Beneath The Surface

Chapter Eight

Olivia spent the next day in the garden. She had seen Travis leave early in the morning, with his three dogs in hot pursuit.

She pulled the weeds out and felt the sun scorching her skin. The sky was a brilliant shade of blue and there wasn't a single cloud in sight. She swatted at the flies and bugs and struggled in the humidity.

Every now and then as she cleared away the weeds from beneath a bush she would find an egg or two. The chickens stayed nearby, waiting for her to remove more weeds so they could rush in and peck at the tiny bugs that sheltered beneath them.

Olivia paused to take a break and drank some water from her bottle. She watched one of the chickens roll around in the dust, fluffing up her feathers, and kicking the dust in the air to bathe herself in it.

She stopped once to go inside and have lunch, then was back at it again. By three in the afternoon she had finished. She had weeded, fed, mulched, and trimmed the bushes using the tools and supplies in the nearby garden shed.

As she was packing away the tools she noticed a photograph pinned to the wall. She hadn't noticed it before because the bag of mulch had been sitting in front of it. It was difficult to see in the dark shed and she leaned close.

It was Travis with his arm around a beautiful woman. She was smiling at the camera and he was kissing her forehead. Could this be Beth? And if it was, Olivia was almost certain that they were not siblings. They didn't look alike at all, and from the look in the woman's eyes it was obvious she was in love.

The woman was probably a similar height to Olivia, but she had dark chocolate coloured hair. She was dressed in a pretty floral dress and cowgirl boots. Travis was wearing his cap backwards and was dressed in a singlet and capri shorts.

A loud bang rang out from behind her and Olivia gasped and spun around. She saw one of the chickens flutter it's wings and cluck. The shovel was knocked over, obviously from the chicken.

Olivia placed her hand over her heart and let out her breath.

"Stupid bird." She placed the mulch back in front of the picture and locked the shed as she left.

After she had showered, she got dressed into her Marc Jacob's dress and picked up a book on Healthy Eating. She headed out to the verandah and sat down to read. She already knew how to prepare healthy meals, but with no television in the granny-flat, she didn't know what else to do with her time.

As the sun was beginning to sink into the horizon, setting the sky on fire, Travis's LandCruiser came into view, trailing a cloud of red dust behind it.

Olivia rose and went to meet him. Once again he was covered in dirt.

"Hey," Olivia said.

"Hey." He shut the car door and removed his hat. "I see you survived another day."

"I see you barely did." She smiled as she looked up and down at his raggedy appearance. "I was wondering if I could make you dinner tonight? I found this great recipe."

Travis nodded. "Alright. You're not planning on poisoning me are you?"

"I haven't decided yet." She smiled.

Travis narrowed his eyes at her. "What the heck, I'm game."

"Great," Olivia said. "Can I pinch a few things from your kitchen?"

"Of course."

"Alright, well it'll be about an hour."

"No worries. That'll give me enough time to feed the dogs, check on Vanessa, and have a shower."