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CHAPTER NINE
He lay flat on the ground, hidden by a small clump of bushes and some quartz rocks. He could smell the lair just ahead, but any sound eluded him. A skink suddenly appeared before his face, and just as quickly, vanished. He brushed away at the inevitable troublesome flies. He should have heard grunts or some snorting, but it was dead still. Even the crows were quiet. Raising his head, ever so slowly, an effort was made for a quick glimpse. The
flattened sand and bushes came into view, but no quarry.
Arthur Benson knew the dangers of stalking wild pigs, but he prided himself, maybe foolishly, that he was one step ahead, and not on horseback to frighten the animal into a dangerous reaction. This was Arthur's first year at this, although he had lived out here, in the north west of the state, for sixteen years. Arthur liked to do things differently. Do unusual things. His parent's place had the only working shadow of in all of Australia. It moved water from the small dam to a vegetable irrigation trench. Exactly the same design as the Egyptians used three thousand yeas ago, and today. To top that, his replicas of a Norman catapult and a Roman ballista were the highlights at the local show a few years back.
Today, his opponent was being stalked by stealth and a crossbow.
The design came from the internet and an old history book. It was powerful and effective. A smaller version of the ballista, when it was all boiled down. Arthur also knew it was illegal. Hence being this far out from town. There was a grunt and Arthur froze. Not because the noise meant that there was a pig in the lair. Because the grunt came from behind him.
Survival makes different people react in various ways. For Arthur, it was to face the problem and make snap decisions. The bow was in his hand but not obviously ready for a good aim. He found himself looking at a sow, with a young one in tow. Even as he moved the bow from his prone position, she started to charge.
He released the trigger in desperation, and the bolt went off, managing to go clear through the pig's ear. Arthur rolled, as the porcine beast was almost upon him. Both man and beast were startled by the sound of the shot. The pig immediately took defensive action and veered off into the bushes, followed by her charge. Arthur lay still for a few seconds.
The sound had saved him from broken bones or worse. He sat up and listened. Just the silence, like before. Then the sound of a vehicle door being slammed, and again, followed by an engine starting and the vehicle rapidly disappearing. Arthur stood up, unsure if he should thank the person, or test the waters. Some dust not so far away to his right, rose over the cypress pine trees.
Retrieving the loosed bolt, he made his way in that direction, and shortly hit an access track. No sign of the vehicle, just a smell of dust. Arthur decided to walk the opposite way, and perhaps find where it was parked, and why. About 200 metres along, he came to a cleared area, with several cut pines. This area was not known to him, neither the track, or he might have gone further out. No rubbish or fire place to betray a reason.
Perhaps someone taking pot shots at a kangaroo. Just as he turned to head back, the squawking of two magpies sitting on one of the log piles, raised his curiosity.
He wished he hadn't looked. He vomited and went momentarily dizzy, at the sight of the man's body, it's head covered in blood and an ugly hole between the eyes. Those eyes. Just staring.
After a couple of minutes, Arthur knew he had to tell someone, and he needed to be careful, in case he was suspected of being a witness, and subsequently in danger. He plucked up the courage and felt underneath for a wallet or something. There was nothing.
Flies were already gathering. He undid the watch strap and noticed it was engraved, "A.B.Love K". Also a tattoo of a stylised fish was near the elbow.
Making sure he had left nothing of his, he covered his boot prints, and headed through the bush towards his car. Hiding the bow in the boot, he made the main road and was halfway to the town of Walgett before he saw any vehicles. Arthur parked outside the police station, and still shaking, walked inside.