Read Online Ghost River by Tony Birch - Free Book Online Page B

names, Sonny. Or you can get the bike on your own.’
    Sonny spat another mouthful of water at him. ‘I reckon you should climb the tree. That branch looks like it’s about to snap. You weigh less than me.’
    Ren scaled the tree quicker than a cat. As he got higher he wrapped one arm and both legs around the tree trunk and tried to guide the front wheel of the bike over the end of the branch it was hooked on. The bike was too heavy. He let go of the wheel and collapsed against the tree trunk.
    â€˜I can’t do it, Sonny.’
    â€˜Yes, you can. Climb a little higher and get a better grip.’
    â€˜I can’t get higher.’
    â€˜C’mon, Ren. One more try.’
    Ren shifted his weight and stretched out his arm, grunting and swearing until he’d lifted the wheel over the top of the branch. The bike slipped from his grip at the moment he called out to Sonny, ‘In the water! Grab it!’
    Sonny dived from the bank as the bike was about to go under, and hooked a leg through the frame. Ren jumped out of the tree, landed next to the front wheel and wrapped an arm around the handlebars. He roped a leg through the frame and tried swimming breaststroke with his stomach resting on the handlebars. He wasn’t sure how Sonny was doing, but he felt like he was getting nowhere. He was about to give up and let the bike sink, when between them they got into a rhythm, making their way to the opposite bank until they could stand, their feet sinking into the muddy riverbed.
    â€˜Hold on to it, Sonny,’ Ren spluttered, coughing up water. ‘I’ve had it.’
    Sonny dragged the bike the last few feet and tried lifting it onto the bank. He couldn’t do it on his own. Ren waded across to him and grabbed the front wheel.
    â€˜One … two … three.’ The boys hurled the bike onto the riverbank, where it landed with a heavy thud. They stood in the waste-deep water laughing. Sonny crouched down, brought a handful of mud up from the bottom and slung it at Ren. The ball of mud hit him in the centre of his forehead and slipped down his face. Although they were worn out they got into a celebratory mud fight until Sonny called a truce, ducking below the surface and washing the mud from his body. Ren paddled to the edge of the river.
    Sonny waded across to him and whispered, ‘Ren, look at this.’ A brown snake, no more than a couple of feet long, slid between them.
    â€˜Which snake’s poisonous? The black or the brown one?’ he asked.
    â€˜Not sure. One of them. I forget which.’
    They didn’t move an inch until the snake had slipped away. Ren got out of the water and picked up the bike. He noticed someone further along the bank, midway between where he was standing and the falls, a man dressed in army greens, crouching forward and peering into what Ren thought looked like a telescope.
    â€˜Sonny, take a look at this fella.’
    â€˜Can’t see nothing.’
    â€˜Not from there, you can’t. Hop out of the water. There’s someone spying. See him now?’
    Sonny scrambled onto the bank. ‘Yeah, I see him. What’s he doing snooping down here? I’m gonna ride over and ask him what he’s up to.’
    â€˜You can’t do that.’
    â€˜Course I can. This is our river.’
    Sonny took the bike from Ren, straddled it and pedalled off.
    The workman spotted the two boys heading his way. He waved at them and smiled. When they got close Ren read the words sewn into the pocket of his shirt – ROAD TRANSIT AUTHORITY.
    â€˜How are you going, lads? Warm day.’ He smiled, looking up at the sun. He had straw hair and wore sunglasses. He seemed friendly enough to Ren.
    â€˜What are you looking at with the telescope?’ he asked the workman.
    â€˜It’s not a telescope. We’re surveying along here. This instrument provides accurate measurements of distance, height and the contour of the land. Would