Chapter 30

The blonde was Sharron and the dark one was Carol. The baby was Tabitha. Once they had stood and gathered their bags of baby necessities, I led them into the clinic where we left the baby with the vet’s wife to look after while I took them though to Jordan’s office.

They sat in chairs in front of Jordan’s desk, and I asked if anyone wanted a drink. They both opted for iced water which I duplicated, putting one in front of Jordan as well and keeping one for myself as I sat next to his desk. Jordan asked them if they had any problems getting from Los Angeles. Sharron told him that a friend they knew had organized the flight, being an executive in the airline.

He then asked Carol to tell him about herself. She was, as expected, from San Francisco, the North Beach area known as Little Italy. She said that she had backpacked in Europe and was working as a receptionist to a vet in London when she met Sharron.

Together they had come to the US where she got a job in Los Angeles. Sharron said that she had grown up in Australia and passed the exams to be a vet at the Werribee Vet College in Victoria. She was in London working in a bar when she met Carol.

She said that it was difficult to work as a vet because she didn’t have the proper paperwork yet but could be useful as an assistant while she organized the certification.

It was getting warm in the office and Sharron got up and took off her coat. That’s when I saw the small feather brooch and had the feeling that there was an awful lot more to the story that had yet to come out. They both looked a little wary so I thought that instead of just breaking the ice I would use a sledgehammer and shatter it to see what came out.

I spoke for the first time since we had come into the office.

“How about we start from the beginning again, and you tell us about your stories with the truth this time, please.”

Carol stood and Sharron looked sad and was about to stand.

“Sit down, both of you. I think I can already tell you your own story, and I can assure you that it doesn’t matter here.”

I looked hard at Sharron. “What was the name on your certification and your passport that makes things difficult?”

She looked sad and admitted. “It reads Shannon Patrick Rafferty. I was a boy who was brought up near Mudgee, in country New South Wales.”

I smiled. “My mother loves old movies. One she really liked was The Sundowners. I reckon I can guess what they called you in school.”

She grinned. “Of course, they called me Chips; every male Rafferty in my family was called Chips at school.”

I then asked. “So, which one of you is the classical music fan or was it as a group when you saw the Swan?”

“I’m to blame for that,” Carol said. “We both cried for hours after watching it. That’s when Shannon disappeared and Sharron came to the fore, finally. I had met her in London when she was working in a bar, but she was in a short skirt at the time and the bar was a “pink” one. The baby is ours, made before Sharron transitioned. My change with the Swan was that I realized that I truly was a lesbian, and Sharron coming into my life was a double bonus.”

“I suppose we had better go back home now,” Sharron said. “I can’t see you employing us knowing all this, now. How on earth did you see through us so quickly?”

“I saw your feather brooch. I have one, myself, given to me by Dianne.”

“Now is the time for you to show me those qualifications,” Jordan asked. “No matter what the name on them is.”

While he was checking the paperwork, I told them that it was me and my friend, Petunia, who had played on that DVD, and that we were patrons of the club that Sharron belonged to.

“Dianne is very proud to know Edie and Pet, as she calls you. I apologise, I didn’t take much notice of the names on the DVD. I’m more of a pop follower.”

“Did you notice the signs when you came into the farm?”

They both admitted that they hadn’t.

I stood up. “Jordan, if you’ll excuse us for the moment while you think about these two, I’m just going to give them a quick tour.” He grinned and nodded.

With the two of them in tow I led them out to show them the treatment rooms. Then we went through the door to the back into the shed, where I showed them the holding cages and Carol asked. “Is that a big cool room there?”

I took them over and opened the door so they could see the inside with all the instruments. “This is a rehearsal room, I use it sometimes, and we also hire it out to bands to perfect their songs before they go into the studio.” I then took them out of the side-door and over to the stable where we went into the studio.

“This is the Stable Studio and those gents behind the mixing desk are Martyn and Tony Prentice, producers of fine albums.” The two of them gave us a wave while they concentrated on the band in the studio proper.

Sharron went closer to the glass. “I saw this band on stage in Los Angeles and they’re bloody good!”

I stood beside her. “They’re here putting down their next album. They should have come in a month ago, but we were taking up the studio time recording the Abigail album.”

Carol called quietly. “Sharron, come over here and look at these.” She was standing in front of our wall of awards for the Pixies, the Stable Sisters and one that had come in the post only recently for the Stallschwestern.

There were also pictures of us on stage or at photo shoots and Sharron gave a little squeal when she finally twigged that I was there, on the wall, with the rest of the band.

I smiled. “Come along, I think that my husband may have made up his mind by now. As far as I’m concerned, anyone who Dianne says is good for us has an inside track. She’s one very cluey girl.”

I gave the guys a wave and we left the studio to go back to the surgery with me pointing out the hydroponic sheds and the main house as we went. I could have been pointing out craters on the moon for all the good it did. Carol was deep in thought and Sharron was just trying to take it all in.

We collected Tabitha on the way back and they sat back on their chairs in front of Jordan, who was smiling.

“Look, as far as I am concerned you both have a job under trial conditions for three months. If you can stay for a week, we can have you both learning what you make of our set-up. Carol, you can sit in reception and get to know the clients. Sharron, you can start working with me and come out on calls as well as helping here. My mentor will grade your knowledge and, if you come up to expectation, we have the contacts that can organize the correct certification as well as the authority to work in this state. There’s a shortage of vets here and I think we could see it come through before the New Year.”

I asked. “Do you have somewhere to stay?”

Carol told me that they were in a nearby motel now.

I looked at Jordan and asked, “Parents room?” He nodded.

“Right,” I said. “If you follow me again, I can show you where you can sleep for the week. It will help us get to know you and for you to decide for yourselves if you want to stay.”

I took them to the house where I showed them my parent’s old bedroom, now refreshed, decluttered, and vacant with Doris off with the family, again.

“We have a cot for Tabitha to sleep in. Josie has twins not that much different in age so we can look after her in-house.”

I showed Carol where the linen was and took Sharron to the motel in my Mustang so that she could pack their bags and check out. We took Ali in her booster seat in the back, and she kept up a barrage of questions that made Sharron come out of the stupor that she had been in since seeing that I was one of the Stable Sisters.

At the motel I waited while she did her packing and then we loaded up the cases and she went and settled.

On the way back to the farm she laughed.

“You know, if my old mates back in Oz could see me now, they would never believe it. Here I am, sitting in a Mustang, next to a pop star who is going to put me up for a week. They all used to tell me that I was a loser, mainly because I never liked the rough things they did. I wasn’t cut out to be a dairyman, but I care for animals because they, like me, have no way of explaining how they feel. That is, until now.”

“You must have been a good-looking boy, with the height and hair, like a lithe surfer dude.”

She laughed. “Every time I went to the beach, I saw all those bikinis and wanted one. That’s why I went to London, to escape the past and embrace the world as Sharron, even if it meant working behind a bar in a short skirt and a crop top. Your DVD was, though, the thing that broke the final barrier and allowed me to be a proper girl. It was the Swans that helped me through that time and it’s like being a part of a family of well-connected girls.”

“That’s how I feel with the band. We’ve had some changes, but we remain a family as well. You’ll meet Josie at the farm; she’s the property manager and used to be in the Pixies as well. She’s married to Tony, the hunk you saw in the control room with his father.”

Sharron giggled. “I thought the same but would never have the nerve to say it out aloud.”

A little voice came from the back of the car. “Ooohh, that Tony, he’s a real man!” and we both cracked up.

“Do you play an instrument?”

“No, not me, sorry! I’m bloody tone deaf but I write poetry. I used to stand up in poetry slams and make things up on the fly.”

“What about song lyrics, then? They’re pretty much poetry?”

She thought a bit. “Never thought of it that way. I was in the audience that night you girls did that Ability song. They said that you wrote it that afternoon.”

“Well, it was different words to the song Stability that I’d already written. Do you have much of your stuff written down?”

“Yes, heaps of it in a case back in Los Angeles. There’s one that’s pages long, a story much like that Ability song. It’s about a boy who wants to wear a dress. The problem is that it’s taking a while to finish because now I can wear a dress whenever I want, it doesn’t seem so important, now.”

As we reached the farm I said. “We all pitch in to help with preparing food. With the hydro sheds we have a lot of fresh choice, but I think we may have to think about building a new kitchen if we get any more living here. Entertainment tonight may just be listening to music; there are some things we’ve done that you won’t have heard.”

The voice came from the back. “My oath, cobber; me and Mum tickling those ivories.” Sharron almost fell out of the car laughing. I still haven’t figured out where the poppet learns these things.

Carol noticed the change in Sharron as soon as we walked in and rushed over to give her a hug. She told us that she had made up the bed and that she had met Josie who had shown her where to find towels and other things.

“I’ve met her twins and they’re almost the same age as Tabby, they’re so gorgeous!”

After a light lunch the two of them went over to the surgery with Jordan to start learning the ropes and Ali had her piano lesson. I settled down in my quiet space in the rehearsal room to work out plans for the year to come. I knew that Allan would be getting concert work for us during the year, but we had already told him that we wanted some time at home to work on different projects.

My own project was a solo album, and it had become a barrier in my mind. There really wasn’t a theme that I could think of that was different enough to get people to pay good money for. It shouldn’t be a Pixie or Sister solo work, and I didn’t want to do something lush like the Abigail album.

The more I thought about it the more it was becoming clear that my best bet was to pare it back to just me, and a couple of instruments. I could do something with me on the piano or me and a guitar and add an extra track or two. I was thinking something like Joan Baez meets a crooner.

That’s when two things came together in my mind like a flash of lightning. The first was Sharron’s comment about her poetry opus and the second was the Swans. I could do a concept album about learning to be a girl that could be taken straight or from the transitional aspect, then dedicate it to the Swans with profits going to a worthy cause.

That’s when I thought of all the children, we had around us, and the concept of a Cygnet Support Group came into my head. A sub-group of the Swans dedicated to helping confused children and their families. I would need to talk to Dianne about the idea before I did anything else. It seemed so clear and simple the more I thought of it.

I sat for a while at the upright and played some tunes that had been drifting around in my head until I realized that it was getting toward dinner time, and that I should lead by example. Maybe it was time to get a cook?

When I got back to the house there was a package waiting for me. I opened it and found twenty copies of the new Abigail album with a note from Allan apologising for the late delivery. His people had been very busy getting it out into the wider world. I put them to one side to listen to later then got busy in the kitchen.

I suppose you would be forgiven for thinking that we could have employed a whole houseful of staff, but we just didn’t have the inclination to be pampered or the space to house them. That set me off to thinking about the kitchen idea that I had earlier. The concept of a new building behind the sheds was forming. An accommodation and recreation block with several bedrooms and a big open kitchen / entertainment room in the middle.

Maureen came in to help and then Josie joined us. My relationship with Josie was now secure as sisters, and we would discuss the farm and band business quite freely. She suggested that if Carol was a good receptionist, we may be able to put a separate phone line into the vet reception which could be the studio number. She could take messages when Tony was busy. Maureen gave her a look and I realized something was brewing.

I put my peeler down and asked, “OK, what!”

Maureen sighed. “Since the Abigail album hit the market, he’s been getting calls of congratulations from all of those who shunned him years ago. One was from a friend who stayed in touch. He’s been asked to go back to Los Angeles to take over one of the big studios. He thinks that Tony will be able to continue here in his own right. Tony has learned a lot with them working together at last. He only started producing after Martyn withdrew into himself. I think that we may be down south again in January.”

I gave her a hug and told her that I was so happy for the two of them and she was a little surprised that I took it so easily.

I grinned. “I need to go down to Los Angeles to speak to Dianne and the Swans soon. I think that our new guests may have to pop back to sort out their things. Why don’t you come with us and start working on your move home.”

She smiled. “Yes, I knew you would understand that part. It’s my, well, our home and it’ll be nice to be there again. Our time here, though, has been wonderful. It allowed us to reconnect, for Martyn to regain his poise and for us to truly know our daughter-in-law and all our grandchildren.”

I looked around. “If you’re both here, where’s the children?”

Josie said that the twins were in the control room with Tony, and that Ali had finished her piano lesson so was probably out in the packing shed with the farmhands. I left them to finish sorting out the vegetables, get some meat into the oven, and went out to the packing shed.

I never did spend a lot of time here when I was young, mainly playing my music. It didn’t have a very nice aroma in the old days, mainly chicken poop, and broken eggs. Today, however, it was a different place with a hum of constant talking as the guys and girls packed the different vegetables ready for tomorrow.

I stood in the doorway taking it in and I could see Ali, sitting on a bench, speaking to anyone who came within talking distance. When they noticed me, the talk quieted, so I smiled brightly, going to my baby. “So, there you are! No wonder you’re so much the chatterbox these days.”

She grinned. “Mommy, we’ve been talking about the new girls, and I told Artie that one is an Aussie, like him.” I saw Artie look a bit worried. I laughed. “So, we have you to blame for the Aussie expressions, then. At least she didn’t pick up the other version of the one she came out with earlier today.”

He grinned. “Well, ma-am, we can’t have our little angel saying nasty things, now, can we?”

Ali pleaded. “Mom, do we have enough of our CD to give to everyone this Christmas?”

I told her that we will have to count them and, if there wasn’t enough, we could get more made.

Artie smiled. “I hear the one that Abigail made is out. She’s so lovely and sings like the lark.”

I told him that a bunch was delivered today and to pop over to the house before he went home so I could give him a copy. That caused a little flurry of discussion and it ended with me promising a dozen give-aways. I picked Ali off the bench, and we went back to the house so she could wash before dinner. By the time we got back everyone else was gathering, and the big table was laid.

It was getting a little cramped now with Martyn and Maureen, Tony, and Josie, me, Jordan, and now Sharron and Carol. Add Ali on her highchair and now three under-ones to be fed as well.

I mentioned my idea of a new building and Jordan took to it like a flash. He said that we needed more help in the house, especially with the young children and even more with the cooking and cleaning.

“I know that Maureen has told you about my news. I thank you all for letting me into your lives,” Martyn said. “It’s been like a holiday here, and I feel a need to get back into the rest of the world. The offer I’ve been made is one that I would be silly to pass up. Tony has sucked me dry, and I think that in the years to come he’ll be better than me at the desk.”

Josie said that she would talk to her father about planning another building. We discussed what size it should be, and where we would put it.

There was knock on the door as we were about to dish out. Ali and I gave out the albums. Sharron met Artie and they found that they had places in common. After the meal we loaded the two dishwashers and settled for the evening with some drinks.

Tony put the Abigail album in the player, and we listened to it. Ali was enraptured by the sound and our new guests were in awe, hearing the album at the place it was made was something not many can experience. I thought that it will be interesting tomorrow when the rest of the band turn up for a discussion about the next year with Allan.

That night, in bed, Jordan and I talked about the day. I suggested that if Martyn and Maureen move out of the stable, Tony and Josie could move there if we did a small extension for extra bedrooms and another bathroom. “That would allow Sharron and Carol to go over the clinic which would ensure that we could offer twenty-four-hour service.”

Then I added. “If we do get another accommodation block built, we can move there while this house is modernised with a bigger kitchen and a couple more bathrooms.”

Next morning Jordan got a very early call on his mobile, so he knocked on the door of the other bedroom. He told Sharron that there was a call-out to be made and that they would leave as soon as she was dressed and had something to eat. I went through to the kitchen in my gown and slippers and started to fire up some bacon and eggs and brew the coffee so that, when the two of them came in, it didn’t take long before they were out on the call.

Carol was up now, feeding Tabitha. Ali was there ready to eat as well so I carried on cooking. With my own breakfast in front of me I sat at the table and helped Ali with her boiled egg and bread “soldiers”. She wasn’t a messy eater. In fact, almost everything about Ali was more a girl of five or six, rather than the three she was.

Carol remarked that she hoped that Tabitha was as good. Ali told her that it was all about genes but that she didn’t know why different pants made a difference.

Carol chuckled at that. “Edie, I really must thank you on so many levels. It was you and that tune that gave Sharron and me peace and each other. You’ve welcomed us into your home with such kindness. We both agreed, last night, that we’ll do whatever it takes to repay you with our efforts in the clinic. When Sharron came back from getting our things I saw, once again, the happy person I knew, but hadn’t seen much of lately. We had no idea of who Dianne had told us to come and talk to, and, if we had known, I doubt if either of us would have been brave enough to make the trip.”

I asked her about Sharron’s poetry, and she said that it was really good, and that Sharron had been popular at the readings. “She can make you laugh or cry with a sentence but hasn’t been writing much since Tabitha came along. It may have been her feeling that she should be contributing more. She wasn’t getting a lot of work back home, just some assistant time, and a bit of volunteer time at the animal shelter. She’s really very good but it frustrated her that she wasn’t given the responsibility she craved.”

I asked about her own job and was told that she had called in her accrued vacation time and would give her notice if she stayed here. I suggested that, by the end of the week, they would be certain of where they stood. I said I would fly to Los Angeles with them because I wanted to talk to Dianne, and that Maureen will join us because she wanted to sort out her old home before they moved back.

“Then,” I said. “We need to think about Christmas.” I told her that if they were still here then, all that was needed was a card.

Once we had tidied up, I prepared the kitchen for the band visit. I told Carol that the stable and the apartment over the clinic both had enough of a kitchen that breakfast was easy so that was why the others weren’t here. She went off to get ready for her day while I went off to get ready for mine.

Marianne Gregory © 2023