Page 117 of Lost In Kakadu

The blackness of night began to fade, and Mackenzie focused on a dominant star until it was absorbed into the morning sky. Rejuvenated by yesterday’s beer can discovery, he ate a breakfast of cold barramundi and packed up their camp around Abi as she continued to sleep.

When he could do no more, he knelt beside her, smiling as he studied her taut stomach which bulged from his ill-fitting T-shirt. Faint blue veins swam up from her legs and circled her now protruding belly button. Her skin was smooth and golden in the dawn sky.

He hated to wake her, but he couldn’t ignore the sense of urgency in the back of his mind.

He placed his palm on her cheek. “Hey, baby.”

Abi stirred and rolled onto her back.

“Good morning.”

“Already?” She squinted at him with one eye.

“Sorry, but we need to get going.”

Abi devoured a plate of cold fish as Mackenzie packed up the rest of their gear. He led the way, navigating around the lower rock pool before the sun even crested the horizon.

With five plastic bottles of fresh water and a stomach full of fish, he set a fast pace down the declining ravine. The sun finally split the skyline with a dramatic dance of white and gold across the water. Gentle breezescreated small ripples and the reflecting sun rays looked like a thousand eyes winking at him.

The days rolled on. The scenery changed and yet it stayed the same. He was in a never-ending nightmare and life became a blur as the river continually unfolded. They set off each day in the cool morning air and stopped when the sun peaked high above them. Abi would sleep by the water until the air grew cool enough to carry on and they’d walk until the evening sky blazed red, forcing them to find a place to set up camp.

Each day was a repeat of the previous day’s monotony, grinding down his patience and draining Abi of what little strength she had left.

The deafening roar of yet another thundering waterfall drowned out Abi’s ragged panting and Mackenzie had no choice but to drag her onward. Soon they stood at the top of an immense waterspout looking into a valley below them. But his heart sank as the panorama unfolded before him. Not a single road. Not a single building. Nothing.

How far have we walked, and how much further?

Abi couldn’t continue like this for much longer. Her cheeks were withdrawn, and her skin now had a greyish tinge. She needed to rest.

He helped her down the ravine and chose a comfortable nook in the shade by the crystal-clear lagoon. Abi crumbled to the ground, instantly drifting off to sleep. Mackenzie made the difficult decision to set up camp for a couple of days, hoping the rest would give her the energy boost she needed to continue on.

Their oasis by the river provided an abundance of food and they feasted on barbecued barramundi, frogs, snails and the stems, seeds and roots of a blue lily plant documented in Charlie’s bible.

For three days they did nothing but swim, eat and sleep. On the third night when the sun drifted into the horizon and the moon rose out of the darkness like an enormous safety beacon, Abi announced she was ready.

The eerie sound of dingoes howling at the moon cut through the silence and Mackenzie likened the lonely chorus to their own isolation in the vast wilderness. They sat by the fire and as Abi leaned into Mackenzie’s chest, he wrapped his arms around her and stared into the flames. He prayed this was their last night sleeping in the open.

Mackenzie woke to the sun blazing into his eyes and for the first time in months, he’d slept right through dawn.

“Abi, wake up!” Missing the cool morning air ruined the good feeling he’d had about today. He’d learnt to trust his feelings, both good and bad.

“What’s wrong?” Abi sat up and rubbed her eyes.

“We’ve got to get moving.”

“But what about breakfast?”

Mackenzie lifted her to her feet. “No time. We’ll eat on the way.” He fetched their pre-packed bags and moments later, they were walking away from the thundering curtain of water. The sun intensified in its merciless push to the centre of the sky, and he set a fast pace along a grassy levee that bordered the river. But it wasn’t long before he couldn’t ignore Abi’s pleas to stop any more. He searched for an ideal place to rest.

He stepped over a large log covered in a compact strangler vine and offered his hand to help Abi over it. Glancing to his right, he furrowed his brows as he studied the log stretching straight out before him.

That’s strange.

He dropped Abi’s hand and dashed alongside the anomaly skipping over small bushes in his path.

“What’re you doing?” Abi called behind him.

But he was too excited to reply. He paused at a patch of log that was clear of the vine. “Holy shit! We nearly missed it. It’s a pipe. Come on, Abi.” He waved her forward.

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