BACKWOODS RIPPER: a gripping action suspense thriller (2 page)

Hal balanced on one knee, working silently he jacked up the front of the vehicle and unscrewed the lug nuts. When he had the flat safely off the axle, Paige moved a little closer. In spite of the chill creeping into the air, a dark line of sweat marred the back of his T-shirt.

“Nearly done,” he said and lifted the spare up to the bare rim.

“What do you think caused the flat?” The question nagged at her from the moment Hal showed her the gash in the tyre. The dilapidated carpark was covered in bits of gravel and twigs, but she couldn’t see anything that would’ve torn a hole that large.

“It could have been a broken bottle or – holy shit!” Hal jumped back from the tyre. His right leg drawn up in pain. As he pushed himself away from the car, his left foot hit the jack out of position and the vehicle dropped suddenly. The spare fell out of his grasp and spun sideways.

A crack, like a branch snapping rang out and then the car bounced. Hal’s head snapped back as he cried out. Paige shrieked and lunged forward hands outstretched.

“No!” He croaked and put up his hand to stop her approach.

She hesitated confused, then she saw the snake slither up near Hal’s shoulder. He lay flat on his back holding his right leg up to his chest. His other leg still under the car next to the rim.

“Don’t move,” Paige gasped, keeping her eyes fixed on the shiny brown snake bobbing and weaving its way around her husband.

Her heart beat so hard it felt like it might come out of her mouth. She looked around for something to use as a weapon and spotted the tyre iron on Hal’s far side. With the snake between her and the iron, Paige realised she’d have to make her way around the creature.

“I’m going to get the tyre iron,” she whispered.

“No. No, Paige,” Hal groaned. “Don’t.” He tried to move and his eyes widened; he gasped and lowered his head. The snake slithered closer to Hal, its slimy body undulating as its pale underbelly rasped over the bitumen.

“Shhh,” Paige whispered and stepped to the side so she could move around his head and give the snake a wide berth.

Blood flooded Hal’s face turning it from lightly tanned to almost purple. He was bathed in sweat and pain. Paige’s eyes moved between Hal and the snake. She wanted to speak to him, tell him everything was going to be okay, but with each fraction she moved, the snake’s head weaved between its hiding place next to Hal’s head and Paige’s feet. If she made a sound, it would strike.

She took another side step to the right. The snake lifted its blunt head, regarding her with blank, blackish-brown, reptilian eyes ringed with orange. Paige tried to swallow but couldn’t. Hal’s breath came heavy and raw.

“Don’t move your head, it’s right next to you,” Paige whispered when Hal attempted to watch her progress. He didn’t respond, but kept still.

Paige didn’t know a great deal about snakes, but she did know that Western Australia was home to some of the world’s most venomous. Snakes were one of the things that scared her when she and Hal made the move from Melbourne to Perth only six months ago. She remembered telling herself the fears were irrational. The chances of her ever coming face to face with a snake were slim to none.
Right.

The thick-bodied creature coiled in front of her and darted its forked tongue out, tasting the air. Paige recalled reading that snakes were shy creatures, more scared of us than we were of them. It didn’t look scared, in fact it looked supremely confident. Although it could be anything from mildly venomous to deadly, Paige knew she had to get it away from Hal before it struck again. And then there was that voice in the back of her head asking,
if it bites me, will it kill the baby?

Paige felt beads of sweat run down the back of her neck. She resisted the urge to wipe them away and took another step. Now on Hal’s right side, she noticed him following her progress from the corner of his eyes.

“Don’t try and move it,” he managed through clenched teeth. “Just go get your phone and call for help.”

The sound of Hal’s voice alarmed the snake. It moved with lightning speed, its sickly olive coloured body flicking up dried leaves and sticks as it darted for Hal’s face. Paige stamped her foot and clapped her hands. The creature turned back towards her. She stooped and grabbed the tyre iron as the snake left Hal and lunged towards her, hissing. Its open mouth revealed small sharp fangs and the soft pink flesh within.

Paige screamed and tried to step back, but the creature lunged upwards as if about to take flight. An evil hissing filled her ears, blocking out all other sound. She crossed her left arm over her stomach hoping that the snake would bite the sleeve of her jacket and not her belly, but just as its head came within striking range, it jack-knifed backwards and landed on the ground with a thump.

It took Paige a split second to realise Hal had grabbed hold of the snake’s tail. The creature wreathed and twisted in his hand, its head turning towards her husband’s face, its jaws gaping at an impossibly wide angle. Using both hands, Paige swung the tyre iron over her shoulder and down, landing a shuddering blow on the creature’s head. The iron crushed the snake into the bitumen, the impact sent a shock wave up Paige’s right arm.

Lifting the tyre iron with shaking hands, she pounded the creature a second time. The first blow crushed the snake’s skull, the second almost separated its head from its long thick body.

“Are you okay?” Hal’s voice sounded distant.

Paige looked past the crushed snake and found her husband’s eyes. Unshed tears glistening on his lower lids. She nodded stiffly. He’d turned onto his right side, still gripping the snake’s tail.

Paige used the end of the tyre iron to flick the reptile’s lifeless body away from Hal. She stepped closer and sank to her knees, ignoring the roughness of the broken bitumen under her skin, she leaned down and put her head on his chest. She felt his hand grip the back of her head and hold her against him. For a moment the only sounds were Hal’s breathing and her sobs.

“Are you bitten?” She asked cupping his face with her hands.

“Yeah. It got me on the calf. But it’s my other leg.” Hal grimaced and tried to sit up. He got as far as his elbows on the ground and stopped moving. “When I hit the jack out, the rim hit it when the car bounced down. I think it’s broken.”

“Don’t try and move.” She putting her hand on his chest. “I’m going to call an ambulance.” Paige stripped off her jacket and tucked it under his head. “I’ll be right back, okay?” She waited for Hal to nod and then gave him a kiss on the mouth. His lips were icy.

Rising, she jogged around the car. The passenger door stood open, her handbag sat on the floor. She grabbed her phone. She’d only ever called an ambulance once before, the day her father died. He’d had a heart attack during the night. Paige remembered opening his bedroom door, it was after eight in the morning, but his blinds were still closed. The air in the room tasted hot and stale. At first she’d thought he was asleep. The sheets were all rumpled; they looked grey in the thin bars of light seeping through the blinds. She’d called to him, but he hadn’t responded. She’d put her hand out and touched the top of the dresser near the door. Something landed on it. Something black and thick, and she could feel its legs moving on her skin. She flicked her hand and the fly had buzzed up to her face.

Paige closed her eyes and forced away the memory.
Hal isn’t going to die.
His youth and strength reassured her this time she wouldn’t be too late. She tried to slide the bar across the screen to unlock her phone, but her hands shook badly, she could barely make her fingers work. When she finally got the phone open, a
no signal
warning flashed at the top left of the screen.

“No. No.” She shook her head and brought up the keypad, refusing to believe they were cut off.

She dialled triple zero and pressed the phone to her ear muttering a prayer. For a couple of seconds nothing happened, then a series of beeps. Paige squeezed her eyes closed and shook the phone. She looked around as if hoping to find herself on a busy street, instead of stranded in front of a crumbling factory in the middle of nowhere. Her eyes blurred with tears and her breathing came in rapid gasps. She struggled to breathe past the panic filling her throat.

She had to act. She took a long, deep breath and jogged back around the car. A black crow sat a few metres away trying to pick up the snake’s carcass in its long black beak. Another crow pecked at the snake’s head, snatching up bits of decimated meat off the bitumen. The birds paused in their work as she approached. The crow, picking at the head, let out a squawk and Hal’s eyes flew open. He looked pale and his teeth chattered.

“Oh God, Hal. You’re freezing.” Paige knelt next to him.

She put her hand on his face, his skin icy to the touch. His eyes fluttered and then closed, but the shivering continued.
He’s going into shock
, the realisation got her moving. She raced to the rear of the car, baby bump swaying, and grabbed the picnic rug; she then returned and draped it over her husband.

She knelt down and tucked the blanket around him. His left leg was bent slightly. Paige saw the snake bite just above his ankle. The area looked puffy, two red fang marks surrounded by purplish skin. His other leg remained under the car, his calf concealed by the vehicle.

“Hal?” She whispered. “Hal, I don’t have a signal on my phone. I … What should I do?” She hated the whiny sound of her voice. Hal needed her. He needed her to take charge for once and be the strong one.

Hal’s eyes opened. “Send a text, it will work with a lower signal.” He sounded groggy, like someone waking from a dream.

Paige let out a whimper of relief and fumbled with her phone. She typed a message and pressed
send
. The message bar moved slowly, crawling its way across the screen, then stopped. She stared at the phone and tucked her lower lip under her teeth.

“Hal, it’s not working. I’m going to have to go for help,” She said. “I … Will you be …”

Hal pulled his arm from under the rug and grabbed her hand. “I’ll be fine,” he said. “It’s just a broken leg.” He tried for a smile, but it looked more like a grimace.

Chapter Two

Paige strode as fast her aching back would allow. She headed back along Spring Road in the direction they’d taken after leaving the highway. From there, she planned to backtrack the ten or so kilometres it would take to reach the Albany Highway. With any luck, someone would drive past before she got that far.

She walked on the road rather than risk turning an ankle on the shoulder, trying to keep left, and concentrated on taking even breaths every two steps. She checked her watch; three-forty. The snake bit Hal just after three. She wondered, not for the first time, how long it would be before the venom spread and became fatal. She knew one thing for sure, he needed medical help, now.

Paige increased her pace, wishing she could break into a run. After leaving the cheese factory, she tried wrapping both arms around her belly for support while running. Within minutes, her heart pounded as her legs hit the underside of her stomach, making her woozy. The breeze blew up crisp and carried a chill, but the pace she’d set for herself kept her warm.

The only sounds came from the constant beat of her canvas shoes, her steady breathing, and the rustling of the trees and shrubs as the wind whispered through their branches. Overhead, the sky darkened with murky clouds. She tried to ignore the dimness creeping in and kept her mind from imagining what it would be like to spend a night surrounded by thick twisted trees shrouded in spider webs. She focused on the road, scanning the horizon for oncoming cars and occasionally looking back in case someone approached from the other direction. Her mind kept returning to Hal: the ashen colour of his skin and the clammy feel of his hand when she tucked it back under the picnic rug and kissed him goodbye.
Goodbye. Was it goodbye?
Would he be gone when she got back? Paige didn’t know where the irrational thought kept coming from, but out here, amidst a wildness that didn’t exist in her world of cafes and yoga classes, anything might be lurking. In a place where snakes hid under your car and birds fought over their carcases; her worst fears seemed possible.

She glanced at the tightly-packed trees and ragged scrub lining the road, wondering what lurked just out of sight. She hugged herself and felt the goose flesh. Spots of cold rain hit her shoulders. She thought of Hal semi-conscious as the rain attacked his unprotected head. Paige could only hope he’d be able to pull the rug up to shield himself.

She reached under her bra strap, pulled out her phone and checked for a signal. Still nothing.
This is the South West, not the Gibson Desert
. Paige let out a long, shaky sigh and stopped walking. She wiped sporadic rain drops from her cheeks and turned in a circle. The sky, heavy with dark threatening clouds blocked the sun and cast a shroud over the landscape.

Paige turned back in the direction of the highway and blinked away the drops that ran down her forehead and clung to her eyelashes. She heard the ute before she saw the glow of its lights: a reverberating rumble, low, barely audible above the sound of the rain. At first, she thought the sound came from her chest, until it grew louder and twin orbs of light filled the road.

“Stop!” She called, her voice barely louder than a croak.

Stepping into the middle of the road, she waved her arms above her head. “Stop! Please, help!”

The bull bar and the silver grille glistened between the yellowy glow of the headlights as the engine shuddered with a roar of vintage engineering. Paige’s heart fluttered and her arms shook as she held them out in front of her like white sticks. The vehicle would have to stop or swerve around her, but she wouldn’t move.

A horn blasted, shrill and urgent, tyres squealed. Paige gasped out a heavy breath and flinched as the ute came to a stop a metre from her outstretched arms. She wiped her arm across her face and squinted at the windscreen. Beyond the blur of the wipers, she caught the shadowy outline of two people.

Her stomach clenched and the relief she’d felt only seconds ago was swallowed by fear.
I’m all alone. They could be dangerous
. She felt her muscles tighten, the urge to run building inside her until the driver’s door swung open with a metallic groan and a woman stepped out into the rain.

“Oh Lord, what’s happened! Have you been in an accident?” She asked, her eyes wide.

Paige let out a shuddering breath and stumbled forward. “Yes. Yes, I need help.” She struggled to find the right words.

The woman looked around and frowned. Paige realised she was looking for a wrecked car.

“At the cheese factory. My husband. He… Snake bite.” She took a step closer to the woman, desperate that she understand, but fearful she’d frighten the woman back into her car.

“My husband is hurt and I need help.” Paige tried again, but her words were coming out as breathless gasps. She resisted the urge to grab the woman’s arm and shake her. Instead, she pressed her lips together and waited.

The woman looked to be in her late fifties, stocky with iron grey hair. She looked Paige over as if assessing her for a job. Her eyes paused on Paige’s belly and then she nodded.

“Okay. Well, you’d better get in,” she said and jerked her thumb in the direction of the ute. “I know the place you mean; the old Silver Island factory.”

“Yes that’s it. That’s the place.” Paige wanted to fall into the woman’s arms and kiss her, but something in the woman’s demeanour told her it wouldn’t be wise.

“Hurry up,” she said, turning and walking back to the open door of the vehicle. “Let’s get out of the rain.”

Paige scampered after the woman, shivering and rubbing her arms against the chill of the rain. When they reached the door, the woman stood back and motioned Paige into the cab. Paige grabbed the seat and moved forward to pull herself into the vehicle when she noticed the other occupant.

On the far side of the cab sat a large woman with short black hair, a blank stare and protruding bottom lip. Paige hesitated. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise and, for a moment, she considered backing away. She could keep walking, someone else was bound to come along.

“Come on. I’m getting soaked out here,” the other woman called from behind her.

Paige pushed her fear aside, muttered a hello to the woman in the cab and climbed in.

The inside of the old ute smelled like aged vinyl. Paige could feel the bulge of springs under her butt. She sat packed in between the two women, their collective breath fogging the windows, as the gear stick wedged awkwardly between her legs.

“My name’s Lizzy. Lizzy Hatcher and that’s Soona,” she said, and motioned to the dark-haired woman on Paige’s right.

“I’m Paige Loche.” She felt like she needed to add something so she said, “Thank you for stopping, Lizzy.”

“You’re lucky we found you,” Lizzy said grinding the ancient gearstick. “This road is unincorporated so we’re the only ones who use it.”

The engine rumbled, then sputtered, missing a few revs before evening out. There were no seatbelts so Paige gripped the edge of the seat. The rain continued to fall in large spits, rather than a full downpour. She pictured Hal laying half under the car waiting for her to return, his face ashen with pain as the poison worked its way through his body. She looked at her watch: four o’clock. Almost an hour now. She clenched the seat tighter, bouncing over every pothole and bump in the road. In spite of the discomfort, she wished Lizzy would drive faster.

“How far is it to the nearest town?”

“Two hours to the roadhouse,” Lizzie answered, without taking her eyes off the road. “What sort of snake?”

“What?”

“What sort of snake bit your husband,” Lizzy asked slowly, emphasising each word as if talking to a child.

Paige wasn’t sure how to answer. Her knowledge of snakes only went as far knowing that some were deadly, but all were slimy and terrifying. The snake that attacked Hal seemed aggressive. In her mind’s eye, she could see the moment the creature lunged at her. Its jaws wide, fleshy pink mouth reaching for her. If Hal hadn’t grabbed it when he did, they might both be lying next to the car.

Paige shivered. “I don’t know.”

“Well, what did it look like?” Lizzy persisted.

Paige tried to visualise the snake. “It had a thick brown body, and head. Sort of lighter than the rest of it. I mean the head was lighter than the body.” Paige watched Lizzy’s profile as she described the snake. Her face remained impassive.

“Sounds like a dugite.”

Paige let out a gasp and let go of the seat. The car hit a pothole and she bounced up almost a quarter of a metre. One thing she did know, dugites were highly venomous.

“Don’t worry, I’m a trained nurse. I’ve treated snake bites before. The key is compression. What time was he bitten?”

“About an hour ago.” Paige ran her fingers through her damp hair and tried to explain what happened. She finished by telling the woman about not being able to get a signal. Lizzy listened without interruption, nodding occasionally but not taking her eyes from the road. Paige glanced over at Soona. The woman had yet to speak but seemed to be fascinated by Paige’s belly, unapologetically staring.

“Well, we’ll soon find out what shape he’s in,” Lizzy said flatly and nodded to the road ahead. “There’s the factory.”

Paige leaned forward, holding her breath. Hal was her whole world. Before she’d met him, she’d lived an empty life, drifting. Yes, she had her job and she enjoyed teaching, but it didn’t anchor her to the world the way Hal managed to. When they’d first met, he’d just started his new job.

One day she’d arrived home to find she had no hot water. Frustrated and in desperate need of a bath, she flicked through the local paper and found an ad for a plumbing service. Three hours later, Hal appeared in her life: tall, good looking, and easy to talk to. Just his presence in her house breathed life into the place. She recalled the way she’d blushed while explaining about the hot water.

Paige shook off the memory only to have it replaced by the image of her husband lying under the car, watching her walk away. His fate, tied up in hers, was out of their hands.

Lizzy pulled into the carpark and stopped behind the Ford. Paige could see the front of their car, but Hal remained hidden from view. Lizzy opened the driver’s door and climbed out, at a pace that to Paige felt painful in its slowness. As soon as the woman stepped out of the cab, Paige scampered out behind her. When her shoes hit the bitumen, Paige dodged around the woman and darted to the Ford.

“Paige?” She heard his weakened voice before she saw him. Her pulse, already racing, jacked up another notch.

He lay next to the car. A pair of magpies danced on the loading dock watching him with emotionless eyes. It looked like he’d tried to pull himself out from under the vehicle, but had only made it a half-metre or so. The blanket lay bunched around his waist and his T-shirt looked damp, either from sweat or the rain. Paige sank down next to him and ran her palm over his face then took his hand.

“It’s okay, Hal. I’ve brought help. You’ll be alright now,” she said, trying to reassure him and herself.

“Are you okay?” He asked breathlessly.

Paige nodded. “I am now I’m looking at you.”

He was still conscious, a good sign, she hoped, but his skin was the colour of ashes and his eyes were wet and ringed with red.

“Are you in a lot of pain?” She asked, studying his face.

“Right. I’m going to need something I can use as bandages and something for a splint,” Lizzy said from behind her, cutting off whatever Hal had been about to say.

Paige held Hal’s gaze. For a fleeting moment, she felt outside of herself. An unshakable sense that she might lose him swept over her.

“Now, Paige,” Lizzy snapped. “We need to work fast.”

Paige reluctantly let go of Hal’s hand and stood. She felt the blood rushing to her head and a wave of dizziness. She dropped her head and leaned on the Ford for balance. After a pause, she looked up and Lizzy and Soona were on the ground with her husband.

“Hurry up and find me something I can use as a pressure bandage on this bite,” Lizzy ordered.

Page pushed herself off the vehicle and stumbled around to the passenger side of the Ford.
The first aid kit’s in the glove box
. She pulled it open and grabbed the red nylon case before racing back around the bonnet.

“Okay. Good. Now find something I can use as a splint. Two lengths about a metre long and rigid.” She spoke over her shoulder and unzipped the first aid case.

Paige put a hand to the side of her head. She tried to go through the contents of the boot in her mind, but could think of nothing that fit Lizzy’s requirements. She turned in a circle, biting her lip, when she noticed the gum trees across the road. She remembered teaching her year two pupils about gum trees and how they shed branches so they could retain the moisture within the rest of the tree to survive.

She jogged out of the carpark and across the deserted road; the rain had finally stopped. The area under the trees remained draped in shadows and littered on the ground were fallen sticks and gum nuts. She scanned the area for something larger, but in her panic, everything blurred into a confusing jumble. She forced herself to slow down. She was no good to Hal running around blindly.

Paige closed her eyes and counted to five. When she opened them she saw a metre long stick as thick as her wrist, nestled amongst the fallen leaves. She let out a cry of triumph and snatched it up. Within a few seconds, she had another with suitable proportions and headed back to the Ford.