The Secret of Sinbad's Cave

  Chapter 22

  Saving the Day

  Nat got up early on Monday morning and made pancakes for everyone.

  ‘I’m taking Kathleen to the hospital,’ said Mike. ‘I want that bathroom spotless and all the wood split. That’s after your rooms are done – Nat, Kathleen’s too please, make her bed and tidy everything up. If you get the vacuuming done too, we’ll have dessert tonight.’

  Jack and Nat waved from the porch as the car pulled out. But the second it had rumbled up the driveway, they sat down in a huff.

  ‘This is stupid,’ said Jack. ‘We’re not slaves.’

  ‘He’s trying to keep us busy so we don’t get any other ideas.’

  ‘Too late,’ he grumbled. ‘I’m going to play on the computer.’

  ‘What about your jobs?’ asked Nat.

  He shrugged. ‘Plenty of time for that. They’ll be gone for ages.’

  Nat watched her brother shuffle back into the house. Best to get started, she decided. If it made her Dad happier to have the chores done, that was a good thing. She began in Kathleen’s bedroom and worked down the hall, tidying and vacuuming as she went. When she raised her head and realised it was four o’clock in the afternoon, she smiled. By keeping her hands busy she’d made the hours fly. She made Kathleen’s favourite dessert, feijoa and apple crumble, and was finishing the dishes when the car pulled in.

  Kathleen bounced up the steps to show off her new purple cast. Mike followed in a daze, asked what was for dinner and then wandered out again. Soon, Nat could hear him chopping wood. The solid axe blows echoed around the paddocks.

  ‘What’s wrong with Dad?’ asked Nat.

  Kathleen was hunting for a marker pen so everyone could sign her cast.

  ‘There’s a bone medicine the doctors gave me so my arm heals right.’

  ‘And what’s the problem?’

  ‘It’s expensive,’ said Kathleen.

  Nothing more was said that evening about adventuring, or money, or hospitals. Later, Nat found her Dad sighing at his bald patch in the bathroom mirror. He passed a half-hearted comment about how clean the house was, but didn’t seem to notice that Jack hadn’t done a thing. Kathleen was in bed early. Mike joined Jack in front of the TV, but Nat excused herself. Her mind was rushing about, trying to figure out how she could make everything better. The answer was obvious. She just had to figure out a way to say it.

  Nat woke to the sound of her Dad making coffee. She scuttled down the stairs and pulled up a seat at the kitchen table.

  ‘Hi Dad,’ she began. ‘How was the hospital?’

  Mike rubbed his bleary eyes. ‘We got the same nurse that helped us when you sliced open your elbow last summer. She can’t decide whether I’m a bad parent or you’re all accident prone.’

  Nat watched as her Dad poured the black brew into his mug, and fetched a wad of lottery tickets from the bench. Opening up the newspaper, he leant over to check each ticket carefully. He screwed up the first one with a scowl and threw it on the floor. The second, third and fourth ticket landed beside the first. Nat decided to launch.

  ‘Remember I told you about our caving trip the other day, when we followed the map from the attic? There was one part I left out.’ Mike raised an eyebrow. Nat knew she was safe to continue. ‘We found a clue to the treasure; it’s supposed to be full of rubies.’

  Mike stared at her as he sipped his coffee. ‘Huh?’

  ‘Dad, we’re on the trail of a treasure chest.’

  ‘Really?’

  Nat nodded. Maybe it was too early for big news like this. ‘Really. That’s what the burglars were looking for.’

  ‘You’re serious?’

  ‘Yes!’

  Mike stared at the table. ‘Kathleen told you about the medicine.’ He sighed. ‘I know you’re just trying to help Nat, and it sounds amazing. But you might never find it. And even if you do, it probably doesn’t belong to you. There’ll be all sorts of claimants.’

  ‘Mr Te Kaitiaki said that it was mine. Because of Natalia.’

  Mike looked up. ‘Did he now?’

  Nat took a deep breath, and laid out the rest of her plan.

  ‘I know we’re grounded and we probably all deserve it but do you think it’d be okay if Riki and Abraham came up here? Abraham could explain everything to you.’ She smiled hopefully.

  The phone rang. Mike took two steps and answered it. ‘Hello? Yeah, sorry mate, I’ve been meaning to ring you about that. I know it’s overdue. I was hoping to pay when the farm sells. I’ll do what I can – but no promises.’

  Nat could hear the man on the other end. He wasn’t happy. Judging by the way her father was shifting back and forth from one foot to the other, neither was he. Mike set the phone down after another few minutes’ tirade, and pulled on his hat.

  ‘Well Nat, you call up Riki. A treasure chest might be exactly what I need to save the day.’ He bolted out the door, and soon Nat could hear the beat of the swinging axe again. Saving the day was exactly what she planned to do.