday after the week of false starts, the threat of staff strikes and extended sullen preparations for a messy beginning to the school term. The week ahead loomed. As if the official rollover of High School beginnings for Year 7’s that pulled it in line with the other states, was not challenging enough, now the virus had reared its spikey head again. A staggered start. Sevens and Eights and the Twelves, back at school face to face, but the middle years on zoom, yet again.

‘How’s it all going to work, Jimmy?’ Lillie asked the man with long greying hair tied back in a ponytail.

Her husband, Jimmy popped a handful of gluten-free lentil chips in his mouth and crunched. ‘You’re the expert, you tell me.’

Lillie pointed at the Magill Bakery display window. ‘I’m having one of those, the Kitchener bun. I deserve it. What’ll you have? The usual?’

Jimmy shrugged and munched on some more chips. ‘Yup.’

Once they had entered the bakery, Lillie pulled out her credit card from her glossy black bag and ordered a salad sandwich, gluten free, of course, and iced coffee for Jimmy. For herself she requested a pie plus Kitchener bun and long black coffee with milk on the side. The she waved her card over the machine offered and listened for the affirming ping of transaction success.

Lillie smiled and repeated, ‘I deserve a little treat.’

The couple sat at a table near the automatic sliding door under the cool breeze of the air conditioning vent. They settled, first course on white plates arrived and they removed their masks.

Lillie noticed Jimmy’s lips stretch in an expression of disapproval and she said, yet again, ‘I’m treating myself. I deserve it.’

‘You say that every Sunday after church when we come here,’ Jimmy remarked.

Lillie pouted. ‘Well, after the week I’ve had.’

‘It’s always such a week you’ve had.’

‘The trials and tribulations of being a secondary school principal, dear.’

Jimmy glanced at her not so healthy choices and frowned. ‘No rest for the wicked.’

Lillie leaned back in her chair, her wide girth prominent. ‘And what do you mean by that comment?’

‘Er, nothing my love, just banter, a saying, so to speak.’

‘I hope so,’ Lillie tucked into her pie with sauce, ‘because it’s not easy running a large and prestigious college at these times.’

‘No, dear,’ Jimmy stood up and strolled over to the counter where he picked up the latest Sunday paper. ‘Crossword, dear?’

Lillie sniffed. ‘If it’s not half-done.’

‘I could go to the newsagents…’

‘Don’t bother, got my Words with Friends.’

After shaking his head, Jimmy sat down and spread out the paper on his side of the table.

Lillie finished her pie and then took a bite of bun. With mouth full and hand outstretched, said, ‘Crossword, dear?’

Several minutes of silence ensued as husband scanned the latest news, and Lillie puzzled over the crossword. Wife shifted in her seat; just couldn’t get comfortable. Words for the clues eluded her. Was she growing demented?

Lillie studied the black and white squares of the puzzle. ‘Another word for fox. Really? Who compiles these crosswords?’

‘There’s over 20000 cases and two more people died,’ Jimmy said.

‘It’s like the critter is stalking me,’ Lillie muttered while hovering her pencil over the crossword. Everywhere she looked these days, her past shadowed her. Memories from her youth attached themselves to every thread of her thoughts. A burden tempting her to confess deeds done over 40 years ago. She must resist. Too much to lose.

Jimmy looked up. ‘You say something?’

Lillie swayed her head and pinned back a bleached strand from her face.

‘Are you okay?’

‘I’m fine.’

Jimmy reached over and held her hand. ‘You know, I was thinking.’

‘That sounds dangerous.’

‘Yes, well, it’s a big zero birthday for you this year.’

‘Don’t remind me.’

‘Anyway, I was wondering what we, I mean the family could get you for your special day.’

Lillie sighed. ‘If you think I want an exercise bike or gym membership…’

‘I know we talked about an overseas holiday or even a trip to Tasmania, but um under the circumstances…’

‘I agree, a caravan and a trip to Robe?’ Lillie chuckled.

Jimmy grinned. ‘Caravan, hadn’t thought about that.’

‘They’re everywhere, love. Like there’s a secret caravan breeding programme going on.’

Jimmy snorted and laughed.

‘Only problem is. We’d need the four-wheel drive to pull it, and they’re not cheap, especially now.’

‘And not exactly something we can afford right now. What with bailing out my brother again and forking out more money to save our daughter, Tiffy from that scam she got tangled up in, we don’t have much left in the kitty.’

‘And all the gigs for our band have dried up over the last two years,’ Jimmy added.

‘Yes, that too.’ Lillie sighed. ‘So, my big birthday will have to be a rather simple affair this year.’

‘What I was thinking,’ Jimmy squeezed her hand, ‘what about a DNA testing kit. I’ve been doing some family history research and I reckon it would be interesting finding out where we come from. I mean, remember I got one of those things for Christmas from our nephew, Jacob. We could do the test together. Think of all the discoveries we could make.’

Lillie narrowed her eyes. ‘Nup, not happening.’

‘Don’t you want to know? I mean, your dad disappeared too. Left you, and somewhere, out there you might have a whole new second family.’

‘Like your dad?’ Lillie wagged a finger at her husband. ‘I see where this is going. You want to do your DNA, and then trot along to the police station and wave it in front of their faces saying, “Do you have any John Does matching this profile?’’ She scooped up cream from her plate and licked her finger. ‘Nup, not interested. It’s in the past. Water under the bridge. If those bones we found all those years ago were anything to do with your dad and your family, the police would have gotten back to us. Besides, from what I remember of your dad and what your sister has said about him, it was best that he left. Like my dad, he was a bad egg.’

Jimmy bit his lip. ‘He was still my dad. He had his faults. But, um what I want is closure.’

He then rubbed his nose and looked away.

Lillie shoved her empty Kitchener bun plate to the side of the table. ‘DNA? Not happening. You do realise that it’s all a rip off. I’ve read half the time they make it up.’ The sugary yeast bun and cream was beginning to give her indigestion. She burped. ‘End of discussion.’

Jimmy folded the newspaper. ‘Caravan? Holiday to Robe?’

Lillie glared at her husband.

‘Camping trip to the Flinders Ranges?’

‘I have work to do.’ Lillie stood up. ‘Let’s go.’

Sunday, February 6, 2pm

Café at Christies Beach

Eloise

Eloise and Fifi shared a generous serve of battered Port Lincoln flathead, chips and salad. Fifi kept an eye on the Bay Marie hoping no one would snaffle up the last chocolate mousse. Eloise settled on the citrus tart—if she had room. It seemed the more they went to this place, the larger the serves became.

Fifi smiled. ‘A continuation of our family saga, and away from prying ears, so to speak…’

‘What?’

‘You know how I don’t seem to fit in my family.’

‘No but go on.’ El leaned forward.

‘Anyway, I decided to settle the matter. You know how you were going on about getting your DNA done? Well, I did it.’

‘You ordered a test then?’

‘Yeah, I got it for my son, Jacob to give me at Christmas. I gave one to Jimmy, too.’

‘How did that go down?’

‘Not too good. Jimmy my brother was okay with it, but you should’ve seen Lillie. She went white, and then argued that we were condemning the family and any crimes my descendant might commit in the future would be discovered through my DNA. “Done it in America with the Golden Gate killer,” she said. It ruined the whole afternoon with her going on and on about it.’

‘I wonder what crimes Lillie’s committed that she’s so mental about the whole DNA thing?’ El said and laughed.

‘Hmm, I wonder what she’s hiding,’ Fifi said and chortled. ‘Well, I’m going to snaffle that…’

A small whiney voice interrupted Fifi’s thought of mousse-poaching. ‘Hi, there Eloise and Fiona. I couldn’t help over-hearing…’

El and Fifi snapped their attention to the owner of that whiney voice. Shaz with chocolate on her lips, grinned at them. The last mousse in her possession. ‘I just wanted to say, I done my DNA and it’s amazing. They traced me back to Queen Elizabeth the first of England.’

‘How’s that possible?’ Fifi asked. She knew her history.

‘Well, they did.’

‘Not a direct descendant,’ El remarked. She knew how family history worked. She’d been working on her ancestral trees for five years now.

‘Huh? What’s a direct descendant?’

El sighed. ‘Sorry, dear, but we must get going. See you at art?’

As El and Fifi left the establishment and made their way to the car, Fifi whispered, ‘I swear that girl is stalking you.’

‘I have wondered, and wouldn’t be surprised,’ El said. ‘I’ve got a creepy feeling about her. By the way, have you got the results back yet?’

‘Not yet, I waited a bit before doing the deed, Christmas and New Year ‘n all that. And I reckon Lillie’s stopping Jimmy from taking the test. But mine should be ready soon. Maybe there’s some cousins…’

© Tessa Trudinger 2024

Feature Photo: View near Flava Café, Christies Beach © L.M. Kling 2023

***

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