"Like a log, little brother. Morning, Tibby." She moved over to the bench and flicked on the kettle. Coffee was in a cup ready for her and she turned to smile at Garth. Waiting for the water to boil, she gazed out the open window over the back yard. Cattle grazed lazily in the long green grass. A strand of hair fell across her face and she tucked it behind her ear before filling her cup with water.
Picking up her morning heart starter, Sami walked over to the table and pulled out a chair. She sat down, keeping the cup tight in her hands for confidence.
"Sorry about yesterday Tibby, I was tired and you kind of copped the brunt of it." She met his gaze across the table, holding her breath.
"Nothing to apologize for. Like I was telling your brother here, sounded like your grandfather giving me a piece of his mind. Brought back memories, it did." He took a sip of his coffee and continued. "Didn't mean to tell you how to run the place or anything. It's yours after all. Damned solicitor didn't tell me you were from a farm and knew what you were doing. Idiot." He scowled and took another drink.
"Yeah well, they didn't see fit to tell us much either so no foul." Sami breathed a sigh of relief. "I guess my dear brother has filled you in anyway. It's been a while since we were on the farm but somehow I doubt I will have forgotten too much."
"Must have been hard when you had to give up the farm then when your mum got sick. I knew her as a little thing, sweet and very proper she was."
Sami looked over at Garth and knew he was thinking the same thing she was. Here was their chance to find out what happened. Only problem was, they would be leaving themselves open to conversations she didn't know if they were prepared for. She took another sip of her coffee and pushed the cup away, clenching her fingers tight on her lap.
"We didn't know there was any family, on Mum's side I mean. As far as we knew, Garth and I were it. It wasn't until the solicitor made contact we found out about this place. Some grandfather, hey, to ignore us until it was too late." She drew in a breath and swallowed the bitterness back.
"Your grandfather was a stubborn old man, even if he was my friend I can admit to it. Knew how to hold a grudge like you wouldn't believe." Tibby shook his head and smiled at her. "I remember the day when your dad rocked up here looking for work, we knew he was trouble from the start. Too damned good looking for his own good and boy, he knew it. Your poor mum couldn't drag her eyes away from him and it got your grandfather going, I can tell you."
"Our father was a good man," she said.
Garth frowned when the words flew from her mouth and Sami tried to relax, biting her lip. "He worked hard to take care of us and the farm. It was hardly his fault he was killed in a freak accident. It happened, okay? We tried to keep the farm going but when Mum got sick it all got too hard for us on our own."
"Not saying he was a bad man or anything. You have to slow down a little bit here, girly. Sure can fly off the damned handle in a hurry, as bad as the old man." He softened his words with a wink. "Now, as I already said I wasn't saying your father wasn't a good man, I was telling you what happened. Do you want to hear it or not?"
Sami bit her tongue and flinched when Garth kicked her under the table. "Of course I want to hear it. Please continue, Tibby." She glared at her brother before turning a smiling face to the old man.
"As I said, when your father hit town looking for work, things changed. Your mother fell for him, hook, line and sinker. The old man wasn't the least bit happy about it either, he'd hoped for something better for your mother than an itinerant farm worker. Threatened to fire your father if he caught them together but your mum, well she had some of the old man's spirit in her too. Stood up to him and they fought, boy how they fought."
"Doesn't sound like the mother I remember," Sami said.
"Well it took some to get her riled up if I remember correctly but your grandfather, he got her going easy enough when he had a mind too. So much in fact one night her and your daddy disappeared. Broke the old man's heart it did. Turned him bitter and sour, he was never the same again. Your poor grandmother died of a broken heart too or so he always said."
"Well if he was so damned bitter about it, why did he leave us the place then?" Sami fidgeted in her chair. Standing up, she walked over and rinsed her cup in the sink before turning back to Tibby. "How about showing us the farm? Then we can sort out what we are going to do."
"Aren't you going to eat first, girl? Can't do a day's work on a cup of coffee."
"Don't worry about Sami, she lives on the black stuff." Garth laughed and stood up before following her out the back door.
The smell of fresh green grass filled her nostrils and Sami took the time to glance over the back yard before walking down the steps. A dog pulled on a chain out in the yard and yapped at her.
"Kelpies, cool," Garth said as he ran down the path to the gate. He slammed it behind him, then ran over the dirt driveway
