Benworden Page 14

  Suddenly, there was a loud crashing noise overhead like a vehicle driving over a bridge, and he figured it must have had something to do with Greg. Fully erect, he moved closer to the far end wall where he could clearly see a rich vein of gold running through it. This vein was bigger than any other he had seen in all the books he had read and if mined could provide endless wealth to those who staked a claim. Talbert had no need for money – his parents had plenty, but this sort of adventure was a once in a lifetime experience and this is what Talbert saw as his fortune.

  All of a sudden the aches and pains he had been experiencing from his earlier mishap no longer mattered, and he scaled the rope like a cat up a tree being pursued by a dog and headed straight back to Benworden. Talbert was right when he heard the crashing noise overhead: it had been Greg towing the motor through to the club rooms and by the time Talbert had worked his way back, the mule and its trailer were now concealed in the club’s cavity.

  That night Talbert had trouble sleeping and when he eventually dozed off he dreamt about what may have happened to the Chinese man on that fateful day when he had lost his life.

  The following morning the whole mystery behind the man’s death was completely engulfing Talbert’s thoughts, so he got up early and went to the computer room to sort through listings of old newspaper headlines from around that time to see if he could get a clue as to who Sid Thomas may be. Talbert’s detective work paid off and during the peak of the goldrush period The Ballarat Gazette featured a story that caught Talbert’s eye: “Sid Thomas died tragically today after being hit by a Cobb and Co. coach outside the Ballarat claims department. He leaves behind his widow Joan and two sons Samuel and Isaac.”

  Talbert started to put two and two together. He worked out that Sid had murdered his partner after finding the gold, knowing that no one would miss the Chinese man and the gold would be his. But he didn’t foresee his early demise on the way to stake the claim.

  Just as Talbert was about to shut down the computer he accidently hit the wrong button and turned up the headlines for two years after Sid’s death. It was almost like the old Chinese man was guiding him, and he was shocked to see the front page news that read: “Joan Thomas to wed banker and financier Richard Snippiton.”

  This had totally got Talbert’s curiosity buzzing so he began to search the births and deaths notices. He found that Joan’s two sons had changed their surnames to Snippiton. Talbert then realised that Sid Thomas was Isabel’s great, great, great grandfather.

  19

  LOYALTY

  By the following week our new elevator was up and running and Gerry and I had decided the members had earned a treat. We took some money from the safe and bought Gold passes to the movies in Melbourne and organised that we would all meet up at Flinders Street Station.

  It was one of those weekends where there were only a small number of boarders remaining back at Benworden, and unknown to us, it created the perfect opportunity for Isabel to expand her area of snooping. Out of the handful that remained Talbert was the only boy. He thought this would be a good time to take a closer look at the tunnel below the smithy’s shop so as usual he packed his bag and headed for his favourite tree. Once inside the smithy’s shop he was careful this time to step well back from the trapdoor. He went down the stairs into the tunnel and grabbed a torch as he had before, but instead of heading down the shaft to the cavity where he had found the body he took a small stroll in the opposite direction.

  While Talbert was fossicking around down below, Isabel was doing some fossicking of her own up above. In the past she had searched the rooms of the girls who wore the club rings but she had never had the opportunity to look around in Gerry’s room. Isabel had become an expert at picking locks and Gerry’s was just as easy as all the others, so it wasn’t long before she was inside going through all of Geraldine’s personal belongings.

  “Hmm, nothing out of the norm here,” she said to herself while carefully putting everything back where she had found it. Isabel knew the consequences of being caught and worked hard to avoid certain expulsion by covering her tracks. She sat on the bed for a moment and thought to herself, “Maybe I’ll find something in Gerry’s wardrobe that I can get her into trouble with.” Isabel got up from the bed and moved towards the wardrobe. On opening its door she tripped, pushed her hand threw the hanging clothing and hit the back of the wardrobe making a loud click. She was amazed when another door opened inside and she could see what appeared to be an elevator.

  Isabel was overjoyed by her discovery but she was wondering what more she could find out and how many more boarders were involved, so she climbed into the elevator where she saw two buttons: one with a “U” and the other with a “D”. It wasn’t hard to figure out that these meant “Up” and “Down” and she didn’t hesitate to press the down button.

  It wasn’t long before she found the elevator coming to a gentle halt. She opened the door and hopped out. Isabel found herself in the room with the old fruit boxes and had no idea what was behind the bookcase. She looked around in awe of what she had literally stumbled across and said to herself, “So this is where those clowns disappear to, is it?”

  Isabel felt there should be some further investigation and headed to the rock wall on the opposite side of the room. She started scratching and feeling around on it to see if there were any more hidden switches or buttons. At the same time Talbert was on the other side of the wall and thought he could hear faint scratching. He put his ear to the wall and heard a “CLICK!”

  The wall moved and Talbert found himself lying on the ground looking at a pair of feet. He slowly looked up and glaring down at him was Isabel with her arms crossed.

  “Hello,” he said as he gingerly pulled himself up.

  She replied, “What are you doing here?” while one of the feet he had been previously staring at began tapping away impatiently.

  Talbert was now dusting himself off and replied, “I don’t know. I was leaning against a wall one moment and here I am the next.”

  “Rubbish!” she said with a snarl and then poked her finger in his chest. “You and that club of yours are in big trouble now!”

  Talbert grabbed her finger and said, “That’s enough! This isn’t my club and I don’t think you’ll want to get anyone in trouble when I tell you what I know!”

  Talbert told Isabel about the letter he had found and if she were to speak a word of what she had discovered he would make sure that the letter would make its way into the hands of the media. Isabel asked Talbert why he would protect the club when they had rejected him.

  Talbert replied, “Like you, Benworden is all I have that’s stable and secure in my life. This is my family. My home and all my families have problems, but we shouldn’t betray each other.”

  Talbert spoke with such conviction that Isabel was stunned with his words. She had never experienced loyalty like this before and tears began to well in her eyes. “But don’t you get tired of not being a part of something?”

  Talbert understood what Isabel was saying and knew he had to put it into perspective for her. “But that’s what I’m saying,” he said. “I am part of something and so are you, but being part of something doesn’t mean we have to control it.” He continued passionately. “In the past when I felt insecure I would often try to control others as I felt this would help me hold onto them, but all it did was push them further away. I’m now ok within myself and know the only person I have control over is me.”

  Isabel’s eyes filled with tears as she began to release her emotional torment. Talbert had somehow reached the last essence of hope within her and she glanced up at him and said, “You’re right. I’ve been seeing things all wrong and I’ve taken my anger out on people who would’ve cared about me if I’d given them half a chance. I’m so sorry, Talbert. What have I done?”

  Talbert felt Isabel’s sincerity and saw something in her that he could now relate to.

  “It’s ok, no one has to know we were here; we just have
to leave and keep it our secret.”

  Little did Talbert know that Isabel would come directly to me, revealing all she knew. I immediately called a meeting of the Bull Ants Club and expressed to all the members the importance of what I had been told and how we would need to consider the repercussions of this new information. The board sat down and discussed what was required to protect the club.

  It was left up to me to talk to Talbert, so I asked him to meet me at the Wile Away Cafe that afternoon. The cafe was one of those trendy coffee shops that have the counter at the very front and booth seats at the rear. On occasions we would hold one-on-one meetings there, especially if the matter was of a serious nature, because the high backs on the booths created a place where matters could be discussed confidentially.

  Talbert arrived ten minutes early, smiling as usual, and I got straight down to business. I explained I had a serious issue to discuss with him and Talbert’s smile soon left his face. He stood silently and I told him to take a seat.

  “Talbert,” I said, “I’ve been informed you know the secret of Benworden. Is this true?”

  Talbert’s eyes glazed over and his face paled..

  “Talbert,” I repeated, “Is this true?”

  “Yes,” he replied hesitantly, “But the secret is safe with me. I would never tell anyone.”

  I thought for a moment and then looked straight into Talbert’s eyes and said, “But you have told someone, haven’t you!”

  Talbert had no idea what information I had or didn’t have; he only knew how to remain loyal to those he cared about.

  “I don’t know what you mean,” he replied in a questioning yet sheepish manner. Talbert always came across as uncomfortable when bending the truth and although this spoke highly of Talbert’s honesty it was the main reason he had never been picked as a member of the Bull Ants. We had concerns that if he had been confronted by someone regarding the club and had to lie, they may see through him and discover our secret.

  Now it was time to turn the pressure up on Talbert and see what he was really made of.

  “Well Talbert, what if I jog your memory?”

  I couldn’t imagine what Talbert was thinking, but the worst was yet to come.

  “Isabel,” I said in a low stern voice, and Isabel appeared from the booth behind us.

  “What have you got to say for yourself now?” I retorted in a gruff voice.

  Talbert’s face turned to stone. He was unsure if I was bluffing or if I actually knew but he was still hanging onto the little loyalty he had left and replied with conviction, “I still don’t know what you’re talking about, and do you really think we should be discussing these matters in front of her?”

  “Good!” I said.

  Talbert glared at me inquisitively and Isabel then broke her silence. “It’s ok Talbert, he was testing you to see how you would hold up under pressure, and you’ve passed with flying colours.”

  “What are you talking about!” responded a now indignant Talbert.

  I intervened at this point and explained to him that Isabel had approached me and told me what he had done and how he had prevented her revealing our secret. I went on to explain that the reason for her coming to us was she believed his loyalty deserved a reward and that he should be made a member of the Bull Ants.

  Talbert’s frown lifted and he gazed at Isabel with deep and absolute admiration. “You did that for me?” he said with a quivering voice.

  She sat down beside him and put her arm over his shoulder and quietly said, “It’s nothing compared to what you have done for me.”

  Looking across the table at the two of them I pondered on how one person’s faith in another could make such a difference to their life. It showed me that I needed to be more patient with others in the future.

  Isabel said, “Thank you Talbert.”

  And he asked “What for?”

  “Being you,” she whispered and kissed him on the cheek. Talbert turned as red as a tomato.

  I thought this would be a good time to take the attention off him so I said, “Ok, what are we going to do about this situation then?”

  “It’s like I said, no one has to know,” Talbert replied.

  “Well, we do know, and the board has decided that because of the trust and loyalty you have shown to the club we have decided to make an exception to our rules and induct you as an associate member. You will be trained the same as all the others and if someone were to leave you will take their place as an honorary member.”

  Talbert quickly intervened. “Thanks, I’m so proud but I really can’t accept. It just wouldn’t be right, knowing Isabel has done this for me, and how she would be left out.”

  Isabel, rising to her feet, threw her hands onto her hips and barked at Talbert, “Don’t you dare refuse this honour! After all the things I have done in the past I can at least know that I’ve accomplished something that is worthwhile for a change. If you don’t accept, I’ll never speak to you again!”

  I opened both my hands showing my palms and said, “Woo! Hold on the both of you. Please sit down Isabel. I hadn’t finished what I was saying.

  “Isabel, we also want you to be an associate member, because today when you came to me to help Talbert you showed you have what it takes to be one of us. We hope the both of you will join us at the club.”

  There were no more hesitations or refusals – both answered “Definitely” at the same time. Isabel and Talbert turned to each other smiling and then hugged until Talbert realised what he was doing, went red again, and immediately let go.

  I reached into my pocket and pulled out a piece of paper with a schedule of our meeting times and told them I expected them to be punctual. Isabel looked at it and screwed her mouth up at the side and said, “But this first one clashes with my pedicure appointment!”

  Talbert frowned at her and then said to me, “She’ll be there.”

  “Ok,” I replied, “That can be one of your new duties – making sure she attends every meeting and on time.”

  “Not a problem,” he said.

  Isabel pulled back her head like a rooster that was about to crow and glared at Talbert and said, “You’re assuming a lot don’t you think?” Talbert looked at her in admiration.

  “Would you rather I didn’t?”

  Her eyes caught his and she smiled and replied, “Assume away.”

  They both laughed and ordered coffees.

  20

  FINDING THE MISSING LINK

  That evening Talbert was in his room thinking about everything that had happened and how quickly circumstances can change for the better if you remain positive, when he remembered the two sets of papers he had found on the body of the Chinese man.

  “Harry!” he thought to himself. “Harry will be able to make sense of the ones with Chinese writing. He’ll know.”

  Talbert grabbed the papers from his old biscuit tin where he stored all his valuable items and sentimental things and raced down the corridor to Harry’s room.

  On arrival he gave the secret club knock on the door which was: tap, tap. Tap, tap ...tap, tap...tap, tap.

  Harry called out from inside, “It’s open,” and Talbert rushed in.

  Harry frowned at him and said, “Talbert, you know that the secret knock is only used if the matter is urgent. Now what do you want?”

  “Sorry Harry. I guess it could have waited till tomorrow but I wanted to speak to you alone and I didn’t know if the opportunity would arise.”

  Harry was in the middle of study and was still a little annoyed. However, he knew one day he would be a leader of the club and there would be times when he would have to drop what he was doing to attend to club matters.

  “All right, but be quick about it. I have things to do,” he replied.

  “I found these documents, Harry, and I’m wondering if you can translate them for me?”

  Harry paled and glared into Talbert’s eyes like someone possessed.

  “Where did you get these?” he demanded. />
  Talbert, not wanting to give much away, replied, “I told you. I found them. Can you translate them or not?”

  “Where did you find them?” Harry snapped back.

  Talbert was getting annoyed at this stage and responded with, “Look, it has nothing to do with you and I can see you don’t want to help, so give me the papers and I’ll take them somewhere else!”

  “No you won’t! Where did you get them?” Harry demanded again in a threatening manner. He was older and bigger than Talbert and Talbert could see the rage in his eyes.

  He knew he had to calm the situation down and it needed to be done quickly.

  “What’s going on, mate? I only asked if you could do me a favour and you’re freaking out on me. What’s so special about these documents?”

  Harry’s eyes filled with tears as he began to explain what these documents meant to him.

  “These are my great, great, great grandfather’s identification papers.” He then told Talbert the story of his family’s history and shame. “Now, where did you get them?” he asked solemnly.

  Talbert had known nothing of Harry’s ancestry and due to their age gap and differing interests had never really got to know Harry that well. Yet here he was with the knowledge that could close a chapter and restore honour to a family he barely knew. Talbert said to Harry, “Keep the papers; they’re yours. But before I tell you what I know I need to meet with you in private and I’d like Dylan to be present. Is that ok?”

  Harry was calm now and replied, “Thanks Talbert. I don’t think you understand what this means to me and my family.”

  Talbert knew he had to think things through –he didn’t want any repercussions on Isabel and her family.

  When Talbert approached me the next morning he had a grave look on his face. I let him pour out his story without interruption and I soon understood his concern. This was a very delicate matter and needed to be handled with care or a lot of people would be emotionally devastated. It was not just Isabel’s family who could be hurt – I’d also realised that the gold vein that ran through the lower shaft rightfully belonged to Harry’s family, and if it were to be mined the club would eventually be exposed. The very discovery that Talbert had found which prevented Isabel from exposing the Bull Ants Club could now pose the same threat she did.