Page 41 of Rough Stock

Even if he didn’t want to, Izzy was right. It was time to go.

‘No worries. We’ll keep you updated. You did good, Craig. You too, Izzy.’ Finn shook their hands at the doorway. ‘It’s a pity I can’t afford to keep your services, Izzy. Unfortunately, you’re way out of our budget.’

‘What do you think the chances are of recovering Ginny’s livestock?’ Craig had to know if it wasn’t some wild buffalo chase.

‘As much as I’d like to stop and search every cattle truck on the highway—’

‘You’ll be there all year.’ The crocodile wrangler leaned back in his seat with his hands behind his head. ‘This is cattle country, and it is mustering season, Bossman.’

‘I know that, Stone. Not my first muster season.’

‘Oh, yeah. Forgot you did the cowboy thing.’

Finn frowned. ‘Stockman. Don’t ever call me a cowboy.’

‘Sorry, Finn.’ Stone sat straighter. ‘Hey, how come they call you Cowboy Craig, if it’s an insult to stockmen?’

‘I’ve had it since I was a kid.’ In boarding school, they used to tease him over it, but Craig screwed them over by wearing that name with pride.

‘Can we go now?’ Izzy seemed pale.

‘I’ll walk you out.’ Finn opened the door, allowing Craig to hobble past.

‘You need to discuss a wage, terms, that sort of thing,’ Izzy whispered.

‘Not today.’ Craig was more interested in finding out what was going on with Izzy.

‘I can email you the same standard contract we gave Stone, for Izzy to look at and make changes.’ Finn suggested. ‘That’ll include the quarantine station.’

‘We’re definitely in on the quarantine station.’ Craig paused in the hallway, leaning on his crutch, to peer at Izzy. ‘We have the infrastructure sitting there, Izzy. We may as well make some income off it.’

‘Okay.’ She answered that way too quickly, without any complaint at all. It surprised him.

‘Good.’ He was going to check on the condition of the yards and fencing and start making a plan for growing his own stock feed for the future. Dustfire was perfect for a quarantine station, and he could easily manage it. In fact, he was looking forward to it. As for the other part of the Stock Squad stuff? Meh…

‘Here, take my card, it’s got everyone’s numbers scribbled on the back if you can’t reach me first. And I’ll have Amara email the rest of the welcome kit.’ Finn opened his ID case to remove a business card. ‘In the future, I want you to check in with me before you go visiting places.’

‘Is that so you’re not doubling up?’ Craig didn’t want a babysitter, even if Izzy played that part now.

‘And to know where you are, in case anything goes wrong.’

Izzy gasped, her eyes widening, showing her fear for Craig.

She cared!She truly cared about him. He knew it. She was just hiding it.

So what else was she hiding?

‘I meant car trouble, that sort of thing.’ Finn gave a meek nod to console Izzy.

‘Oh, right.’ It still didn’t make Izzy relax her rigid shoulders.

‘What I’d really like is if you could accompany me, too,’ said Finn.

‘Then you can ask the questions? Because, mate, I was lucky to have Izzy with me, because she knew what to ask.’

‘I get it. And, like I said, having you with me makes it easier to get accepted by the locals.’

Izzy bit her lip while looking over Finn’s many tattoos, that made him look like someone who’d run a drug cartel. ‘And Craig knows all the shortcuts to places. He knows most of the cattle station owners and the stockmen, too.’

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