Queen of the Road (25 page)

The headlights slashed a path through the black night ahead. In front of her, the road stretched with a few bends and trees crowded to the verge. She hadn’t seen another vehicle for quite a while. Cocooned in Big Red, she and Claudia were all alone out here. Angela smiled. The thought of that didn’t bother her at all anymore.

She wondered how her dad would react if she told him she’d keep going with the run. He’d been effusive in his praise for her work last night, and there were other trucks and routes within the company for Tiny Trev, so she wouldn’t be doing him out of a job.

But something her father said was still puzzling her. He’d known she hadn’t gone back to the depot. She’d just assumed that Shell had told him, but Shell hadn’t known, and it couldn’t have been Terry.

A light came into view in her side mirror. Someone else was on the highway behind her. They weren’t alone after all.

She replayed the conversation with her father in her head. He’d talked about how well this job was going and that there’d be a bonus for her, and he said something about her taking time to relax and go out with friends. What had made him think she had friends in Adelaide? She couldn’t remember mentioning Jeremy to him, but maybe she had. Maybe her father had just been generalising.

The headlights in her side mirrors were now bigger and brighter. It hurt her eyes to look at them. Whatever was behind her was
moving fast. It would have to be smaller than a truck but it had very powerful high beams. Then the lights dimmed. Angela blinked at the road ahead trying to disperse the flashes in her eyes.

There was something else her father said that had seemed strange. He’d said she should enjoy a few drinks. He’d mentioned it twice too, in a way that seemed too specific to be a general comment. But no one knew she’d had lunch with Jeremy except Nigel, and he’d only guessed she’d been drinking after Claudia’s comment about Angela smelling like a pub.

Angela frowned. Maybe she was reading more into it than she should. She checked her side mirrors. The lights had gone. Maybe they’d pulled over. She glanced at the mirror again and was once more dazzled by brilliant light. Her heart skipped a beat. The other driver was riding her tail and shining the full force of their high beams. She checked her speed. If it was that highway patrolman again, she didn’t want to give him any excuse to pull her over.

The lights had made spots dance across her vision. Her own lights showed a long, clear stretch of road ahead. She waited for the vehicle to overtake, wanting to get back to the peace of having the road to herself.

The lights edged closer – too close – but didn’t pass.
Why?
She eased back her speed a little but they stayed right behind her, matching her speed. Angela gripped the wheel tighter. She was reminded of the driver with the caravan from one of her first journeys to Munirilla, speeding up and slowing down like it was playing cat and mouse with her.

Whoever was behind her was now too close for safety. She sped up just a little, but they stuck close. She tried slowing down again, but that didn’t work either. It was as if Big Red were towing the other vehicle, whatever it was – the brightness of its lights made it impossible to tell.

She glanced at the trip meter. They were still about twenty kilometres from Munirilla. This was crazy. She edged her speed back up to the limit. As she did so, the lights came around her rig, moving quickly up beside her. Now she could make out the rows of red lights on its flank. It was some kind of truck. For a few seconds their twin sets of headlights lit up the road like an airport runway.

Angela dimmed her beams and was startled by the beep of the driver fatigue warning. She glanced at her speed and could feel the tremble in her legs – she must have eased off the accelerator unconsciously. Ahead of her, the other truck was fast disappearing into the night. All she could see now were its taillights.

‘Mummy?’

Angela jumped at the sound of Claudia’s voice, then quickly collected herself.

‘It’s okay, Claud.’

‘My head hurts.’

‘We’re nearly home. I’ll give you some more medicine soon, and then you get to sleep in your own bed.’

Claudia groaned and Angela silently cursed the idiot driver who’d ruined her peaceful night. It must have just been someone on the long haul west, playing a game to keep themselves entertained. But it was a dangerous game to play. Angela clicked her tongue. Then, as the ‘Welcome to Munirilla – the Hub of Eyre Peninsula’ sign came into view, she let out a small sigh. Just when she’d made the decision to stay on with this job, just when she thought she was taking control of her life, her confidence had been shaken.

‘I can’t believe they’d do that to me, but they did.’ Ken dropped the pen he’d been turning in his fingers and looked up. ‘I’m sorry Angela.’ His voice was soft and the words came out slowly, as if they were being dragged from him, but Angela could see the contrition in his eyes. She felt sorry for him.

They were sitting either side of his desk and it was still early. Ken had phoned and asked her to call in before opening hours. It turned out the farmers whose chemicals were missing had cancelled the orders themselves and got Berls to deliver them instead.

For Angela it was a hollow victory. She hadn’t made a mistake and neither had Ken – but they’d both lost business.

He looked as wrecked as she felt. Her sleep had been restless, plagued with dreams of rogue trucks running her off the road.

‘I don’t understand it either,’ she said. ‘From what I’m hearing, Ranger Transport offers cheaper rates. Why would they go back to Berls?’

‘Both farmers told me they were offered a better deal.’

‘So Berls are undercutting …’ Angela clicked her tongue. ‘I still don’t get it. Why? You said they’re not interested in general carrier work.’

‘They’re not. Or at least, they weren’t. It’s always been stock for them. They only did some of the general freight more recently, after the last permanent guy pulled out.’

‘But I saw them with a brand new tautliner trailer. Why would they buy that if they’re only doing stock?’

Ken shrugged. ‘They have a couple of drivers who do general deliveries to the mining areas up north. They’ve diversified in recent years – because of the drought. They used those trailers to bring goods here before you came.’

‘Why didn’t they just take on the run then? Why’d you need someone else?’

‘Don’t worry, I spoke to Cliff Senior at length about it, long before we advertised for anyone else.’ Ken ran his fingers through his hair. ‘He said they were too busy, didn’t want to take on more drivers. There’s Cliff, his three sons, a couple of other drivers – I think Cliff prefers to keep the business to the family as much as he can.’

Angela frowned. ‘So what if they weren’t doing so well elsewhere? What if they wanted to take over the general freight here?’

‘I’ve heard a few rumours, but Cliff would have said something, surely.’

‘Maybe not – not if he’s got competition. There’s plenty of work but not enough for two companies.’

‘If he’d spoken up, Berls would’ve had the work. Still could.’

‘But I’m doing it.’

‘They’re local.’

‘So you’d give Cliff the contract over me?’

‘It’s not you personally.’ Ken lowered his gaze. ‘Anyway, you’re not staying. It’ll be some other chap–’

‘Who’ll still work for Ranger,’ Angela cut in. ‘You made a deal with my father and it looks to me as if you’re backing out.’

‘Cliff has been serving this community all his life.’

‘Serving? Frank showed me what Berls were charging before I came along. I call that ripping off the community, not serving it.’ Angela stood up. She was trying to keep a calm exterior but inside she was in turmoil.

‘He’s reliable, Angela. You might be cheaper but your deliveries have been a bit to and fro.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Two days one week, three days the next.’

Angela’s compassion for Ken was all but gone. ‘I reckon there’s enough business for three runs a week but every delivery gets chopped and changed.’

‘That’s what I mean.’

‘No Ken! That’s what
I
mean.’ She jabbed her chest with her finger. ‘Berls have been undercutting, causing changes to orders. I’m prepared to do the work but I can’t do it if it’s not there.’

Ken stood up as well. ‘You don’t know that Berls are undercutting.’

‘It’s pretty obvious from where I’m standing. But seeing as you’re so close, why don’t you ask your buddy Cliff yourself?’

‘Don’t come in here telling me what to do.’

Angela pushed back from the desk. ‘You called me,’ she said. ‘Just like you asked Ranger Transport to come here in the first place. So if you want to terminate the contract, you’ll need to deal with my father. He runs an honest business. He charges fair rates. Berls must be losing money to do it so much cheaper. Ask yourself how long they’ll be willing to keep it up.’

Ken slumped forward and shook his head. Angela clamped her lips shut. There was no point going on about it, Ken seemed to have made up his mind. He groaned. Angela stayed where she was,
staring at the top of his head. He groaned again and rubbed his chest. Was he having a heart attack? Angela looked through the glass to the shop behind her – still empty. Should she call an ambulance? She hovered over him.

‘Ken?’

He let out a big sigh and lifted his head. His face was pale.

‘Are you feeling okay? Can I get you something?’

He sat back down in his chair and stared at her. Then he sighed again and looked past her to his shop.

‘All I’ve ever done is work for this town. My father started the business and I took over where he left off. I should’ve bought a truck myself, back when I had the money. I could have employed my own driver. Hindsight is a wonderful thing.’

Angela glanced around. She wanted to go but there was still no sign of Jim or any of Ken’s other employees. He was looking very pasty and she didn’t want to leave him alone.

‘You live in a place all your life and it becomes your life.’ His voice wavered. ‘Eventually, it’s not just your family, but others who rely on you too.’

Angela frowned. She had no idea what Ken was talking about – he was rambling on as if she wasn’t even there. She edged back a step. Perhaps she should give Jim a ring, get him to come and check on his boss.

‘Everything’s been going well too, until these last couple of years.’ Ken continued to mutter to no one in particular. ‘I’ve survived high interest rates, droughts, economic downturns … Now I’m haemorrhaging money and I just can’t keep it up. I could cut my losses and call it a day, save myself. But so many depend on me here. And it’s my home. I don’t want to leave Munirilla.’

Angela was still backing towards the office door but she stopped as he caught her eye.

His face twisted into a grimace. ‘I’m sorry, I’ve been raving. You wouldn’t understand.’

The colour had now returned to Ken’s face, but things sounded grim. And Ken was wrong. Angela knew only too well the sense of helplessness that came with financial pressure. She wondered what would happen if he closed his business. Jim would lose his job, for one thing, along with the other people who worked for Ken. Maybe someone else would take on the agency, but that wouldn’t guarantee their jobs, and the uncertainty would surely drive down business.

‘You head off,’ Ken said suddenly, straightening the pens on his desk. ‘It’s not your problem. I’ll sort this mess out.’

Angela hesitated, thinking back over their interactions in the time she’d been in Munirilla. She’d thought his erratic behaviour was because he didn’t like her, but now she realised that it wasn’t personal. He was pinning all his hopes on a trucking company coming along and saving the day. Now, when things went wrong, his old-fashioned ideas about women made him all too ready to blame her instead of looking for the real cause of the problem.

Angela glanced from Ken to the shop and made a decision. She shut the door. Ken frowned as she pulled up a chair again.

‘Our company has plenty at stake here as well, Ken. I think we need to work on this together.’ Something Coop had said popped into her head. ‘We need to look at it with fresh eyes,’ she said.

‘What are you saying?’

‘You and I need to lay our cards on the table, clear the air and tackle this together. I’m not being paranoid but I’m pretty sure someone doesn’t want Ranger Transport in town. And if that’s not you–’

‘Now look, Angela.’ A crease split Ken’s forehead.

‘Let me finish. Please.’ She said the last word firmly but gently. ‘I don’t think you’re sabotaging us and I can’t see why anyone else in town would … except for Berl Stock Transport.’

‘I keep telling you, they’ve got work elsewhere. That’s why they-charge more for the general freight – why they did, anyway. They wanted us to find another company and not rely on them.’

‘Hmm.’ Angela pondered a moment. ‘But now that there is another company, Berls are undercutting and poaching loads. The cost of fuel is skyrocketing, they must be losing money on these jobs. Something’s not right, Ken. Surely you can see that.’

He held her gaze for a moment then stood up. ‘I need a coffee, would you like one?’

‘Tea would be good, if you’ve got some.’

Lights flicked on in the shop and voices echoed in the distance. Angela turned as the office door opened behind her and Jim stuck his head in.

‘Hi Angela. Leanne said to let you know she’s going to the shops after she’s dropped the boys at school, in case you’re looking for her.’

Angela glanced at her watch. She hadn’t thought she’d be this long. Leanne had finally agreed to accept some money for taking care of Claudia, but it wasn’t much and Angela didn’t want to abuse her generosity.

‘Thanks Jim. I’ll be on my way soon.’

‘We’re getting a backlog of empty pallets,’ Jim said. ‘Will you have room to take some back for us soon?’

‘I told you, they can wait,’ Ken snarled, taking them both by surprise.

‘Okay,’ Jim said, ‘It’s just that we’ve got a lot of junk stored out back, we’re running out of room. I caught another rat out there the other day. If Angela could start shifting some for us–’

‘Not at the moment,’ Ken snapped again.

‘Okay,’ Jim said again and backed out the door.

Angela gave him a feeble smile and turned back to see Ken put the mugs on the desk. She watched as the older man slumped back into his seat.

‘I’m pretty sure Jim’s one of the good guys,’ she said softly.

Ken sighed, propping an elbow on his desk and rubbing his forehead. ‘I know. He’s been with me since he left school. That’s part of the problem. I can barely afford to pay wages – so I’m certainly not paying for dead freight. Thankfully my last office girl stopped work to have a baby. I’ve been running the office alone to save money, and no one sees the extent of the damage but me and the accountant.’

‘What about your wife?’ Angela was sure she’d heard there was a Mrs Harris.

‘She’s never been involved in the business.’

‘But wouldn’t it help to talk to someone about it?’

‘She’s back and forth to Adelaide a lot. Our daughter’s just had her third baby and there were some complications. I don’t want to burden her any more than she is already.’

Angela studied Ken for a moment. No wonder he was behaving so strangely. He was facing a huge problem all alone.

‘I can’t stay much longer,’ she said, ‘but here’s what I know. There’s been several instances when freight was cancelled. Sometimes the changes were made by the people who ordered the goods, like your farmer friends, but others, like a big order of Frank’s, were changed by persons unknown. But the bottom line is, each time there’s a change, Berls picks up the freight. There also seems to be an undercurrent of distrust with a few people. The Highway Hotel manager was very surprised when I delivered his kegs on time and unloaded them alone.’

‘You what?’

‘Doesn’t matter now. I know you’re not keen on a female driver.’

‘It’s not that,’ he said feebly.

‘You weren’t the only one surprised by my gender and size, but I have to reaffirm with you, Ken,’ – she leaned closer and tapped the desk with her finger – ‘Ranger Transport wants this contract.

If Tiny Trev hadn’t broken his leg so badly, he would’ve been here from the start, but you’ve got me and I can do the job just fine … if I’m not sabotaged.’

‘That’s a bit over the top, isn’t it?’

‘Well, what would you call it?’

Ken held her gaze, then lowered his eyes and picked up his cup. ‘You’re right,’ he said, taking a slurp of coffee. ‘Something’s going on. I don’t understand Berls’ motives but it looks like they’re involved somehow. Maybe it’s not Cliff, maybe it’s the boys and he doesn’t know about it.’

Angela conjured up a picture of Cliff and his son, Clifford. She was sure it was one of them who’d fiddled with her truck at Port Augusta.

‘I don’t care if it’s one or all of them,’ she said. ‘I’m not going to let down Munirilla or my father by running away.’ She stood up. ‘I’ve got to get back to work.’

‘Leave this with me. I’m going to do some investigating. Someone in the Berls camp isn’t playing fair.’

He reached his hand across the table and Angela shook it, a little surprised at his sudden burst of energy. She moved to the door.

‘And Angela …’

She turned back.

‘I’m sorry if I gave you the impression I don’t think you can do the job. In light of all this, I think your other driver, Trev, would have met the same obstacles. No matter what happens, I’ll make sure your father knows you did your best.’

Angela nodded and hurried out through the shop. She knew her father would understand no matter what, but she wanted to get this right – for herself as much as him. This was the first time in her life when work was giving her real satisfaction. In spite of all obstacles, she was enjoying it.