"Oh, snap," said Bailey softly as we stared at the woman. In the dusk light, she looked bird-like, all delicate bones and twitchy eyes.

Trying to bring some normalcy to the situation, I said, "Okay, let's talk this out. I'm Karla. What's your name?"

"I'm Mellie." She patted her hair flat, a gesture I remembered from when I used to date Dean, making sure everything was in place and perfect, every minute of every day. She spoke in bursts, as if desperate to unload. "I've been with Dean for a year. I'm a legal secretary at his firm. We're a serious couple, but we're not allowed to tell people at work we're together because, you know, of how it looks. But soon he's going to get promoted, and then I'll move in. I mean, things will be different now, I guess. Better. We can be together properly."

Hot pity washed through me. I used to be this girl. I'd desperately tried to establish my relationship with Dean at every turn, and somehow he'd still slipped through my fingers. I noticed the dark shadows beneath Mellie's eyes and the way her fingers trembled. I wasn't sure if she was nervous that Dean wasn't here, or that he might arrive any second, but I felt for her. I softened my tone. "Mellie, I spoke with Dean on D-day, and he said he had broken up with you."

"No!" She shook her head frantically. "I was in Adelaide for work. He was visiting his mate in Tassie to set up a business thing. We weren't broken up. We weren't!"

"Okay." I nudged Bailey. "Can you grab her a drink of water please?"

Bailey walked to the sink, and Rueben spoke, his voice flat. "I'm going to put Mischa in bed."

"No, you're not!" squawked Mellie, rising from her stool on shaky legs. "This is my boyfriend's place! You can't treat it like a hostel!"

"Mellie, I have Dean's permission to be here," I said calmly. "I know where he keeps the spare key, and I was here long before you. And if push comes to shove, there's three of us and only one of you, plus I have a gun. So let this man put his daughter to sleep and let's talk this through."

Defeated, she slumped back in her seat and took the water Bailey offered. Rueben nodded, avoiding eye contact as he said, "Call me if you need me." He carried Mischa through to the spare room and shut the door behind them.

Why is he being so sulky? I wondered. The last thing I needed was more drama in this place. Putting him aside, I turned back to the twitchy Mellie. "So, you've made it back here from Adelaide?"

She drained the water gratefully. "It took forever. And I had to check in on my parents in Geelong. But I was as quick as I could be, I swear. They wanted me to stay, but I knew I couldn't. I would never make Dean wait."

Bailey and I shared a look. "Mellie, Dean isn't here, and as far as we know he's not coming back," said Bailey carefully. "He's still in Tassie."

"No. No way." She shook her head fast, pale eyes filling with tears. "Dean will come for me. I rode in the back of a horse wagon to get here. I walked for four days barefoot. I made it. He'll make it too."

I wanted to shake her in that moment, to make her wake up. "He probably could, but I don't believe that he is. He's at my brother's farm, where he's got food and water and shelter. I know Dean – there's no way he's leaving that kind of security for anyone."

"He wouldn't abandon me," she said obstinately.

"You can come with us," said Bailey. "We have space on our yacht, and we'll take you to him."

"No!" Her voice was louder this time. "Dean will come for me, and I need to be here. What if you take me away, and then he arrives, and he thinks that I didn't wait for him? He'd..."

She trailed off, but I could fill that gap in on my own. He'd lose his temper, which meant physical, sexual or psychological harm – or perhaps a combo of the three. This girl is terrified. "Okay, Mellie. You stay here. Look, we'll be gone in the morning, so let's agree to share this place for one night, and you can have it to yourself after that."

She paused, then dipped her head in agreement. "But you need to admit that you lied about Dean being your boyfriend. That was just mean."

"Seriously?" I considered how to answer, balancing kindness with honesty. "Well, like I said, we used to date, and he's my brother's best friend. We spoke the day the phones went out and he asked me to come to Tassie and get back together with him."

"You're lying," she said, her fingernails scratching the marble surface of the bench.

"I'm not. Perhaps he figured that he would never see you again, I don't know. But he told my family you'd broken up."

She was crying now, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I don't believe you."

"If it's any consolation, I am not getting back together with him. Not ever, no matter what." I reached for her hand, hoping it wasn't too much. "Mellie, when I was with him, Dean isolated me, hurt me, used me and debased me. He forced me to terminate a pregnancy, then dumped me. And the whole time, he called it love. It wasn't. I'm going to take a wild guess, and say that he's the same way with you."

Her silence and her tears answered for her. I said, "You can wait here as long as you need, but I bet your family misses you. Promise that you'll go home to Geelong if he doesn't come back. Don't spend your life waiting for someone who isn't worth your time."

She yanked her hand away. "You don't know me. You don't know anything about my relationship. I've never even heard of you – he's never even said your name to me, so you couldn't have been that important to him."

"I bet he calls you baby girl when he's feeling cocky or he wants something. I bet he makes you feel like it's always your fault. I bet you worry that you'll never be good enough for anyone else and that you're lucky to have any scraps of affection he throws at you."

"Leave me alone," she whispered. I was right, we both knew it, but it was too much for her. "I want to go to sleep now. Dean will need me when he gets home. I have to be rested for him."

In silence, I cleared my things out the master bedroom; I was already packed, so there wasn't much to do. Mellie curled up on the bed, pulling Dean's pillow close to her and giving me her back. As I pulled my bag out the door, I paused and said, "I hope you experienced less trauma in this room than I did. And I hope you'll let yourself enjoy your life once you realise he's not coming back."

"Get out," she whimpered.

I did, shutting the door softly. Bailey was waiting in the kitchen, placidly loading a box with the last of Dean's wine. "Well, she's a delight."

"Holy crap. Was I that delusional?"

"Worse."

"Gee, thanks."

"So, you're not getting back together with Dean in Tasmania?"

"Nope." I opened the linen cupboard and dragged out an extra doona and a pillow. "Can I share the couch with you tonight?"

"Yes. When did this momentous decision take place? Last I heard, you were all about the Dom life."

"I woke up."

"I'm glad."

We hugged. Bailey squeezed me tight, then said, "Are you going to kick his ass off the farm?"

"I don't know yet. I need to get down there first. Ass kicking can wait."

The front screen rattled, and Nev stuck her head around the corner. "Hey! Can I crash here tonight?"

"Hey!" Bailey leapt up and kissed Nev. "Are you okay? Did something happen with your family?"

"No. I just wanted to spend our last night in Melbourne together." She snuggled against Bailey as they sat on the couch opposite me. Her words were logical, but something wasn't ringing true for me.

Before I could put my finger on what was off about Nev, Bailey said, "Karla, is it okay if Nev sleeps here with me tonight?"

"Sure. There's one of those reclining gamer chairs in the office – Dean used to boast it cost $20k. I'll camp out there."

"So, what did I miss?"

"Nothing much," said Bailey. "Just Dean's crazy sort-of ex in the kitchen."

"Oh my god, what happened?" Nev turned to us both, her perfect lips in an O.

"I'll let Bailey fill you in." I scooped up my blanket and pillow, and said, "I'm going to turn in now."

"I'll help you set up." Nev scrambled after me. "Bailes? Will you pour us both a wine? I'll be back in a sec."

"Will do."

Nev and I walked for the narrow office nestled beneath the stairs. The cushy leather chair sat in the centre of the room, facing an impressive gaming set up that would never play a single pixel again.

"What is it, Nev?"

"What's what?" she asked innocently, laying the blanket carefully over the chair.

"Something is going on with you. You can talk to me, you know."

"I know." She smiled, but it was sad. "I know I've always been able to talk to you about everything, and you're like, this amazing problem solver, so anything I need fixing, I can talk it through with you. But you can't fix this."

"Fix what?" I tossed the pillow aside, and reached for Nev's hands.

"Leaving the people I love behind." She hugged me fiercely. "I love you, Karla. You're like my third big sister."

"I love you too, girl." I hugged her back, deeply concerned. "I'm sorry that leaving your fam is so hard. You can talk to me anytime, okay?"

She pulled back, tucking her glossy hair behind her ears. "I know you still don't feel like a hottie, and I don't think I can fix that, but I wanna say that you have a hottie of a soul."

"Thanks."

She giggled. "I'll try to keep it down with Bailes, but no promises."

I expressed mock horror. "Relations before marriage? You do you, lady, but we have to be up before dawn."

"Ugh. I guess I'll have to make every hour count then."

She danced out the door, and I sank into the comfort of the recliner, dozing restlessly, an underlying theme threaded through my dreams that something was about to be very wrong.

No one set an alarm, but we were all up and moving before sunrise, staggering from room to room as we listlessly packed up and prepared to bump out. I briefly considered saying goodbye to Mellie, but I decided that this was her story, and I didn't have a part in it anymore. I left her undisturbed, and closed the front door quietly, haunted by an image of her laying in the bedroom, waiting for Dom until she turned to ash and bones.

We mounted our bikes one last time on mainland soil; I rode Nev's because she'd borrowed one from her sister. The city was quiet, the buildings silhouetted black against the predawn light casting ominous orange bands across the sky. I caught a hint of summer in the air; not just spring warmth, but genuine heat lurking beneath the concrete. We'd be gone before the heat emerged, sailing south for cooler waters and leaving Melbourne to a summer period without the safety of airconditioned malls to flee to. I wished the city well, and hoped that they continued to thrive and survive, come sun, rain, wind, pestilence or famine.

Once the boat was packed, we stood together on the dock, staring back over the skyscrapers of a city we might not see again for a very long time. "So. This is it," I said.

"I'm going to get us ready to launch," said Rueben, all captain. "Mischa? Can you give daddy a hand?"

"Yep!" She scurried away after him, lowering sails and winding winches in tandem.

"Bailes?" said Nev, shifting Bella's carrier from one hand to the other. "Can you come downstairs with me for a min, please?"

"Sure." Bailey flipped their long fringe away from their eyes, following Nev below deck, drawn to her like a cartoon character drifting after a trail of visible pie scent.

Alone, I leaned on a rail at the bow, silently whispering pleas to the sea. Grant us safe passage. Gentle winds, clear skies. Carry us home.

The day was lighter now and blue seeped into the world around me; the sky, the water, the mist on the distant mountains beyond the city. Blue felt like a good omen. Wait. I strained my sleepy brain, counting days, counting them again. Two weeks exactly since D-day. It's Tuesday. Shit. The bad things always happened on a Tuesday. A shudder racked through me, causing my fingers to grip the rail tighter. Maybe this time would be different.

"Karla?" Nev stood behind me, her long hair wafting in the breeze, wearing sadness like a cloak. "Can you do me a favour?"

"What?"

She thrust Bella's carrier at me. "Hold this for a minute?"

"Sure."

"And this is for you too." She laid a slender envelope on top of the carrier, which I couldn't reach with both hands balancing the weight of the small dog inside. "Thanks."

Nev quickly leapt from the yacht and back onto the jetty, then unlooped the thick rope anchoring the front of the yacht to the mainland. "Do you need a hand?" I asked.

"Nope." She wiped her face, and I realised she was crying.

"Nev? Are you okay?"

Rueben called out from the back of the boat. "Nev, cast us off, please."

She padded to the other rope and unlooped it. "Travel well, tribe."

"What? Wait!" The yacht had begun to drift away from the jetty, the distance between us and Nev growing: an armlength, a body-length, a car-length. "Rueben! Nev isn't onboard!"

Thumping came from down below, someone banging and crashing, the sounds of a caged animal in despair. Bailey? Torn over what to do in this moment of surrealness, I placed Bella's crate down, shoved the envelope in my pocket and dashed to Rueben. "Hey! We have to go back! You left Nev behind!"

"No, I didn't." His face was stoic behind his reflective sunglasses.

"I can count, Rueben! We're a person down! Turn around!" We were at the end of the jetty now; Nev had followed us, slowly waving. I gestured at her with wild arms. "It's not too late! Stop the goddamn boat!"

He sniffed. "I promised her I wouldn't."

Mischa hung from the rails at the back of the boat, waving merrily. "Love you, Nevvie! I'll miss you!"

The yelling from below deck had escalated, Bailey crying out in anguish and desperation. I threw myself at the narrow staircase, landing with a thump and a knee-complaint. Bailey and Nev's door vibrated with bangs, and I yelled, "Bailey?"

"Karla! I'm locked in and Nev is still back on shore! I can see her out my window!"

I unlocked the door with trembling fingers, and Bailey burst out like an exploding soda bottle. They hurtled up the stairs, and I followed, praying that we could still fix this.

"Nev!" screamed Bailey across the water towards Nev's rapidly shrinking figure. "Nev!"

"Bailey! I love you!" her words echoed back, tiny on the wind.

"Rueben, turn around," Bailey commanded.

"No," Rueben repeated.

"What do you mean no?" I yelled. "We don't leave a member of our tribe behind!"

Bailey yanked off their shoes. "I'm going to swim for it."

"Wait," said Rueben. "Just, wait and read the letter first."

"What letter?"

"She gave me a letter," I said, tugging the envelope from my cargos. "Here."

Bailey ripped it open. "This one is for you," they said, handing me a sheet. We both read rapidly, our heads whipping back and forth from the words to where Nev stood waving on the jetty.

Hey Karla,

I'm SO SO sorry to do it this way, but I don't know what else to do, and I'm pretty sure it was you or someone smart who said that the right thing to do is what's right for the most people, and I think this is it so don't be mad at me pls.

I'm not going to Tassie, but Bailes should. I can't leave my fam, not yet, not for a relationship that's just gotten started. It's too much pressure, and we'll end up falling apart, and that's the last thing I want. And if Bailey stays, they'll be miserable. This is the only way I could think of to make sure they go with their tribe, and I stay with mine for now. I asked Rueben for help – don't be mad at him either – and Mischa knows too.

I want Bella to stay with youse – she'll love being on a farm, and Mischa said she'll look after her. I need a year - that's enough time to wrap up with my family, and then I'll come for Bella - and Bailey too, if they still want me.

Please look after Bailey for me. I wrote them a letter too, but I don't think they'll understand, and I friggen hate causing them pain.

I love youse all,

Nev

Bailey was sobbing in a ball on the deck, wretched sobs heaving from their chest, their own letter crumpled against their streaming eyes. I sat beside them, my arm around their shoulders, and together we watched Nev grow smaller and smaller, waiting for the moment when she finally vanished, and all hope of a happy ending for my favourite couple disappeared too.